Volunteer to be part of the PPO Presentation group…you think I volunteered…heck yeah I volunteered. With my current job, I had been involved with a couple PPO’s so I knew what I was doing and I knew for the most part how to deal with investors. I had my first encounter with Mr. Devious during this process, he created the PowerPoint presentation for the PPO. My first impression of him was that he was really nice and I was impressed that he created the PowerPoint on his own. We decided as a group that Robin and Rainbow would be the best presenters, I was a little appalled by Robin’s lack of preparedness, he even asked me to write what he would say at one point, I ended up just writing him some speaking points and letting him take it from there. At that point I had Robin pretty much figured out, a very likable guy and a genius recruiter, he knew how to work what he had. So anyway, Retro was talking crap about how Rainbow didn’t do a very good job and she thought she could do better. Rainbow actually ended up dropping out of the competition all together like a couple days before the actual presentation. He called me and explained the situation; I started to strongly consider stepping up to do his part in the presentation. Somehow during our conversation he mentioned that Retro did not think too highly of me. I think he was really playing the reality show game and not being a true and honest person. So anyway Retro ended up taking over Rainbow’s part in the presentation, she worked hard, pulled it off, and performed wonderfully the evening of the official presentation.

As far as golfers go, well that was no big deal, luckily I was a part of the Cary Chamber of Commerce and I knew lots of golfers, I think I ended up with like 9 or so.

In planning the golf tournament, I was on the Hospitality committee, our real work wouldn’t occur till the day of the event. I did help out the other committees and got Cary Mayor Ernie McAlister to play as one of our celebrities. Honestly throughout the whole process the golf tournament was one of the most unorganized events I’ve ever been involved in. We had 4 managers leading the way so I had to hold back and follow their lead, I learned it’s important to know when to allow others to lead and when to lead yourself. Obviously the producer wanted to see what these managers were made of and I had to let them do their thing.

These same 4 managers actually ended up picking the Final 16, I think with a little guidance from the ‘Producer’. All I knew was that I was in, now it would just be a matter of what team I ended up on. Actually it was pretty cool, because as they announced the Finalists they were separated into two teams…my name was announced last and I got to choose which team I wanted to be on. It was funny b/c when it was time to decide Wiz actually walked out from his group to grab my hand to go to his team, I just said sorry and walked the other way. Didn’t want to be mean and I like Wiz a lot but business is business and I needed a winning team. I chose the team my original teammate ‘Mole’ was on. There were others including Retro and Alopeciahope that made that team a sure bet…keep a look out to see if that was a good decision or not.

Disney’s Lesson Learned: Know when to lead and when to be led.

The night of the PPO, presenters were behind the scenes memorizing their parts. Others of us were bringing in tables, table cloths, presentation literature, sign in sheets, name badges, pens, checking in guests, greeting guests, parking cars, and driving golf carts transporting people from their cars to the magnificent site of the PPO presentation. The event was looking to be very successful.

The house where the PPO presentation was held was a dream house. It had been designed by an architect who attended the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architectural Design. He stated that the design of the house alone took two years. We were told that they weren’t sure how many square feet were actually in the house, but that the room we were all sitting in was about 2500 square feet. There were about 100 people in attendance, a large bar in the middle of the room, and comfortable seating throughout the room. It was HUGE but didn’t “feel” huge. The feeling was very warm and welcoming. The house had a Mediterranean flare with “hanging” staircases a trademark of Frank Lloyd Wright. Marble and limestone had been shipped from Italy. Three of the rooms of the house went out onto the veranda which overlooked the pool and the golf course. Outside living was definitely a part of the design of the house with a full out door kitchen and eating area all surrounding the pool. Lights twinkled that adorned the trees. Having an Italian heritage myself .. this just seemed like home. I was even able to visit the wine cellar, which was totally amazing. I don’t know what all the other rooms held, but for me that night in that house was pure magic. WHAT AN AWESOME PLACE!!

As the PPO presentation ended, a large applause was heard through out the room. The presenters did a magnificent job especially “Ms Retro”. The message had clearly been communicated in record time. Lessons were learned and items were executed. We were all very proud. NOW it was time for the announcement of the final 16. When my name was called I could feel my knees give way. I was ecstatic!! My prayers had been answered, I made it!!! The sixteen of us on stage were all so very excited to have made it this far. Yet, I could not figure out how “W” had not made it to the final 16. He had met all the qualifications and brought a great sense of humor to the team. Moments like this don’t come everyday and I chose to celebrate with my husband and the “sweet sixteen” for that evening. We were all exhausted, including my hubby (he had helped drive the golf cart transporting guests to their cars). Yet in the midst of our exhaustion I was filled with humility and excitement. I had made it this far, my husband by my side, sitting in this Italianate house, enjoying the ambiance and the friends we had made over the previous months. We soaked every minute of it up.

While thrilled that I was part of the “sweet sixteen”, I also had a sadness in me that some of my previous yellow team members did not make it this far. They were hard workers and very talented. Some were heart broken and I for them. We had bonded and made friends during these past few months. And I am forever grateful for each person I have been blessed to meet. It has been an awesome journey, but one that was just beginning.

The next event was the charity golf tournament and as the PPO evening came to an end the more the rumors flew about the tournament. Now that there were only 16 of us, those who were not chosen had an opportunity to share truth, facts, feelings and rumors.

Rumors were flying about possibly not having enough golfers to make the event happen; about having no celebrities, about the “real” golf organizer’s true abilities to organize; about having silent auction items donated; about the location for the gala and the silent auction; about the charities receiving donations; and about possible favoritism being shown.

What would the golf tournament bring? Tune in next time to find out ….. what really happened on the Reality Show!!

“LIONS, AND TIGERS, AND BEARS OH MY” … ALL ON REALITY TV ….

Our yellow team was so excited that ALL made it this far together. All people met at the Raleigh Events Center (REC) to hear our next challenge. Four managers were chosen at the end of the last event. They were “Robin”, “Broker”, “Ms Retro”, and the “Wiz” Kid. At the REC we were told there were now 4 committees (Sponsorship, Recruiting, Hospitality, and Events) yet we were to all work together on the PPO as well as the Charity Golf Tournament.

I was assigned to the Events committee and “Broker” was my manager. We had built a great working relationship on the Yellow Team and we knew we would work very well together on this. Most of the rest of our team was scattered on the other committees. Letting go was sad, yet it was exciting to meet the new people I had not met before. Several meetings were held in order to figure out what we were “supposed” to be doing. Competitive spirits started showing, and the claws started showing. I had to continually keep my goal in front of me (to learn all I could for as long as I could to make my business successful) so I didn’t get distracted by rumors, and negative energy.

“The Producer” arranged some very beneficial learning sessions about business and communication with “The Professor”, and then with an attorney concerning PPO rules and regulations.

“Broker” and I would meet more often than our team to make sure we were on the same page. One of our large meetings became very stressful when one young lady announced to everyone that they could NOT go out and get “another” beer sponsor because she already had one in the bag. This was her big sponsor and she didn’t want anyone trying to cut in. Others took the opportunity to ask to SEE the contract and DEMANDED to know the terms of the agreement to make sure this sponsor had specified they were the ONLY one who could sponsor beer. TENSE is an understatement for that meeting. Unfortunately, her sponsor did not work out for this event. Other people had other contacts with breweries and were also trying to get large sponsors, and the fur began to fly.

There was a man in charge of organizing the golf tournament. The Events Committee was to work with him to make sure we had everything coordinated. However, he was a hard man to pin down. In my opinion, this was a big project requiring a lot of coordination. I took out my project management tools and began to plan away consulting other team members as well. In many areas we had to guess what we were each really responsible for doing. We were not sure where one committee’s responsibilities stopped and the others began.

We had to make sure there was a breakfast, a lunch, beverages that could be taken out on the course, get celebrities, gain sponsors, gain silent auction items, secure a place for the silent auction and gala the night before the golf tournament, secure volunteers to assist us with the tournament day, oh and did I say we also had to secure golfers???!!!

Volunteering to do something on each committee was important to me. The recruiting committee had to “approve” all invitations to celebrities to make sure there were no conflicts or overlapping. I had everything for the Events committee planned to the most minute detail, committee members had volunteered for the different action items only to find out that the man in charge of organizing the golf tournament said he had most of this “under control”. To say this was NUTS is an understatement. Team members started dropping off the show because of the lack of organization, others left because they felt there was a “fix” in for the final 16. I was determined to keep plugging along because of my personal goals. However, the man responsible for planning the golf tournament could have indicated in the beginning that he had all the meals under control so we were not out wasting our time getting quotes from caterers, cake designers, and the like. Was this just a lesson in business? Was this part of the original plan to keep us alert? Was this just planned to see who would persevere? Who knew? Coming home from one of the meetings I discussed with my husband how wild things were. He had been very supportive of me from day one in my involvement in the show. His response was no different this time and he simply said: “well you’re learning lots and meeting lots of new people.” That was for sure and reminded me of my goals.

During all of the planning for the golf tournament I volunteered to work on the PPO. The PPO presentation committee met almost every night. I went when I could and did what I could to contribute and learn. However, at many meetings there seemed more “chiefs” than “Indians”. Some people worked their buns off while others “appeared” to do so. “Testosterone” (and not just from the men) began to fly as we organized and approached the deadline. Different opinions, different levels of knowledge about PPOs, some would bring laughter, and others brought not so kind words. Yet we kept working. “Ms Retro” and “Broker” really worked hard to make sure this was well organized. “Ms Retro” had a lot of experience with PPOs and contributed many practical points.

As I refocused on the golf tournament, I wrote everyone I knew to ask if they would be interested in playing golf, followed up with phone calls and another note. I also started contacting beverage suppliers to focus on getting my sponsors. As the date drew closer for the tournament I was feeling a great loss. I was not sure if I would have 4 golfers playing. I knew I had one, my husband, and biggest fan. My family is big on golf as are their friends but they were all participating in ANOTHER tournament. This tournament they were involved in had been planned a year before the one for the show. All I could say was ARGH!!!!

One afternoon I received a call from “Rainbow”. He shared with me that he made a radio announcement on a local radio station about the golf tournament and was beginning to get replies back for people to play. He also shared with me that his job was requiring more and more of his time forcing him to make a choice to leave the show. I was totally SHOCKED that he was leaving because he was such a hard worker, very competitive, and I knew he would make it to the final 16. We chatted for a bit when he told me that he wanted ME to HAVE HIS GOLFERS!!! I was totally blown away!! After I picked myself up off the floor I heard “Rainbow” mention that he would mail me his file that had all the information about the celebrities he and his team had tried to recruit. He was a little bothered that his team “manager” (“Robin”) was not doing what he felt he should be doing. I didn’t get into the details. I just told him I would get the recruiting information to “Robin” as soon as I received it from him. “Rainbow” felt that “Robin” should not be given any of the credit if the team succeeded because he was not being an effective manager. I was not on the committee with them so I wasn’t sure what really was or was not happening. I was just grateful to have golfers. I had prayed that the doors would open for me. I knew without golfers and a sponsor I would not make it to the final sixteen. Now, this was an answer to my prayers.

Other challenges were occurring behind the scenes concerning the charities. In one meeting we were told that “Ronald McDonald” and “Smiles for Little Faces” were actually the same organizations so we didn’t have to worry about wording in our PR. However, as time grew closer to print the materials for the golf tournament I discovered they were two separate organizations. “Rainbow” had been in touch with both the Manager of the Durham “Ronald McDonald House” as well as the Manager of “Smiles for Little Faces” and asked that I follow up with each of them. Talk about opening a can of worms!! “OK”, I said to myself…. “Take a deep breath”!!! Everyone was very polite and cordial. However, there was a volcano brewing that was going to overflow soon if we didn’t get the PR correct. I contacted the Producer about what I had learned. He was more than willing to share with me so I had knowledge from both avenues. This finally worked out and things were smoothed over for at least the time being. We could move forward with the PR in print. I had met a printer through the show who offered us excellent pricing for excellent printing on pamphlets and banners. Other people on other committees had printer contacts as well and little by little we began to see who was doing what. It became obvious who the “real workers” were. People started called me “Mama” because I was the one people came to, to get correct information, find phone numbers, tell when and where we were meeting, send out emails, send out corrections for events, and more.

My being the recipient of “Rainbow’s” golfers, the recruiting folder, and the contact for the charities left some contestants very unhappy. I held the information close to my heart, sharing with a very few, but people knew. “Rainbow’s” departing shocked everyone and left a huge hole in the PPO. He was to be the main presenter at the PPO presentation leaving the presenters to reorganize at the very LAST minute. “Robin” and “Ms Retro” had to pick up the presentation portion of the PPO and pull it together over night. It was very stressful for them indeed, but they both did a great job. People have to do what they have to do, including “Rainbow”. One moment can change everything. I just thanked God that I ended up with 9 golfers, and believe me it truly was an answer to my prayers. I also ended up with an “in kind” sponsor who donated Coke and Coke products to the tournament, so I was entering into the realm of possibility to meet my goal of being one of the final 16. I knew there were no guarantees, and the closer we came to the PPO presentation the more nervous people became. We learned that after the PPO presentation, the final 16 would be announced.

I have to continue to remind myself that this is REALITY and what we are doing matters. Although excitement, drama, and all the good for TV stuff can be captured on film and sensationalized, the bottom line is everything that we do as teams and individuals during this entire process has a real impact on the business we are creating (Events Leader) and our reputation as community leaders.

There were two main lessons with this challenge
1) There are a thousand ways to “skin a cat” when obtaining start-up money in a “dog eat dog” world. (That’s southern slang for there are more ways than one to get what you need in a competitive environment, so don’t send me any letters PETA). If you need money to start your business, the number of ways to accomplish this is endless. Most people quit after they get turned down from the bank. This is no place for quitters! Besides most people in the “Banking” industry don’t understand or support New Entrepreneurs. Bankers have adopted the idea that it takes money to make money. In other words, if you have money, assets, and a good banking history, they will give you a loan. It’s an oxymoron if you ask me.

Anyway, we started with a Private Placement Offering because I felt sure this was an avenue for funds that most of the contestants had not experienced. True Entrepreneurs find a way to raise money when all conventional avenues come up empty. Phase one was to see who could handle objection.

2) Phase two was recruiting. Recruiting might very well be the most essential element of owning your own business. No matter what your skills are, if you can recruit someone to do what’s necessary then success will follow. Recruiting golfers to play in a charity golf tournament we thought would be an easy lead in. But, as we found out, nothing is as easy at is seems and sometimes even people with the best intentions will let you down.

Speaking of being let down, in this episode “Robin” and “Rainbow” were given a great responsibility as they both volunteered to give the PPO presentation to an extremely wealthy group of investors at a private party held in one of the Finest Mansions in the Eastern United States. After over a month of preparation to represent not only EventsLeader but also each of the 65 remaining contestants, “Rainbow” caved under pressure. With a shocking call to his team as they were making final preparations at a meeting he was suppose to attend, “Rainbow” notified “Robin” that he couldn’t do it. Obscenities flew, emotions were high. It was a detrimental blow. However, our first leader emerged. “Retro” stepped up took on a situation that most would run from.

Lessons taught:
1) Money is available for you to start your business.
2) If you can recruit, you can be successful.
3) True Leaders always step up in crisis situations

I brought a homemade pink sign for our now small 3 people team it was just
weird to see these other larger teams still organized and ready while my
team had accomplished everything but were yet so small. Goes on to realize
that all 3 people in my team ended up in the final 16. :) I was very
impressed how my teamates had pulled together and finished the business
plan. I would have loved to have been more involved but I was not able to.

I found out one of my teamates was made a new manager, along with 3 others
one being given the first spot in the final 16 for selling the most
sponsorships. And another guy who recieved a large sponsorship that he
shared with his team to keep them all to the next round.

It was weird how many people ellimated themselves by not even showing up to
the event. I think the first meeting we had over 350 people or more. And
this event we had close to 150 in which it seemed like everyone there was
going to the next round. Weird thing is I think most of the people sent away
did not get the sponsorship money but at the same time some of the people in
the final 65 and some that were not in the team that got moved on did not
raise any money. Oh well :) I still would have loved to know what made me
move on and what left others behind.

Afterwards we had a open bar, it was the first one I had ever been to. It
was fun but I don't really drink but I think I had at least one :) Some
people really had fun with the open tab. That sponsorship money must have
came in handy that day HAA HAAA.

One last thing wish they had this on a blooper reel, we had to give O the
sponsorship money on camera and we were all at the bottom of the stairs of
the hotel and as I walked up I tripped and almost fell on my ass, now this
is tripping up the stairs HAAA HAA I was embarased but I laughed it off.

Gay Guy's Lesson learned: Find your contacts they can usually help you
with anything that you need. And take one step at a time you will get there,
and don't get too nervious or you might end up triping up and embarassing
yourself.

Dynamics were changing rapidly. We were told by Mr “ED” that we were no longer colors. We were one big team with 4 managers to organize the PPO and the Golf Tournament. The Managers chosen were “Broker”, “Robin”, “Wiz”, and “Mrs Retro”. I was not surprised at all that the “Broker” and “Mrs Retro” were chosen because they had been very dedicated during the entire process. They wanted to see the business succeed and had a lot of experience with other businesses they could and did contribute. I was very surprised that “Robin” was chosen. It was not until that day that our yellow team found out he had secured over $2000 in sponsorship funds. “Robin” didn’t share this information with our team (as the rest of us had shared with each other). I had not had the opportunity to work with “Wiz”at this point. However, I learned that day that he had secured $10,000 in sponsorship funds for the show and decided to share it with his entire team so none of them would be eliminated. Had he not chosen to do that he would have been guaranteed a spot as one of the final 16. It appeared that the 4 managers had produced well and were hard workers.

I was placed on the “Brokers” team and was ready to go. She and I worked very well together and looked forward to things to come. We left the Marriott that day exhausted, excited, and a bit confused as to what we were really supposed to be doing next. However, we were confident we would figure it out and make a good showing.

Much talking started, gossip, rumors, did someone have an “in”. Why were these managers chosen? Why weren’t others selected? Why did two of the managers come from the same team? How would all 65 of us all work together as one team with four managers. My project management skills went into overdrive to try to get as organized as possible for the next challenge. I was determined to learn and contribute all I could.

The possibilities were endless, the directions were sketchy. Yet my goal was still clear… to work my best and contribute all I could to make this a success so I would make the final 16.

Alopeciahope’s Lesson Learned: You can’t trust everyone.

Alopeciahope
www.thewomenshop.com
www.alopeciahope.blogspot.com

Who would make it to the next level? Who would be chosen to become one of the next 65 chosen? Were the qualifications really nailed down for the selection, or would it merely be “the survival of the fittest” or the “survival of those who would simply stick with it”.

The yellow team came together and made an outstanding presentation with our team colors, professional signs, and yellow roses on our lapels. We were all excited. Our team ran into a few complications because a few people who had NOT contributed over the past several weeks showed up that day. Sounds like a small thing, but when you have counted the boutonnières & corsages for each person ahead of time an extra person or two made things a little challenging.

We socialized, we stood confused, we sat in on a fashion show that was to help promote the show, and we stood in line to hand in our sponsorship money one by one as we were filmed doing so. The day was a long one. However, the yellow team actually WON the writing of the business plan which meant our ENTIRE team made it to the next level. I was totally thrilled and had it not been for the hard work of “Broker” on the financials we would not have taken the prize. But we did .. we were happy.. I was elated because I was one step closer to becoming one of the final 16.

We celebrated and met others who were now part of the 65. I met “Disney” for the first time because she had gained the MOST sponsors of anyone and would definitely be one of the final 16. I also met “Mrs Retro” because she had sold the most t-shirts from our very first night. Stay tuned to hear about the reorganization of our teams…

Now back to the Marriott....I don't really remember a whole lot about the first half of the day...what I do remember was the evening.....coming back and finding out that Disney had been a superstar, and came up with the largest number of sponsorships!! Wow, I really had my work cut out for me. Next, it was on to the complimentary bar, where Mrs. Retro & I met the Time Saver. This is when I learned that Mrs. Retro really enjoyed her Cosmopolitan's. And the Time Saver had the thickest southern accent that I had ever heard.....To be honest, I really was thinking to myself....there really are only a handful of folks here that seemed very business savvy....let alone have any entrepreneurial experience....who were these people?

It was then time for the announcement to let us know who made it to the next round. After only a few minutes, we realized that almost everyone sitting at the Marriott was being called up to the stage. When it was all said and done, there were 60 of us. Standing up there, we then heard the announcement that there would be 4 managers selected for our next challenge.....Mrs. Retro, Robin, Wiz & The Broker. Hmmmm....well, I'm still a little skeptical about all of this, but having gotten involved with the premise that I'm here to learn all there is to know about business, I was determined to at least participate in the next challenge...and my competitive personality told me that I at least had to make it to the final 16.

Oh yeah and I remember one more thing about that evening, my fiancé' came out for the 'big' announcement of the final 60 contestants. After all, I was supposed to be planning a wedding....at this point, my wedding was 4 months away! How was I ever going to keep participating in the Reality Show while making all of the final preparations for my 'fairy tale' wedding?? Stay tuned.....

Batman’s Lesson Learned: Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.

At that point, nobody but me had really put in any effort in the group fundraising idea, and I didn’t want us to come out of the party in debt. Many of them including Red and Mr. Devious were disappointed and decided to make an executive decision to go ahead and have the party. Unfortunately, I still had to do most of the legwork because the concept and contacts were all mine. For the most part I was simply nervous about turning over my leads to unqualified people. We began brainstorming on how to get as many people at the party as possible. We knew that there existed a database with all of the people who were also in the running to becoming the Final 16 on Entrepreneurs. We decided to send out a mass e-mail that led the other contestants to believe it was a party for everyone on the show and that they should come. We were charging $5 at the door in order to increase our sponsorship money and many of the contestants from other teams showed up, but were not pleased when they learned who the real sponsors of the party were. We felt that it was fair game. Most of us were interested in the opportunity to meet other contestants and felt that it would be a fun time for all of us to get to know each other. They didn’t feel the same! In the end, the owner of The Office was bitter about my not wanting to date him and ended up not giving us as much of a percentage as we thought we would receive. We got all of the money we raised at the door which I think totaled around $500. We didn’t raise as much money as we had hoped but everyone had a great time and we were able to raise awareness for the show and EventsLeader. When we arrived at the Marriot on the day of the challenge, things were confusing as usual. However, I loved the excitement of competition and was ready to find out if I had made it to the next stage and what our next challenge would be. My team, although a few members were a bit confident, was not even in the top 3 business plans. But all of us did make it to the next round of the competition. Disney was announced raising the most sponsorship money. I was extremely impressed, because she was young and pretty and from what I knew seemed a bit reserved. She definitely didn’t seem overconfident or egotistical like the rest of the loudmouths I had been working with. I thought to myself that in the next challenge I needed to make sure I mingled a bit more with her. Maybe I could learn something from her about what it takes to win. There was also four managers chosen from the 65 to lead the challenge on the PPO Presentation and Golf Tournament. I had a feeling it was going to be a grueling month.

Kiss’s Lesson Learned: Be careful mixing business and pleasure, be clear of your intentions.

Upon receiving the sponsorship and business plan challenge, I knew that I could raise the sponsorship money by contacting my employer, Chuck Davis at Attorneys Title Insurance Agency, Inc. He has always supported my ventures and I was hoping this time would be no exception. Luckily within a day of me telling him what I was doing, he was more than happy to sponsor me the $1000 I was supposed to raise. My group had also decided that we wanted to have a party at a local club in an attempt to raise extra sponsorship money for the challenge. While out on the town one night with some friends, we decide to go dancing at The Office. While there, the security guard came up and handed me a bottle of champagne from the owner of The Office. Rather than being the typical girl who would be excited about the opportunity to date a rather wealthy club-owner, I was more interested in the business opportunity aspect. I thought he would be the perfect person to have help my group throw a party. I went up to meet him, thanked him for the champagne, got a business card and set a date for our next meeting. I was enjoying “networking” already, and I had just begun! Over the course of the next couple weeks, it became evident that the owner of The Office was less interested in helping me throw a party and more interested in dating me. I expressed to my group that this plan would not be as profitable as we thought, and that we should probably all just raise the money on our own. Stay tuned to see what we did…

So finally we got down to business. They announced that ‘Broker’s’ group had the best business plan so their entire team advanced. ‘Broker’, I think, was their team leader but she had to give a speech, I remember thinking, well she won’t be much competition purely because she was so timid at the podium. Public speaking is such a huge part of business and I knew I was good at it although it scares the living crap out of me. Then they announced that I had raised the most sponsorship money…whew, I did it…and now it was my turn to make a speech. Oh great, I just got done bashing ‘Broker’ for her lack of skills and now I had to do it. I don’t remember a thing I said but they all clapped so I guess I said something good. So I was guaranteed a spot in the Final 16. Although when the show came out I was rather disappointed to see that didn’t even make the cut.

Then we were presented with our next challenge and 4 managers were chosen, Wiz, Mrs. Retro, Robin, and Broker. In my head I was thinking, hey wait a minute; I want to be a manager. Yeah, yeah that would give me a chance to shine, I knew that managers always had the best access to ‘The Producer’. I understood why 3 of them were chosen, Wiz had raised more money than I but he spread it amongst his group so they could all advance, Mrs. Retro had sold the most t-shirts at auditions, and Broker had led her team to having the best business plan. But Robin stumped me, he would have a lot of proving himself to do because obviously the producers saw something in him that I didn’t, other than he was pretty hot.

Disney’s Lesson Learned: Don’t be critical of others until you try it yourself.

Of course I was a bit nervous arriving at the Marriott but after asking some of the others their status in raising sponsorship money I felt rather confident that I would make the cut to the final 65. I even had lingering thoughts that I could have raised the most money and would be guaranteed a spot in the final 16, but would immediately talk myself out of that so as not to be disappointed if I didn’t. I must admit I felt I had a bit of an upper hand when it came to getting sponsors. My boss Herb Council was very supportive of my endeavor and helped me tremendously in finding sponsors. So just a little plug real quick…go to Atlantic Tire and Auto for all your car care needs if your in the Triangle area, www.atlantictireonline.com…yep you guessed it, he was one of my biggest sponsors.

I don’t remember much of the day other than going to a super model show and having cocktails with the other contestants. When we all were seated for the results there was a lady sitting beside me that apparently had branched away from her team and created the ‘off-white’ team(I guess her original team was the White team…hummm). Apparently she didn’t get along too well with her team. I figured since my team had worked relatively well together that we might have one up on the others. While we were waiting for the filming to begin this same lady was in a conversation with Gay Guy. One thing you will learn about me is that I am always listening and very observant, so obviously I was listening to this rather awkward conversation…so apparently Gay Guy was telling her about some movie that he was in and gave her a promotional card on the movie. All I remember is she blurted out, “Is this a prono?” I looked at ‘The Mole’(one of my teammates), and we busted out laughing, she had been listening too. So that was a conversation starter all right, I took a look at the card and there were two guys, one laying on top of the other both with their shirts off, pretty PG-13 in my opinion, but the whole thing was hilarious. All the while I was sizing up the competition…

This indeed was the truest test to see who was full of air and who was full of ability. It wasn’t the amount of money that was important, it was the effort put in and the creativeness to get it done I was looking for. Not necessarily the ultimate entrepreneur, but at least the ultimate “go-getters” and the people you want working for you or with you would show themselves during this challenge.

It’s easy to talk a good game, but this challenge brought a quiet calm to the majority of the contestants as they discovered “it ain’t as easy as it sounds”. I was extremely proud of the contestants that moved forward as it was the first time most of them had stepped out of their “comfort zone”. “Disney” won her spot on the final 16 because she was the top producer and the “Wiz” showed his leadership and compassion by using his sponsorship to save his entire team. Was that smart or not? “Retro” was really the first contestant to take me up on my willingness to help. I liked that! Not only was she super savvy, her father was an accomplished entrepreneur and her husband was a “player” in a major company. She had plethora of talent and experience in her corner and she new how to use it. She and “Batman” single handedly completed their business plan and did it quite well. “Batman” seemed to have some impressive skills, I just don’t know if the assertiveness and motivation is enough to make the final cut. “Broker” proved to be a real DYNAMO. Not only a master recruiter, but attention to detail was superb. The question is what kind of freedom she allowed her recruits. Hey, I’ve been labeled a “Soloist” too. “Robin” has the looks, is well spoken, successfully completed the individual challenge, and was on the winning team. Are you a Driver or a Rider? “Red” had an edge to her that I can’t put my finger on yet. I liked her aggressiveness. “Rainbow”… I knew and respected his “Boss” so I knew he must have talent of some sort. Show Me! “Rainbow” was definitely outspoken, which I respect, as long as you can control it. Mostly, he was mysterious and that intrigues me. Is there something he was hiding? “Mr. Devious” was a fantastic organizer and team player although the background is all corporate, it appears he wanted to “walk on the wild side” and do his own thing. Can an old dog learn new tricks though? This is much harder than hiding under a corporate veil. “Kiss” is young, beautiful, intelligent, and extremely confident. Was it innocents I detected or was she playing the game already? Tony Marshall, another sweet heart of a guy with loads of design talent has an incredible attitude and the drive to go with it. His parents raised him well. No matter what happens, I intend to do business with Tony when this is over. “W” had my vote for President. He seemed to be a Professional “BS’er” The thing is I think he really can back it up. I guess we’ll have to see. “Time Saver” there is no doubt about it, a “smart one” and very opinionated. We too had a great “one on one” meeting and she proved to not only be a sweet person, but was willing to take chances and search for answers and help. Something in her personality made her seem unapproachable, but she’s not. I’m excited to see what she can do. “Mole” maybe has the most beautiful smile I’ve seen yet. At least from my perspective always has a positive attitude, likes to have fun, and is a “workaholic”. “Gay Guy” is success waiting to happen. Put in the right hands of leadership he will accomplish great things. He is young and impressionable. He has a super good heart, and is willing to do most anything. He is controversial, a little sneaky, and lacks the confidence to head his own company at present, but I think he will experience more growth than anyone else. “Bizzle” is someone I might be able to learn some neat things from. I think he fought in World War II, a lot of experience, if you know what I mean. He currently owns his own, very successful business, and is a heck of a nice guy, and was actually one of the contestants school teachers back in the 60’s. He is a real live “Hippie”. “Alopeciahope” has just simply won my heart. At this point she could do no wrong. David Wright so deserves this opportunity, but it may be his lack of qualified resources that will force him to meet his doom. Sheyenne K. is one special lady. Watch out for her. She is someone who has the drive and resources to win this entire competition. She is a “Connecter”, and a great asset. She also owns and operates an extremely successful business that serves as a valuable resource for any entrepreneur. She is quietly dangerous, in a good way. “Entrepreneurs” TRS will not be the last you see of her. Lastly, she has a heart of GOLD; a lot like “Alopeciahope”. I will definitely make use of her services. Andreas W. is another super nice guy. He appears to be like a sponge waiting to be dropped in water. He is definitely the type person you want on your team. I’m anxious to see how he can lead. Jason B. is also a guy I am quite impressed with. He also has a great chance if he can avoid getting emotional. Tyrone M. will be successful as will most of the remaining 65. It is a highly talented group that so far has surpassed my expectations. Unfortunately some of the people that deserve to be on this show and go through this experience will have to be eliminated. My main question is: Where is that guy who said he had this competition “in the bag”? Did he even show up?

As part of our event we were invited to take part in a “Super Model” Search, which one of our contestants Ron C did very well in. I think he should have won, but our private party afterwards was the real eye-opener. Was this the first time some of these guys experienced an open-bar? Kurt S. I have to say you made a lasting impression. I framed the bar tab and put your picture on it. No problem though, you had good training at East Carolina University. Jessica O without a doubt could hold her own. Quite the Business Lady too! It didn’t appear it was “Professor’s” first time at the watering hole either. However, I think I saw an umbrella in “ED’s” tall fancy drink. “ED, I don’t mind paying, but next time you have to “Man-Up” on the drink selection.” Boy do we have blackmail footage from this night.(lol)

Lesson learned: Contestants with ambition and drive will prevail over the ones with only intellect.

I guess they were impressed with my wakeboarding skills (just kidding)…whew, I made it to the next round. We had a meeting at the Capital Events Center, a good 45 minutes from my house, and there was a hurricane warning. But hey, I like a good challenge. I made the drive regardless and it was worth it. Seeing as I had not met anyone involved in the show since I didn’t go to auditions I was quite nervous. But I was pretty impressed, they said there were 300 invited back out of 2500 that auditioned. So at this meeting we were split into groups, then they sent all the groups to separate rooms to discuss our challenge and choose a team leader. In my group, the Black team, I had a NCSU graduate student, a disc jockey business owner, a mortgage broker, a club manager, an ex-entrepreneur and a couple others I don’t remember. Well it came time to pick a leader, of course I was jumping inside…hey, hey, pick me, pick me. I just casually volunteered, as did the graduate student. We discussed for a moment our schedules and it was determined that the graduate student would have more time to devote to the organization of our team…in my head I was thinking… BS, these freaking people have no idea who I am and what a good job I would do. Well come to find out the team leader was the only person that could have direct contact with the producers when we had questions about our challenge. I felt I was at a huge disadvantage by not being the team lead b/c otherwise the producers would just see me as a number. So…first lesson learned, you always have to sell yourself, I should of made sure those other people knew how competitive I was and how great of a team lead I would have been.

The standouts in my group were the NCSU Grad student, The Mole, and myself, we all worked very well together and still remain good friends. It’s funny how the people that were in your original group throughout this whole thing end up being your most honest friends/allies throughout the process. The Mole actually warned me on occasion of those she thought were not being truthful with me that she thought would try and take advantage. Anyway, there was this one guy in our group that said he was a millionaire by like age 25 or something and had since lost it all and was now a parking attendant. A PARKING ATTENDANT, that was an eye opener, you’d think that anyone that has the drive and capability of being a millionaire by age 25 would definitely be doing better than a parking attendant job…makes you wonder how exactly he made that money. Any way like I said we really only had 3 contributors in our group. The business plan was pretty easy, just like what you learn in college, but the financials part of the challenge was the real doozie. In college it was always clear-cut and here there was no right or wrong answer. I guess ‘Producer’ really did know a bit about teaching how the real world works but I wasn’t sold yet, I was still forming my opinion about his character.