Cornerstone Class Talking Points for 11th Grade Classroom (Post-College Years)

Talking Points for 11th Grade Classroom (Post-College Years)

First Sales Job – Welding Company (1979–1981)

• Bachelor of Science, Business Administration – University of Minnesota (1979).
• A fraternity brother connected me to my first job selling welders and battery chargers.
• The territory ranked 50th out of 50 when I started.
• Worked 80–100 hours a week; held welding clinics, drove all over Northern Minnesota.
• Results: Took the territory from 50th to 2nd in the nation in just one year.
• Promoted to Bettendorf, Iowa—covered Illinois territory.
• Straight commission, paid my own expenses, $13/day hotel allowance.
• Left after 2 years—by then, my territory was #1 in the country.
• Income: $50K first year, $75K second year—huge money in the early 1980s.

Skill takeaway: Confidence + work ethic = success. You don’t need prior experience; you need the drive to outwork everyone else.

Leap of Faith—Moving West (1981)

• Decided to move west with no job lined up. Packed the car, drove to Seattle.
• Arrived during a recession—took 2.5 months to find a job.
• Important mindset: Ignored distractions (TV, movies, “the world’s noise”) and poured into books and self-education.
• Long-term ambition: I did not want to retire depending on Social Security; I wanted to be wealthy enough to live life on my terms.

Skill takeaway: Educate yourself relentlessly. Focus on what’s in front of you, not the noise around you.

Entry into Computers—Small Startup (1981–1983)

• Hired as the 10th salesperson at a 50-person computer company.
• First assignment: Write a training manual (despite no experience).
• Shadowed every department—from president to secretary to engineers.
• Sales results: 14 sales in the first year; the next closest rep had 6.
• Why? Willingness to cold call relentlessly.
• No internet—used the library, wrote down names, and called from scratch.

Skill takeaway: Cold calling is the skill no one wants but everyone needs. Courage and persistence beat experience.

Second Computer Company (1983–1984)

• Joined another firm as the 11th salesperson.
• Within 1 year, I was #1 in sales among all 10 veteran sales reps.
• Learned that age doesn’t matter—results and effort matter.

Skill takeaway: Don’t let being young (or inexperienced) hold you back. If you put in the work, you can leapfrog veterans.

Break + Backpacking Europe (1984–1985)

• Took 8 months off to travel and backpack across Europe.
• Learned independence, adaptability, and perspective.

Skill takeaway: Sometimes stepping away helps you come back sharper, hungrier, and more focused.

First Entrepreneurial Leap – Telemarketing Business (1985)

• Returned from Europe; decided not to get another job—wanted to start a company.
• Launched a telemarketing business, cold-calling on behalf of other companies.
• One client asked me to partner in selling used Hewlett-Packard computer products.
• At that time, only the 5th company in the world was doing it.

Skill takeaway: Opportunities often come from doing the small, thankless jobs well.

Building a National Company (1985–1995)

• Started with just two people in a small office.
• I handled sales, engineering, inventory, shipping, and operations.
• Grew to 75 employees, 12 sales reps, engineers, and a 50,000 sq. ft. warehouse.
• Bought competitors, expanded nationwide.
• By 1995, I had built one of the most successful HP-resale businesses in the country.

Skill takeaway: Entrepreneurship means wearing every hat. Learn every aspect of the business, not just one piece.

Second Company – U.S. Computer (1995–1998)

• Founded my own company, this time owning 100% of it.
• Already had clients, suppliers, and industry knowledge.
• Within 6 months, made $1 million in profit.
• Sold the company in 1998 for several million dollars.

Skill takeaway: Sometimes you have to leave a good thing to build a great thing—and ownership is the key to wealth.