Jason Forrest ’00
Chief Sales Officer
J Forrest Group

Jason Forrest ’00 is the Chief Sales Officer at J Forrest Group in Fort Worth. He is a sales professional, author, professional speaker and consultant to homebuilders. Check him out at www.jforrestgroup.com.

How has your career benefited from TCU and the Alumni Career Network?
One of my first major clients (McBride Homes) was a Horned Frog. I was able to use that as the launch pad to close the deal.

How has being a Horned Frog impacted your business?
TCU Purple is a prominent color on my website, my training materials, and even in my wardrobe. I wear only TCU Purple socks for speaking events. Someone will catch a glimpse so I tell them that I'm an avid fan of TCU and that my wife and I are currently building our house close enough to the stadium that we can hear the roar of the crowd on game days.

I also love new ideas and creation and believe that being close to the action keeps me young. When I want to brainstorm, I go to the campus bookstore and sit next to college kids with their iPods and laptops. The youthful and creative atmosphere energizes me.

I didn't go about trying to brand myself as a TCU-purple kind of guy, but I also wasn't afraid to take risks and express myself in a way that's important to me.

Have you hired Horned Frogs?
Absolutely! Every time I hire someone I always go first to TCU. I have committed that if there are two people of equal value, than I always hire to Frog first.

What is your message to the students of today?
Live up to your true potential. Every day push yourself to earn what you're worth. Most people are not truly happy in their career because they are not doing what energizes them.

First, decide what you get excited about.

Second, find a career that you can work your passion 80 percent of time (the other 20 percent is just the stuff we have to do).

Third, study your passions relentlessly. If you're the smartest person in the room in your field, then the money will follow. Money flows from ideas and solutions more than anything else.

Fourth, and the most important, if the job does not exist than create it. Don't yield. Don't give in to the majority of people who will tell you to ride out the storm or just pay your dues. Life is too short to sit on the sidelines and wait for your shot.