Skip to Main Content
Myths and Mortals
book

Myths and Mortals

by Andrew Keyt
July 2015
Beginner content levelBeginner
224 pages
5h 42m
English
Wiley
Content preview from Myths and Mortals

Chapter 6Nonstop LearningKnow your weakness and improve

“I am damn good at what I do.”

That is a statement born from a sense of credibility. Dick DeVos saw his family company, Amway, grow from $500 million in annual sales when he joined the company in 1974 to more than $4 billion in sales when he retired in 2002. The surge started in 1986. DeVos took over a fledgling international department that accounted for less than 10 percent of total revenue. In six years, international revenue exceeded domestic; today it represents 85 percent of revenue.

“I am not very bright,” DeVos says, “but I knew enough about all aspects of the business that by the time I took over as president no one could blow a fastball by me. I didn't have all the answers, but I could separate the wheat from the chaff.”

DeVos became “damn good” by ascribing to a family value: Life is what you make of it only when you make something of yourself from what you've been given.

Richard DeVos gave his children a head start. They benefited from a fertile heritage rooted in family values. “My father came from a strong Dutch background,” says the son. “He had a strong Christian worldview, a strong work ethic, and a solutions-oriented approach to things.” Richard conferred his can-do attitude to his children, anticipating that one of them would someday operate the business. He developed a five-year training program in the company that gave his children the opportunity for hands-on training in a variety of departments.

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.
Start your free trial

You might also like

Brilliant Relationship, 2nd Edition

Brilliant Relationship, 2nd Edition

Annie Lionnet
People Skills

People Skills

Casey Hawley
Work Your Money, Not Your Life

Work Your Money, Not Your Life

Roger Ma, Jennifer Ma

Publisher Resources

ISBN: 9781118928967Purchase book