Entrepreneurs Who Became Presidents

Abraham LincolnPresidents are many things. Many held some form of office before taking their spot in the Oval Office so they are best known as politicians, but they are much more than that. Each president had a prominent career prior to campaigning for office. A lot of presidents, such as Obama, Ford, Roosevelt, were all lawyers before their presidency; as were Adams, Madison, and Jefferson when you look way back. Quite a few were members of the Military and a few were teachers. Some had very unique jobs, like Reagan who was a movie actor, too. Among the former presidents, there are successful entrepreneurs and business owners as well. Find out more about their business ventures below:

George W. Bush (2001 to 2009)

Bush is well-known for being an oil executive, but that wasn’t his best business move. In 1989, Bush bought a share of the Texas Rangers, the Major League Baseball team, for $800,000. During his time as a managing general partner, Bush could often be found sitting in the stands with fans at the games. He later sold his share of the team for $15 million in 1998. Bush can still be spotted at games from time-to-time.

Jimmy Carter (1977 to 1981)

After his father’s death, Carter resigned from the Navy to return home and save his family’s peanut farm. Turning the farm around was a team effort. Carter learned about agriculture through a local library while his wife, Rosalynn, studied up on accounting to look over the financials. In the first year, the duo managed to break even and continued on to make the peanut farm extremely successful.

Abraham Lincoln (1861 to 1865)

Lincoln is remembered as the president who led the United States through the Civil War. While it was one of his many successes, he was also an extremely successful business man. He dabbled in a variety of industries before stepping into politics. First, Lincoln was a shareholder of a general store in Illinois. Later, he ran a law practice after teaching himself law. Lincoln also created a device used to lift riverboats over sandbars.

This post provided by a guest contributor from Michigan State University Executive Education, offering programs to help business executives enhance their careers.

5 Takeways from Last Week’s State of the Union Address

130211054820-obama-state-of-the-union-2012-monsterLast week, President Obama addressed the United States in his annual “State of the Union” speech. Though the speech was as optimistic as if Obama was running for reelection this year, there were some important takeaways if you sift through the rhetoric.

1. Perhaps the biggest change in Obama’s attitude in this year’s SOTU was his shift from bipartisanal Congress cooperation to executive action. “America does not stand still, and neither will I,” he said. “So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do.” This action could include anything from retirement tools to technology hubs to gun control, all referenced in his speech.

2. Sadly, Obama conceded that it is unlikely that any big change is coming from Congress this year. Aside from a immigration reform bill likely to be watered down in the name of compromise, the administration is pursuing smaller goals. For Obama, this means that Obamacare is more likely than ever to be his legacy.

3. The President cares about women. Even more so, the Democratic party cares about women as they’ve seen time and time again that their advantage with that demographic is a game changer for elections. Obama hopes to resurrect the Paycheck Fairness Act to help women gain equal pay for equal work. We wish him luck in that, as last time it came to a vote not a single Republican voted in favor.

4. Obama seemed optimistic about nuclear deals with Iran, although many were disappointed by his vowing to veto legislation that imposes economic sanctions on the nation. His cryptic comment that “We’ll know soon enough” how negotiations go had many talking, but the White House has been quick to quell suspicions of anything major.

5. Now that Obamacare is not wiltering as much as it was a few months ago, Obama took the opportunity to scold Republican opposition of “a law that’s already helping millions of Americans”. By challenging Republicans to think of their own law that would do a better job, Obama gave a platform for his fellow Democrats to run with as they face the 2014 election season.

The World’s Most Important People in 2013

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Xi Jinping, General Secretary of Communist Party of China

Forbes has their list and Time has theirs, but who really were the most important political figures in 2013? It’s not just about titles or publicity, in our opinion. It’s not about just making the headlines. It’s about true power and true impact. Here are the people we believe are most deserving of the honor this year.

 

10. Mark Zuckerberg

Zuckerberg, America’s love-to-hate-him hoodie-wearing billionaire, has finally learned how to harness his ownership of the largest social media platform into the world into some real influence. His work with lobbying group FWD.us is sure to get him some serious access to technology legislation, and with so much going on in the fields of privacy and intellectual property online, this is sure to be an issue that isn’t going away anytime soon.

9. Sergey Brim

Google’s Director of Special Projects is one half of the dynamic duo that runs the technology giant. While CEO Page runs the search functions, Brim focuses on the innovative projects that are sure to change the world we live in during the next few years, such as Google Glass and driverless cars. The buzz surrounding these products and the constant innovations of Google make Sergey Brim one man whose power is only going to keep growing.

8. Carlos Slim

As the second richest man in the world, Slim’s worldwide influence is undeniable. His vast stake in telecommunications, as well as a diversified portfolio including mining, financial, real estate, and even a share in the New York Times makes his power extend farther than just financial influence. This year, he made headlines by partnering with another wealthy influencer, Bill Gates, to reduce hunger and support agricultural innovation in the developing world.

7. Ban Ki-moon

The Secretary General of the United Nations is rarely on the forefront of radical change, but Ban Ki-moon, now in his second term, has been quietly making major changes in the UN. He has increased the number of women in senior management positions by a record-breaking 40%, and derecognized UN staff unions in July 2013. He has also helped to strengthen the UN’s philanthropic and peacekeeping ventures, restoring some of the power that has been slowly declining over time.

6. Angela Merkel

The recently reelected chancellor of Germany commands the European Union and, more importantly, holds the fate of the global economy in her hands. Her economic prowess and progressive regulatory action in the EU has landed her top spots on many lists of the most influential women in the world.

5. Edward Snowden

Though Snowden as a man’s fame may soon be over, the issues he brought to the forefront have dominated dialogue for the better part of the year. The questions of privacy and government responsibility raised by Snowden are sure to be huge in 2014 and beyond.

4. Pope Francis

Pope Francis has consistently made headlines throughout the year as he bucks traditional pope behavior in favor of doing good in the world. He sneaks out of the Vatican to feed the hungry, dismisses the Catholic Church’s focus on gay marriage and abortion, and overall draws a lot of attention to an office that has largely become irrelevant.

3. Barack Obama

The leader of the U.S. remains a formidable force in world influence, though he ranks 1st on few lists this year. The legislation that will likely be his legacy, Obamacare, is extremely controversial and as yet ineffective, and his work on Syria was far from admirable. Still, commanding the economic and military power of the U.S. still shoulders Obama with a large share of power and responsibility.

2. Vladimir Putin

The President of Russia certainly exerted his power on the world stage this year, with the debate on Syria a major issue in world politics. His strength in the UN security council followed by his clear leadership in diffusing tension between the U.S. and Syria showed that Putin maintains a great deal of world influence, even though it may be disproportional to his nation’s true power.

1. Xi Jinping

The General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Power tops our list this year. With his strong rule over 1.3 billion of the world’s population and sizable share of the U.S. debt, Jinping has far more power than he has exerted this year. He is sure to be a major player in the coming years.

Records of the Scottish Parliament

Scottish ParliamentThe University of St. Andrews has spent many years collecting and cataloging all of the Parliamentary proceedings from centuries past. This searchable internet database is being made freely available to the public for further research and perusal. I applaud the efforts of these initial researchers and thank them for their service in preserving our Scottish history. Huzzah to you, gentlemen!

The records can be found here: Records of Parliament

 

Helen Eadie, You Will Be Remembered Well

Helen EadieI was informed recently that a great parliamentary member has passed on. Helen Eadie served as a Scottish Labor MSP beginning in 1999. The Presiding Officer of Parliament, the Rt Hon Tricia Marwick MSP, said: “Helen was a kind, hard-working Member of our Parliament who was devoted to her constituents.”

A book of condolence is available in the Main Hall for SPS staff, MSP staff and members of the public to sign.