The Apprentice winner Tim Campbell inspires during Guru Lecture
Thursday 20 May
Tim Campbell, the first winner of The Apprentice, delivered an inspiring Guru Lecture at Christ the King Sixth Form College, London, on the importance of working hard, making the most of opportunities and pursuing your dreams.
"Don't take for granted the educational opportunities you have," he told the crowd of 70-plus sixth formers.
"People would give their left arm or leg to get the opportunities you are getting," he said.
In 2005, Tim was the first person to be named the Apprentice. Known as "Mr Nice Guy" on the show, he beat 13 rivals for a senior position in Sir Alan Sugar's company Amstrad. Two years later, he gave up his six-figure salary to develop a male grooming brand and launch a charity for young people called The Bright Ideas Trust.
Having missed out on apprenticeships, internships and work placements when he was a teenager, Tim now lobbies for more opportunities for young people. He came up with the idea for the Trust after commissioning research which showed that thousands of young people want to start their own businesses but lack the advice, encouragement and investment to get started.
"It's very easy for young people to become disillusioned. We expect our young people to know what they want to do far too early. We forget that life is going to last much longer. It's much more important to find the things that you are interested in."
Tim's impressive career began very humbly in a charity shop in East London, where he cleaned cookers to afford his own trainers.
"I proved to myself that by working hard I could get everything I needed. I didn't have to rob anybody. I could use my head and my hands to get everything I wanted."
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