Reflective Essay on Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 into a Billion Dollar Business

Running head: REFLECTIVE ESSAY
Reflective Essay
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Author Note

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY
The story told by Barbara is an inspiring real life story of the author. It is enticing as she
is carefully penned the chapters of her real life and inspired many others to turn the events of
their lives by taking bold and courageous steps in their respective lives. The story has enriched
me and inspired me to make changes in my life as she has done and made her reality look like a
dream to the people around her and the ones who are reading the story she has shared in her
book, Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 into a Billion Dollar Business. In this essay, I would
discuss the significance of the book and how it has touched lives of people, including mine.
The book is not just inspiring as the author shares the journey of her life but also because
she has paid attention to provide advices and share wisdom to the people reading the book. She
has made it a point to convey the most effective advices to the people wanting to change their
reality even though they are harsh or difficult to execute. In times of trouble, people are often
unable to make the right move which lead them to the way to success, which Corcoran talks
about. She mentions the setbacks she has had in her life and how she overcame the failures
which came her way. It is inspiring to me and all other readers alike that she made all the failures
she had in her life, the stepping stones towards the future she imagined. Everyone wishes to do
something substantial in life whereas, very few are able to materialize the things they hope to
conquer in life. Corcoran has actually done that by setting her own business which has been
immensely successful because of her hardwork, courage to challenge the ways of the world and
most importantly the wisdom to fight all odds which came her way. She inspires the world for
having achieved the things which are almost unattainable yet she has done that.
It is shocking that a person who is so successful had failed at twenty two jobs. When we,
the readers are told about such unfortunate events which happened in her lives, we are readily
able to relate to her. These failures which she describes in her book resonate of our own struggles

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY
and failures. However, it is noteworthy how she channelized her inner will to do something and
change her life, which we often are unable to do as we are deeply affected by the setbacks. She
says that it is important to understand the significance of our dreams, which she did while being
a waitress. She knew she had to quit the job in order to make changes to her life but that seemed
like a big risk. Yet she chose to take the risk and dared to embrace the dreams she had seen in her
life. She started off by borrowing money from her then boyfriend. The amount was
approximately 1000 dollars which was the only foundation she had to start her own business.
It was at this point in time that she understood the importance of her conventional
learnings and lessons which she had received from her mother. Her mom was a homemaker and
those lessons came to her use at a very crucial point of her life. From borrowing 1000 dollars
from a boyfriend to investing it in a real estate office, it was a great decision she had made. This
was the base to the palace she had been building in her dreams with hopes and aspirations. She
could build her 6 billion dollar business gradually from what we can vaguely call the scratch to
her final outcome today.
She refused to bow down even throughout the struggles which she faced after starting the
business. She was even ready to take another job to provide for the needs of the growing
company which she had built with all her efforts. She could only subsidize for the company
which had gained recognition and success when she took the second job. It was tough for her to
manage everything, yet she refused to bow down to whatever was coming along her way. The
lawsuit which was filed against her company by Donald Trump was yet another great setback for
the company but she was victorious at the end as it was not substantiated well by the ones who
had filed the lawsuit (Corcoran 2011).