Howard Schultz's name might not ring a bell to everyone but the billion-dollar company he founded will make every coffee lover crazy - Starbuck's. Starbuck's gave Howard Schultz a net worth of over $3 billion. However, Schultz was not born with a silver spoon, he was poor with his father working as a truck driver and his mother a receptionist. So how was he able to pull himself from rags to riches?
According to Schultz, one of the things that pushed him to where he is right now is his sense of mission . Starbuck's is more than just a coffee shop, he said. It has a mission and that is to inspire and nurture the human spirit one cup and one person at a time. This became evident in the ambiance they give to their customers when they enter a Starbuck's store.
He also relayed this mission to his employees. When Starbuck's suffered some financial blow in 2007, Schultz rallied his employees by telling them that profit is not the real reason why Starbuck's existed. The real profit, he said was in exceeding the expectations of the customer. He challenged them to do just that and before long, the coffee company turned the tide around and became profitable once again.
Once you have a mission, Schultz also said that taking risks is essential for success. Risk-taking seems to be one of the common characteristic among millionaires and successful people. For example, he envisioned Starbuck's to be the third place people want to be in after their homes and workplaces. At that time, no coffee shop dared to think about that. For them, providing a good cup of coffee is enough but Starbuck's wanted more and proceeded to do so.
Lastly, Schultz said that as you follow your path to success, you will have a lot of mistakes and failures. The correct attitude in facing mistakes is to accept and own up to them not run or blame someone else. In 2008, he realized they veered away from their mission. So he closed 900 stores in order for them to get back the feeling of camaraderie and community in every store.
