Brooks Bachman

BUS 1050
Professor Julia Butler
My Renaissance ePortfolio Paper
Throughout the duration of this class I have learned many things. Some of these
things have been common knowledge, but most things were new to me; new ideas
that I had never considered, new situations that I never deemed possible, new
theories that I hadnt heard of before, and new business strategies that I had never
had the opportunity to learn before. This class has been an adventure for me, truly
it has. While the book consisted of stories that mostly were written in a time well
before our century, I found myself amazed at all the stories and recounted
inclinations that were so applicable to our time today. While some may see these
stories as useless pieces of information, I formally respect these stories for the
history that they hold and the information that they obtain within them.
I myself have lived a life full of the business atmosphere. One where money was
more often than not the most important thing on peoples mind, to many people
being selfless and giving and only hoping for the business to be more successful in
its profits. I have been surrounded by the business culture for the better part of the
last ten years of my life more if you are considering the family owned business
that started long before my birth.
My family has been surrounded by actual businesses for a very long time, and
therefore are very business driven people. However, I definitely got lucky when it
comes to the way my family conducts its business affairs. I was always taught
growing up that its important to always have integrity, in everything that I do, no
matter what others may say or what it may cost me in the end. There have been
times when our familys business has been less than successful due to the acts
chosen by hired employees, or even fellow family members who have made a
mistake. No matter what the circumstance was, the head of my family, my
grandfather, always looked at the consequences without fear and with the courage
to accept them, no matter how costly or depriving they were.
I think that, by growing up with this mentality, I have become a better businesswoman in the end. I have taken my hardships in strides and I have paid the costs no
matter how high for mistakes that I have made or chances that I took that may have
failed. Throughout the entirety of this book I found that to be a common theme.
While our textbook contained many different theories, stories, and beliefs, the root
one at the core was to handle business with integrity. Throughout history there have
been many changes to the board of whats right and wrong when it comes to
business, however throughout its contents it always showed a theory of integrity
and what was at its root when it came to business during the timeframe in which it
was written.

There was one story in particular that outlined how those in the office of power
should take power that really hit close to home. This being an election year, 2016,
this chapter was particularly influential in the way that I see and choose leaders
who hone the beliefs that I do, and ones that also hold a high threshold and
expectation for integrity. This chapter was particularly one of my favorites because
it easily showed someone how to use their power for good and how to use it for bad.
Sometimes, I think that there are many things that are made to be too complex and
complicated than they need to be. There are some things that can be spelled out in
a different language for what its worth and still be written in English, however the
lines can be easily crossed due to misinterpretation, misunderstanding, and a lack
of knowledge for what the words means.
There was also another chapter that spoke about the ancient times and how money
and power came to be important objects in society. This chapter was particularly
interesting to read because of the fascination that it can impress on someone. We
live in a society where money and power are two peas in a pod, and work hand-inhand with one another; and I think that says a lot about what weve learned from
our ancestors and how we took their examples and morphed them into our own
societal beliefs. I also think that this is an exceptional chapter because of the story
behind it all and the outline it shows about how things came to pass in todays
generation opposed to how they were back then. Although we may live a more
intricate lives than those who walked the earth before us, the same societal beliefs
have mainly reigned true for quite some time.
This speaks high volumes for those who were in power in the previous generations
before us, and the influence they had on man. There are many things, that are
taken from our four fathers for example, that still are upheld in todays society
although their conception was 300 years ago. The beliefs, systems and ways of life
are still applicable to todays life and living in todays society. Take for example the
Declaration of Independence. This document that was written and signed in a time
that none of us truly can comprehend, and yet it is still the most important piece of
paper that exists in America today. Again, that says a lot about the minds, ideas and
beliefs of the men that created it.
There are so many things that while in the past we can believe still live out here in
the future generations, and for generations to come. There are many societal beliefs
that will always remain in place because of the success that they have provided for
our country and our world as a whole. Running a business in todays society isnt an
easy task. While you may have something that you strongly believe in you have to
fully invest yourself into it in order to get what you truly want out of it, and for it to
make you truly happy. The devices that are outlined in our textbook are just a mere
outline of how a business should be run. These are beliefs that are taken from the
people who came before us and those that they have seen been successful in their
time. I am a firm believer in the past repeats itselfit always has and it always will.
We can either take what knowledge we can be provided now for what its worth, or
we can take it out of context and ignore it all together. Which do you think should be
done?

We as a people have to form businesses that are full of integrity, and have a
societal impact in order for us to be successful now and in the future as a society.
We have to take it into our hands to lay out the foundations for the generations that
are to come after us. There are things that we can do today, precautions that we
can take, and bricks that can be laid to ensure our societys survival to the fullest,
its just a matter of whether or not everyone will get on board with having to take
responsibility for their actions and take into about the consequences that their
actions may unfold. Are those of us that have the power to make a change willing to
make the sacrifices needed in order to do so? Some are, and some arent. There are
so many people in our world today who take people for granted, and treat them
with humility and disrespect. There are business owners who will harass those who
are their customers, and they will take them for all they are worth. There are
businesses whose sole purpose is to take all that their customers have to give for
themselves without any regard to the consequences that befall on them when doing
so. There are so many changes that can be made in todays business society, but
not enough people who are willing to take a stand against those who wrong us all.