Ayn Rand and Me

As I stated in my previous Blog entry about Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged is like Shakespeare for the businessperson. /1

I read Atlas Shrugged for the first time when I was 20 years old and a sophomore at Radford University. Professor Nick Pappas put that book in my hands, and I never saw business, or the way it impacted peoples lives the same. Dr. Pappas knew I was entrepreneurial. I had lost my Cross Country scholarship and was selling moonshine out of West Virginia to pay for school.

I was intrigued.

The book is long and epic. It took me over six months to read it – mostly because I was fascinated by how the characters viewed the world, business, and their roles in the fabric of the business community. They made me think in terms of why things happen, and how we can influence events in small ways with big outcomes. Shortly before graduation, I wrote Dr. Pappas a letter having decided that the book was a dissertation on “how smart people used uncommon fundamentals to shape successful business”. I relished every moment with each page. I am self-absorbed and a perfectionist. So, I saw myself in every word and changed by each paragraph. I started to envision what it would be like to run my own business. Atlas Shrugged made me want to create an organization that reflected my ideal; my self image; my perfectionism.

I bought a moving company just after college and focused on customer service. My father had been an officer in the Air Force, and we moved every two years. So, I understood the customer experience. I also “gave” 15% of the company to all of the employees. I sold that business for over five times what I paid for it.

I had decided that no matter what business I was involved with (operator, investor, etc.); I would give my clients the absolute best experience or result. I always offered my hand, and guaranteed the result.

To this day, most of my clients know that we guarantee our work. Some don’t think in those terms. But, even if they don’t know or care about my guarantee – that’s okay; because I know it.

I was also deeply influenced by how the “bosses” in the book treated their employees. This made me ask the question – “Am I responsible for my people”?

Absolutely.

I had the epiphany that each employee, if enabled (and, inspired), is responsible for generating superior product to keep a job at the company. The company does not exist to put food on their plates.

The objective it to SERVE, and be part of the solution. /2

I believe we have a moral obligation to pursue our own happiness and also help people. Maybe this is what Granddad meant, in part, when he taught me to “Follow dreams and stay true to friends”. When you are happy and fulfilled, other people are drawn to you and inspired. This enables you to help them. I think this means, in part, invest in ways to help other people.

This set the stage for every business and enterprise that I have been involved with.
Isn’t it ironic that the law of natural selection is often based on what the market decides? That is pure Ayn Rand (and, I hope, Brian Cork).

A step in the path to being a “Love Kat”.

Peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

Brian Patrick Cork
____________________________
1/ “Why Ayn Rand Was a Visionary.“

2/ These words; in this combination; with this context evolved after I became a Volunteer Fire Fighter. Battalion Chief Chuck Schmidt challenged us all to be “Part of the solution, not the problem”.

Filed under: Articles By Brian Cork, Business, Coaching, Economy , Ayn Rand, Brian Cork, Business, Chuck Schmidt, Love Kat, Nick Pappas, Radford University

A Wireless Carrier Solution

The Problem…

Wireless carriers in the United States work with major cellular manufacturers to exclude or disable certain functions on phones sold in North America.

The carriers thwart functions such as personal ring tones, photo sharing and Wi-Fi capability to push customers to the carrier’s fee-based services. They, in essence, hold you and your cell phone hostage while generating an enormous margin of profit via early termination fees.

As a result, U.S. consumers can do less with their cell phones than people in most other countries – and, we often pay more for similar services.

A Solution…

U.S. wireless carriers are unlikely to drop their lucrative strategies without a fight. So, it’s up to legislators and regulators to encourage a truly competitive cell phone market. One way they can do that is by enacting the wireless equivalent of the rules that have governed land-line phones since the 1960’s. These rules give consumers the right to attach any device they wish to their telephone network as long as it does no harm (maybe this is where Google got it’s “Do No Evil” and open-architecture philosophies from). This clearly led to innovations such as the facsimile (fax) machine and computer modems (which in facilitated the exponential growth of the internet).

Phone locking, long-term contracts with stiff early-termination fees, and hobbled handsets stymie competition and consumer choice. Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, thinks that U.S. cell phone users deserve the same advantages as consumers around the world.

Some good news…

AT&T announced last month that they will open their platform to any wireless device from any manufacturer and not require a contract (in some cases). It looks like Verizon is preparing to follow suit.

For more information, you can visit a watchdog group called Hear Us Now at their website at the following coordinates… www.hearusnow.org.

Peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

Brian Patrick Cork

Filed under: Articles By Brian Cork, Business, Economy , AT&T, Brian Cork, Legislation, Wireless

Why Ayn Rand Was a Visionary

Just over 50 years ago Ayn Rand published the book that launched a thousand companies.

Atlas Shrugged is more than three times the length of Built to Last and features far steamier love scenes. But the two books share this: They are among the all-time favorite reads of business leaders. Published 50 years ago, Rand’s very magnum opus has inspired several generations of entrepreneurs to unleash their inner titans of industry.

My Grandad put Atlas Shrugged in my hands as did my favorite college professor and early mentor – Dr. Nick Pappas. That connection was not lost on me my sophomore year at Radford University.

The novel recounts a battle for – as oxymoronic as it sounds – the soul of the U.S. economy. On one side are the “producers,” who use brain or brawn to invent, to create wealth and change the world. On the other side are “looters” and “moochers”: academic, government officials, and underachievers seeking to live off the sweat of others. The plot turns to efforts by dauntless railroad executive Dagny Taggart and her lover, the resolute industrialist Henry Rearden to keep their empires afloat while enemies of progress thwart them at every turn. Meanwhile, the nation’s most talented individuals are mysteriously disappearing, lured by enigmatic visionary John Galt to Colorado, where they withhold their talents from a society they see as hopelessly corrupt.

Atlas Shrugged is like a Shakespeare for the businessperson.

I will be discussing this book and Ayn Rand further in later Blogs entries.

Brian Patrick Cork

Filed under: Articles By Brian Cork, Business, Coaching, Economy , Ain Rand, Atlas Shrugged, Brian Cork

Networking: Rule 33

There are essentially two separate kinds of networking. One is social, and, the other is business.

The focus of this particular Blog entry is business networking.

There is always the temptation to introduce people and think you are doing them both a favor. But, often, you are not. Starbucks is always congested with people wondering why they are meeting the person they are sitting with.

For the purpose of business and commerce, the purpose of introductions is to connect two or more people that can clearly advance the options and abilities of the other(s). Or, you are asking one person to help another in a very specific way. Then, as the connector, you now have an express obligation to follow up and make sure both parties did what you expected of them.

As a direct result, a clearly stated agenda and objective is identified and met. All parties should benefit and reciprocate equitably.

Lets be art of the solution, and not the problem.

Brian Patrick Cork

Filed under: Articles By Brian Cork, Business, Coaching , Brian Cork, Networking