My Featured Journal Entries
This week helped relieve a lot of stress and at the same time answered a lot of questions. Monday’s meeting with the bankers at RRCA really helped us focus in on the strengths and weaknesses of our business plans. The banker that Drew and myself had been assigned to, Russ Spitzer, talked about how he enjoyed when we rotated as he got to discuss several plans and we got to get insight from different bankers. I think it was Ross who pointed out that every banker he’d talked with pointed out something different. This just goes to show how valuable multiple opinions can be in forming a better business plan. Even as we’ve toured a couple other banks this year, I thought our visit to the bank was pretty cool to see as I’d never really gone “behind the scenes” at a bank like that touring the tunnels and all. Our tour of Selmi’s with owners Matt and Frank Selmi blew me away! It’s funny when we hear from business professionals on nearly every tour we take how they all had wished they had a program like this when they were in school. Matt mentioned how he actually did have a program similar to this in college. He talked about how his teacher wasn’t big on books and that they were to go out in the community and learn the way we do. What astounded me was how they turned a failing business over and set it back on a path to success. The business he helped flip is now Birkey’s Equipment. Coincidentally my first riding mower I bought about 5 years back was from Birkey’s when my business was just in the making. Matt continues to show his entrepreneurship at the farm constantly making improvements and recreating Selmi’s to become more and more successful yet. With Matt leaving his job at Sherwin Williams for 10 years to come home to the farm, it sparked him to bring up the question “Would you rather work your whole life for someone or work for yourself?” Most of us that have our own businesses created already have a good idea to the answer of that. Our final days until break wrapped us with us giving our pitches to take out our loans. With my business already established and no need for a loan, I used this as an opportunity to hear from Jerry, Nik, and Cindy as to what could be done to improve. This goes back to how multiple opinions will help you improve on your flaws and strengths in your business. This upcoming week off will definitely be useful in getting caught up on a few things. Enjoy your break!
03/26/2017
Doug came in Wednesday and really helped us straighten out our real numbers concerning our class business. With the Trivia Dinner only a month off now, we didn’t have the time to guess on our finances. We had to seriously put out our numbers- what we want to make, what we want to spend, and how we’re going to accomplish it. Doug made sure we had got that done. As the year has gone on, we have managed to pull together a good number in our student account, but not quite the numbers we’re looking to have before the trade show approaches us. We’ve got to make this dinner a real success! Friday sort of tugged us apart as a class in some debates as the tension began to really tighten up. I think the dessert auction a must (it is printed on the tickets). But as far as the tables go, I think capping it at 6 $500 tables is our best bet.
02/05/2017
"Drew Wilkens really has the true entrepreneurship as he started his own business when he saw the local absence and needs for what he does. The FFA really stopped him in his tracks and put that roadblock in his path kind of how our plans changed on us last minute while filming Monday. But, he overcame those and got the 333 exemption allowing him to really get his business off the ground and grow commercially into real estate. I think the real big picture here is that it’s not always about getting somewhere, but how we get somewhere. And that when we get stopped, it’s how we get past what stopped us. Norm mentioned last week that experience is a valuable tool. And it certainly is. This class has been an a journey and I’ve gained so much experience already that none of us could learn in any classroom environment."
10/16/2016