Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and Life - Tapa dura

Coles's story captures the powerful impact that flows from curiosity, continuous learning and renewal, and always being open to new ideas and the next challenge.--John Rice, CEO, GE Global Growth Entrepreneurs need more stories about grit and perseverance, taking risks, and facing failure. If you're even thinking about starting a business, you should read this book.--Ben Chestnut, cofounder and CEO, MailChimp Reading this book will help you find courage and strength that you did not even know you had. Michael Coles was not a predictable success, which makes his story even more powerful.--Steve Koonin, CEO, Atlanta Hawks Michael Coles made it big, and his story will inspire you to do the same.--James C. Kennedy, Chairman, Cox Enterprises Coles, cofounder of Great American Cookies and former executive at Caribou Coffee, shares life lessons learned the hard way in this winning chronicle. . . . Though framed for the business world, his advice can easily be adapted for the personal realm. Uplifting and entertainingly written, Coles's work offers something for everyone who has ever faced and overcome a significant challenge.--Publishers Weekly Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee and a Crash Let to Success in Business and Life" is a rollicking, revealing read.--Jennifer Brett "Atlanta Journal Constitution " [Coles'] story offers a firsthand perspective on the business, political and philanthropic climate in the last quarter of the 20th century, as well as practical leadership lessons and unconventional tactics.--Southern Seasons Magazine Time to Get Tough is a great underdog story that is a must read for anyone interested in facing a big challenge. You will walk away from this book with a renewed faith in the power of perseverance.--Dr. Kathy Schwaig, Dean Coles College of Business, Kennesaw State University

Michael J. Coles, the cofounder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy.In Time to Get Tough, Coles explains how he started a $100-million company with only $8,000, overcame a near-fatal motorcycle accident, ran for the U.S. Congress, and set three transcontinental cycling world records. His story also offers a firsthand perspective on Georgia's business, political, and philanthropic climate in the last quarter of the twentieth century and serves as an important case study for students and entrepreneurs interested in practical leadership and unconventional ways of approaching business.