Wrigley's made soap. Nokia made paper and Tiffany's sold stationary. Avon sold books. These are a handful of the "surprising first products of 14 famous companies" mentioned by CNN recently.
Surprised? Don't be. You can change a company just like you can change a career...One of my favorite chocolate makers, Scharffenberger, was co-founded by Robert Steinberg, a physician after learning he had a 50% chance of surviving a cancer diagnosis. He loved to cook, and he loved to eat chocolate. He lived for 19 more years after his diagnosis--long enough to learn how to make amazing artisanal chocolate out of cocoa nibs, and ultimately--to sell his new venture to Hershey's. Long enough for Julia Child to reportedly refer to his creation as the "best chocolate she'd ever have in the United States."
Over 70,000 advertising executives have been laid off since August 2008. One of those affected was Erik Proulx, a Boston based former ad executive turned documentary film maker. Erik now defines himself as a "maker of lemonade" and is showcasing how others are making lemonade, too. I'm looking forward to the release of his project.
Need help pursuing your next career move or turning a negative into a positive? Contact me and let me know how I can help!