Teresa, the great friend that she is, recently sent me a pair of TOMS and this book.
Last night, as I read the last page of this book, I was passionately inspired by the mission of TOMS. This book has taught me of the importance of: having a story, facing your fears, and how to take the first steps.
A famous Native Northern American quote states; " Tell me a fact and I’ll learn. Tell me a truth and I’ll believe. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever."
As a an avid reader, I have found this to be so true. I have never been to great with memorizing facts, but I have always enjoyed learning; similarly, I have always revelled in the beauty of the truth (ex: The Summa Theologica ), but it is the stories that I have read that are engrained in my heart. Stories stay with you, because we are able to relate mentally, physically, & emotionally. Having a relationship with something builds ties and bonds between you and that mental picture of what ever the story is at hand. TOMS' story connects with the human heart's inherent desire to love, and really who doesn't enjoy some loving, for it is through the love of humanity that Blake was able to generate a company that gives shoes ( and now eyesight as well) to those in need. Blake has redefined the value of story telling in this work. He has taken the value of storytelling and applied it to entrepreneurial concepts, aka he was able to profit by having a story. So sit back and read this story; it will remain with you forever.
For those of you afraid of what will be, like myself, you are familiar with the face of fear. This book made a huge impression on me in the area of fear. Often I am filled with ideas, but less often do I fulfill these ideas. Franklin D. Roosevelt in his inaugural address stated; " there is nothing to fear, but fear itself." This could not be more true, and Blake's story is one of overcoming fear. I highly suggest all you fearful people get inspired by Blake's ability to relinquish your fears. He tells the 'story' of his company plus various other companies that had viable reasons to have fear but overcame it. Entrepreneurs should more correctly be called Fear Conquering Soldiers, because it's really the battleground of fear we are soldiering against. Bill Cosby, yes, even comedians are faced with fear, states: "in order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure." For every success we see, we are a witness to someone's fear overcome. So be not afraid, do something!
Baby steps, or whatever you prefer to call them, every action is started by someone or something first doing something! Taking the first steps is often the hardest, and one of my favorite things Blake wrote regarding this is: tying shoes. His friend told him that he knew he would get done what he needed to accomplish, he is a competitive triathlon runner, after he tied his shoes. My first step is brushing my teeth, I always feel that the feeling of clean teeth is the first step towards a better day. To sum up how great the frist step is Blake writes:
The most important step of all is the first step. Start Something! What if that idea you have in the back of you head is a really good one, one that might end up helping tens of thousands of people? You owe it to the world to act. ... If you don't do it, you are missing out on something big, and so are the people who could have been helped.
In conclusion, I would give this book 5 stars and suggest that anyone who has ever had an idea that they wanted to fulfill should read this & go get a pair of TOMS!
If you want to know more about the TOMS story check this out:
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