Essential Questions

• What does it take to become a successful entrepreneur? 

• What is a ‘black sheep wearing the bell’ a metaphor of and what is the significance?

Learning Intentions – In this Module, students will:

• Recognize the importance of self appreciation and following your own journey;

• Understand the significance of community when starting and running a business;

• Interact with digital storytelling as a learning tool;

• Explain how hardships can present opportunity;

• Define and reframe your definition of success;

• Generate an entrepreneurial idea and design a business plan

• Employ art as an aesthetic tool to generate ideas and inspiration

Success Criteria

• I can complete the preliminary steps to applying for a loan to fund my business idea. 

• I can explain one challenge with starting this business and what I can do to overcome this challenge

Learning Outline

This 3.5-hour module is based on Jorge Fierro:  The Journey Of An Entrepreneur, a 3-part video presentation by Jorge Fierro. Though the videos tell his story in chronological order, they can be watched and the curriculum presented in sections as time allows.  

• 20 minutes: Launch Activity–Pre-Viewing: Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States 

• 15 minutes: While Viewing– Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States 

• 15 minutes: Post-Viewing– Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States 

• 3 minutes: Pre-Viewing –Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

• 22 minutes: While Viewing– Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

• 10 minutes: Post-Viewing– Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

• 1 minute: Launch Activity– Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

• 14 minutes: While Viewing– Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

• 10 minutes: Post-Viewing– Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

• 45 minutes: Demonstration– Creating a Vision Board For Your Business Idea

• 60 minutes: Making Connections–Integration Project–Funding your Business For Real

Supplies for Pre-Viewing / Viewing Activity: 

• Graphic Organizer: Jorge Fierro _An Entrepreneur's Journey

Supplies for  Demonstration Activity: Creating a Vision Board For Your Business Idea

• Low Tech Supplies: Poster board/ or cork board; magazines, flyers, mailers to cut out words and images; glue, tape, thumb tacks; scissors; markers, colored pencils, 

• High Tech Supplies: canva.com (free) or PowerPoint or padlet.com (wall or canvas recommended); copyright-free sites for images: Pixabay.com or unsplash.com

• (For Reference If Needed) Here’s How To Make a Vision Board Oprah Daily: Turning your goals into a ‘crafternoon.’

Supplies for  Integration Activity: 

• Utah Micro Loan Fund  This site takes you through the preliminary steps to applying for the loan. 

• Tiki Toki Timeline Maker (Tiki-Toki.com–Tutorial) or Padlet

Launch Activity–Pre-Viewing: Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States 

[20 min]

[Learning Intentions 4]

Procedures:

• Hook: Jorge was born into a happy, supportive family who wanted him to succeed. For them, success meant becoming a professional doctor or lawyer. But Jorge decided he wanted to beat his own drum and to his parents’ disappointment, set out on a different path.

• Ask Students: Have you ever experienced an ‘up’ side to something bad that has happened to you or someone else? In other words, when times are hard, has something good come out of it? (For example, some would say that though COVID was very hard, the ‘up’ side was that many people spent more time with family, reset their priorities, and gained job flexibility.)

• Give students the graphic organizer: Jorge Fierro _An Entrepreneur's Journey. Tell them they will now be watching Part 1 of a 3-part video on Jorge’s journey to becoming one of Salt Lake’s most successful and beloved entrepreneurs. As they watch they will be filling out the graphic organizer. Read through the instructions at the top of the page and review the questions under Table 1. 

  1. Did you see any signs in Jorge’s early life that might indicate he will eventually become a successful entrepreneur? Explain. 

  2. What does Jorge learn about himself while sheepherding in Wyoming? 

• Tell Students: We will discuss your responses as a class before moving to Part II. 

Viewing: Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States (12:06 min)

[15 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,3,4]

Procedures: 

• Read Introduction out loud: Jorge Fierro was the black sheep of the family after dropping out of law school in Mexico, and making the decision to leave for the United States with a bucket of coins to his name. His journey from homelessness to the founder of Rico Brand, now with close to 70 Mexican cuisine products in the major grocery stores in Salt Lake City, is a true story of grit and perseverance and a lesson on what it takes to be a successful and self-made entrepreneur.  And if you ask Jorge what the key ingredient is to success, he’ll say one of three things: “Beans” “Hard Work” or “Paying it Forward.”

• Play video: Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States. 

• Tell Students: We are going to discuss your responses after we watch.

Post Viewing: Part I: Leaving Mexico for the United States

[15 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,3,4]

Procedures:

• Tell Students: Let’s discuss the struggles Jorge faced and the opportunities that he saw. Ask for a few volunteers to share. 

• Now let’s discuss your responses to the two questions: 

  1. Did you see any signs in Jorge’s early life that might indicate he will eventually become a successful entrepreneur? Explain. His character demonstrated perseverance. He didn’t go home when his friend did but took whatever job he could get. He was a hard worker. He saw opportunities everywhere. 

  2. What does Jorge learn about himself while sheepherding in Wyoming? He sees himself as the black sheep; as different just like them. He gains an appreciation for that difference. 

• What would you say Jorge’s overall message was in this video? Persist, don’t give up. Work hard. Opportunities are everywhere. 

Pre-Viewing: Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

[3 min]

[Learning Intentions 4 ]

Procedures:

• Hook: Ask Students: How would you describe  the ‘American Dream?’ 

• Tell Students: We are going to watch video Part II now and repeat the exercise. Record the struggles Jorge faces and opportunities he sees and takes advantage of throughout his journey. And answer the questions below Table 2. 

Viewing: Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur (21:55 min)

[22 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,2,3,4,5  ]

Procedures:

• Play video: Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

• Tell Students: We are going to discuss your responses after we watch.

Post-Viewing: Part II: The Road to Becoming A Salt Lake Entrepreneur

[10 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,2,3,4,5 ]

Procedures: 

• You just heard Jorge’s journey about becoming one of Salt Lake’s most successful and beloved entrepreneurs. 

• Have students share (by raising their hand)

  1. What were some of the struggles Jorge had to overcome?

  2. What opportunities did Jorge see and take advantage of? 

  3. What did you find most surprising, difficult, interesting, or memorable?

• What did Jorge say about the ‘American Dream?’ It is not about coming and being the richest on the block. Nor about coming to America and owning everything.  Rather, the American Dream is about coming to America and taking on the opportunities that this great government of ours gives us. The Dream is to make the best with what we have. 

• What are some of the things Jorge says are important in starting and running a successful business? Hard work, seeing and taking advantage of opportunities; professional branding; finding mentors in your community; getting to know your customer; being original (have an angle no one else has); giving back to community; paying it forward (philanthropy), etc. 

• Why does Jorge have “Pay it Forward” tattooed on his arm? It is his mantra. His way of life. And one of the main reasons he is successful. He has always been in awe of the philanthropic nature of the people of the United States and adopted that ethos.

Pre-Viewing: Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

[1 min]

[Learning Intentions 4]

Procedures:

• Hook: Ask Students: How do you define success? 

• Tell Students: We are going to watch video Part III. For this section, you will again record your observations, now in Table 3. Notice that in column 1, record what Jorge says on art and artists; in column 2 record what Jorge says on community; and lastly in column 3 record how Jorge defines success

Viewing: Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success (13:35 min)

[14 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,2,4 ]

Procedures:

• Play video: Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

• Tell Students: We are going to discuss your responses after we watch.

Post-Viewing: Part III: On Art, Community, And Giving As Pathways To Success

[10 min]

[Learning Intentions 1,2,4 ]

Procedures:

• Let’s talk about what Jorge says about art and artists. We should buy art for the right reasons (not for money, but for the connection with the artist and for the perspective art gives us). 

• Ask Students: Jorge purchases a lot of local art. He tells us he loves to support, and interact with artists and he loves the language that they speak. Can you think of any ways purchasing local art could help his business as well? Builds relationships with community members; gives him stories to share with others (Jorge describes how each piece of art has a story); provides him a way to give back which he says is essential to a successful business.

• As a class, discuss what they recorded in the other 2 columns: Jorge on community and Jorge’s definition of success. Ask students: Did Jorge influence your definition of success? 

• How did Jorge engage in philanthropy? He started the Burrito Project and made protein burritos daily for the homeless, including the many homeless American veterans.

• Tell Students it’s time to put Jorge’s advice and lessons into action

Demonstration: Creating a Vision Board For Your Business Idea

[45 min]

[Learning Intention 6,7 ]

Take some time to reflect. What gifts and ideas are within you, that you would like to bring forth into the world? In your wildest dreams, how would you like to contribute to our community.  What product could you make? What service could you provide?  What could entrepreneurship look like for you? 

Procedures:

• Tell the students: For our integration project you are going to create a business plan. But before this you will need to come up with a business idea. Jorge’s idea was to make and sell ready-to-eat pinto beans using his mother’s recipe. What is your entrepreneurial idea? Have students brainstorm business ideas either in groups of 3, pairs, or individually and select one they are interested in further exploring. 

*You might share one of your own as well, or a few you have seen started. Or you can show them a few of the following for inspiration:

• Electric Pedals: Bicycle-powered cinemas

• Crown Bees: Bee Houses To Help Save the Bees

• Wraparound (if you are in a classroom)/Chatstorm (if you are online): Tell students you would like to hear their best business idea in a short phrase. Either have students share their idea in a round robin rapid response; or invite them into a chatstorm with one minute to type their idea into the chatroom.

• Tell students: To help you develop your business idea into a plan, we will each create a vision board. A vision board is a collection of pictures, words, and phrases that are designed to inspire you to visualize a particular goal. In this case, your vision board will help you visualize your business idea and yourself as a successful entrepreneur. The idea is that by having a vision board in a prominent and visible place with your ideas and goals, you are prompted to reflect on it daily. Research shows that your subconscious will work away at the goal also- imagine a mind movie. Rather than jot your ideas down on a notepad or in a planner where you might forget about them, a vision board solves this by keeping it all in front of mind every day, invoking positive emotions as you look at the board..

• Tell students: You can design your vision board however you’d like. One idea is to put your business idea / goal in the middle of your ‘canvas’ and add visuals all around it. 

  1. Low Tech Option: A poster board or cork board with images and words either drawn out or cut out from magazines, flyers, or mailers, etc.  

  2. High Tech Option: Canva, Padlet, or PowerPoint. Use images from the program’s photo bank or search and download images from copyright-free sites such as Pixabay or Unsplash. Insert text boxes or embed video and audio as desired. 

• Ask students: What kinds of things would be helpful to add to your vision board? Have students recall the things Jorge said were necessary to be a successful entrepreneur

  1. Possible Answers: 

     1. A way of doing your business that sets you apart (Jorge didn’t make just any beans; he made the BEST beans. He could have added his mother’s recipe to his vision board.)

     2. Find mentors who will support you. Add photos or names of people who could help support you and your business.

     3. Professional logo and branding

     4. A place to start (Jorge started at the Farmer’s Market)

     5. Finances (Jorge got started with a $10,000 Micro Enterprise Loan)

     6. You have to love what you do- represent your passion for this idea on your board.

     7. Hard work

     8. Foreseeing challenges

     9. ‘Pay it forward’ to your community- make sure in your business plan there is a way to give back to your community who in turn supports your business. 

Tell students: These lessons from Jorge can guide you in terms of what to consider adding to your vision board. 

Funding your Business For Real

[75 min]

[Learning Intention 6 ]

Imaginable= possible to be thought of or believed.

Imagine-ABLE!

Now that students have created a vision board for their entrepreneurial future, our next step is to focus on forming a pathway to get there. Creating a vision for a new business and a business plan, require imagination, creativity, and communication skills. Our goal with this activity is to introduce students to one funding mechanism available in Utah, and to walk through the application process, creatively, together.

Procedures:

• Hook:  Ask Students to imagine how they would feel if they were living & thriving in the success of their entrepreneurial idea. How would their time be used in a typical day? What would they do? Where would they be? What would it look like? What would it sound like? Smell like? How would they feel on an emotional level?  Ask students to visualize and make notes on their thoughts before moving into this project. 

• Remind students that Jorge applied for a microloan and was awarded $10,000 to start his Rico Brand business that he still runs today, after over two decades.  He had only been in the US a little over a year; he did not have a credit record; and he had very little start-up money. Others in Utah have done the same thing. Let’s take a look. Play the promo video at the top of the page here.

• Tell Students that the same organization, Utah Microloan Fund (UMLF) that funded Jorge’s business idea is still going. Their mission is: “To empower underserved communities throughout Utah by providing business training and funding to small business owners in start-up & existing businesses that do not qualify for traditional funding sources.”

• Tell Students: Working in your small group, pairs, or individually, you are going to fill out the loan application. If you want to submit it and see if they will fund your business, you are welcome to do so. If you decide not to submit that is fine too. Regardless, this is good practice and you will know exactly what it takes in case you want to start a business in the future and need funding. 

  1. If filling out the entire loan application is too involved, have students complete Step 1 & 2 (see below) where they go through the orientation and preview the checklist.

  2. Have them map out what the remaining steps would require so they have a full understanding of what it takes to submit this loan application.

     1. Low Tech Map: Have them lay out the steps in the loan application process on a timeline, adding deadlines and any relevant notes.

     2. High Tech Map: In Padlet use the timeline function or create a timeline using Tiki Toki Timeline Maker (both free).  Lay out the steps in the loan application process, adding deadlines and any relevant notes.

• Tell Students: This is a 5-step process

  1. Step 1: Complete the UMLF Borrower Orientation

  2. Step 2: Preview the UMLF Loan Application Checklist (and start collecting the necessary documents)

  3. Step 3: Sign up for their Lenderfit application system (Their Loan Officer will contact you, work with you to strengthen your packet, and assign you a Loan Committee date.

  4. Step 4: Present to the UMLF Loan Committee (The loan officer will communicate to you if the committee approved or denied your loan.)

  5. Step 5: If approved, you will typically close your loan in approximately one week. 

• Have students go through the orientation (either as a class, in groups, or individually) The orientation is available in both English and Spanish. This is an overview of the process, the loan requirements, and what each loan applicant can expect working with them. There are three options for the orientation: 

  1. Sign up for a live webinar. 

  2. Run through the set of slides containing the information. There are two sets of slides, one in English and the other in Spanish. Here is the link.

  3. Download the slides as a PDF and send students a copy to review.

• Have students preview the checklist and put the steps with any specific details in their application timeline. 

• Have student groups or individuals present their business idea along with the steps to fund it to the class.

Invite students to “dig deeper” on these topics by providing additional options for research and reflection about entrepreneurship and philanthropy.

TED Talks

• Maya Penn: Young entrepreneur- Maya Penn’s message is to “give from your heart.” Maya Penn started her first company when she was 8 years old, and thinks deeply about how to be responsible both to her customers and to the planet. She shares her story -- and some animations, and some designs, and some infectious energy -- in this charming talk.

Websites

• Rico Brand Foods, Salt Lake City- Jorge Fierro’s company website.

• StartUp Grind: 5 Best Books for Young Entrepreneurs- “Part of being a young entrepreneur is breaking the mold and disregarding norms when it comes to business and behaviors. You are in good company with Adam Grant’s book, Originals, which examines how leaders can combat groupthink…”

• Utah Score- free business mentoring, webinars, and resources

• Patagonia Action Works- An example of a business with a strong philanthropic arm. 

Connects committed individuals to organizations working on environmental issues in the same community. 

News Articles

• Corporate Giving: Utah Companies Get More Than Just A Warm Feeling In Return For Generosity