Entrepreneurial Spirit –Polischuk

There's been a lot of news lately about entrepreneurs—from the movie "The Social Network" about the founding of Facebook to the premature passing of the legendary Steve Jobs.

Entrepreneurs seem to have a lot of traits in common, but several traits especially stand out to me—hard work, passion, and the willingness to "bet the farm." Many times, there's also a figurative, or even literal garage that serves as company headquarters. A reminder to us all is that, just like in sports, for every successful entrepreneur that hit the jackpot (or is making $10 million playing in the big leagues) there's maybe 100 others that lost the farm and are working in someone else's fields. It's the nature of the beast.

Even with many common traits, there is still no cookie-cutter model for an entrepreneur. Some hit it big once and live well for the rest of their lives; some leave a trail of businesses—some successes, some failures—in their wake (because they either don't have the skills to run a larger company or don't want the hassles); and others, like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, have staying power.

This last group, represented by these two giants of world commerce, is especially impressive. It's one thing to operate a small business where you know all the employees by their first names, and yet another to run a multi-billion dollar conglomerate with tens of thousands of employees. It's a rare combination to say the least.

Every story we hear about successful American entrepreneurs should also remind us of what makes this country great. It's not just a cliché that America is a land of opportunities. We have a fertile field of institutions that encourages and rewards those people who are willing to take a chance. This environment serves as a real advantage in the ever more competitive world economy.

Maybe not on a scale of a Bill Gates, or a Steve Jobs, but the package-pringing industry has its own list of entrepreneurs who have put everything on the line and came out on top. Congratulations to Ken Kidd, a real gentleman and the 2011 TLMI Converter of the Year, who is one more example that nice guys can finish first. He and three partners put all their own personal savings into their new company that had $0 in sales on the books and one printing press in a rented garage. He is finishing off his career as CEO of WS Packaging, a company with 18 plants and $400 million in sales. With a career spanning 45 years, this puts him in the same category with the likes of Gates and Jobs—staying power. See his story beginning on p. 14.

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