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Entrepreneurs

The community I live in feels special. Our town is filled with amazingly successful people, such as entrepreneurs, CEOs, and people who know their areas well enough to be at the top. Upon meeting these people, they are strikingly smart and madly motivated. These traits make their mindset noticeably different, but not by chance. These entrepreneurs think differently because they are the ones that solved all of the puzzles and built what had to be built to get their business to the top. All the solving they had to do provided them with more insight and diverse knowledge that only entrepreneurs could have.

The motivation and knowledge they have is what inspires me. My community motivates me to be ambitious and go after my dreams because the people around me dared to go after theirs, and they succeeded. The people here are always questioning how to improve their businesses: financially, technically, or socially. The entrepreneurs are questioning and challenging what other people say so they can understand the topic in more depth, and that bravery inspires me to do the same. The environment I live in is remarkable because these self-starters are examples of learners. They embraced all the knowledge they had and took their opportunities and connections to build their businesses, yet they still want to keep learning.

My community has been talking and working with Bitcoin. Like everyone else, they are excited about this new currency and are curious to explore and learn more about it. A while ago a bunch of people put together a group to share and learn about Bitcoin. Most of the audience was adults, but my friend and I were invited to come, so we jumped at the chance. The Bitcoin meeting was the most confused I have ever been while learning so much. In that meeting I learned how to listen, and that asking questions is not a bad thing. While I did pick up information regarding Bitcoin, it was what I learned about the people there that made the experience interesting for me. New concepts and words were thrown around during the meeting, but despite my confusion I chose to stay, because I knew the entrepreneurs in the room would not have given up the moment something got difficult. I stayed because listening to this Bitcoin trader talk was inspiring. The trader talked about his journey and the people he had met and worked with; the obstacles he had met and overcome to be at the place he is now was enriching. These brilliant minds inspire me to pursue my dreams because of the stories and knowledge each one of them holds. I have been inspired to start designing, learning, and writing and to put my heart into these things, because I love to do them. The entrepreneurs have heart and compassion for what they built because they are the ones who put their businesses together piece by piece, and this motivates me to do the same in the areas I enjoy. ​​This is why I am incredibly fortunate to live in a place with these clever entrepreneurs.

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Jillian Cheary is a high school senior from New York City.