Magic Johnson
“Outwork everyone, over-deliver every time” Those were some words of wisdom from the one and the only Magic Johnson. Us fellow Bizdomites had the opportunity to meet Magic last week and discuss business and how he got to where he is today, and we hashed out some misconceptions that people have of him. Simply put, the Man is a freaking Business genius and knows how to make a dollar out of fifteen cents. Here are some of Magic’s business adventures (prepare to be blown away): over 110 Starbucks across the world (he is the only person to ever franchise a Starbucks), 31 Burger Kings in the South, six movie theatres, a dozen 24-Hour Fitness centers, and about $1 Billion worth of real estate projects. His is a no nonsense, well rounded articulate business man that found his niche and drills down on his target market.
A common misconception that I had of Magic was that he was a rich athlete that invested money in business ventures. A real life example of this was when tried raising money from 10 business people and instead of working with him, they asked for his autograph. Magic was truly inspirational and was a phenomenal speaker. Even Dan Gilbert who has seen his share of speakers said that Magic was the best speaker that he has ever seen.
