John Henry Patterson took a company that three previous owners failed to make profitable, built it into a global success, and changed how businesses worked. He did it selling cash registers.

There was just one problem. Nobody had a clue why they needed a cash register.

The cash register was invented in 1879 by a man named James Ritty. Ritty tried to make it into a business but failed. So he sold to another guy. He failed too and sold it to a local group of investors, who also failed.

When Patterson bought the company in 1884, not much had changed in those five years. Other than a few sales to saloon and store owners, most people were skeptical of the machines. In fact, local business owners mocked Patterson for buying a horrible company that had no demand for its product.

So Patterson set out to create demand. Continue Reading…

My second quarter reading is short on books but long on pages. It was dominated by another textbook with a couple of lengthy books thrown in.

Here’s what I’ve been reading the past three months: Continue Reading…