When I study the characteristics of successful people, I find that they all have a * * *.
John r Johnson 19 18 was born in a poor family in Arkansas, and studied in Chicago and northwestern university. Although he never finished his studies, he has been awarded the honorary degree of 16.
Johnson entered the business world as a handyman and worked in an American life insurance company run by blacks in Chicago. Now he is the chairman of this company and a member of the board of directors of several big companies.
From 65438 to 0942, Johnson used his mother's furniture as collateral, got a loan of 500 dollars, and started his own publishing company. Now the company has become the second largest black enterprise in the United States. First, he published Black Digest, and later he joined Ebony, Black Marble, Black Star and other magazines. 196 1 year began to run the book publishing business. 1973 expanded its business, bought Chicago Radio WGRT, and operated trendy women's fashion and cosmetics.
When talking about his feelings about his efforts and achievements, Johnson said humbly and sincerely, "My mother gave me great encouragement at first. She believes and often teaches me:' Maybe you have tried and failed, but if I don't work hard, I will definitely not achieve anything. Therefore, if you want to succeed, you must seize the opportunity and work hard for it. There is always a solution to any problem, but the solution needs to be found. We should persevere, persevere and keep looking for solutions. " "
When he went to middle school in Chicago, he began to struggle for success: "I have no friends and no money, and I was laughed at for wearing homemade clothes." I speak with a strong southern accent, and my classmates make fun of my bowlegged legs. Therefore, I must find a way to fight in front of them. The only way I can think of is to surpass them in study. "
"I study harder and get good grades. I also went to a public speaking class. I have read the book The Nature of Influence written by Dale Carnegie at least 50 times. "
"The students dare not speak loudly, except me. I read a book about speech, and I practiced in front of the mirror according to the method in the book. Because I made some speeches, everyone chose me as the monitor. Later, I became the president of the student union, the editor of the school magazine and the editor of the school yearbook. "
1942 A dramatic thing happened: Johnson started a small publishing company. He wants to expand the circulation of his magazine Black Digest.
"I decided to organize a series of articles entitled' If I were black', put a white man in a black man's position, take this problem seriously and consider what he would do if he were in a black man's position." Johnson recalled, "I thought it was perfect for President Roosevelt's wife Eleanor to write this article, so I sat down and wrote her a letter."
"Mrs. Roosevelt wrote back to me saying that she was too busy to write articles-but she didn't say that she didn't want to write."
"So, a month later, I wrote her another letter, and she said she was still busy. Another month later, I wrote her a third letter, and she replied that she couldn't spare even a minute. "
Since Mrs Roosevelt always said that her problem was lack of time, Johnson didn't flinch. "She didn't say she didn't want to write, so I thought if I kept asking her, maybe one day she would have time."
"Finally, once I saw in the newspaper that she was going to give a speech in Chicago and decided to try again, I sent her a telegram and asked her if she would like to write that article for Black Digest while she was in Chicago."
"She was free when she received my telegram, so she sat down and wrote out her feelings."
"As soon as the article came out, the news spread like wildfire and soon spread all over the country, and everyone rushed to buy and read. As a direct result, the circulation of my magazine increased from 50,000 to 1.5 million within one month. This is indeed a turning point in my career. "
Johnson disapproves of quick solutions. "Success always requires trial and effort, and sometimes it requires many failures. People come here and see what I'm doing here, and they say,' Hey, you're lucky!' I always remind them that it took me 30 years to work hard to get where I am today. I started out in a small room in that insurance company, and later moved into a cabin like a coal bunker. I did one thing after another, and finally came to the present, instead of starting from scratch. In my opinion, one should stick to it like a long-distance runner and never give up halfway. "
—— Quoted from Nine Rules for Creating a Smart Life by Yanbian People's Publishing House.