Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/59976
six-month plans at the most. They learn to adapt very quick- ly. And when entrepreneurs are starting from scratch, they've also got to understand that a certain amount of capital is required. Most companies fail because they're undercapital- ized. It doesn't mean they need hundreds of millions of dol- lars, but they have to analyze their financial needs and make sure they have that money available in cash or credit. Finally, they have to be able to recognize their own weaknesses and surround themselves with people adept in areas where they have weaknesses. Very few entrepreneurs allow themselves these luxuries. I've seen nine out of ten go broke—I can tell they're going to go broke before they even start. Over my lifetime, hundreds of them have talked to me about their ideas and programs, but they have no game plan. They've come up with a new mousetrap, but they're not financed. They have a convoluted new idea, but they have no experts who are going to help them. You know they're not going to last in business. You've built a powerful legacy inside and outside Huntsman Corp. As business students strive to build careers, how important is it that they focus also on building legacies they'll be proud of? A legacy is multifaceted—it's a process of one's life. It includes not only business, but also family, charity, and out- reach to employees, suppliers, and customers. A legacy cen- ters around two areas. The first is character. A person's char- acter—his ethics, integrity, sense of loyalty, sense of gracious- ness—is asmuch a factor in success as financial dividends. The second is philanthropy.We know how you made your money because you're a successful entrepreneur. But how did you spend it? How gracious were you in giving it away, how sen- sitive to the needs of others? I'd say 90 percent of wealthy people in America are not respected because they would rather make money than give it away. They've spent their lives building great empires, but they don't have the joy of seeing the twinkle in somebody's eye when they give someone a scholarship or assist someone who's homeless. As a result, they lose 50 percent of the value of building a business. They're only half a person, only half a legacy. Those people tend to be forgotten very quickly. But we don't forget, for example, Andrew Carnegie—people like him will be remembered for hundreds of years because they under- stand how important it is to give as well as receive. Carnegie once said that we're all temporary trustees of our wealth and that the greatest attribute we have is giving what we have to others. At the end of the day, that's what it's all about. s z BizEd SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2005 25