The Power Of Passion Perseverance And Perfection

“Don’t give up,” Debbi Fields told the Sam Houston State University community as part of their President’s
Speaker Series. “The instance you say ‘I can’t’ you are defeated.” Debbi shows the power of passion in her speech. She is the mastermind of the world famous chain of stores that most of us dearly call Mrs. Fields Cookies. I’ve never met anyone who hasn’t tried one and thoroughly enjoyed their perfection. The inspiring thing about this story is that Debbi Fields went against all odds and discouragement from her friends and family and succeeded anyway.
We can learn so much from Debbi’s example in finding our winner’s mindset and pursuing our business dreams. Debbi was told she was “crazy”, that a cookie store would never see success, that she couldn’t make money by having a store that “just sold cookies”, and was turned down by banker after banker when she was seeking capital to start her first cookie store.

What was her secret recipe for success in the face of absolute rejection and naysayers? “Don’t give up,” Fields says. “The instance you say ‘I can’t’ you are defeated.” She had no formal education (no degree) and no start up capital. That was no problem for Debbi because she loved what she was doing and wanted to share it with everyone. She believed in herself, her product and her vision. She says her “recipe” for success  believes is “passion, perseverance and perfection”.

Passion shows up in our lives as something we love to do; we could do it all day, everyday. If we love doing an activity it’s either because we’re great at it or we want to become expert at it. These passions can be turned into business ideas like Debbi’s passion of baking and eating cookies. What is something you love to do? Have you ever stopped for a while during the day, everyday, and asked what kind of business could be started with this thing you love to do?

Perseverance simply means we never say never, no matter how tough the situation looks; no matter what anyone says about our ideas and no matter how long it will take to manifest your dream. Debbi had to knock on many bankers doors to hear them say, “No, you’re never going to make that idea fly” before she finally met a banker that said yes. Her family wouldn’t even lend her the money. How long and hard are you willing to work to see your vision become a reality? Do you have the power of passion and perseverance?

When Debbi opened her first store no one was coming in to buy cookies. They just walked on by. So she gathered up a bunch of cookies on a tray and went out to the streets to give out free samples. People liked what they tasted and some followed her back to the store and bought some. She surpassed her income goal that day by $25. She was unstoppable.

Perfection is a mindset that we will not compromise when it comes to giving the best product and the best service possible. It means making every person that patronizes your business feel like they are the most important person to walk through the doors of your establishment. It is a value system that says, “Only the best is good enough for my customers.” Even then we never quit looking for ways to do it better.

This philosophy seems to have worked very well for Debbi Fields. She grew her business to more than 650 retail bakeries in the United States and more than 80 in 11 other countries. She started selling franchises in the 1990′s and sold her business to investors in the same. She remains the spokes person for the company that she built from a dream to make people happy.

What is your dream? Do you have the power of passion, perseverance and perfection to make it happen?