13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

Mary Kay Ash

1a. After reading the biography of Mary Kay Ash and her successful cosmetic company, I came to be very surprised about certain aspects of her company’s history and herself. I think one of the things that surprised me the most about Mary Kay and her company was she created Mary Kay AFTER she had retired. Few women (or men) that I’ve known decide to start a new company from scratch during their retirement. Her experience working in sales aided her in developing a company that fit the lifestyle of working moms and all women who wanted to take control of their life by starting a career. Her philosophies that she embedded in the company is also surprisingly remarkable; they’re so simple, yet have so much power. Her golden rule policy was the basis of her company.

1b. There are several things to admire about Mark Kay. She not only created a successful company during retirement, took care of her children while working full-time when she didn’t have her husband’s income, and had extraordinary responsibilities while growing up (she had to take care of her father who was sick while her mother worked). I think her tenacity about life is something to be admired. Her personality set her up for success and its motivating to see how much a woman (especially from her time) could accomplish. It only leads me to believe that women nowadays, who have more opportunities, can accomplish anything.

1c. Something that I did not like/admire about her book was the way she connected her career to her husband. I understand that it was a different time and culture back then, however she emphasized that her husband’s feelings/ego came before hers, her need to please her husband was frustrating, etc. etc.

1d. The beginning of her book stated much about the obstacles Mark Kay faced in the beginning of her journey. She had people telling her constantly that her business wouldn’t succeed, her financial situation wasn’t the best when she started and she risked her entire life’s savings on this endeavor. Additionally, her husband had died a month before launching the company, which was very unfortunate. However, she overcame these obstacles with her dogged determination and support of her family. Her family believed in her and their support motivated her to succeed especially because so much was at stake if she didn’t.

2. From the start Mary Kay had astonishing abilities to succeed due to her upbringing and personality. Her mother instilled confidence and perseverance in her and she used those skills to launch this amazing company. Her determination was like no other. As a mother who needed to put food on her kids table, she had enough motivation to do so. She was very tenacious and enthusiastic about the future. Additionally, her personality was very charming and energetic, which aided in her success.

3. One part of the reading that was confusing to me was the way the book was set up regarding the words/pronouns it used sometimes. There were plenty of times throughout the book where I felt that the book was addressed to only women. I understand that her company was made to empower women and give them unlimited opportunities. Yet, I didn’t understand why sometimes the book specifically addressed women.

4. If I could ask Mary Kay two questions now, they would be:

  - How do you feel that your company has helped shaped women’s ideals and beliefs about the ‘career woman’?

  - If you could remedy one mistake you made early in your journey as an entrepreneur, what would it be?

5.  Mary kay had a very exact view of hard work in my opinion. By certain paragraphs that were included in her book, I understood that she believed, ‘you reap what you sow’.  She was very honest about the fact that she worked very hard to get her company where it is today. She emphasized the hours of sleep she lost, the lack of social life she had, and so many other things that indicated that succeeding was her top priority. I do share her same opinion to some extent. I think hard work can get you a long way, however I also believe that external major forces sometimes hinder someone’s success (politics, discrimination, etc.). Nevertheless, I do think that most of the time for most people, ‘good things aren’t handed to you. You gotta work for what you want”.