FROM A MINIMUM WAGE DISHWASHER TO A NETWORTH >$80 BILLION – A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES}
I celebrate ACHIEVEMENT EVERY DAY! When I discover role models, I do not see skin color, age, religion, sex, attractiveness (ok, I like beautiful ladies), or other nonessentials. I love learning from inspirational people that inspire me to drop MY EXCUSES and DO IT! Role models who stretch my ambitions and make me reach for the impossible.
There is dignity in achievement and success—in becoming a great factor in civilization.” Carter G. Woodson.
I hope you will share these short articles; perhaps a few people will be curious to learn more.
Disclaimer: Good Day, Readers. WealthBuildingPowers blog is a financial literacy/competency blog and does not provide specific investment recommendations.
NVIDIA’S FOUNDER JENSEN HUANG WENT FROM A DISHWASHER TO A TECH TITAN! – A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES}
EXPERT OPINION BYCARMINE GALLO, HARVARD INSTRUCTOR, KEYNOTE SPEAKER, AUTHOR, ‘THE BEZOS BLUEPRINT’ @CARMINEGALLO
“I visited Nvidia’s humble birthplace at a Denny’s restaurant to trace the four stages of an amazing adventure
I’m writing this article from the corner booth of a Denny’s restaurant in San Jose, California, the birthplace of one of the world’s most valuable companies. Fueled on buttermilk pancakes and bottomless coffee, three ambitious entrepreneurs sat in this very booth in 1993 and cooked up an idea that would turn into a $2 trillion company — Nvidia.
Nvidia’s chips and technology make AI possible and have turned its co-founder and CEO, Jensen Huang, into a global tech superstar. But Huang wasn’t always at the top of the ladder. Huang started his career at this very Denny’s location. He worked as a busboy before being promoted to dishwasher and finally to waiter.
Huang says he owes much of his leadership skills to what he learned at Denny’s. He’s not kidding. Huang recently took the crew of 60 Minutes to visit the restaurant where it all began, a diner known for its “Grand Slam” breakfast, served 24 hours a day.
The company at the heart of A.I. started at a pancake house in the heart of Silicon Valley. It’s an amazing story. And Jensen Huang tells it brilliantly.
Whenever Huang shares Nvidia’s origin story, he takes the audience on a journey, highlighting four critical stages that make the story inspiring and irresistible.
Stage 1. Character-driven.
Great stories have compelling characters that the audience finds relatable. Think of it this way: Nvidia’s new Blackwell GPU can perform 20 quadrillion calculations a second. Yes, it’s a jaw-dropping statistic, but it’s not a story.
People want to hear stories about people. This story starts with Jensen Huang, who worked in a restaurant at the age of 15 in a relatable setting — and did the most relatable tasks you can think of, washing dishes and clearing tables.
Huang’s experience taught him lessons that would serve him well when he started a company: “humility, hard work, and hospitality.”
Stage 2. Humble beginnings.
A relatable story begins in an ordinary world, not in a futuristic 750,000-square-foot building like Nvidia’s new Voyager campus in Silicon Valley.
When Huang and two friends decided to start a company together, they met at Denny’s. It had large tables, plenty of food and, according to Huang, “It had all the coffee you could drink, and no one would chase you out.”
He’s right. I’m still writing, and they’re still refilling my coffee.
Stage 3. Near-death experiences.
As anyone who has watched Rocky knows, a good story has characters who get knocked down and find the courage to get back in the ring.
Nvidia nearly went out of business more than once. Their first chip failed, and their second chip was doomed. The team took years to get it right. On a few occasions, they had just 30 days of cash left. “We were running on fumes,” Huang recalls.
If a story doesn’t plunge its characters into a chasm, then there’s little to cheer for when they dig out of the hole to take another run at the summit.
Stage 4. Redemption and Transformation.
At its core, a good story is a tale of redemption and transformation. Nvidia was saved more than once because its founders were relentless, bold, and innovative.
They also had the courage to pivot, even when they were enjoying success providing 3-D graphics chips for PC gaming. When that market began to level off, and dozens of competitors entered the ring, Nvidia risked everything in 2012 to pursue the nascent — almost nonexistent — market for AI applications. A decade later, ChatGPT launched and required Nvidia’s technology to power it.
Huang says he didn’t sell the idea of Nvidia based on a pitch deck. “It was really about telling the story.”
You too have a story to tell. Your audience (customers, partners, investors, stakeholders), wants to know how your idea took shape, what obstacles you had to overcome, and how surviving those hardships made you smarter and wiser. Give them a story to remember.”
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BECAUSE I CARE
St Jude Hospital: The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures and means of prevention for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion, or a family’s ability to pay.https://www.stjude.org/
Wounded Warrior Project: An American charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services, and events for wounded veterans of the military https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Folds of Honor: Providing life-changing scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen or disabled military. And now, our mission expands to the families of America’s first responders. On our watch, those who protect our freedoms and our families will know they are not forgotten. https://foldsofhonor.org
Wilson’s No-Kill Animal Shelter: A N0-Kill shelter that is a top-rated non-profit. They compassionately care for all their animals. https://wcnkas.org
Tunnel To Towers: Since 9/11, we have been helping America’s heroes by providing mortgage-free homes to Gold Star and fallen first responder families with young children and by building specially-adapted smart homes for catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. We are also committed to eradicating veteran homelessness and helping America to Never Forget September 11, 2001. https://dogood.t2t.org/give/320847/#!/donation/checkout
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’S WHAT YOU GIVE!
TRUST ME – YOU WILL LIKE THE BELOW POPULAR BLOGS!
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’s WHAT YOU GIVE!
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’S WHAT YOU GIVE!
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – BADRINARAYANAN KOTHANDARAMAN, ENPHASE ENERGY, CEO
RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS– TEACHER RAYMOND NELSON CREATES GENTLEMEN’S CLUB TO TEACH LIFE LESSONS TO BOYS WHO HAVE NO DADS AT HOME
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – MARIO HOOVER – 16 YEARS OLD!
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – LEGENDARY INVESTOR JOHN ROGERS JR
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/03/09/black-and-brown-role-models-series-legendary-investor-john-rogers-jr/
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} – ROBERT L. JOHNSON, FOUNDER BET – FEBRUARY 24, 2022
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} – JAMES AND JILEA HEMMINGS BECOME THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICANS OWNERS OF AN AUTONOMOUS GROCERY STORE – ON FEBRUARY 25, 2022
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/02/25/black-history-month-role-models-james-and-jilea-hemmings-become-first-african-americans-owners-of-an-autonomous-grocery-store-february-25-2022/
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} BILLIONAIRE ROBERT F. SMITH – FEBRUARY 23, 2022
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS -REGINALD LEWIS – FEBRUARY 22, 2022
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/02/22/black-history-month-role-models-reginald-lewis-february-22-2022/
“WHAT WE BECOME DEPENDS ON WHAT OUR FATHERS TEACH US AT ODD MOMENTS, WHEN THEY AREN’T TRYING TO TEACH US”
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2021/11/03/what-we-become-depends-on-what-our-fathers-teach-us-at-odd-moments-when-they-arent-trying-to-teach-us/
WE NEED MORE STEM MAJORS AND LEGACIES LIKE MYLES JOHNSON!
WE NEED MORE STEM MAJORS AND LEGACIES LIKE MYLES JOHNSON!
DADS WHO RAISED ME TO BE MORE THAN I COULD BE!
DADS WHO RAISED ME TO BE MORE THAN I COULD BE!
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY – “EDUCATION IS THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPON WITH WHICH YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD” NELSON MANDELLA
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ABOUT ME
I am a proud nerd (as my beautiful wife and daughter have told me) investment and finance blogger with an N.C. State, Chemical Engineering, University Rutgers, MBA and Harvard University, Advanced Management education.
I left a corporate career because I desired to make a difference as a speaker and writer. I was blessed to be coached and mentored by strong women and men in my family and professional life. It is my time to serve and give back.
DISCLAIMER
I started my first business at ~13 years of age (a small but brilliantly created plant nursery). I am a successful investor in stocks, options, and real estate and am happy to share my finance and investment lessons. I am NOT a licensed financial advisor. Please do not construe my suggestions on this blog as recommendations for your situation. As an investor, you must establish your risk/loss tolerance. Investment in any asset involves risk, including complete loss.
Please seek your licensed CPA or fiduciary financial advisors for individual financial advice.
I write this weekly blog to make an impact by reaching an audience and demonstrating the need for financial literacy. I will help you get there.
