The Network Series: #1 Dr. Williams "Business is a spectrum"

You may have seen the post on Instagram (@MBMJeremy) - Here's a deeper dive into the first post of 'The Network Series' starring Dr. Williams.

 Dr. Williams and I agree that true entrepreneurship is about seeking fulfillment, NOT trying to make a billion dollar tech company (though not denying that's a great outcome). This belief is evident in his lifestyle and current endeavors. Endeavors being: continuing to be a college professor, advising local small business in the school's community (typically non for profits), and working with myself and others as board member of  a "start up" team that is looking to solidify a more creative community at the University he teaches. 

"Entrepreneurship = seeking fulfillment" was a discussion point we spent quite some time on. The whole reason we were even meeting was because I was excited about some ideas I had for a startup in Detroit and I had asked if he would be willing to give me some much needed advice. All was well

 until I mentioned that I believe classroom entrepreneurship is misconstrued through poorly executed teaching and that overall the traditional curriculum has many shortcomings. This is where Dr. Williams perked up. I went on to explain that students, and faculty, often believe that the word 'entrepreneur' is related to high-tech start ups looking to make tons of money. That misconception isn't totally wrong, as it is highly attractive, but it is arguably overly publicized since the early 2000's. I could tell I had his ear as an innovative educator, and in the spirit of trying to capture and expose the true entrepreneurial and creative mind of modern business: I asked if I could take his picture and write about our meeting.

Since I've met Dr. Williams, I've known him to be of a rare breed of educators who had the ability to to level with the class, be completely transparent as a human being, and yet have his professionalism remain entirely intact. additionally, he always asks his students how they want to be taught and how they feel the lessons should be done. This entrepreneurial mentality is what lead him to the discovery that his students were more engaged when their lessons where applicable to the real world and had impact (qualities described when speaking of The Modern Business Mind). It was through this form of transformation leadership in the classroom that Dr. Williams was able to bring about a new capstone to offer his students. It's simple really: Since he remains in tune with his target markets (the students and community mentioned above) he concocted the perfect solution to meet their needs. A capstone where business undergrads could act as consultants for the local start ups who eagerly were looking for help. This is what brought about the summation in the Instagram post:

Entrepreneurship, innovation, and creativity can be applied to every corner of the spectrum. Whether it is Joe’s corner shop, or a Fortune 500 company. Whether it is non-for-profit or all about the income.