This is a repost of an older blog post from 3 years ago,
Okay, last Friday night I sat on the sofa and watched Shark Tank with my daughter. Together we opined about whether we could dream up a better mousetrap than those profiled on the show — do we have an idea that could make us millionaires? For the unfamiliar Shark Tank is a show profiling entrepreneurs who seek venture capital from angel investors. The team of funders asks the person or persons making the pitch about details: how long in business, how much capital do they seek, what is their profit and cost of manufacture and on…
What I really like about the show: it profiles what America was built on — ideas, innovation and entrepreneurship. Yet, if you watch the news today you’ll see nothing but bad news, whether it’s murders profiled prime time, rapes on Ann Arbor’s school campus, or a failed budget deal. Rest assured, yes, bad things happen. But there is a lot of good out there in America and Shark Tank is fun to watch — it’s fun to watch someone’s hard work pay off and big.
My daughter recommended that the show start a Minnow Pond series to profile teens who have great ideas and need a little help to get them started. With a little prodding maybe she’ll send the show’s producers a short note encouraging them to consider it.
In Michigan there’s a great PBS show profiling start-ups within the state — success stories about entrepreneurs. One young man, age 24 started Wild Game Soup — it was a light bulb moment at a dinner when he ordered wild pheasant soup and realized he’d never seen it in a can on a store shelf, for sale. Next he found a chef to make wild game soups, the two teamed up, and the rest is history. This is what makes America great. And America is great!
True enough, I don’t need to see the sometimes rude banter between the Shark Tank show regulars and the entrepreneurs — makes me wonder if bullying in schools is made much worse because of values taught on televsion. Still, it’s a great show and a win for anyone who is on that show, makes me feel like a winner too — because I’m part of the fabric of America and so are you.
Okay, last Friday night I sat on the sofa and watched Shark Tank with my daughter. Together we opined about whether we could dream up a better mousetrap than those profiled on the show — do we have an idea that could make us millionaires? For the unfamiliar Shark Tank is a show profiling entrepreneurs who seek venture capital from angel investors. The team of funders asks the person or persons making the pitch about details: how long in business, how much capital do they seek, what is their profit and cost of manufacture and on…
What I really like about the show: it profiles what America was built on — ideas, innovation and entrepreneurship. Yet, if you watch the news today you’ll see nothing but bad news, whether it’s murders profiled prime time, rapes on Ann Arbor’s school campus, or a failed budget deal. Rest assured, yes, bad things happen. But there is a lot of good out there in America and Shark Tank is fun to watch — it’s fun to watch someone’s hard work pay off and big.
My daughter recommended that the show start a Minnow Pond series to profile teens who have great ideas and need a little help to get them started. With a little prodding maybe she’ll send the show’s producers a short note encouraging them to consider it.
In Michigan there’s a great PBS show profiling start-ups within the state — success stories about entrepreneurs. One young man, age 24 started Wild Game Soup — it was a light bulb moment at a dinner when he ordered wild pheasant soup and realized he’d never seen it in a can on a store shelf, for sale. Next he found a chef to make wild game soups, the two teamed up, and the rest is history. This is what makes America great. And America is great!
True enough, I don’t need to see the sometimes rude banter between the Shark Tank show regulars and the entrepreneurs — makes me wonder if bullying in schools is made much worse because of values taught on televsion. Still, it’s a great show and a win for anyone who is on that show, makes me feel like a winner too — because I’m part of the fabric of America and so are you.