Guest Speaker

It was awesome having the opportunity to listen to someone like Andrew McGuire , who is so successful in what he does, speak about his career.  He started off by telling us about the traumatic experience he had as a child regarding his pajamas catching on fire.  That is example that remained the driving force behind his career and pushing for the safety of others so they don’t experience what he did.  Furthermore, it was truly inspiring to hear him talk about his process in implementing fire safe cigarettes.  He didn’t know how hard it would be to tackle the tobacco business nor did he have a clue how to approach the matter through legal processes, however with years of persistence, hard work, and passion McGuire was able to accomplish his goal.  

            Andrew McGuire said one thing in particular that interested me the most.  A fellow USC student in the audience asked him how he made his money in order to support himself during his campaign, and McGuire gave a story in order to answer the question.  The response had to do with a film student who didn’t know how to obtain money to start a film and was told that if you want to start a film and need money, you will find a way to attain the money.  Personally, this struck me as the most interesting point of the night because it pertained to what I possibly want to do in the future.  As an environmental studies major I plan on starting my own sustainable permaculture super garden, and my main concern has always been how am I going to come up with the money to start it.  McGuire made me understand that by making the right connections and by truly having a passion to start or pursue something, opportunities present themselves.