The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1897-05-20

But before our American colleges be-
come an absolute factor in the busi-
ness capacities of men their methods of
study and learning will have to be radi-
cally changed. l have had associated
with me both kinds of young men,
collegiate and non-collegiate, and l
must confess that the ones who had
better knowledge of the practical part
of life have been those who never saw
the inside of a college and whose feet
never stood upon campus. College,
bred men, and men who never had
college advantages, have succeeded in
about equal ratios. The men occupy
ing the most important commercial
positions in New York today are self
made, whose only education has come
to them from contact with that great
est college of all, the business world.
Far be it from me to depreciate the
value of a college education. 1 believe
in its advantages too firmly. But no
young man need feel hampered because
of the lack of it. If business qualities
are in him they will come to the sur
face. 1t is not the college education:
it is the young man. Without its pos
session as great and honorable sue
cesses have been made as with it. Men
are not accepted in the business world
upon their collegiate diplomas, nor on
the knowledge these imply.
The young man engaged in business
today, in this country, has advantages
exceeding those of any generation be-
fore him. He ligas in a country where
every success is possible; where man
can make of himself just what he may
choose; where energy and enterprise
are appreciated, and a market is always
ready for good wares. And he lives at
time when more opportunities are
open to him than at any period in the
history of our land. Young men have
forged to the front wonderfully during
the past ten years. Employers are
more than ever willing to intrust great
responsibilities on their shoulders.
Salaries are higher than ever; young
men never before earned the incomes
which are received by some today. All
success is possible But-and it's big
word in this connection-he must re-
member a few very essential truths,
and these are:
First-That, whatever else he may
strive to be, he must, first of all, be ab-
solutely honest. From honorable prin-
ciples he can never swerve. A tenn
porary success is often possible on
what are not exactly dishonest, but
SHADY" lines; but such success is only
temporary, with certainty of perma-
nent loss. The surest business success
yes, the only successes worth the
making, are built upon honest founda-
tions. There can be no "blinking" at
the truth or at honesty, no halfway
compromise. There is but one way to
be successful, and that is to be abso-
lutely honest; and there is but one way
to be honest. Honesty is not only the
foundation, but the cap-stone as well,
of business success.
Second-He must be alert, alive to
every opportunity. He cannot afford
to lose a single point, for that single
point might prove the very link that
would make complete the whole chain
of business success.
Third-He must ever be willing to
learn, never overlooking the fact that
others have long ago forgotten what he
has still to learn. Firmness Of decision
is an admirable trait in business. The
young man whose opinions can be
tossed from one side to the other is
poor material. But youth is full of
errors, and caution is strong trait
Fourth-If he be wise he will en-
tirely avoid the use of liquors. If the
question of harm done by intoxicating
liquor is an open one, the question of
the actual good derived from it is not
Fifth-Let him remember that a
young mans strongest recommenda.
tion is his respectability. Some young
men, apparently successful, may be
flashy in dress, loud in manner, and
! disrespectful of women and sacred