  Conrad Hilton and I went to the same high school, N.M.M.I. He
started his hotel business prior to the Great Depression and as
a result found himself over extended when the depression hit. He
lost his hotels but was retained as manager. By 1946 he had
bought them back and formed Hilton Hotel Corporation. He was an
optimist.  There is an old saying in the Army, "There's no
atheist in a foxhole." That's easy to figure out and pretty
self-explanatory. I'll give you a new one, "There is no
pessimist in a successful start-up or turnaround."  How many
people do you know that have a great idea for a business, talk
about it but never do anything about it? What stops them? Is it
the risk of failure? Based on my years in business I would say
it isn't the risk of failure but a lack of optimism for
success. Now you may think I'm splitting hairs but let me make
this distinction.  You have to be a realist to recognize whether
something has the potential to be a success or not. Does the
product, goods or services offered i