There’s so much we don’t know that we don’t know.
You know ?
TGG Knowledge Library introduces you to people and perspectives we’ve found valuable on our pursuit of 100%.
The goal ?
Equip you w/ knowledge that helps you on your pursuit of the best version of you.
Edition 005 covers an episode from The School of Greatness w/ Sara Blakely
Sara Blakely is the founder of Spanx.
Starting with $5,000, no business plan, no investors, and no experience in the industry...
Sara bootstrapped her business for 21 years before selling a majority stake to Blackstone in 2021 at a valuation of $1.2 billion.
She’s a mom, wife, and inventor.
In the episode, Sara breaks down:
How she turned a frustrated consumer moment into a billion dollar idea
Why what you don't know can be your greatest asset
What her dad taught her about failure that changed everything
Our biggest takeaway:
It is only failure if you don’t try.
Sara's dad used to ask her and her brother at the dinner table what they failed at that week.
An interesting question….
but if they didn't have an answer - he’d be disappointed.
Why ?
Because at that time, if you weren’t failing, you weren’t trying hard enough !
Failure became about not trying, not the result.
3 things to take with you:
1. What you don't know can be your greatest asset.
Sara didn't know how to get into department stores…
so she just called Neiman Marcus directly.
She didn't know how things were supposed to be done, so she did them how she thought they should be done.
Not knowing the ‘rules’ became her advantage.
2. Hustle is a strategy.
If Sara didn’t know what to do, she worked!
When Neiman Marcus stocked her product, she couldn't afford advertising, so she flew to every department store in the country, showed up before they opened, rallied the staff, and stood on the floor for eight hours a day telling customers what Spanx was.
She paid friends to go into stores to ask for the product and as a result…
manufactured her own momentum.
When you don't have resources, you can be the resource.
3. What you don't try, you'll never know.
Sara applied for a reality show just to meet Richard Branson.
She’s called buyers she had ‘no business’ calling.
She showed up unannounced to manufacturing plants with a red backpack from college.
Every big moment in her story started with trying.
What’s the worst that’s going to happen ?
TGG Knowledge Library
You're always one learning away from completely changing the trajectory of your life.
This episode might be it.
Invest into the best version of you and give it a listen.
If you have someone you care about, send this to them so they can take action, too.
The Garage Gym Team
