J.C. Penney, founder of the retail giant that bears his name, once evaluated one of his young clerks, stating he “wasn’t thorough and wouldn’t have much of a future in the retail business.” The employee? Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart. Despite Penney’s hopeless prediction, Sam Walton built the largest retail empire in the world. The opinions of honest, well-intentioned people can sometimes be off the mark.