How to Get There from Here...The Ten Lessons That Have Served Me Well

How To Get There

From Here… The Ten

Lessons That Have

Served Me Well

Coleman H. Peterson

AuthorHouse™ LLC

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Bloomington, IN 47403

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Phone: 1-800-839-8640

© 2012, 2014 by Coleman H. Peterson. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 02/06/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4685-3745-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4685-3744-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4685-3743-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011963494

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Foreword

Dedication

Introduction

About the Author

I. Setting the Stage

1. Have a Goal

2. No Shortcuts

3. Work Hard

II. Acquiring Skill Sets

4. Education is an Opportunity and a Privilege

5. Listen: Understand the Power of Feedback

6. Develop Your People Skills

III. Your Personal Values

7. Have Humility

8. Get a Life

9. Help Somebody

10. Be Thankful

Endnotes

Foreword

Life is definitely a journey and not just a destination. How could we possibly plot out every detail of a full and purposeful life? How could we even know what the future will bring and how we will fit into that picture? What can we plan and control and what do we need to do to go with the flow? These are questions I am asked as a successful entrepreneur and a community leader. What they are really asking me is, How did you do it? Can you give me the magic formula? My answer is almost always a few questions, What is YOUR passion? What do you want to do more than anything else when you wake up every day? What plan are you going to put in place to be sure that your passion becomes your everyday life? How are you going to enjoy all the teachable moments along the way and enhance your personal and professional life?

I was able to turn this curiosity into a successful retail career. I turned every person I met into a mentor—someone I could learn from. I started Build-A-Bear Workshop in 1997 after a successful 20+ year career as a retail executive. Today Build-A-Bear Workshop is a public company traded on the New York Stock Exchange with global revenues over $400 million.

Cole Peterson is one of my mentors. I have had the advantage of his friendship and coaching for over 25 years. The concepts Cole Peterson introduces within this book—How to Get There From Here . . . The Ten Lessons That Have served Me Well is the perfect life planning book for young people starting out in their career or those who want to make a major life or career change. It is never too late to re-think your goals, set a plan and go for it and smell the roses along the way.

How to Get There From Here is a business and life strategy guidebook focused on helping you turn your passion, your personal values into a career that is fulfilling and financially rewarding. It doesn’t mean you have to have every detail planned out—quite the opposite—that would take the fun out of life for sure. It would also hinder the mistakes we all must make that keep us humble, help us learn and mature. There are no easy roads to success but How to Get There From Here will be an inspiring jump start to your journey.

—Maxine Clark, Founder and CEO, Build-A-Bear Workshop

To: My family,

My friends and,

Those unexpected people we meet who stimulate our lives

Introduction

I am a Chicago West Side inner-city kid whose career ultimately took him to a small town in Northwest Arkansas—Bentonville, home of the No. 1 company in Fortune magazine’s top 500. During my tenure there, Wal-Mart became at times the most reviled, yet the most admired company in the world.

This book is not about Wal-Mart, however. It is about one man’s journey from the housing projects of Chicago to a position as the human resource chief of the world’s largest private workforce: 1.5 million people. It is a story of my growth during a 32-year career as a corporate human resource executive and how it has shaped my life.

In the course of this book, I hope to share what I have learned in three areas:

• Setting the stage for career building

• Acquiring the essential skill sets

• Clarifying personal values

For whom is this book written? For a number of people. It is written for the person newly entering the workforce, looking to get ahead. It is written for middle managers looking to advance their careers. It is written for the person working for a corporate, governmental or nonprofit organization. Finally, it is written for those who are simply interested in becoming a better person.

Whatever your reason for reading this book, I hope you find what you are seeking.

Blessings,

Cole Peterson

About the Author

Cole Peterson is President/CEO of Hollis Enterprises, LLC, a human resources consulting firm founded in 2004 following his retirement from Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. He specializes in executive coaching and keynote speaking engagements globally.

Peterson, known as America’s top people person, served as Executive Vice President of People for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., where he had the distinction of being the Chief Human Resource Officer of the world’s largest private workforce (today: 2.1 million associates worldwide). He headed human resources during Wal-Mart’s most aggressive global expansion and helped diversify its workforce. Today, Wal-Mart is the country’s No. 1 employer of African Americans and Hispanics.

Peterson serves on the corporate boards of J.B. Hunt Transport of Lowell, Arkansas, Build-A-Bear Workshop of St. Louis, Missouri, and Cracker Barrel Restaurants of Lebanon, Tennessee. He is chairman of the compensation committee on all three boards. He serves on the nominating and corporate governance committees of Build-A-Bear Bear and J.B. Hunt. He is a member of the executive committee and public responsibility committees of Cracker Barrel.

Peterson’s numerous recognitions include: The Award for Professional Excellence, The Society for Human Resource Management’s highest honor; the Lifetime Achievement Award for Human Resource Excellence from Linkage,