The Law of Big Dreams

Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably themselves will not be realized. — Daniel Burnham, American architect

One thing all successful businesses, from the corner bistro to the international airline, have in common is that they all had to start somewhere, and that “where” is usually the power of a big dream. Few, if any, of the world’s great business successes started with even a fraction of the resources they would ultimately need to succeed. What they did have was a big dream.

Conrad Hilton’s first hotel was a 40-room flophouse in Cisco, Texas that often rotated three guests per day in the same room.

Ross Perot started a billion-dollar data company, EDS, with $1,000 (later sold to General Motors for 2.5 billion).

Richard Branson developed Virgin Airways, starting with one rented plane and built a global media empire in just ten years, starting with under $10,000.

When Walt Disney sought financial backing to open a theme park in Orange County, California, no one was interested in lending him money. They thought he was crazy. A Mickey Mouse theme park? Are you kidding?