Made in America

I finished Made in America yesterday, written by Sam Walton.

It was an amazing book- very well written.

Most important things I took from it

1) Take action.  You’ll learn way more from your action than you could by planning

2) Be ready to change your plans when they don’t work. Often they won’t, so don’t throw good money after bad.

3) Double down on your strengths.  Sam Walton had a few very special talents, and he made sure to use them to their hilt.

Something sad I took from it- I’m not sure Sam Walton would be happy with Wal-Mart as it is today.  He focused on two things- do things right for the customers, and do things right for the employees. From many things I have heard, a lot of that spirit has disappeared over the years. My own experience has been that in the last 5-6 years, in particular, many of the associates of Wal-Mart are not that helpful to the customers.