What sitting in a gorilla cage taught me about being an entrepreneur

Lately I’ve been pondering how I got from there to here and have been pleasantly surprised to “discover” many experiences from my childhood that prepared me for my current foray into entrepreneurship.   I’ll share two experiences with you today.

Let’s start with pizza demos.  When I was growing up, my parents owned a grocery store and I would give out samples of pizza to customers.  This required the courage to approach both people I knew and didn’t know with the offer of a taste of pizza because experiencing the pizza would open them up to the possibility of purchasing a product they may not otherwise have purchased.   Hmm.  Sounds like our Body Magic custom fittings -- the experience of wearing a Body Magic sells the product because experiencing is believing and purchasing one becomes the customer’s idea.

Ok, so you’re probably wondering about the gorilla cage.  When I was in Jr. High, my Dad devised a marketing gimmick for the grocery store for the Summer Circus Days promotion - he created a gorilla cage out of a large cardboard box, hung a gorilla suit in the cage and placed in-the-shell peanuts in the cage.  Customers were to guess how many peanuts were in the cage to win a prize.  For an extra laugh, my Dad would have my sister or I put on the gorilla suit and sit really still until people approached the cage and then we’d move to scare the customers.  From that experience, I learned to have fun and be creative in my sales approach.  People remembered that gorilla suit for a long time and I’ve been told my BNI (Business Network Int’l) commercials are memorable because I make them fun and creative.

I’ve learned that when we are passionate about what we’re doing and having fun, that shines through to others and they are attracted to what we’re up to.  When we’re in our drudgery, no one wants to be a part of that and people scatter.  Are you living your passion?