Risking capital and time to create something of value to sell and service.
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Join The American Revolution
2:33 | Play Now Michael Novak explains that Americans tend to be doers rather than deep thinkers and prolific writers. With a preference for action, business owners are misunderstood since they rarely stop to explain themselves or spend time with the elites who are writing the textbooks.
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Teach Employees How To Own Their Job
2:09 | Play Now Grace Tsujikawa, Ray DiSanto, Ron Bowman, and Albert Black are just a few of the millions of Americans who have transformed their life by delivering an extraordinary service to hundreds of customers. In their own way, each moved from poverty to wealth.
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Give Up Titles And Trappings
3:16 | Play Now Ron Bowman develops and owns real estate. He enjoys living in several multi-million dollar homes and running his company via the telephone and a fast web connection. He never did that well in school and he's never held a title of any kind. He's not an elite, he's a proud business owner who is very much in charge of his own life.
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See Ownership As Your Calling
2:01 | Play Now Michael Novak says that Christians and Jews believe it is their duty to improve the human condition. Albert Black, owner of On Target Supplies & Logistics, told us that creating jobs is, "God's work." A devout Christian, Albert feels called by God to be a business owner. He feels God has given him the ability to help people develop themselves so he has built a business where employees are learning and earning. More...
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Play By The Rules
1:10 | Play Now The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 is the law of the USA and is still used to keep backroom business deals and monopolistic tendencies in check. Transparency in business is the backbone of democratic capitalism. It cannot work without integrity and ethics.
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Work Long Hours
2:21 | Play Now The dry cleaning business is hard. All retail requires that the doors be open to serve customers, but a retail service business is more complicated than selling products. The challenge, the joy of serving people and the thrill of the chase, are what drive owners to work long, hard hours. As one owner told us, "Running a business in not for wimps." Michael Novak says that capitalism depends upon people who work hard.
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Build Your Business As A Three-Legged Stool
1:59 | Play Now Hattie distills the eight-hour interview she did with Michael Novak into less than two minutes. Here she reminds us that the American brand of capitalism is based upon private ownership of property and businesses, the rule of law, and the moral habits most of us learn in church or a synagogue.
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Do What Interests You
1:46 | Play Now The founders of Diversified Chemicals are interested in chemistry. They love coming up with new products to solve hard problems. They make many types of coatings and adhesives and are working now to capture the rubber in old tires for new purposes.
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Be The Adult In The Room
1:38 | Play Now Running a business means you have the weight of it on your shoulders. You may have smart, creative people on your team, but when everyone has gone home for the day, you will still be there. Michael Novak says that capitalism is good for the soul and he means that you become a better person when you take on the responsibility of leading employees and pleasing customers.
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Invent The Future - Study The Early Presidents of the USA
2:14 | Play Now Capitalism is organized around the mind. In the American version of capitalism, wealth springs from new ideas, from discovery and invention. This is why the founder of IBM insisted that those on his payroll have a sign in their office that said, "THINK.."
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Be All You Can Be
1:41 | Play Now Michael Novak says that small business is the most important institution in a civil society. This is true because every business owner must develop themselves and become the best that they can be. The demands of leadership in a small company are such that the owner becomes confident, articulate, bold and tough even in the face of his own government. Michael goes so far as to say that a small business owner becomes a sovereign.
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