Assignment 13A- Reading Reflection No.1

Miracles Happen by Mary Kay Ash

What surprised you the most?

She is an entrepreneur that had a large faith in God. Which is very surprising to me because when you look at entrepreneurs now a day many of them are so concerned with their career that they don’t even consider themselves religious. It’s almost like their job is their religion. Her outlook on career surprised me as she explained that you should put ‘God 1st, Family 2nd, and Career 3^rd’, which a majority of businessmen and women do not do today.

What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

Even in the face of tragedy, with her father sick and the passing of her husband, she was still determined to make her dream come true. And as she was trying to accomplish her dream she knew when she had to fix certain aspects of her self, so that throughout this whole journey she would remain and strive to be the best version of herself each day. I admire this a lot because even while she is pushing herself to become something in the business world she was still staying true to herself.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

It’s clear that Mary Kay Ash had an amazing success even when others thought she would fail. It’s very hard to find something I don’t admire when she overcame many obstacles and succeeded in the business world while still remaining true to her own self and values. And, at the same time, I’m sure this book has inspired many young women. But I guess I had to choose one thing I least admired is how she never really admitted things that she should have done better at the end when reflecting.

Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?

Mary Kay definitely encountered adversity. She was a woman who wore many hats. She was a businesswoman but she was also a mother so she had to find the balance between the two. And especially after losing her husband, all the responsibility when it came to her children lay with her. But with her strong faith in God and the heart she had of determination she took each obstacle day by day.

What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?

I believe she showed many different competencies that were all valuable in contributing to her becoming successful. Two main ones that stick out are her organization skills and her skill of using being a woman to her advantage instead of as a disadvantage. For the first one I mentioned, Mary Kay used the analogy of planning a vacation as a pointer to how we should plan our lives as she says that every detail is important if we are going to make it a worthwhile journey. Having this skill she was able to set small goals that reached up to her big dream. As for the second one I said. Feminity is something that may be seen as something negative in business, but Mary Kay decided to use this to her advantage through her looks and personality.

Identify at least one part of the reading that is confusing to you

I wasn’t confused as much as I was shocked. During this time women, to say it bluntly, were not taken seriously. So for her to leave her traditional workplace, in an effort to set out and become successful on her own, I’m sure had many people shocked during this time period. She was one of the firsts that was fed up enough to have the tenacity to make something of herself.

If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur what would you ask?

One question that I would ask is was she scared going off on her own to try in make something of herself being a women at forty five years old? I would ask her this because I think given her age and sex this task could be very difficult. 

The second question I would ask is what would be her tips to keep pushing yourself even when things seem to be going against you? I would ask her this because Mary Kay Ash went through so many downfalls that could have really left her to just give up, but she never did. 

What do you think the entrepreneur’s opinion was of hard work?

When it comes to hard work I believe that Mary Kay ash think this is made up of many components. She explained how a career is more than a job and there are three components to success: Desire to succeed, the know-how, and applying yourself. Each of these steps to success require continuous hard work, which Mary Kay Ash exemplified and lived by. I also share this opinion because I believe in order to accomplish or succeed in something you must put in hard work to actually get something out of it.