Sam Walton: The Man Who Invented Walmart by Wil Mara

 This biography for middle grade explores the traits of a fascinating man who became the founder of the world’s largest retail business.

Samuel Moore Walton (1918-1992) was born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma. When he was five, his family moved to Missouri. He had one younger brother.

He came to understand the importance of money early in life. His father worked on family farm barely making ends meet. Sam helped out with any chore he could. He also made milk deliveries, sold magazine subscriptions and delivered newspapers after school, while other boys played with friends.

When the Great Depression struck in 1929, he saw how important it was to have enough money. He worked hard at school and outside school. His work ethic was very strong. He had friendly personality and it made him popular at school. He liked sports because he liked to compete and win.

The parents encouraged his both sons to go to college. Sam took various jobs to help with paying for tuition. In 1940, he got a degree in economics from the University of Missouri.

He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do afterwards. He decided to give it a try in the retail business. He got a job with J.C. Penny. He became a manager of a store in Iowa. As much as he enjoyed his job, he gave it up to serve during WWII.

In 1945, he got back to the retail business, but this time he wanted his own business. He invested in Ben Franklin chain of retail stores. He took over the Ben Franklin in Newport which wasn’t doing well. Sam quickly figured out how to improve sales but the chain owners had their own ideas how to run the business which clashed with Sam’s ideas. Sam decided to ignore the company’s rules and did things his own way. Despite his success, he had to give up his store after five years due to rent renewal issue. He used what he learned here for his next venture.

He found a struggling business in Arkansas and bought it. He fixed up the store and made it more modern. He listened to customers what they wanted. And they wanted to look at the merchandise themselves instead having a clerk hand it to them. Sam saw an opportunity on saving money by hiring fewer people. This also led customers to buying more than they needed. Thus, higher sales. Sam was a strong believer in selling more for less and that’s what he did. The store became a huge success. Thus, he started opening more stores.

Sam believed that discount stores were the future but the owners of the Ben Franklin chain disagreed. Sam decided to open his own chain with his brother. Thus, the first Walmart was opened on July 2^nd, 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas. Within five years, he opened twenty-four Walmarts.

Sam was full of energy, enthusiasm and vision, always looking for new ideas how to improve the successes he already had. In 1980, he opened Sam’s Club to buy products in bulk.

This biography exemplifies a man who wasn’t afraid to try new things, who wasn’t afraid to fail as he knew there were lessons to be learned from failures and to apply the knowledge to the next venture. He always had a positive attitude. He started from nothing and through learning and listening he got to the top.

The story is presented with simple sentences so it could be read by its target audience ages 8-10 years. It gives much depth to Walton’s story and how enthusiastic and full of vision he was. He understood the importance of learning from setbacks which is visible in this story.

Source: Children’s Press, 2013

 

 

 

TRENDING INSPIRATION: “If you try something and it doesn’t work, learn from that failure and try something else. But above all else, always try something.” – Sam Walton

 

 

 

Traits:

·         He understood the importance of money early in life. Thus, he helped his father with any chores he could around the farm.

·         He made milk deliveries, sold magazine subscriptions and delivered newspapers after school while other boys played with friends.

·         He worked hard at school and outside school.

·         His work ethic was very strong.

·         He had friendly personality and it made him popular at school.

·         He liked sports because he liked to compete and win.

·         After college, not sure what to do, he decided to give it a try in the retail business. He became successful as manager at J.C. Penny.

·         Then, applied his knowledge to managing his own business.

·         Not agreeing with chain owners, and having visions others didn’t see at the time led him to open his own retail chain.

·         He listened to customers what they wanted while shopping.

·         He was full of energy and positivity.

 

 

“If you love your work, you’ll be out there every day trying to do it the best you possibly can.” – Sam Walton

“Swim upstream. Go the other way. Ignore the conventional wisdom.” – Sam Walton

“We’re all working together, that’s the secret.” – Sam Walton

“One person seeking glory doesn’t accomplish very much.” – Sam Walton

“Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.” – Sam Walton

“Celebrate your successes. Find some humor in your failures.” – Sam Walton

“Nothing else can quite substitute a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free and worth of fortune.” – Sam Walton

Samuel Morse, That’s Who! by Tracy Nelson Maurer

 This biography for children brings to life an American inventor and painter.

Samuel Finley Breese Morse (1791-1872) was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts. He went to Yale College and London’s Royal Academy of Arts.

Samuel had a natural nag for inventing, except others were a step ahead of him. He designed a water pump with his brother, but nobody bought it. Then, a marble-cutting machine which was already invented. Then, he experimented with wild paint mixes, for example, milk for a pearly effect.

Above all, he fancied himself as an artist. He travelled from town to town, mostly painting portraits to make a living. But he dreamed of painting grand scenes as he found America’s taste in art boorish.

However, people were not interested in his paintings. He still persisted. He sailed for Europe in 1829 to study the Old World masters and paint a huge picture of their art to show to the people in the US.

At the same time, in France, he saw the famous French optical telegraph system in action, which was created in 1794 and served during wartime. Towers relayed codes for messages if it wasn’t foggy or dark. He wanted to create something that wouldn’t be dependent on the weather or daylight. But for now, he concentrated on finishing his masterpiece which he titled Gallery of the Louvre.

In 1832, he sailed back home with his massive painting. On ship Sully, he learned about possibilities for electricity. It sparked an idea. He wanted to create a system that would use electric pulses to instantly carry coded messages through wires between two machines. Thus, it wouldn’t be dependent on the weather nor daylight. He sketched a code using dots and dashes.

Back in NY, no one was interested in his painting. Instead, people became fascinated by his idea of an electromagnetic telegraph machine.

Thus, he mostly focused on his telegraph. He experimented with an alphabet code and other measures to record a message, but he needed help. He shared his idea with two of his friends, one professor, another was machine-minded. When the team clicked, he set aside art and focused on the invention.

In 1840, he received a US patent for his telegraph.

In 1842, a demonstration was presented between Manhattan and Governors Island. It went well until a ship crew cut his wire not knowing what it was for and he found out about it later on. Nevertheless, he persisted.

In 1843, Congress granted him money for a telegraph line between Baltimore and DC. With many delays, they finally started digging trenches to set the cable in lead pipes. But it turned out that poorly made pipes caused wires to fail in damp soil. He needed a new plan. Now, the wires would go up between poles.

In May 1844, a first long-distance telegraph message is sent.

In time, telegraph lines crossed from coast to coast. Then, undersea cables linked continents. The first successful transatlantic telegraph was installed in 1858. Telegraph offices appeared connecting messages of all kinds.

During the Civil War, both sides used the telegraph to communicate.

Morse died in 1872, four years before Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone.

In 1982, Gallery of the Louvre sold for $3.25 million, then a record for a work by an American painter.

This biography exemplifies a man who had a nag for inventing and who also had a talent for painting. He persisted with both which turned out to be balancing him well. When he couldn’t make it in inventing, he focused on painting. After establishing his reputation as a portrait painter, he focused on inventing a single-wire telegraph system based on European telegraphs. He travelled to Europe to improve his skills in painting and that led him to contributing to his biggest invention of his lifetime. 

This beautifully illustrated biography is written with lyrical prose. As it’s mean for young audience ages 4-8 years, it rather needs to be read to them, and some words might have to be explained. The storytelling is grasping. This biography doesn’t bring his success in painting. It rather focuses on his inventing, highlighting his struggles and setbacks in it.

Source: Henry Holt & Co

 

 

TRENDING INSPIRATION: Balancing act between art and science led Samuel Morse to success. When he struggled with inventing, he turned to painting. When he studied to improve his skill in painting, it led him back to inventing – his biggest success. Thus, the focus doesn’t necessarily have to be on one venture. Sometimes, we need to leave what we’re passionate about for some time in order to gain a fresh perspective on it.

 

 

 

Traits:

·         He had a natural nag for inventing, except others were a step ahead of him.

·         He also wanted to be an artist. He travelled from town to town, mostly painting portraits to make a living.

·         He travelled to Europe to study Old Masters to improve his skills in painting.

·         In Europe, he learned about telegraph, and that led him back to his nag for inventing.

·         He gathered the right team as he knew he didn’t have enough knowledge for improving telegraph.

·         With the right team, he patented his idea, but there were some setbacks in putting it to work. He persisted. When one plan failed, he came up with another until he figured out the right way to transmit the telegraph.

·         First he connected states on the East Coast, then he connected East and West costs, then he connected the continents. He had a big picture in mind, but he knew he had to take smaller steps in order to get to the big picture.

 

 

“Science and art are not opposed.” – Samuel Morse

Leonardo da Vinci by Kathleen Krull

 The biography series Giants of Science for middle grade fascinates with the story of Leonardo da Vinci who was an Italian polymath during the High Renaissance.  

Leonardo da Vinci (1734-1818) was born in Vinci, in Tuscany, Italy. He was an illegitimate child, raised by grandparents. His uncle Francesco farmed family’s land. He liked experimenting with different crops. Leonardo spent hours helping his uncle, and that probably influences his curious mind.

Leonardo from childhood was very observant, observing everything around him, making notes and drawings. He always carried a pen and paper with him so no thought would escape him. He supposedly developed this habit already during his childhood.

He received minimal schooling and because of his illegitimacy, he wasn’t allowed to attend university. He pretty much had two options: either to join the army or to take up a trade.

His father used his connections to get him apprenticed as a studio boy to Andrea del Verrocchio, the leading Florentine painter and sculptor of his day. Leonardo was twelve or thirteen at the time. He started with sweeping the floors, running errands, and cleaning paintbrushes. Meanwhile, he continued to practice his drawing.

It was a time when paintings were being developed from appearing flat to giving the illusion of depth. Like Leonardo’s uncle, Verrocchio also liked experimenting and innovating. He encouraged his shop to break new ground in the arts.

Leonardo was a quick learner and his talent was noticed. Verrocchio was delegating more work to him.

Leonardo spent time at hospitals, furthering his study of anatomy.

By twenty, he became an official member of the Florentine painters’ guild, but he remained with his teacher for another 12-13 years, perfecting his skills.

Leonardo was a man of many talents, but he wasn’t good at finishing tasks. He quitted many commissions. He left behind many sketches and plans and less finished work.

It could have been that with so many talents and passions focusing on one idea for an extended period was becoming disengaging for him.

He was always busy. If not creating, then reading and educating himself.

Leonardo became obsessed with flying. Thus, he studied the motion of bird’s wings.

He was fascinated with Greek philosophers, but he never followed blindly. He always questioned and made his own observations.

He also was solving practical problems, one of them was designing warfare weapons as the city – states of Italy were at war much of the time.

Above all, Leonardo wanted to be original. He was much more interested in inventing and designing. And for that he needed a patron.

Lorenzo de Medici – the greatest patron of art – didn’t pick Leonardo. Thus, it was time for him to leave Florence.

At thirty, he moved to Milan – the city known for advances in science and learning. And that’s what interested him the most. He entered the service of Duke Ludovico Sforza, Milan’s ruler, and served him for years as principal military engineer and also as an architect.

When another epidemic of Black Death struck Milan, Leonardo designed an ideal city, to make it clean and healthy as he connected the filthy conditions with the cause of plagues. But the design was never used.

During his time in Milan, he painted The Last Super.

Past his forties, he taught himself Latin, so he could read books that weren’t translated into Italian.

In 1499, when French invaded Milan and his patron was overthrown, at forty-seven, he began to roam with his assistant Salai.

From 1513-1516, he lived in Rome with the pope for a patron.

In 1517, Leonardo travelled to France as King Francis I became his patron.

This biography demonstrates a man who didn’t have a formal education and yet became a polymath thanks to his curiosity. What exemplifies him is his curious mind which led him to asking many questions about everything, including how things worked and what people imposed with their believes. He was open-minded and never relied on long-standing theories.  

This biography for young readers, ages 8-12, is presented in a relatable way, for most part with simple sentences.

Source: Puffin Books, 2008

 

 

 

·         TRENDING INSPIRATION: “Learning never exhausts the mind.” – Leonardo da Vinci (He never stopped learning. Fascination in a subject led him to study it in order to understand it).

 

 

Traits:

·         From childhood, he was very observant, observing everything around him, making notes and drawings.

·         As a boy, he was apprenticed to clean the art studio, but meanwhile continued on improving his drawings.

·         He spent time at hospitals to further his study of anatomy, so his drawings would look natural.

·         Even when he was at age to strike on his own, he remained with his teacher to improve his skills.

·         He was a man of many talents, but he wasn’t good at finishing tasks.

·         He was always busy. If not creating, then reading and educating himself.

·         When he became obsessed with flying, he studied the motion of bird’s wings.

·         Past his forties, he taught himself Latin, so he could read books that weren’t translated into Italian.

 

 

 

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“There are three classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, and those who do not see.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“The noblest pleasure if the joy of understanding.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“Wisdom is the daughter of experience.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“Iron rusts from disuse; water loses its purity from stagnation…even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind.” – Leonardo da Vinci

“Nature is the source of all true knowledge.” – Leonardo da Vinci

 

 

 

 

FURTHER INSPIRATION AND RECOMMENDATION:  

 Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest intellects in the history of mankind, very productive, always having a pen and a piece of paper with him to write down whatever came to him. He wanted to make sure that no thought escaped him. Yet, he understood balance very well as he said:

“Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgement will be surer; since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power of judgement.”

Dr. Wayne Dyer explores the subject of Balance in his book “Wisdom of the Ages,” where he further explains the words of da Vinci: “The great Renaissance master is telling us to let go, relax, don’t try so hard, remove the struggle and allow our natural divine guidance to assist us.” One of the ways is to meditate before undertaking any pursuit. Meditation creates space or gap in our mind, allowing ideas or answers come to us. Thus, becoming more productive in less time.

Who Was Milton Bradley? by Kirsten Anderson

 Who Was…? biography series for middle grade inspires with the story of Milton Bradley – a talented inventor and printer, who became the father of modern board games.

Milton Bradley (1836-1911) was born in Vienna, Maine. From childhood, he had a talent for drawing. Thus, in order to utilize his talent, his first jobs were as a draftsman. However, right after High School, in addition to working as a draftsman, he also worked as a patent agent which later came useful.

At twenty-three, he went to school to learn lithography. And a year later, he set up the first color lithography shop in Springfield, Massachusetts, but the business wasn’t doing well.

His friend tried to cheer him up by playing games. At the same time, Milton got an idea to invent a board game. Some people saw games as a waste of time. So he wanted to create something that was fun and meaningful.  He came up with The Checkered Game of Life, which he took to NYC to different stores. After selling them all, with the money in his pocket, he was ready to marry the love of his life.

When the Civil War began in April 1861, Milton was asked to help draft plans for new types of weapons. His patent business took off.

Nevertheless, Milton felt an obligation to join the Union Army, but he was told that designing the new guns was the most important job he could be doing. When passing by a group of soldiers, he noticed them being sad and bored. That’s when he came up with a small pocket-size game board. He called it the Game Kit for Soldiers.

Then, he came up with the rebus puzzle cards which became a huge success, too.

A German man named Friedrich Froebel introduced an idea of kindergarten, which was learning by playing. Elizabeth Peabody was an American teacher who believed in Froebel’s idea of kindergarten and became a leader of this movement in the US.

The Milton Bradley Company was growing but they wanted to stick to games only.  Milton himself was of different opinion and persisted in creating material for teachers, which were considered less profitable. At the end, it also turned out to be profitable.

He believed in meaningful ideas, making a difference for humanity. He stood by it and at the end made his mark with big profits.

He believed in working hard, and staying close to your family. Also, that learning and fun were both important and could be combined.

This biography exemplifies a man who strongly believed in his ideas, of learning and having fun at the same time. When others looked at profits only, he persisted with something that was considered not profitable, and his creativity made it profitable.

This illustrated biography for young readers, ages 8-12, is presented in a relatable way, with simple sentences, and insightful inserts. 

Source: Penguin Workshop, 2016

 

 

 

TRENDING INSPIRATION: “Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” – Milton Bradley

 

 

Traits:

·         He had a natural talent for drawing.

·         He utilized his talent by getting the closest jobs he could reflecting what he liked.

·         He went to school to learn lithography for a year. His schooling wasn’t about getting a degree. It was about a specific goal.

·         When his business wasn’t doing well, his friend tried to cheer him up by playing games. It’s important to surround ourselves with friends that will cheer us up, not drag us down.

·         When his friend tried to cheer him up by playing games, that’s when the idea came to him to create board game. When we relaxation, we allow space in our mind for ideas to come in.

·         His goal was to create something that was fun and meaningful, to serve other people. (When the money is the driven factor, then it won’t sustain itself in long run. It has to have a purpose of serving others). 

 

 

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Milton Bradley

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Milton Bradley

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Milton Bradley

 

 

 

FURTHER INSPIRATION AND RECOMMENDATION:

 Many artists, scientists, scholars and others who achieved great things – they all understood the power of silence, quieting mind, creating a gap and letting ideas come to them.

Dr. Wayne Dyer explores this subject further in his book “Wisdom of the Ages” under chapter one – Meditation. “It has been estimated that the average person has sixty thousand separate thoughts each and every day. (…) Learning to be quiet and meditate involves figuring out a way to enter the spaces between your thoughts; or the gap. (…)”

Pythagoras, Greek philosopher and mathematician wrote: “Learn to be silent. Let your quiet mind listen and absorb.”

Blaise Pascal, French philosopher, scientist, mathematician, and writer, said: “All man’s miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone.”

Who Was Nikola Tesla? by Jim Gigliotti

 Who Was…? biography series for middle grade aw-inspires with the story of Nikola Tesla who was one of the most brilliant and influential scientists of all time, whose experiments with electricity, remote control, and wireless communication changed the world.

Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) was born in Smiljan, now Croatia. His family was Serbian. Nikola from childhood had a natural instinct for figuring things out. His mother was not educated but she had an inventive side.

When he was four, he followed his mother’s example by experimenting and coming up with his own ideas.

When he was five, he created a spinning wheel on a stream, which showed him how energy was created to spin the wheel.

When he was seven, his family moved to Gospic town. Nikola didn’t like the city. He missed his village where he experimented with his waterwheels. To fill the void, he became an avid reader, reading through the night. In one of the books, he read about Niagara Falls. It became his dream to create a giant waterwheel to create power.

At school, he proved to be very good at math. He could easily solve an equation in his head.

At Gymnasium, he liked electrical and mechanical experiments the most.

At Higher Gymnasium (High School), he was impressed with his science classes and experiments. He always had a thousand questions after an experiment.

His heart was set on research and made up his mind to become an electrical engineer, but his father wanted him to become a priest. It was during a time when cholera broke out and Nikola got sick. When Nikola was fighting for his life, his father agreed for him to study electrical engineering.

Nikola went to university in Gratz, Austria. As always, he worked tirelessly. He slept only four hours a night. In his second year, a machine arrived from Paris which forced an electrical current to move in only one direction. Nikola argued it would be better to let the current flow back and forth, but it was never done to power a motor. He couldn’t get it work and got frustrated and dropped out in his third year.

When his father died, he felt an obligation to help in supporting his mother. Thus, he looked for a job. His uncle’s friend built a telephone exchange in Budapest, Hungary. Nikola worked as its chief engineer. He made many improvements. Meanwhile, he was still thinking about alternating current (AC).

One day, when he walked in a park with his friend reciting poetry, it came to him. The answer were the magnets to reverse the direction of an electric current.

In 1882, Nikola went to Paris to work for Edison Company. In his spare time, he built a model, but he couldn’t find an investor to build an entire system. His boss suggested that he went to New York to work for Edison Company.

In New York, he worked long hours as Thomas Edison himself. When Nikola completed a project and didn’t receive a promised bonus, he left Edison.

He was broke and hungry. He went to dig ditches which turned out to be his big break. The foreman overheard him talking about his AC (Alternating Current) motor, and he knew an expert electrician, who was Alfred Brown.

Nikola and Alfred opened a laboratory in NYC in 1886 to develop patents on AC technology. His patent ideas got an attention of George Westinghouse, the owner of the Westinghouse Electric Company, who was a competitor of Thomas Edison. Westinghouse offered a huge amount for the patents and Nikola accepted.

Now, Nikola had freedom to open his own laboratory and work on his ideas.

Westinghouse Corporation was awarded contract to build turbines and generators for Niagara Falls using Nikola’s patents and AC technology.

Nikola’s next goal was wireless communication. His ideas were way ahead of his time, but technology had to catch up to his ideas.

Later, his ideas were getting stranger.

Nevertheless, after his death, his reputation grew and he continued to be honored for his brilliance and his many scientific developments.

This biography exhibits a man who was way ahead of his time. His mind was influenced by his mother’s curiosity to experiment. From childhood, that propelled Nikola to explore his natural instinct with experiments, mostly the ones exploring energy that led to electricity as it fascinated him the most. Despite some challenges, he never lost his fuel for his passion.

Source: Penguin Workshop, 2018

 

 

 

TRENDING INSPIRATION: “My brain is just a receiver. There is an essence in the universe from which we derive knowledge, power, and inspiration.” – Nikola Tesla

 

 

 

Traits:

·         From childhood, he had a natural instinct for figuring things out.

·         He followed his mother’s example by experimenting and coming up with his own ideas.

·         At five, he created a spinning wheel on a stream in search of energy.

·         When he couldn’t experiment, he read book after book.

·         When he read about Niagara Falls, he dreamed big of building a giant waterwheel.

·         At school, he always had a thousand questions after an experiment.

·         At school, as always, he worked tirelessly but that didn’t lead him to success. Rather, he got so frustrated when he couldn’t figure out what he cared about the most that he dropped out of school, and never graduated.

·         Only when he relaxed the mind while walking in a park and reciting poetry, the answer came to him.

 

 

 

“The present is theirs, but the future, is mine, the future for which I worked so hard.” – Nikola Tesla

“I don’t care that they stole my idea…I care that they don’t have any.” – Nikola Tesla

“If your hate could be turned into electricity, it would light up the whole world.” – Nikola Tesla

“Be alone, that is the secret of invention; be alone, that is when ideas are born.” – Nikola Tesla

“The human being is a self-propelled automaton entirely under the control of external influences.” – Nikola Tesla

FURTHER INSPIRATION AND RECOMMENDATION: 

 Nikola Tesla had to go through some humility lessons in his life in order to allow his genius to be exposed to the world.

Dr. Wayne Dyer explores the subject of Humility in his book “Wisdom of the Ages,” where he further explains the subject by bringing an example of an English poet and satirist Alexander Pope, whose body was deformed. Pope “lived in Windsor Forest outside London. He had a curvature of the spine and a tubercular infection that limited his height to four feet, six inches, and he had suffered severe headaches throughout his life. His deformity and illness made him particularly sensitive to physical and mental pain, and therefore the solitude of nature, and the ability to be self-sufficient away from the noise and mayhem of the crowds, was a subject of his poetry.”

As Dyer explains the words of cited poem by Pope, he further explains how important it is to get away from every day noise, to breathe clean air, and find self-sufficiency in nature.

It’s important to take time to study what interests us and to take time to ease any pressure we feel by doing what we enjoy. It’s kind of a meditation which we should practice daily (not necessarily the strict pose and trying to quiet our mind, but by doing what we enjoy).

Highly evolved people subdue their egos and live as silent sages. They seek no credits for their great gifts.

The measure of greatness and happiness is achieved when we remove ego, and have no need for taking credit for accomplishments, not needing gratitude or applause, not needing good opinions of others, and just doing what we do because it is our purpose to do so.

“Learn to live unseen and unknown, free of the need to be noticed. Do what you do because you feel guided, and retreat in dignity and peace. (…) The greatest teachers are aware of the need to maintain anonymity and humility.”