Assignment 13A- Reading Reflection No. 1
Book: Coco Chanel by Lisa Chaney
1. What surprised you the most? What about the entrepreneur did you most admire? What about the entrepreneur did you least admire? Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?
"Coco Chanel" was a very interesting read that allowed me to learn the background behind a well-renowned fashion designer who influences artists today. Truthfully, learning everything about her childhood and transition into adulthood was surprising to learn about, especially due to all the hardships she endured growing up. Among that, I most admired her resilience to create new, revolutionary fashion, despite all of the setbacks in life that would've normally discouraged someone to keep going. As someone who also believes people's experiences (both good and bad) are what shapes a person into the best versions of themselves they can be, there wasn't anything I found unadmirable about her story. Living a life of death, abandonment, and poverty is certainly not easy, and all of her actions are pretty justifiable for someone in her position. Gabrielle faced more adversity and failure than I imagined, and used her talents to learnt to sew and pursued a career in the fashion industry, regardless of fear of judgement
"Coco Chanel" was a very interesting read that allowed me to learn the background behind a well-renowned fashion designer who influences artists today. Truthfully, learning everything about her childhood and transition into adulthood was surprising to learn about, especially due to all the hardships she endured growing up. Among that, I most admired her resilience to create new, revolutionary fashion, despite all of the setbacks in life that would've normally discouraged someone to keep going. As someone who also believes people's experiences (both good and bad) are what shapes a person into the best versions of themselves they can be, there wasn't anything I found unadmirable about her story. Living a life of death, abandonment, and poverty is certainly not easy, and all of her actions are pretty justifiable for someone in her position. Gabrielle faced more adversity and failure than I imagined, and used her talents to learnt to sew and pursued a career in the fashion industry, regardless of fear of judgement
2. What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?
As mentioned above, competencies she exhibited was resilience, along with innovation and fearlessness. These qualities were her driving factors in the creation of her unique designs and kept her going, which would come to make her a worldwide fashion icon until even today
3. Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
One part of the reading that was confusing to me was keeping up with all the men in her life. While Gabrielle was a strong, independent woman, she did have many relationships during her lifetime and having to keep track of all the men that came and went got to be a little tricky for me.
One part of the reading that was confusing to me was keeping up with all the men in her life. While Gabrielle was a strong, independent woman, she did have many relationships during her lifetime and having to keep track of all the men that came and went got to be a little tricky for me.
4. If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask?
Q1: What career path would you have gone down if you decided to give up on fashion?
Q2: In what ways do you think your independence at a young age shaped the work you created upon entering the fashion industry?
Q1: What career path would you have gone down if you decided to give up on fashion?
Q2: In what ways do you think your independence at a young age shaped the work you created upon entering the fashion industry?
5. For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
I think Coco Chanel's opinion of hard work is essentially the quote "if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself". I think she embodied the saying in all of her work and commitment to creating unique fashion for women everywhere, and is what led her to become such a successful entrepreneur. Every aspiring entrepreneur should also aim to keep this quote in mind when starting their journey, and never lose sight of the end goal, as exhibited by the story of Coco Chanel
I think Coco Chanel's opinion of hard work is essentially the quote "if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself". I think she embodied the saying in all of her work and commitment to creating unique fashion for women everywhere, and is what led her to become such a successful entrepreneur. Every aspiring entrepreneur should also aim to keep this quote in mind when starting their journey, and never lose sight of the end goal, as exhibited by the story of Coco Chanel
Hi Jeannette, one similarity I found between Coco Chanel and the entrepreneur I read about, Ray Kroc, is their willingness to take on a challenge all by themselves regardless of the odds stacked against them. The first question you would ask Coco is an important one because many times aspiring entrepreneurs change directions and pursue something different. It would be interesting to know what career path she would've chosen if the fashion industry didn’t work out for her.
ReplyDeleteHey Jeannette,
ReplyDeleteI also read about Coco Chanel and was very shocked at her childhood and all that she went through. I too agree that there were a lot of men in her life, at some points I was confused as to if she was like a mistress to one or in a relationship with him, it was definitely harder to keep up with. I really liked your two questions to her, and I am interested in what she thinks she would be doing if it weren't fashion.
Hi Jeannette,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing about this interesting story about Coco Chanel. I believe that a lot of successful entrepreneurs and innovators share the same competency of being resilient and fearless. I see a common theme amongst entrepreneurs in the sense that they usually never give up and are willing to take a big risk for a big reward.
For someone as successful as her, you wouldn't think that she had a hard childhood, but I guess that's one of the reasons that she did become so successful. I really enjoyed reading about her life and how she became so successful!
ReplyDelete