2004 was full of changes, but the one thing that came out of the turmoil was the determination to finally move forward with my 2nd career plans. You see, I always thought of myself as an entrepreneur and have had and acted upon many a “get rich - work for yourself” venture. I have sold shoes (even came up with a patent for a new type of footwear), have sold Mary Kay (which is a great brand but a hard market for me to break into), and have managed a photo concession which led to my starting a photography business. All of these (and a few others), were great experiences and I am glad I tried. They were all meant to help me earn extra money so that I could afford to go after my true goal and dream which is to own a Bed and Breakfast.
Throughout the last 5 years I have studied Marketing, Management, Hospitality and Organizational Leadership with an assortment of many different topics; I even attended a great course with Industrial & Technology Assistance Corp. (a nonprofit consulting and training organization dedicated to helping NYC manufacturing and technology companies with programs that increase their top and bottom lines, http://www.itac.org). I have learned new things and have reinforced the things I knew; all of this, in preparation for the next chapter in my life. What I wasn’t very prepared for was the economical downturn that has been America’s realty.
Until next time,
Jax
P.S. The above taught me that no matter what your plans - things may change at any moment. Allowing some flexibility in your business plans is an important lesson to learn (check)..
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Prelude
It all started in 2004 when the employees of a hospital, were told that the building was being sold and the hospital would be shutting down. I worked in the Nursing Department (I had started as a Unit Clerk and was a Coordinator by the time the hospital closed), and had been there for a few years.
Note:
One of the most important lessons that I learned is that hospitals never close – they never close. We had six floors of inpatient beds, and 16 units to staff and this had to be done 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 352 days a year. The days where people are told to stay home because of the weather, are the days that hospitals may need the most staff to get through the night. I learned a lot from those employees - we were like a family.
Back to the story
After the hospital closed I ended up with a job in our corporate offices (it has been a wonderful learning experience and it will be the reason why my posting will be done mainly in the evenings). But, something else happened in 2004; I realized that I wanted more. I wanted to be able to someday in the future work for myself.
Since I can remember I have wanted to own a hospitality business and thought (still think) that I had a great idea for anyone who owned restaurants and might want to consider a joint venture. I thought my idea was hip and cutting edge and would surely be of interest to someone. Believing that the worse that can happen is that someone says “no”, I mailed out a bunch of introductory letters with my resume asking for a meeting to discuss a venture and maybe work together, and guess what - not one person called, e-mailed – nothing..
Then one day, one of the letters came back marked “return to sender”. I held that letter for a long time and came to the realization that I needed to think this through more thoroughly. I’ve always been a firm believer in education and decided that since I had managerial experience I needed more experience in hospitality. I did my research and by the time Fall 2004 came around, I was enrolled at the University of Southern New Hampshire.
Until tomorrow..
Jackie
Note:
One of the most important lessons that I learned is that hospitals never close – they never close. We had six floors of inpatient beds, and 16 units to staff and this had to be done 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 352 days a year. The days where people are told to stay home because of the weather, are the days that hospitals may need the most staff to get through the night. I learned a lot from those employees - we were like a family.
Back to the story
After the hospital closed I ended up with a job in our corporate offices (it has been a wonderful learning experience and it will be the reason why my posting will be done mainly in the evenings). But, something else happened in 2004; I realized that I wanted more. I wanted to be able to someday in the future work for myself.
Since I can remember I have wanted to own a hospitality business and thought (still think) that I had a great idea for anyone who owned restaurants and might want to consider a joint venture. I thought my idea was hip and cutting edge and would surely be of interest to someone. Believing that the worse that can happen is that someone says “no”, I mailed out a bunch of introductory letters with my resume asking for a meeting to discuss a venture and maybe work together, and guess what - not one person called, e-mailed – nothing..
Then one day, one of the letters came back marked “return to sender”. I held that letter for a long time and came to the realization that I needed to think this through more thoroughly. I’ve always been a firm believer in education and decided that since I had managerial experience I needed more experience in hospitality. I did my research and by the time Fall 2004 came around, I was enrolled at the University of Southern New Hampshire.
Until tomorrow..
Jackie
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Chapter 2
I think before we go much further I should share a little more about my story. As many of you may know, an education cost money. I didn’t worry too much about mounting educational loans because we always hear that we should go to school and with an education you can go further; but, the truth is, “Until higher ed. becomes a safe investment again, prospective borrowers should give greater thought to the financial consequences of seeking an advanced degree”- Robert Applebaum.
I’ve always considered myself an entrepreneur. Taking that into consideration, and after some research, I decided that I would use Ebay as a forum to help raise funds as well as, make contact with people I would normally not be able to. Through my blog, I will post updates on my plans and I hope to share it as it all unravels. I will sometimes post a “sneak peak” into my future plans and we can learn together if they work or not.
Jax
Transcript Holders:
The beautifully laminated transcript can be used in a number of ways, and just for those that purchase (and for the next few months):
You not only receive a signed copy of my transcripts, but, you also receive access to me and my story. You can follow me at http://jaxcruz.blogspot.com/ or on www.twitter.com/JaxCruz. I will use these forums to update everyone on the project (where I am currently and where I am going with it), and you will have the opportunity to be a part of this project from the very beginning.
Also, since I am into hospitality and customer service, you can consider me your friend in New York City. This means:
-Did you live in New York and move away? Do you wonder what your old neighborhood looks like? Just send me the address and necessary information and within a few days, I will forward pictures so that you can reminisce.
-Are you coming to visit or live in New York? Anything you are curious about? Just let me know if you need pictures of an area you are looking into and I will forward them to you.
-Do you need an outsider’s opinion? I do not know everything, but I know how to do some research and can give you my opinion.
Thank you for joining me - Jax
I’ve always considered myself an entrepreneur. Taking that into consideration, and after some research, I decided that I would use Ebay as a forum to help raise funds as well as, make contact with people I would normally not be able to. Through my blog, I will post updates on my plans and I hope to share it as it all unravels. I will sometimes post a “sneak peak” into my future plans and we can learn together if they work or not.
Jax
Transcript Holders:
The beautifully laminated transcript can be used in a number of ways, and just for those that purchase (and for the next few months):
You not only receive a signed copy of my transcripts, but, you also receive access to me and my story. You can follow me at http://jaxcruz.blogspot.com/ or on www.twitter.com/JaxCruz. I will use these forums to update everyone on the project (where I am currently and where I am going with it), and you will have the opportunity to be a part of this project from the very beginning.
Also, since I am into hospitality and customer service, you can consider me your friend in New York City. This means:
-Did you live in New York and move away? Do you wonder what your old neighborhood looks like? Just send me the address and necessary information and within a few days, I will forward pictures so that you can reminisce.
-Are you coming to visit or live in New York? Anything you are curious about? Just let me know if you need pictures of an area you are looking into and I will forward them to you.
-Do you need an outsider’s opinion? I do not know everything, but I know how to do some research and can give you my opinion.
Thank you for joining me - Jax
Saturday, August 1, 2009
I have learned..
I have learned a few things along the way that I hope will help me and here are a few:
Never be afraid to ask. I learned this early in life from my family. Sometimes we assume that people know what we are thinking, but the truth is they do not. From my past experiences I came to realize that the worse that can happen is that someone tells you “no” – then, so what, you are no worse off then you were.
I've learned that you can learn to do anything if you put your mind to it. Granted you may not be the absolute best at it, but, there is nothing that you may want to learn that you cannot find some help with. At the very least – a simple “how to” book can help in any situation.
Which leads to; all that matter’s is that you try. Lots of opportunities have come and gone because I talked myself out of believing that I could do it. I’d either be afraid of what others would think or just plane ole – afraid of failure. I have come to realize that every situation can be a learning experience. If it is a positive experience - great, but, if not, then you have learned what not to do and sometimes that is just as important.
Jax
Never be afraid to ask. I learned this early in life from my family. Sometimes we assume that people know what we are thinking, but the truth is they do not. From my past experiences I came to realize that the worse that can happen is that someone tells you “no” – then, so what, you are no worse off then you were.
I've learned that you can learn to do anything if you put your mind to it. Granted you may not be the absolute best at it, but, there is nothing that you may want to learn that you cannot find some help with. At the very least – a simple “how to” book can help in any situation.
Which leads to; all that matter’s is that you try. Lots of opportunities have come and gone because I talked myself out of believing that I could do it. I’d either be afraid of what others would think or just plane ole – afraid of failure. I have come to realize that every situation can be a learning experience. If it is a positive experience - great, but, if not, then you have learned what not to do and sometimes that is just as important.
Jax
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Chapter One
I am a prodigy of NYC. I have a Bachelor's degree in business and have recently finished a dual Master’s program. I went back to school for the graduate degrees because I realized that I had lots of managerial experience, which has helped me become "a well-rounded individual”, but I still didn't have experience in the field I want to be in – Hospitality.
I am different – you see - I love taking classes and have always loved to learn. I'm one of those weird people that would be a career student if I could afford it; so, when I started my graduate program I really enjoyed it. I felt like I had a new purpose/goal – and that was to finish so that I could start.
I joined SNHU's on-line graduate Hospitality Administration program and put myself on a time-line figuring that once I got closer to graduation I would start making power moves towards my goals. Now - believe it or not - Distance Education can be very stressful and lots of work. That is because when you are in a classroom the teacher asks a question and one person raises his/her hand - answers and that's it. In a virtual classroom all students have to answer the questions and it has to be something more then "I agree" – it's a lot of work. But – I can choose when I log on to their website and I learned how to manage the work load.
Well here I am, 5 years later: a plan in my head, a $60k debt, a 2 year old computer, and faith. That last one may sound silly, but sometimes you have to tell yourself, “I believe in you” and keep saying it until you believe it.
Why have I shared all of this? I think it’s because I may be where many of you are now. By this I mean that there may be a few of us out there that have always aspired to do something else, or be something else – but for one reason or another, have not been able to pursue that dream. For me, I think I am finally ready to start and I want to share the experience. I think the worse that can happen is that we'll learn a little bit about what it is to make decisions and build something from an idea to fruition. But, the good outweighs the bad. Maybe through this forum I can share something with you and you can share something with me.
Jax
I am different – you see - I love taking classes and have always loved to learn. I'm one of those weird people that would be a career student if I could afford it; so, when I started my graduate program I really enjoyed it. I felt like I had a new purpose/goal – and that was to finish so that I could start.
I joined SNHU's on-line graduate Hospitality Administration program and put myself on a time-line figuring that once I got closer to graduation I would start making power moves towards my goals. Now - believe it or not - Distance Education can be very stressful and lots of work. That is because when you are in a classroom the teacher asks a question and one person raises his/her hand - answers and that's it. In a virtual classroom all students have to answer the questions and it has to be something more then "I agree" – it's a lot of work. But – I can choose when I log on to their website and I learned how to manage the work load.
Well here I am, 5 years later: a plan in my head, a $60k debt, a 2 year old computer, and faith. That last one may sound silly, but sometimes you have to tell yourself, “I believe in you” and keep saying it until you believe it.
Why have I shared all of this? I think it’s because I may be where many of you are now. By this I mean that there may be a few of us out there that have always aspired to do something else, or be something else – but for one reason or another, have not been able to pursue that dream. For me, I think I am finally ready to start and I want to share the experience. I think the worse that can happen is that we'll learn a little bit about what it is to make decisions and build something from an idea to fruition. But, the good outweighs the bad. Maybe through this forum I can share something with you and you can share something with me.
Jax
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