University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
Capital Gaines
Book

Capital Gaines

Smart Things I Learned Doing Stupid Stuff

Chip Gaines
Thomas Nelson, 2017
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Applicable
  • Concrete Examples
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Chip Gaines, star of the Home & Garden television network (HGTV), shares his life experiences and illustrates how they helped him succeed by being fearless and trusting his gut instincts. Gaines brings his down-home common sense to the business world. He describes his mistakes as well as his achievements, and shows how those mistakes helped teach him how to reach his goals. He tells you how to transfer this thinking to any endeavor, encouraging you to pursue your dreams and find the passion in your work. His easy-to-read style – which includes handwritten pages – makes for a fun read, especially for fans of his reality show, Fixer Upper. What you might not know about Gaines: He has a strong religious faith and works references to his beliefs into a lot of the advice he gives.  

Summary

“The Boys of Summer”

Chip Gaines thought of himself as an average child. He came to reading late, and looked for whatever advantages he could gain in every situation. Baseball occupied Gaines when he was growing up. With his father, he practiced nonstop – catching, throwing and hitting. His practice paid off. The Baylor University baseball team accepted him. He had achieved his dream, but without warning, the team cut him during his sophomore year.

Gaines fell into a yearlong depression. He was in a business class when he looked out of the window and saw a man riding a lawn mower. He decided to get out in the world and go for success. He went from mowing lawns to starting his own landscaping business. He knew what he wanted to do with his life – to dream up and start new businesses. Gaines decided to become an entrepreneur.

Stay Positive

Having a positive outlook allows you to feel confident in the face of seemingly obvious failures. Many success stories come from people who suffered from being misunderstood or wrongly categorized – such as Walt Disney, Albert Einstein and Oprah Winfrey. Gaines believes everyone...

About the Author

Chip Gaines started Magnolia Home, Magnolia Market and Magnolia Realty with his wife, Joanna Gaines, with whom he co-starred on their HGTV show Fixer Upper.

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