The Catholic Parish of
Saint John Henry Newman
Covering most of East Leeds
A Recipe For Success.
Read 1451 Times
Many years ago in the United States of America, a man spent nearly all of his life building up a service station, with a motel and restaurant attached. One day a business man came in and offered him a handsome sum for his establishment, but feeling that he wasn’t yet ready to embrace retirement, he turned the offer down.
Two years later when he was 65 years old, the state built a new highway which by-passed his motel, trade dropped off sharply as people used the new road, eventually his money ran out and he was forced to close his business. Most people would have given up and embraced retirement at this point, but there was one thing he knew he could do really well...and that was to fry chicken in his own special way. So he took a pressure cooker and a can of his own specially prepared flour and set off in his old car to sell his recipe to other restaurants. He found it very difficult at first and he spent many nights sleeping in his car, because he didn’t have enough money for a hotel room. But even at the age of 65 years he found he hadn’t lost the will to succeed and eventually his quiet determination started to pay off. The business boomed, with outlets opening all across America and then he started a franchise system which eventually had outlets across Europe and in the U.K. and he started to reap the rewards for all his hard labour.
Some years later he had succeeded in building up a nationwide restaurant chain which he called “Kentucky Fried Chicken.” In 1964 there were 600 franchised outlets when he received an offer and decided to sell his company to a group of investors for over &2 million and finally enjoy a well-earned retirement. After a long retirement he died of Leukaemia in 1980 aged 90 years.
The name of this remarkable entrepreneur, who refused to give up against all odds, was Colonel Harland Sanders. Not giving up certainly proved a recipe for success for him and if we follow his example, this could prove a good recipe for success in our own lives as we too struggle against the odds.
Two years later when he was 65 years old, the state built a new highway which by-passed his motel, trade dropped off sharply as people used the new road, eventually his money ran out and he was forced to close his business. Most people would have given up and embraced retirement at this point, but there was one thing he knew he could do really well...and that was to fry chicken in his own special way. So he took a pressure cooker and a can of his own specially prepared flour and set off in his old car to sell his recipe to other restaurants. He found it very difficult at first and he spent many nights sleeping in his car, because he didn’t have enough money for a hotel room. But even at the age of 65 years he found he hadn’t lost the will to succeed and eventually his quiet determination started to pay off. The business boomed, with outlets opening all across America and then he started a franchise system which eventually had outlets across Europe and in the U.K. and he started to reap the rewards for all his hard labour.
Some years later he had succeeded in building up a nationwide restaurant chain which he called “Kentucky Fried Chicken.” In 1964 there were 600 franchised outlets when he received an offer and decided to sell his company to a group of investors for over &2 million and finally enjoy a well-earned retirement. After a long retirement he died of Leukaemia in 1980 aged 90 years.
The name of this remarkable entrepreneur, who refused to give up against all odds, was Colonel Harland Sanders. Not giving up certainly proved a recipe for success for him and if we follow his example, this could prove a good recipe for success in our own lives as we too struggle against the odds.
“Don’t wait for the ideal time to begin something new, because now is the ideal time.
Getting off to a good start sets the pace for ultimate success.”
Getting off to a good start sets the pace for ultimate success.”
Published Fri 31st Oct 2014 12:10:41
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