Brody Wilson

Bus 1050

Prof. Meier

My Personal Renaissance

Time, it’s the one constant in all of civilization and as time goes on things change. Nothing

stays stagnant, life is constantly changing and with that so do we and so does business. The

business has evolved from the basic barter system to the complex stock market with tariffs and

taxes on products. It has made things more complicated and harder to understand but not

impossible. With all of these changes that happened throughout history, it has changed the

thought of business itself and what the potentials are. Back in ancient times, they were against

usury and the idea that if you made a profit from someone, especially someone in a bad situation,

you are a horrible person that should be dead. Nowadays there are Payday loan companies who

have incredibly high-interest rates that put people into further debt and cause people to file

bankruptcy and have further hardship. It’s crazy to see how much time can actually change

things. As of right now, we are facing a crisis that is coming soon that can put hundreds of

thousands of people out of work and in the future as time goes on it could replace all jobs,

automation. CGP Grey has a great video from the module that covers the effects automation can

have on everyone and what kind of jobs are being affected primarily but also the potential

machines have to replace everyone.

But business isn’t the only thing that has changed throughout time, so have people and so

have I. Funny enough my renaissance in life came during this class. I was annoyed about where

my life was at, felt like I was just stagnant. I actively started seeking a way to better myself,

started working out more, reading more and looking into ways to become more financially
smarter. After listening to all do the usury talk and the idea of debt in class I looked at ways to

get rid of what I have and to prevent myself from further obtaining more debt. Of course I ran

into the great financial guru of Dave Ramsey where cash is king. I have brought down my car

loan significantly and have yet to carry a balance on a credit card so I say as of right now I’m

sitting at a decent place but not great. I’ve implemented some critical thinking in the way I

handle my finances and what I budget for. Taking care of the bills I need to take care of first,

including the higher payments to pay down my car loan as well as expenses like groceries and

set up a budget so I don’t overdo it. Implementing these strategies has made me financially

smarter and in a better situation. While we’re on the topic of debt and Dave Ramsey I want to go

over John Galbraith's Dependence Effect where he talks about following your neighbors who are

buying expensive items and you follow suit to fit in and keep up with them. Dave talks about this

as well so it was fun reading it in the module, he talks about “keeping up with the Joneses”

which basically means trying to match their items with nicer things which can cause you to go

into debt, such as getting a new car that may be hard to pay compared to a car that’s cheaper that

may be uglier but will help in the long run.

I’ve always been a big fan of science and how it can be applicable to almost any subject

out there so learning about management as science was super interesting to me. When Henry

Ford talked about his thought process and how he would look for the most efficient way possible

it reminded me funny enough of the time I was working in retail. During high school, I worked

my way up the ladder at a seasonal sales job and became one of the youngest managers in the

state of Utah if not the youngest for the company. When I was training the sales staff I

implemented a similar trial compared to the time tests. We had different zones with different

products so when it came closer to closing time I would make sure we got started on the first
zone to clean up at least a half an hour before we closed to make sure it was clean enough to

leave, zone 2 I would need to get started roughly 15-20 minutes depended on the time of the year

and the last zone could be done in like 10 minutes. This was based on experience and the average

with what my staff could do. Now it’s not the same as what was presented in that module but

that’s what I would think of as I read through it.

Now that I see the course of business throughout history and how much it has changed

and fluctuated, I appreciate where we are nowadays. Right now with where the economy is

currently at we have so much opportunity to start a new business and use the new technology

that is readily available to us to make some great changes in the world. Back in history, we didn’t

see this opportunity given to the people as we are given today. Half of the time business wasn’t

working to make a profit because it was seen as unethical, only until the renaissance did most of

the world finally realize that hey, business isn’t too bad.

Another topic that I found interesting that I think is vital to running a company and

something that I will implement if I am running a business or back in a management role is the

treating of employees. In the modules, there was mainly a discussion about the lower-wage jobs

being treated unfairly compared to the higher-wage jobs. Which is true, there is always a divide

that management needs to address but it’s not just between those two classes. It’s also that

management could be picking favorites or not treating their employees that are on the same team.

I see this at my current job with some of the mangers who will pick favorites and make sure that

their taken care of and looked after but won’t give the same treatment to other employees as

well. Although it’s not bad where I work, it’s still something that shouldn’t be happening too

much and my takeaway from reading that module and experiencing is to treat everyone the same

and make sure that there is a strong bond between everyone.

 Overall, I really enjoyed the insights this class has given me into the history of business

and how much it’s changed and how looking back into history can give powerful insights and

make sure we don’t repeat our past and go down the same trap as our ancestors.