The Responsible Entrepreneur: How to Make Money and Make a Difference

This book is about re-defining the concept of entrepreneurism so that more people will be encouraged to assume the role of a responsible entrepreneur and become a stakeholder in society. In an age where so many are looking for spiritual and personal meaning and growth, I believe this book can provide some answers.

I have seen remarkable similarities between the attitudes and aspirations of the young people in former Communist countries and the young men and women in low-income areas of the U.S. While America is a land of opportunity for most people, there are some neighborhoods where people have been “left out.” These people simply have not felt the hope for prosperity and success that most Americans experience.

But the stories in this book will show you the remarkable things that can happen when Responsible Entrepreneurs take the risk of business ownership in neighborhoods that have been left out of the economic boom. You’ll see how ambitious, creative, and innovative business people stoke the lagging economic engines in these areas, while inspiring others to follow their example – and making money at the same time.

Hall redefines entrepreneurship and shows how anyone can be an entrepreneur while remaining a stakeholder in society. He demonstrates how entrepreneurs can exert powerful personal influence to transform for the common good and in some cases, literally change the world.

The author s story is just one of the inspiring accounts defining responsible entrepreneurship. He also tells us about Gerry Hargitai, who helped thousands of Eastern Europeans, and Albert Black, Jr., who grew up in poverty in south Dallas, to become the first African-American president of the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce. We also learn about Doraja Eberle, who brought the first train full of desperately needed food into war-weary Sarajevo, and Steve Mariotti, who has taught thousands of urban teens how to break out of misery and poverty.

Books by Craig Hall
1. Timing the Real Estate Market, How to Buy Low and Sell High in Real Estate, Paperback – 271 pages (January 2004) The McGraw-Hill Companies; ISBN: 0071421955.
2. The Responsible Entrepreneur: How to Make Money and Make a Difference, Tom Daschle (Forward), Hardcover – 285 pages (September 2001) Career Press; ISBN: 1564145816.
3. News of My Death Was Greatly Exaggerated: How I Survived the Texas Depression; My Financial Strategies for the ‘90s (October 1990) St. Martin’s Press; ISBN: 0312044402.
4. Craig Hall’s Book of Real Estate Investing, Hardcover (January 1982) Holt Rinehart & Winston; ISBN: 0030595169.
5. The Real Estate Turnaround: Craig Hall’s Investment Formula that Makes Millions, 250 pages (1978) Prentice-Hall; ISBN: 0137659091.

Appearances
Craig Hall has addressed a variety of audiences around the country. He has customized his talks to be appropriate for first time homebuyers, for real estate trade associations, for Wall Street investment banks, and for personal financial planners, among others. Hall is a personable, inspirational, and often humorous speaker, using lessons learned from his own past successes and failures to demonstrate how “timing real estate cycles” is indeed part science and part art.

Award and Honors
Ernst and Young Real Estate Entrepreneur of the Year, 2002
Obelisk Award, Dallas Business Committee for the Arts, 2002
Dallas Business Journal’s Best New Real Estate Development Award 2000 for Hall Office Park
Chautaqua Award for Historic Preservation 2000 for The Kirby Residences on Main
Dallas Business Journal’s Best Renovation Award 1999 for The Kirby Residences on Main
U.S.C. Jayson Ammons Free Enterprise Award, 1992
Outstanding Business Leader, Northwood University, 1989

Named One of Ten Outstanding Young Men of America, 1979

Recent Speaking Engagements
KRLD News Radio’s Managing Your Money Seminar
SMU’s Cox School of Business Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Dallas Best Real Estate Deals of the Year Awards Ceremony
Frisco Association for the Arts Annual Fundraising Dinner
Dallas Heavy Hitters Awards Ceremony
Dallas Women’s Foundation Annual Luncheon with Lily Tomlin
South Dallas Development Council
RealShare Dallas Inside the Real Estate Mind Feature
Dallas Business 100 Awards Ceremony

Sadly, these myths or stereotypes about entrepreneurs exist in both America and Europe. This is especially true in low-income neighbor-hoods that have been excluded from the ideals of the American Dream and in former Communist countries striving to become free markets. There, entrepreneurs are seen as part of the problem rather than potentially important contributors of needed solutions. Admittedly, entrepreneurs are not easy to understand, but it is worthwhile to try to understand them because they make a positive difference in the world. With more broad-based understanding and support, entrepreneurs could contribute to the greater good on a more widespread basis. So let s bust these myths right now.

Myth #1: Entrepreneurs Only Care About Making Money!
Many people think entrepreneurs do what they do strictly for the money, and that taking risks is all about the entrepreneur s personal reward. While fear of poverty or use of money as a scorecard may have some relevance and there are, of course, some entrepreneurs focused primarily on financial profits generally, money is not the ultimate motivator for the majority of entrepreneurs.

Like most for-profit business entrepreneurs I know, including Albert Black, Gerry Hargitai, Bernard Rapoport, Katharine Wittmann, and the other for-profit entrepreneurs highlighted in this book, the money is really secondary to other goals. Money plays a role, but not the one you might expect. For example, Bernie Rapoport talks about an experience that puts his financial views into perspective. He explains that he was once frustrated with having spent the time to try on a suit without knowing how much it cost. He liked the suit, but, when the salesman told him it was on sale for only $750, Bernie told him, That s ridiculous, I don t pay more than $300 for suits. Bernie says that he would rather pay $300 and give the $450 left over to someone who needs it. Clearly, while Bernie believes his businesses should make money, it is not because he wants more material things for himself.

Overall, many entrepreneurs are like Bernie Rapoport sometimes to a fault. Many successful entrepreneurs do not lead lavish lifestyles that reflect their financial success. Their motives are often more about ego and emotion. For most entrepreneurs, money is just a way to keep score. Money is also a way to do bigger and more exciting deals. The thrill of challenge, the motivation of a new idea, and the risks involved have far more power to motivate the entrepreneurial spirit than money.