Neat story of some college student, that wanted something better.
Fifty
years later, successful entrepreneur remembers the dirty laundry
.
Jim Yates of Flint Hill, Va., has fond memories of dirty
laundry.
Fifty years ago, Yates learned a lesson a midst soiled shirts,
skirts, slacks and socks. It was a simple observation that over time fueled a
wildly successful business career: In both your personal life and in business,
you can either complain about problems, or you can find solutions.
In 1962, as a young college student in rugged and rural
southwest Virginia, Yates quickly grew frustrated with the dysfunctional campus
laundry. The facility was run by members of the football team as a requisite of
their scholarship package, and doors were scheduled to open each evening after
classes. Naturally, students were eager to get it done and get on with their
nightly routines.
It might have sounded like a good idea in a campus conference
room or scribbled on a coach’s notepad. But in practice, it was a triple-X
mess.
Players were almost always late to unlock the doors and power up
the equipment. While they took their time eating dinner or relaxing before
work, grouchy undergrads waited outside in lines that seemed longer each day.
Yates was one of those students standing in the heat and
humidity or cold and snow. As his friends stood and steamed, Yates knew there
just had to be a better way.
So, he found one.
Doing his homework and beating the streets, Yates discovered a
professional laundry 16 miles away and struck a deal to borrow their truck to
haul clothes from campus to their facility. In exchange for bringing the business,
Yates would handle the billing and earn 25 percent of the revenue.
Knowing it would be difficult for him to gather dirty laundry
from students across all of the dormitories, Yates recruited a laundry captain
in each building and promised a small percentage of the revenue their dorm
generated.
Also recognizing that students didn't always have cash and might
use the service more if they didn't have to pay right away from their own
pockets, Yates developed a credit system. He meticulously tracked each item and
sent the bills to mom and dad.
When others were content to grumble and gripe about a flawed
system, Yates created a solution that earned him a healthy five figures during
its run. He’d done more than build an extremely successful business; he’d hammered
a noticeable dent in the college’s bottom line.
Later, during his senior year, one of the deans summoned Yates
to his office and threatened to expel him from school and withhold his degree
if he didn't relocate his operation to campus and give a healthy percentage to
the school. Yates has never forgotten the dean’s stunning pronouncement. “It’s
not right that you’re making more money than some of our professors.”
Valuing the finish line more than the fight, Yates’ days of
competing against the college were over. He chose to cooperate, move his
business on campus, finish school and get out of town. He left college with
much more than a degree.
Five decades have passed and Yates has repeated that
problem-solving success many times over. As his wife, Rosemary, likes to say,
“Jim can’t necessarily make the gravy, but he sure can make anyone’s gravy
better.”
In a recent interview at his home in Virginia’s gorgeous,
rolling Rappahannock County, Yates explained that at every stop along his
entrepreneurial journey, he’s remained doggedly determined to make respect and
complete honesty his calling card. “Don’t ask me what I think,” he says with a
smile, “or I’ll tell you.”
When invited more than once to identify a larger theme to his
life, no matter how the question is phrased and regardless the context, his
answer is always the same. “The Lord’s hand is in all things.”
“Even when the occasional venture floundered or failed?”
“The Lord’s hand is in all things.”
“Even after the heartbreak, the trials, the dozen or so
near-death experiences?”
“Yes,” his infectious smile returns.
Over and over through a winding career from cabs to cattle,
Yates credits the heavens for the lessons and clings to that mantra with a relentlessly
positive attitude. Whether making millions, losing millions or forgiving more
debt than most could accumulate in a lifetime, he recognizes the hand that
guides his life.
After all these years and all he’s accomplished, Yates’ friends,
family and business associates say he’s still just a college student standing
outside and thinking of a solution.
But that’s not all he’s thinking. He’s probably wondering why
the rest of the world doesn't try the same thing. No complaining, no
selfishness and no finger-pointing, just every single one of us recognizing the
Lord’s role in our lives and looking for solutions.
He’s right.
There’s got to be a better way.
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