1 Learning From The Best UCSB’s Technology Management Program’s Fall 2018 111 Lecture Series Oscar Ramos John Greathouse TMP 111 12-14-182 Paper Outline: Introduction- TMP 111 Speakers Al Ferrer and The Art of War and Networking Dawn Soler and Patience Dafina Toncheva and Perseverance Peter Biggs and Creativity3 In the Fall quarter of 2018 at the University of California, Santa Barbara, the Technology Management Program had four presenters of many different backgrounds and from many different places. All of which had a great many lessons to teach ranging from perseverance to the importance of networking. These are not the only lessons that were given however, the presenters also gave the class valuable lessons in leadership that will be very useful in my first job after graduation. The first of the four presenters was Al Ferrer, a graduate of Chico State that fell in love with the game of baseball at a young age and worked his way up through highschool and college coaching jobs to later have the highest winning percentages in UCSB’s history, along with many more accomplishments. Mr. Ferrer’s presentation was one of the most passionate of the presenters his exceptional knowledge of the game of baseball really portrayed his love of the game and its many intricacies. However, the part if his presentation that I was able to gain the most knowledge from was when he began to speak about the book “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu, a book that he admittedly wouldn’t have read if it were not for a very successful younger friend of his. He read and annotated the book many times which led him to him eventually understanding that the book is not just about war but the lessons within the book can be carried on to many different situations in life. The particular quote that really resonated with me the most was, “The battle is won before it is fought”(1), which meant to be that preparation in all aspects of life is key to, not just a successful career, but a successful personal and professional life. This translated to Ferrer’s success on the baseball field, his preparation before games with intense practices and mentally preparing his players was key to his many wins. This lesson in preparation will be useful in my future job(s) as it has taught me to come with a mental preparedness. It will be especially invaluable in job interviews, coming to a job interview with a mindset that the job is already yours and that all one has to do is be prepared for the potential questions that will be asked of you. This was not the only piece of knowledge I was able to gain from his time in class, I was also able to learn a lot about networking. Al Ferrer has an amazing network of people that he can draw from. It is not only having the network however, it is also about the relationships with the people in that network that are really important, his quote saying,4 “without those relationships, there would be no success”(1), is a very important one. Having a good network of those that can help and support you is just as invaluable as being prepared when it comes to finding jobs and having people that can help you get your foot in the door. Next on the list of presenters was Dawn Soler, the Music Supervisor at ABC Television, who has worked on a myriad of tv shows and movies, many of which have won her awards and nominations. Mrs. Soler was able to accomplish all this despite not having gone to college, for a variety of reasons. She ended up working as a server at a restaurant, she said everyone should work as a server since it will teach you “all of the skills that you are going to need for the rest of your life”(2). Mrs. Soler said she was able to learn patience, people skills, organizations, among many others. This was something I was able to relate to as I also work as a server during the summers at a restaurant in a country club by my house. I agree with this completely as I have learned a lot about people and how to deal with those who are especially difficult. The skill I feel that was incredibly important to me was patience. Patience plays a large role in life, even more so when one wants to become an entrepreneur, something I hope to one day be. Having this skill has and will continue to play a big role in my life especially. If I hope to one day become an entrepreneur I will have to know when to make certain decisions that could either make or break my business. This, Mrs. Soler, conveyed perfectly as she worked her way from her restaurant job to a P.A. and then to the Music Supervisor at ABC. This isn’t the only place she displayed great patience however, she displayed it with herself seeing as how initially she wanted to become an actress and then later found that a career in music was her calling. Dawn was patient and then realized what she was really meant to do and made it her life. Even now she says “everyday I pinch myself. I have such a cool job”(2), if it weren’t for her ability to be patient which learned at her first job then working at her current job wouldn’t have been possible. The third of the presenters for TMP 111 was Dafina Toncheva, a venture capitalist that worked her way up from a small city in Bulgaria, where she worked on her grandparents tobacco farm to Harvard for her undergraduate education to eventually Stanford Business School to where she is today. The lesson I was able to gain from Ms. Toncheva was perseverance, something she learned early on in her life. She recalled what her grandmother told her after a day working on the tobacco farm and looking at her hands saying, “If you don’t want to make a5 living with your hands, you have to invest in your brain”(3). Dafina was able to persevere past the many challenges growing up in a communist country, then past the seemingly insurmountable task of moving to another country by herself to study to then becoming a venture capitalist by investing in her brain. By investing in her brain she was able to accomplish so much which really is a testament to the value of education. This lesson in perseverance will be incredibly valuable considering that I want to be an entrepreneur myself. I will need to be able to push past the obstacles in front of me if I ever want my future company to be a success. This lesson will also be valuable when it comes to future jobs, not all jobs will hire me but I will need to persevere past this until I am hired. Dafina definitely is the epitome of