| When Dr. Mel Gravely, one of this year's The Money Conference's keynote speakers, talks the talk about entrepreneurs, one can be rest assured that he has already walked the walk. When yet in high school, Gravely created a business that created key chains in the colors of football teams. In college, he created a funeral home cleaning business. And at the top of his game in Corporate America, he "dropped out" to create a multi-million civil engineering firm. Currently, he is the founder of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Thinking. Yes, Gravely knows how to walk the walk. As an entrepreneur, Gravely is an optimist who sees everything as a possibility. In the area of African American businesses, Gravely sees a glass that is half full. "I think the interest of African American people in entrepreneurship is growing and growing rather rapidly," Gravely said during a recent telephone interview. "I think the general state is, though, that most of the firms are still quite small. The size of the firms is growing, but they still aren't very big and they still aren't very strategic yet. But the general trend is positive. And if we stay the course, we can see continued growth also." In Gravely's view, businesses of color need to look beyond their own backyard if they want to succeed. "Success is found in running businesses in the mainstream with market-driven principles and being a part of that broader economy, nationally and internationally," Gravely emphasized. "Black and White really does equal green. Communities prosper as companies prosper. As communities grow, everyone grows. We cannot be successful, Whites or Blacks or Hispanics or Asians if we are not all sharing in the prosperity of our future. Our success is linked together as we compete in the global economy." Gravely expounded on some of the qualities that are found in many entrepreneurs. "Wanting to act on something before it acts on you is helpful," Gravely said. "I think a relationship builder is important. Building relationships with employees, with partners, with competitors, and with customers is very critical. I think the ability to delay gratification comes in handy. Businesses never grow as fast as we think they will. They're never as successful as early as we think they'll be. So to be able to delay your gratification is important because gratification is often delayed when you are an entrepreneur. There are probably a number of other characteristics, but those are the ones that really stick out as attributes of entrepreneurs." But most importantly, according to Gravely, while entrepreneurs expect to make money in their endeavors, money is not the sole reason for being an entrepreneur. "Their agenda was to make money," Gravely admitted. "But they expected it. They didn't have to pursue it. So therefore, they pursued doing that which they do the best that they could. And that became the driving factor. If money is the driving factor, it doesn't come fast enough and you run out of steam too soon. What we found is there has to be some other motivation other than money, but money has to be an expectation." What are some of the pitfalls that Gravely sees with some businesses of color? Well, for one, people do not take responsibility for their own success and expect others to help them. "Entrepreneurs, by their nature, don't think that way," Gravely emphasized. "They understand they are in it by themselves and if they get any help that is great." While some people may feel that American markets are saturated, Gravely sees an abundance of opportunities for businesses of color to make gains in the mainstream markets. "There are always going to be markets to be filled because markets, desires, and needs are always changing and shifting," Gravely said. "There's new technology in the marketplace. There are new areas of our world to be served. Yes, there will be new markets, but there will also be new ways of delivering on old markets as well. Just look at the Dell Computer model. Here's a guy who decided there was a better way to sell computers. I think African Americans and other people of color have to think about those break-through opportunities and not aspire to be the minority version of a major corporation. They need to look to see if there is a better way to do this, a more efficient way, a more cost-effective way, a more valuable way." Entrepreneurism holds a world-wide realm of possibilities. The Money Conference will be held at the Alliant Energy Center on August 19. For questions about the Money Conference, please contact Richard Entenmann of Asset Builders of America at 866-304-6896. |
| Dr. Mel Gravely to speak at The Money Conference Mr Entrepreneur By Jonathan Gramling |
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