Bill Gibbs is the founder of Sweet Dreams Vineyard, a brand-new THC wine and cocktail company. “[Sweet Dreams was created] to cater to an emerging market of people that I perceived were looking for an alternative to alcohol.” Learn about Bill Gibbs…
Hometown: I was born and raised in Chicago. However, I’ve been in Phoenix for 50 years now and so I believe that gives me the legal right to call Arizona my hometown.
First job: I started a house-painting company in high school. Made no money because I had no idea how to correctly estimate the cost of a job.
Favorite ways to spend your free time in AZ: Bike riding with the kids, movies with the wife, vacations with the family.
Your biggest accomplishment and why: My family.
The biggest obstacle you overcame: I don’t know that I’ve had a “biggest obstacle.” Not to say I haven’t had adversities, but everyone has had difficulties, stuff happens and there is nothing you can do about it. However, the important thing is not the difficulty, but how you interpret the meaning of that difficulty. You are the only one in charge of determining that meaning. Adversity is only defined by the meaning you give it.
Someone who inspires you and why: My lovely wife. She is such a wonderfully loving and giving person. I’m sure when I get to the pearly gates, Saint Peter is going to say to me “Oh, you know Leslee. Go right in.”
Advice to someone pursuing a career path in what you do: Anyone who’s successful who tells you “the answer” about how to become successful isn’t telling you the truth. They are only telling you what worked for them. There’s a million ways to accomplish your goals and only you can determine what’s right for you.
Favorite quote: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery and today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present.” –Kung Fu Panda
Something someone would be surprised to learn about you: I set three goals when I was 20: Build an adobe home in the desert with real mud bricks; become the CEO of a publicly traded NASDQ company; and learn how to play the lead to “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” by The Rolling Stones. I accomplished the first two in my 30’s but it wasn’t until I was 50 and the internet was available that I finally learned from YouTube that Keith Richards plays that song in Open G. I never would have figured that out without the internet!
What makes someone fabulous: How you treat other people.
Headshot photo credit: Paul Markow Photography
Product photo credit: Jacqueline Hanna Photography