The Blue Roof

Still busy with Made in America, the Sam Walton Story!

What does Sam Walton (of Wal Mart) and Warren Buffett have in common?

Well, the obvious thing is that both, in their own time, were considered the wealthiest person in America.

Both started their business careers with the newspaper! Warren Buffett had several newspaper routes and Sam Walton not only had several routes, he even had people working for him to deliver the newspapers. And when there was a drive to expand subscription, Sam Walton really went out their to sign up more people and increase his income.

This is interesting, since they are not the only very wealthy people who started their wealth by delivering newspapers or working as waiters. They gained experience in selling (waiters are really sales people, unfortunately few realise it), they gained experince in customer service, they gained experience working with clients, they gained experience handling their own money, and appreciating the value of money. And other than their own drive and having a “wealth-gene”, it made a difference.

That is why I love network marketing. We grow to old for newspapers and waitering, but network marketing is an excellent way to gain business experience with low cost and low risk.

The next thing they have in common, is that both started their careers as employees in the industry where they made their fortunes. Buffett started his career in a brokerage and Sam Walton started out working in a store. They learned and gained experience before they ventured out to make their fortunes. They did not start as the boss, they learned the business from the bottom up. Initially their responisbilities were small enough so that a mistake would not sink the business and as they showed their metal, the responisbilities increased.

With the experience and knowledge gained as salaried employees, they ventured out to start their own businesses. In all the negativity about JOBS, we often forget the fact that somebody else pays and bears the risk to train us and to pay us while we learn. And we forget that the skills we acquire is real wealth! And too often people jump into a new venture with no knowledge and experience at all. My experience is that every businesses, no matter how simple it might look, has its own unique little secrets that make the difference between success and failure. You can learn it at your cost, or the employer’s cost!

Lastly, neither one of our heroes went out with the idea to become the wealthiest person in America. They found something that really interests them, that gives them a thrill to do and they just kept on doing what they like and love, always improving.

And it came as a surprise to Sam Walton when he saw the front page of Fortune announcing him as the wealthiest person in America.

A lot of lessons here.