From Employee to Entrepreneur:

This is my mom. Her name is Ingrid Hooglander, and she is what I would epitomize as an entrepreneur.
When I was younger, she was fired from her job at a law firm for what we will call "disagreements" with the head attorney. Being a single mom, she had to find a source of income to put food on the table and keep a roof over her head. It was it this moment that she decided to pull herself up by the bootstraps and forge ahead. She started her own business, Ingrid M. Hooglander Law, from our house. She started this business for herself, but also for her clients. She charged far less than her competitors and offers any discount imaginable to keep costs low for her clients. Her business slowly grew to where she needed more hands on deck, and she brought on one paralegal, then two, a receptionist, another lawyer, and on until she had a fully functional law firm. Seeing her success, she tried to rapidly expand her business across the nearby counties by launching satellite offices in big cities nearby. Unfortunately, those with which she joint-ventured turned out to be more self-interested and caused rifts in her company. This resulted in lay-offs and down sizing. Once again it was her and a few others, back in home base. Then, she tried to expand again in variety of services so that she would provide an assortment of services for her clientele to access beyond a divorce or family law matter. Her firm now offers criminal law, personal injury, wills and trusts, and anything in those domains is handled by seasoned and qualified attorneys. At this point, she is looking to move beyond her firm to a more permanent and change-effective position as a judge in her county.
When I look at her, I see her perseverance. I see her undying belief that something good will come from this idea. I am so proud of her journey, of being where she is now and seeing where she wants to go. As I look forward to the worth of this class, Principles of Entrepreneurship, I think of her. I want to have that same passion and desire to go beyond myself and start real and substantive change. I want to learn the process and the steps so that I can do something, too. Not something impractical or beyond myself, but something that is exactly as difficult and as rewarding as what she does. I hope most of all that this class shows me a way to find the best of me and my abilities to share with the world.