Only two things count in life; Reasons or Result. You either have a reason why it can’t be done or you show me the result of what you’ve done. A good example of this word is, Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino’s Pizza, who had a tough childhood. He was raised in orphanages and Foster homes; his father had died when he was four. He lived with his mother for a couple of years, but she sent him to a Foster home when they could not get along. Monaghan struggled in school; he graduated last in his high school class and was expelled from a Catholic seminary. He tried college six times but never got past his freshman year.
In 1960, Monaghan and his brother Jim borrowed $900 and bought a foundering pizzeria in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Jim left within the year, but Tom hung on, surviving two near-bankruptcies and a fire. Slowly, he opened new stores. In 1979, he was sued by the Amstar Corporation for infringing on the name of Domino sugar. Amstar won the first round, but Monaghan won on appeal. Through entrepreneurship, Monaghan-who had never succeeded at anything-discovered that he had perseverance and drive. He enjoyed making pizza and was committed wholeheartedly to making Domino’s Pizza a household name.
During these years, Monaghan worked eighteen hours a day, seven days a week. He traveled all over the Midwest visiting other pizzerias to check out their operations. By the time the lawsuit with Amstar was settled, Domino’s had grown to 290 stores. Only a year later, Monaghan opened his 500th store. Today, Domino’s has more than 8,000 stores in United States and more than 3,000 in other countries including Nigeria.
In 1983, Monaghan realised a boyhood dream when he purchased the Detroit Tigers baseball club for $54 million. A year later, the Tigers won the World Series.
Many other great people and entrepreneurs have overcome poverty, racism, and language and cultural barriers. For example: The most successful African American in the oil industry, Jake Simmons, Jr. was raised on a ranch in Oklahoma in the early 1900s. At that time, the state government was openly racist. Some blacks were even lynched, but Simmons and other black Oklahomans fought hard for their freedom. Simmons went on to build a great fortune from oil & land deals.
There are one doze traits you must develop to withstand life challenges
1. Adaptability – the ability to cope with new situations and find creative solution to problem
2. Positive Competitiveness-the willingness to compete with and test oneself against others.
3. Confidence – the belief that you can do what you set out to do
4. Discipline – the ability to stay focused and stick to a schedule and deadline
5. Drive – the desire to work hard to accomplish one’s goals
6. Honesty – the commitment to tell the truth and deal with people fairly
7. Organisation – the ability to structure one’s life and keep tasks and information in order
8. Perseverance – the refusal to quit; the willingness to keep goals in sight and work toward them despite obstacles
9. Persuasiveness – the knack for convincing people to see your point of view and get them interested in your ideas
10. Risk Taking – the courage to expose oneself to possible losses
11. Understanding – the ability to listen to and empathize with other people
12. Vision – the ability to see the end results of your goals while working to achieve them.