Make Your Moment─Enrique Lores CEO Of HP Shares The Highlights From HP’s New ‘Garage Talks’ Series

Image Courtesy of HP

More than 80 years ago, in a Palo Alto garage on Addison Avenue, Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard had an idea, tinkered with it, and manufactured what became HP’s very first product—the Model 200A audio oscillator.

Today, that moment is widely seen as the birth of Silicon Valley. 

And while Bill and Dave were extraordinary figures, the reality is, there are big moments taking place all the time across different industries and sectors with potential to change the world.

The moment an entrepreneur decides to quit a job, embark on a dream, and start a company that transforms an industry.

The moment an activist speaks up and sparks a social movement to tackle a global crisis. The moment each of us summons the courage to raise a hand in a meeting, challenge the status quo, and inspire others to take on a common goal. 

Moments like these are more needed than ever given what we see happening in the world around us—from accelerating technological change and, in some places, the rolling back of fundamental rights, to the dangers and disruptions of a global pandemic and the compounding toll of our climate crisis.

And, as we chart a course through these pivotal times, there is much we can learn from the way other leaders have navigated defining moments in their own lives, careers, and industries.

That is why we are sitting down with some of these leaders as part of a new series that HP is launching: The Moment with Ryan Patel. Ryan is a leading authority on global business, the economy and corporate governance. I sat down with him in the HP Garage for the first episode, which you can watch below.

As we prepare to release additional conversations throughout the month ahead, I wanted to share some of my key takeaways in the hopes that you’ll find the new series as insightful and inspiring as I do. 

One of our first episodes is with Eric S. Yuan, founder and CEO of Zoom. Eric was born in China and, inspired by stories like HP’s, he dreamed of coming to Silicon Valley and starting his own company one day.

But Eric was denied a visa not once or twice, but eight times.

Only on his ninth try was his application finally accepted. After rising through the ranks at a top tech company, Eric decided to leave his job to pursue his dream, and Zoom was born.

Eric’s story, including the way he helped keep the world connected during the most isolating times of the Covid-19 pandemic when we needed connection most, contains many lessons.

And one of the most important is a lesson we often talk about at HP: imagination is the only limit, and if we persevere and never give up, there’s no telling what we can achieve.

Another early episode is a conversation with Lesley Slaton Brown, Chief Diversity Officer at HP. One of my favorite moments during that conversation is when Ryan asks Lesley if she feels like she has “made it.”

Lesley’s reply says as much about her own character as it does about the state of our industry. She says she wishes she could say yes, but the honest answer is no. “Because you haven’t made it,” Lesley says, “until there are others who look like you in positions like yours. Being a role model is about walking the walk, and less about talking the talk, and we’ve talked the talk long enough.”

As Lesley and Ryan note, the world has changed a lot since Bill and Dave tinkered away in their garage, but there is so much more we must do to make workplaces as diverse and inclusive as they can be, empower everyone to make the most of their potential, and enable companies and organizations to benefit from the talents of every member of their community.

As I reflect on these conversations and the lessons I’ve learned over the years, I want to share one important insight that guides my approach each and every day: do not let the constraints of today’s challenges prevent you from pursuing the promise of tomorrow’s opportunities.

I realize that is easier said than done.

But as important as it is to solve the immediate problems in front of us, it’s equally important to imagine the company we want to be 10 years down the road.

And then we need to stay true to that long-term vision, always grounded in our values, always challenging the status quo, always focusing on our stakeholders, and always asking ourselves not only what more we can be doing, but how we can be doing it better.

Ultimately, that’s how you build stronger companies. And it’s what will lead to the breakthrough moments of the future.