Sharon Orlopp's Blog - Posts Tagged "autobiography"
Immigrants and Innovation
Recently I had the great fortune to listen to Olympian Michelle Kwan speak at our shared alma mater, the University of Denver. Kwan’s parents immigrated from Hong Kong to the United States. Her parents sacrificed tremendously and worked multiple jobs to ensure Michelle and her siblings could pursue their interests. Her brother played hockey and her sister was also an ice skater.
Michelle spoke about grit, discipline, and determination. She said she learned to quickly recover and smile broadly after falling while skating. She emphasized that she kept practicing and applying herself over and over and continually learning from her mistakes.
Heidi Grant, author of a Harvard Business Review article titled Nine Thing Successful People Do Differently, indicates that grit is one of the key components of successful people. Grant describes grit as the willingness to commit to long-term goals while persisting in the face of difficulty. Research has demonstrated that people with grit obtain more education and have higher college GPAs.
Forbes reported that 40% of the current Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants. Some of America’s greatest brands—Apple, Google, AT&T, Budweiser, Colgate, General Electric, IBM and others were started by immigrants or their children according to The Partnership for a New American Economy. The National Foundation for American Policy reported that 44 of the 87 startup companies valued at more than $1 billion in 2015 have immigrant founders.
Glenn Llopis, author of The Innovation Mentality, describes the perspective of immigrants that allows them to seize opportunities in the global market:
• Inspiration to see opportunity in
everything
• Flexibility to anticipate the unexpected
• Freedom to unleash passionate pursuits
• Room to live with an entrepreneurial
spirit
• Trust to work with a generous purpose
• Respect to lead to leave a legacy
Llopis is a successful entrepreneur who knows that our thinking evolves when we associate with people who think differently than we do. Cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset to see opportunities others might miss requires each of us to explore, actively listen, and open our hearts and minds to those who bring unique experiences and perspectives.
Through a combination of grit, determination, grace after falling, passion, anticipating the unexpected, and having an innovation and entrepreneurial mindset, we can create significant change in our personal and professional lives as well as our communities and the world.
Michelle spoke about grit, discipline, and determination. She said she learned to quickly recover and smile broadly after falling while skating. She emphasized that she kept practicing and applying herself over and over and continually learning from her mistakes.
Heidi Grant, author of a Harvard Business Review article titled Nine Thing Successful People Do Differently, indicates that grit is one of the key components of successful people. Grant describes grit as the willingness to commit to long-term goals while persisting in the face of difficulty. Research has demonstrated that people with grit obtain more education and have higher college GPAs.
Forbes reported that 40% of the current Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants. Some of America’s greatest brands—Apple, Google, AT&T, Budweiser, Colgate, General Electric, IBM and others were started by immigrants or their children according to The Partnership for a New American Economy. The National Foundation for American Policy reported that 44 of the 87 startup companies valued at more than $1 billion in 2015 have immigrant founders.
Glenn Llopis, author of The Innovation Mentality, describes the perspective of immigrants that allows them to seize opportunities in the global market:
• Inspiration to see opportunity in
everything
• Flexibility to anticipate the unexpected
• Freedom to unleash passionate pursuits
• Room to live with an entrepreneurial
spirit
• Trust to work with a generous purpose
• Respect to lead to leave a legacy
Llopis is a successful entrepreneur who knows that our thinking evolves when we associate with people who think differently than we do. Cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset to see opportunities others might miss requires each of us to explore, actively listen, and open our hearts and minds to those who bring unique experiences and perspectives.
Through a combination of grit, determination, grace after falling, passion, anticipating the unexpected, and having an innovation and entrepreneurial mindset, we can create significant change in our personal and professional lives as well as our communities and the world.
Special Father's Day Tribute: Fathers and Daughters
As Father’s Day approaches, it’s a great time to reflect on the impact our fathers have had on our lives.
My parents had three daughters and one son. My dad strongly believed that his daughters would go to college at a time when families were investing in their sons’ college education and weren’t always sending their daughters to four-year universities. My dad is an ardent believer that girls and boys can be anything they want to be. He has been my biggest lifetime cheerleader.
In 2013, Harvard Business School conducted research about the role mothers and fathers have on career choices of their children. The research found that fathers are the “gatekeepers” to their daughter’s career dreams. Fathers who are egalitarian in their beliefs and actions around housework and childrearing have daughters who envision themselves with a career.
Indra Nooyi, CEO of Pepsico, Denise Morrison, CEO of Campbell Soup, and Denise’s sister, Maggie Wilderotter, CEO of Frontier Communications, credit their fathers with the career success they have achieved. All three have publicly stated that their fathers had a continual message and belief that their daughters could accomplish anything they set their minds on achieving.
Father’s Day is a day spent thanking our fathers and appreciating the love and sacrifice they have made for us. As a reciprocal gift, fathers should continue to be a contributor and champion of their daughters’ dreams by demonstrating true partnership at home.
One of the most powerful true stories about the bond between a father and daughter is Standing Up After Saigon. Thuhang Tran was diagnosed with polio as a toddler and became separated from her father for 15 years after the Vietnam War ended. After reuniting with him in the US, she had surgery that enabled her to stand upright after crawling on the ground for 17 years. Her father is her biggest advocate and now he follows her career by moving whenever her job requires it.
https://www.amazon.com/Standing-After...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
My parents had three daughters and one son. My dad strongly believed that his daughters would go to college at a time when families were investing in their sons’ college education and weren’t always sending their daughters to four-year universities. My dad is an ardent believer that girls and boys can be anything they want to be. He has been my biggest lifetime cheerleader.
In 2013, Harvard Business School conducted research about the role mothers and fathers have on career choices of their children. The research found that fathers are the “gatekeepers” to their daughter’s career dreams. Fathers who are egalitarian in their beliefs and actions around housework and childrearing have daughters who envision themselves with a career.
Indra Nooyi, CEO of Pepsico, Denise Morrison, CEO of Campbell Soup, and Denise’s sister, Maggie Wilderotter, CEO of Frontier Communications, credit their fathers with the career success they have achieved. All three have publicly stated that their fathers had a continual message and belief that their daughters could accomplish anything they set their minds on achieving.
Father’s Day is a day spent thanking our fathers and appreciating the love and sacrifice they have made for us. As a reciprocal gift, fathers should continue to be a contributor and champion of their daughters’ dreams by demonstrating true partnership at home.
One of the most powerful true stories about the bond between a father and daughter is Standing Up After Saigon. Thuhang Tran was diagnosed with polio as a toddler and became separated from her father for 15 years after the Vietnam War ended. After reuniting with him in the US, she had surgery that enabled her to stand upright after crawling on the ground for 17 years. Her father is her biggest advocate and now he follows her career by moving whenever her job requires it.
https://www.amazon.com/Standing-After...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Fathers and Daughters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeRZS...
Highlights three memoirs with strong father and daughter bonds:
Standing Up After Saigon
Generally Speaking
Muslim Girl
Highlights three memoirs with strong father and daughter bonds:
Standing Up After Saigon
Generally Speaking
Muslim Girl
Character Development Tips: My Lost Brothers
Monday Morning Memoir Message:
Character development tips: My Lost Brothers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HQti...
#OnlyTheBrave17, #GHotshots, #BMcDonough20
Character development tips: My Lost Brothers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HQti...
#OnlyTheBrave17, #GHotshots, #BMcDonough20
A Chance In The World
Steve Pemberton is an AMAZING person. He endured horrific abuse in the foster care system. Thanks to the kindness of a neighbor, he found hope and the possibilities of a different future through reading books.
His memoir and the recent movie, A Chance In the World, are both well worth it! I highly recommend them.
I had the good fortunate to meet Steve at an event. He has made it his mission in life to ensure all people are included and valued.
The video clip includes some thoughts on narrative arc and the great job Steve did of hooking the reader and keeping them turning the page.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dHUv...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
His memoir and the recent movie, A Chance In the World, are both well worth it! I highly recommend them.
I had the good fortunate to meet Steve at an event. He has made it his mission in life to ensure all people are included and valued.
The video clip includes some thoughts on narrative arc and the great job Steve did of hooking the reader and keeping them turning the page.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dHUv...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
Polio Vaccine Developed by Immigrants
Excellent, timely article in Forbes about how the polio vaccination was developed by an immigrant and the son of an immigrant.
Immigrant innovation helps all of us.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartan...
The book, Standing Up After Saigon, shares Thuhang Tran's challenges with polio, war, poverty, family separation, and immigration.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Immigrant innovation helps all of us.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartan...
The book, Standing Up After Saigon, shares Thuhang Tran's challenges with polio, war, poverty, family separation, and immigration.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Celebrating Our Freedoms on the Fourth of July
As we approach the celebration of U.S. Independence, it is a great opportunity to thank those who have served and our currently serving in the military. It is also a time to recognize immigrant entrepreneurs who have made a difference in America.
Martin Greenfield’s memoir, Measure of a Man: From Auschwitz to President’s Tailor, is an amazing story of survival in the Holocaust, immigration to the States, and then success as a tailor. At age fifteen, Martin and his family were sent to Auschwitz. At the concentration camp, Martin’s father told him, “We must separate. If you survive, you must honor us by living.”
The book starts with a description of the boots and clothing worn by Dr. Josef Mengele, the Nazi physician nicknamed the Angel of Death. It foreshadows the role clothing played in Martin’s life.
The sign over the Auschwitz concentration camp said, “Work Makes You Free.” Martin concentrated on remaining as healthy as he could so that he could perform work and survive.
Martin’s descriptions of events at Auschwitz are horrific. He interjects humor and faith. He often asked, “Where is God?” while at the camp. Sometimes he would tell himself that God was really busy. When the war ended, Martin said that instead of manna, God dropped munitions.
Elie Wiesel was a teenager in the same camp as Martin. When the Holocaust ended, General Dwight D. Eisenhower had his troops personally tour the concentration camps, meet prisoners, and take pictures. After Martin immigrated to the US, he worked in a suit factory. A suit was being created for President Eisenhower during the same time as the Suez Canal Crisis. Martin wrote a note to the President expressing his opinion on what Eisenhower should do regarding the Suez Canal Crisis and tucked it into a pocket before the suit was delivered. Martin wanted to make sure that his “little guy’s” voice was heard.
Martin is extremely grateful that America is a nation of infinite possibilities. He rose from sweeping the floors of a suit company to founding a premier suit company. He and his sons have dressed Presidents Eisenhower, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. They have also dressed celebrities and athletes.
Martin’s memoir is a reminder that anything is possible if you apply yourself, dream big, and work hard.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Martin Greenfield’s memoir, Measure of a Man: From Auschwitz to President’s Tailor, is an amazing story of survival in the Holocaust, immigration to the States, and then success as a tailor. At age fifteen, Martin and his family were sent to Auschwitz. At the concentration camp, Martin’s father told him, “We must separate. If you survive, you must honor us by living.”
The book starts with a description of the boots and clothing worn by Dr. Josef Mengele, the Nazi physician nicknamed the Angel of Death. It foreshadows the role clothing played in Martin’s life.
The sign over the Auschwitz concentration camp said, “Work Makes You Free.” Martin concentrated on remaining as healthy as he could so that he could perform work and survive.
Martin’s descriptions of events at Auschwitz are horrific. He interjects humor and faith. He often asked, “Where is God?” while at the camp. Sometimes he would tell himself that God was really busy. When the war ended, Martin said that instead of manna, God dropped munitions.
Elie Wiesel was a teenager in the same camp as Martin. When the Holocaust ended, General Dwight D. Eisenhower had his troops personally tour the concentration camps, meet prisoners, and take pictures. After Martin immigrated to the US, he worked in a suit factory. A suit was being created for President Eisenhower during the same time as the Suez Canal Crisis. Martin wrote a note to the President expressing his opinion on what Eisenhower should do regarding the Suez Canal Crisis and tucked it into a pocket before the suit was delivered. Martin wanted to make sure that his “little guy’s” voice was heard.
Martin is extremely grateful that America is a nation of infinite possibilities. He rose from sweeping the floors of a suit company to founding a premier suit company. He and his sons have dressed Presidents Eisenhower, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. They have also dressed celebrities and athletes.
Martin’s memoir is a reminder that anything is possible if you apply yourself, dream big, and work hard.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Celebrating the 28th Anniversary of the ADA
Today, July 26, 2018, is the 28th anniversary of the date President George H.W. Bush signed into law the Americans With Disabilities Act which prohibits discrimination and guarantees civil rights of people with disabilities. The ADA paves the way for equal opportunity and access and full integration of differently abled people into society and communities.
Why does this matter? According to the 2010 census, there are over 57 million people in the US with a disability. That’s one in five Americans. 19% of our population. With the aging of the population, typically more than 2.2 million Americans join the differently abled ranks every five years.
Many of us either have a disability or have family members, loved ones, and friends who are disabled. Disabilities are non-discriminatory---they occur to people from all backgrounds, religions, races, ethnicities, genders, etc.
Reading memoirs from differently abled people helps us experience life from another’s perspective. Some of my favorite books in this genre include:
I Can See Clearly Now by Steve Hanamura. As a blind person, Steve describes walking into the Department of Motor Vehicles and cracking a joke about having a difficult time parking his car. Humor often helps put others at ease.
https://www.amazon.com/Can-Clearly-Di...
In An Instant by Lee and Bob Woodruff: Bob suffered a major brain injury from an explosive device in Iraq and describes his experience and road to recovery.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Standing Up After Saigon by Thuhang Tran and Sharon Orlopp: Thuhang faced significant challenges due to polio, war, poverty, family separation, and immigration. She crawled on the ground for 17 years before having surgery that enabled her to stand upright with the aid of braces and crutches.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Why does this matter? According to the 2010 census, there are over 57 million people in the US with a disability. That’s one in five Americans. 19% of our population. With the aging of the population, typically more than 2.2 million Americans join the differently abled ranks every five years.
Many of us either have a disability or have family members, loved ones, and friends who are disabled. Disabilities are non-discriminatory---they occur to people from all backgrounds, religions, races, ethnicities, genders, etc.
Reading memoirs from differently abled people helps us experience life from another’s perspective. Some of my favorite books in this genre include:
I Can See Clearly Now by Steve Hanamura. As a blind person, Steve describes walking into the Department of Motor Vehicles and cracking a joke about having a difficult time parking his car. Humor often helps put others at ease.
https://www.amazon.com/Can-Clearly-Di...
In An Instant by Lee and Bob Woodruff: Bob suffered a major brain injury from an explosive device in Iraq and describes his experience and road to recovery.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Standing Up After Saigon by Thuhang Tran and Sharon Orlopp: Thuhang faced significant challenges due to polio, war, poverty, family separation, and immigration. She crawled on the ground for 17 years before having surgery that enabled her to stand upright with the aid of braces and crutches.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Standing Up After Saigon
Very excited that Standing Up After Saigon was highlighted on television!
https://kmph.com/great-day/book-club/...
https://kmph.com/great-day/book-club/...
My Favorite Book for 2022: Go Back to Where You Came From
OMG! This is my favorite book of 2022 and I highly recommend it.
I listened to it on audiobook and it is read by the author, Wajahat Ali. I highly recommend listening to the book rather than reading it. Wajahat has done a TED talk, been a successful playwright and director of The Domestic Crusaders, and is a writer, activist, and recovering attorney.
Wajahat's parents immigrated to the US in 1965 and he was born in CA in 1980. He describes he and his family's journey over 40 decades with humor and self-awareness interwoven with the harsh realities of being a person of color while trying to achieve the American dream.
He kicks off his book with actual hate emails that he receives. His responses are humorous, but it is along the lines of "I laugh to keep from crying" because there is so much hate and vitriol in the emails.
His father was almost deported when his father was studying in the US. The random act of kindness by a stranger prevented his father from being deported the following day. Other people who were involved in the situation did not offer to help and had racist views toward immigrants. Wajahat's father was approved for an "Einstein" visa which is typically given to immigrants with "extraordinary ability" and those who are highly acclaimed in their field, such as academic researchers, Pulitzer, Oscar and Olympic winners. It is the same type of visa that was granted to Melania Knauss (Trump) in 2001 when she was a Slovenian model dating Donald Trump.
Wajahat grew up with a "healthy" build which required him to wear Husky jeans with a Husky label on the back that was in "92 font and visible from outer space."
Wajahat is also left-handed and he humorously describes being a lefty in a "right supremacy" world.
One of Wajahat's aunts visited from Pakistan and became extremely concerned when she saw a Black man when they were getting gas at a gas station. When Wajahat asked her about her unwarranted concerns, she mentioned that in Pakistan the television information from America typically shows Blacks as criminals and people to be feared.
Wajahat also shares his perspective on the "model minority" that is often used to describe Asian/Pacific Islanders. He stated, "We don't rock the boat, we row the boat." Then he shares why that approach and perspective can be damaging.
While he was attending college, his parents were arrested as part of Operation Cyberstorm---the FBI and Microsoft partnered together to locate individuals who were suspected of selling and distributing counterfeit software, laundering money, and committing credit card fraud. Forty-seven people were arrested.
When his parents were arrested, the US government confiscated all property belonging to the family. Wajahat was in his 20's and had to figure out how to help his parents get an attorney, where he and his two grandmothers would live, how he would earn money to pay expenses, etc. It was a tremendous ordeal to handle. Many of their friends and people in their community turned on them.
After many years of investigation and legal appeals, 4 people of the 27 arrested were sentenced. His parents were sentenced to 5 years in jail and ordered to pay restitution of $20 million to Microsoft.
At age 30, Wajahat and his mom were sharing a bedroom in his uncle's home with a few boxes of belongings prior to the date when his mom reported to prison.
His book is filled with the peaks and valleys of life, but the peaks are more jagged and shorter and the valleys are deep, almost unnavigable troughs due to how immigrants and people of color are viewed and treated in America---even when children of immigrants are born in America and are American citizens.
Despite the various challenges he has faced, including his two-year old daughter's battle with stage 4 cancer, he is optimistic and creates a rallying call to invest in hope. He asks readers/listeners to imagine they have a bi-racial grandchild whom they love dearly. What would each reader/listener do differently to ensure their bi-racial grandchild was safe and able to reach their fullest potential.
This is one of the most memorable, poignant, humorous memoirs that I have read that bear testimony to the resilience of the human spirit.
Highly, highly recommend! Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American
I listened to it on audiobook and it is read by the author, Wajahat Ali. I highly recommend listening to the book rather than reading it. Wajahat has done a TED talk, been a successful playwright and director of The Domestic Crusaders, and is a writer, activist, and recovering attorney.
Wajahat's parents immigrated to the US in 1965 and he was born in CA in 1980. He describes he and his family's journey over 40 decades with humor and self-awareness interwoven with the harsh realities of being a person of color while trying to achieve the American dream.
He kicks off his book with actual hate emails that he receives. His responses are humorous, but it is along the lines of "I laugh to keep from crying" because there is so much hate and vitriol in the emails.
His father was almost deported when his father was studying in the US. The random act of kindness by a stranger prevented his father from being deported the following day. Other people who were involved in the situation did not offer to help and had racist views toward immigrants. Wajahat's father was approved for an "Einstein" visa which is typically given to immigrants with "extraordinary ability" and those who are highly acclaimed in their field, such as academic researchers, Pulitzer, Oscar and Olympic winners. It is the same type of visa that was granted to Melania Knauss (Trump) in 2001 when she was a Slovenian model dating Donald Trump.
Wajahat grew up with a "healthy" build which required him to wear Husky jeans with a Husky label on the back that was in "92 font and visible from outer space."
Wajahat is also left-handed and he humorously describes being a lefty in a "right supremacy" world.
One of Wajahat's aunts visited from Pakistan and became extremely concerned when she saw a Black man when they were getting gas at a gas station. When Wajahat asked her about her unwarranted concerns, she mentioned that in Pakistan the television information from America typically shows Blacks as criminals and people to be feared.
Wajahat also shares his perspective on the "model minority" that is often used to describe Asian/Pacific Islanders. He stated, "We don't rock the boat, we row the boat." Then he shares why that approach and perspective can be damaging.
While he was attending college, his parents were arrested as part of Operation Cyberstorm---the FBI and Microsoft partnered together to locate individuals who were suspected of selling and distributing counterfeit software, laundering money, and committing credit card fraud. Forty-seven people were arrested.
When his parents were arrested, the US government confiscated all property belonging to the family. Wajahat was in his 20's and had to figure out how to help his parents get an attorney, where he and his two grandmothers would live, how he would earn money to pay expenses, etc. It was a tremendous ordeal to handle. Many of their friends and people in their community turned on them.
After many years of investigation and legal appeals, 4 people of the 27 arrested were sentenced. His parents were sentenced to 5 years in jail and ordered to pay restitution of $20 million to Microsoft.
At age 30, Wajahat and his mom were sharing a bedroom in his uncle's home with a few boxes of belongings prior to the date when his mom reported to prison.
His book is filled with the peaks and valleys of life, but the peaks are more jagged and shorter and the valleys are deep, almost unnavigable troughs due to how immigrants and people of color are viewed and treated in America---even when children of immigrants are born in America and are American citizens.
Despite the various challenges he has faced, including his two-year old daughter's battle with stage 4 cancer, he is optimistic and creates a rallying call to invest in hope. He asks readers/listeners to imagine they have a bi-racial grandchild whom they love dearly. What would each reader/listener do differently to ensure their bi-racial grandchild was safe and able to reach their fullest potential.
This is one of the most memorable, poignant, humorous memoirs that I have read that bear testimony to the resilience of the human spirit.
Highly, highly recommend! Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American
