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Many of us have business idols whom we look up to and aspire to be like. So who`s your business idol?

Dale King

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I don`t know about idol, because I`m not good at putting anyone on a pedestal. But I do have a lot of people I admire.

For example, I admire Rich Sloan. (But of course, this is my story, so it`s going to have some weird twist to it.) Most people, once they attain a certain level of success, would get a fat head and hire themselves assistants to do everything for them. (C`mon, you all know at least one boss from your past like that!) But not Rich. Rich walks his darn self (several miles!) from a train station to a meeting, makes his own calls, and gets himself his own lunch. These things are important because they say, to me, "while I have achieved a lot in life, I haven`t lost who I am." People usually earn my respect through realness and honesty, not by how much money they have made in life.

I admire Woz more than Jobs. OK Jobs has the money and the fame now ... but honestly, he was always seemed like kind of a jerk when I was a kid. (My grandma was one of Apple`s original employees, years and years ago.) Woz was always so kind-hearted and giving, going back to teaching, doing good things for the school system and the Children`s Museum, etc. He still does good things, and stays in the know ... but he doesn`t have to be in the spotlight.

Funny enough, I respect Ivanka Trump. She had every chance to be a Paris Hilton ... but she isn`t. She`s actually a very smart businesswoman who works very hard. And she didn`t just jump out of business school and expect a position in daddy`s company ... she earned her keep somewhere else first.

This may sound facetious, but I`m being serious when I say Jackie Mason (the comedian). He was blackballed from the entertainment business through a misunderstanding, and his entire life and career went on hold for 20 years.

In the meantime, he was getting older, working hardly at all, going nowhere. His name was mud, and he was mostly on his own. Despite all that, he totally believed his destiny was to be a comedian. Now, nearly 80, he`s at last succeeding.

I can`t imagine what his life was like in the swamps, but aside from his being brilliant, his persistence stands for me as a role model.

I wouldn`t call him an idol but I greatly admire Wally Byam who hand built the first Airstream trailers in the 1930s and created an icon of American pop culture.  In addition to running the company, he spent months a year on the road "field testing" his trailers in caravans with his customers.  Imagine traveling with the CEO of a company who`s products you use.  Now that`s connecting with your market.

I don`t really idolize anyone, but I greatly admire the accomplishments of  John H. Johnson, the founder of Ebony and Jet magazines. He had the necessary charisma, tenacity and passion to convince corporate America that there was such a thing as a black consumer market

In 1942, he took out a $500 loan that he used to send charter subscription offers to Supreme Liberty customers. Within a year, sales soared from 5,000 to 50,000.

Based on that success, in 1945 Johnson launched Ebony, modeled after Life magazine. In 1951, he added Jet, a more news-oriented magazine that chronicled the growth of the civil-rights movement.

I highly recommend reading his autobiography,  Succeeding Against The Odds. That book is as good as it gets for providing inspiration.

I also have a great deal of admiration for BET founder, Robert Johnson who is also the owner of the Charlotte Hornets basketball franchise.

Johnson borrowed money to start his own cable brand, BET. Launched in 1980, it was profitable within five years. In the early `90s BET became the first African-American-controlled company to be traded publicly on the New York Stock Exchange. In 1998 Johnson bought it back and then sold it to Viacom, pocketing a reported $1.5 billion himself and retaining his position as chairman and CEO.

Dale King

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I didn`t know those mags had been around so long.  That`s really cool.

I also admire Disney.  He`s known for having a lot of personal faults and being a grade A jerk, but man did he have vision and persistence.  His ability to turn dreams into experiences was brilliant.  Theme parks and animation are industries that he invented out of his own imagination, meaning he wasn`t the first but he pushed the boundaries of possibility.

Steve, those magazines are classics. They`re staples in most black households, as well as in many doctors and dentists offices.

Both magazines feature some of the most beautiful women in the world. I`m talking drop dead gorgeous! The editorials aren`t too bad either!

I agree with you about Disney. He was a visionary, indeed!

Dale King

-------------------------

If you`re tired of all the money-making
hype, lies and scams...read this!
Click here for more details!

Personal development gurus, Anthony Robbins and Jim Rohn.  Both deliver first class information and do it extremely well.  Jim Rohn has a rock solid organization, and much of what he teaches is timeless and valuable. 

Anthony Robbins I love because he understands human nature very, very well, and has positioned his organization to take advantage of human nature.  I think by decentralizing his organization he may be making an error, but time will tell.  He has a lot more money than I do (yet) so I can second guess him all I want.

I also admire Vic Johnson (asamanthinketh.net) for bootstrapping his way back from virtually bankrupt to a millionaire and helping people along the way.

And of course, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. Captains of Capitalisim.

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Dale
www.ourbestidea.com
www.maskerinsurance.com
www.maskercreations.net

I admire Steve Jobs.....

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BILLIONAIRE..FUTURE

There`s a few people I admire in the business world:

Milton Glaser - he was one of the first designers to take graphic design to a whole new level.  In 1974, as a senior in high school, I saw his book Graphic Design and it gave a name to what I wanted to do when I grew up.  It also debunked the idea that a person couldn`t make a living in such a profession.  Fast forward nearly 30 years and I found myself at a cocktail party, in honor of myself and the other speakers at an international design conference, and Milton Glaser was there.  I`m a nervous wreck meeting him - but the man could not have been more down-to-earth, engaging and gracious.  In one of his conference sessions he  discussed how important it is to give back to others - something I have always done.  A woman stood up and asked how the little nonprofit music festival in her  hometown ended up with a logo designed by  Glaser.  He said he had always been a  fan of music programs and the small music festival had asked for his help.  These days if I get an email from Milton Glaser I still nearly wet myself.

Others I admire greatly also are always giving back to the community or supporting important, yet sometimes unpopular, causes.  Their success is not about themselves - but rather about helping others.  Some of my other business idols are:

Kenneth Cole - his book Footnotes: What You Stand For Is More Important Than What You Stand In offers great business and social responsibility lessons.

Luciano Benetton - co-founder of Benetton.  The company`s Colors Magazine and BenettonTalk sites are incredible.

Paul Newman and A. E. Hotchner    - co-founders of Newman`s Own -  their book Shameless Exploitation in Pursuit of the Common Good is a great business story.

- J.




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Jeff Fisher | Jeff Fisher LogoMotives | Tweet! Tweet!