13A- Reading Reflection 1

Coco Chanel:

• What surprised you the most?
• In the introduction, Lisa Chaney provides Coco's view on money and material items: "money adds to the decorative pleasures of life, but it is not life". I admire her opinion, and was even a little surprised. I would have thought that she praised money more highly-- seeing that she built a glamorous, couture empire from the ground up and her brand symbolizes expensive, refined culture and beauty. However, despite her success, she remained humble and human.
• What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?
• Coco Chanel's tenacious attitude is most admirable. Her upbringing of abject poverty never hindered her from overcoming obstacles, and even fueled her stubborn mindset. She cunningly used her early struggles to develop the necessary entrepreneur mindset and become one of the most influential names in luxury, aesthetics, and culture.
• What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?
• Her embarrassment about her upbringing, and the way she attempted to hide it. 
• Additionally, Lisa Chaney noted that she compromised her emotional fulfillment for fame and fortune. 
• Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?
• Perhaps the grandest adversity Chanel overcame was her adverse upbringing. Her mother died- presumably in front of her- and her father abandoned her and the rest of her siblings. In addition to the burden of poverty, she grew up feeling unloved by family, and struggled to love herself. 
• However, she matured to use her feelings of resentment and self-loathing to fuel her creativity and wit. The emotional fuel provided by her early traumas allowed her to succeed in life, and build the influential empire that is Chanel Couture. 

• What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?
• Chanel always held herself accountable and demonstrated stubbornness, and was resilient during tough times. From her childhood through her career, her stubborn attitude always brought her success.

• If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?
• Since your passing, has Chanel lived up to the your standards? What would you change, and what would you keep?
• Even with out Coco, Chanel remains a growing couture empire. However, I wonder if she would feel that her vision has been lost or strengthened throughout the years.
• Do you think your story of "rags to riches" are more or less accessible/ achievable in the present day?
• In the news, many have debated whether the idea of "rags to riches" or even the "American dream" is even still achievable. I wonder what her take would be.

• For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
• I'm sure Coco would believe that it doesn't matter what your upbringing or circumstances are, if you have a devoted mindset, you can achieve even your wildest goals.
• I share this opinion.