Posts Tagged ‘entrepreneurs’
Inspiring Entrepreneurs of 2008
Friday, December 26th, 2008
As this year’s economic downturn spiraled, rising and persevering entrepreneurs had to prove themselves to be more motivated than ever. Many times, they created their own market, their own niche and in turn, their own success. May they continue to inspire in 2009:
- Vaughn Jereaux , The Vaughn Jereaux Collection
Back when he studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology, a professor told Jereaux he was more fit to design for another company, rather than his own. Despite such advice, Jereaux used his namesake and a $20,000 cash prize to start his own line of custom-made cocktail, evening, and special occasion dresses. Then, in November, he would earn another prize of vindication. An expert panel of judges – featuring Def Jam’s Russell Simmons and Ernst and Young’s Dan Valerio – picked 25-year-old Jereaux as their favorite fashion entrepreneur in The Race to BE competition. This time, the cash prize totaled $50,000. - Janice Maasaoud , Under the Nile
Q: What would inspire readers of Esquire, a men’s magazine, to seek out Under the Nile, a baby and young children’s clothing company? A: Organic Egyptian cotton, used not only in the clothing, but also in what the magazine deemed “the best blanket in the world.” Maasaoud first sought out to source organic cotton ten years ago, after discovering her children’s allergies to harmful pesticides, toxins and dyes. The company has since expanded to offer toys, cloth diapers, and gift baskets - making it one of the most well-known companies sourcing organic materials. - Mark Zuckerberg , Facebook
Google may have taken over the Internet this year, but there still remains one online territory that it could not penetrate – social networking. With over 100 million users registered in August, Zuckerberg’s Facebook more so became a face-to-face competitor when, earlier this month, it released its business "Connect" platform the same day Google launched its own. Like Netscape Navigator creator Marc Andreessen with Internet browsers, Zuckerberg may not have created the first social networking Web site – but he certainly stands as one, if not the most prominent player in his field. (After all, is it a coincidence that Andreessen also serves on Facebook’s board of directors? Probably not.) - Kurt O’Brien , Simply Self Storage
With 229 facilities and growing, Simply Self Storage is now the largest privately owned self-storage company in the United States and Puerto Rico. And, after it earned its first million in sales in just four years, Entrepreneur magazine ranked the company as its No. 1-ranked fastest-growing businesses in the area, out of nearly 21 million others. Among other criteria, Simply Self Storage ranked highest in rapid sales growth and positive job growth. According to O’Brien, the company’s tipping point was when it reached 100 locations. “It allowed me to assemble the dream team in my business sector," he said. - Matthew Szulik , Red Hat, Inc.
Years ago, Szulik – then president and CEO – found that his customers grew tired of paying for program licenses, maintenance and upgrades, only to receive flawed software. So, despite protests, Szulik and founder Bob Young then worked on making the company’s software coding freely available over the Internet. Through many years of development, they pursued to create such transparency, which they thought could “redistribute the economics of the technology industry from vendor to customer.” To date, Ernst and Young named Szulik its 2008 "Entrepreneur of the Year," while Red Hat stands as the sole profiting software company offering open-source material.
What entrepreneurs – new or old – inspired you this year?
Tags: christina lee, entrepreneur.com, entrepreneurs, facebook, Janice Maasaoud, Kurt O'Brien, Mark Zuckerberg, Matthew Szulik, Red Hat Inc., Simply Self Storage, Under the Nile, Vaughn Jereaux
Posted in News & Articles, Trade Shows | No Comments »
What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Tai Chi
Wednesday, April 9th, 2008
Entrepreneurs have been described as many things over the years in a variety of mediums. Aggressive, type A, intelligent, calculating, assertive, savvy, and many other terms and descriptions have been used.
Tai Chi is often called a passive martial art form, and “whole body and mind” form of exercise. Known throughout the world as a form of exercise to help with stress, how can Tai Chi be compared to being an entrepreneur? After all, one of the more famous quotes in Tai Chi is action through inaction which would seem to run counterintuitive to the entrepreneurial spirit.
Dig deeper in to Tai Chi and those entrepreneurs who succeed in business and you will find many similarities. In fact, on a value and conceptual level, it is striking how much the entrepreneurial spirit and this form of martial arts has in common.
* It Starts Simply , with warm up exercises and breathing to gain focus. Even the most coordinated expert in Tai Chi starts their lessons with warms ups and breathing exercises to gain focus. No entrepreneur succeeds without focus. Think about that tough problem you had to solve. What was the first thing you did? The chances are you focused on coming up with a game plan, and then decided where to start first.
* There is no Substitute for Experience or Time. In Tai Chi, there are no short cuts. To learn the sequences it takes repetition which requires time. A good instructor helps, but the individual must work hard to succeed. The same is true in business. Even if you have a fantastic mentor, you learn by making decisions, gaining experience, and by practicing. Study the world’s most successful athletes, entertainers, and business people, and you will find they are nearly maniacal in their practice regime. Think about what you should be practicing for your success, are you?
* Take Time to Meditate and to Focus beyond just warming up. Built into Tai Chi is time for meditation and focus. To achieve success in Tai Chi you must be able to focus and take that focus and apply it to you physical achievements to attain mastery. The same can be said of your efforts in business. If you are too busy working running your business to focus, you will forever be overwhelmed by tasks. Take time to focus, to plan, to do root cause analysis and you will succeed. To become a successful entrepreneur you must work “on the business” not just “in the business”.
* Push Yourself Beyond Where You are Comfortable is a catch phrase for many areas of life. This saying, however overused is true in Tai Chi and in business. You simply must push yourself beyond where you are comfortable if you are going to grow. Taking risks can come naturally to the entrepreneur but it is still not an easy thing to do on a regular basis. Recognizing when it is time to step beyond where you are comfortable is a skill you find in people who are able to achieve the pinnacle of success in their endeavors.
In Tai Chi there are many similarities that can be taken and applied to success in business. As an entrepreneur, make sure you are studying and applying these fundamentals in all the areas of your life to find what true success means to you.
Tags: entrepreneurs, Growing Your Business, larry Slusser, management
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »
The Crippling Fears of Entrepreneurship: Reasons Why People Don’t Start a Business
Thursday, January 24th, 2008
Most Americans, at one time or another, have dreamed about quitting their job and starting their own business. But why don’t more people turn their entrepreneurial dreams to reality? For many, it’s their own fears that are holding them back. Here’s a list of some of the most common reasons why people are afraid to start a business - as well as some tips for conquering those fears.
Fear of failure - This is, by far, the number one fear that keeps people from starting their own business. No one likes feeling like a failure and even just the thought of a collapsing business (and what their friends and family might think) keeps many from even giving entrepreneurship a shot. It’s important to realize that many successful business owners failed at their beginning business attempts. And, it’s also important to remember that those failures didn’t stop them from starting another business. They learned something from the process and then tried again. But, there’s plenty that a new entrepreneur can do to avoid failure all together:
1) Research your ideas, target market, competition, pricing, etc.
2) Force yourself to put together a detailed, in-depth business plan .
3) Try to get as many honest opinions about your business idea as possible. You can prepare a Non-Disclosure Agreement if your idea is proprietary.
Not enough money - True, there are some businesses that take a hefty down payment to get off the ground, but there are plenty of others that don’t. First, don’t assume that your business idea is financially out of your reach. Do the research (ideally, you should prepare a business plan) to find out the exact dollar amount you will need start your business. You may find that you’ll need less money than you assumed, or that some of your costs aren’t needed for the actual start-up. Once you have the amount of start-up cash you’ll need, you can then figure out how much you are able to contribute on your own and how much you’ll need a loan for. There are plenty of options for obtaining a small business loan: bank, Small Business Association (SBA), private investors, family and friends.
Don’t want to be overstressed/overworked - Some people think that all entrepreneurs are working eighty-hour weeks and are always stressing about money and sales. While that may be the case for some, it’s certainly not the case for most. There are plenty of other entrepreneurs who work just a few hours in the morning and then are off doing their own thing. The way you decide to run your business is up to you - that’s what "being your own boss" is all about!
Fear of loneliness - While working for yourself may not mean an office full of people to chat with at the water cooler, it certainly doesn’t mean you’re doomed to live the life of a hermit. You can become active with your local Chamber of Commerce and network with other local business people, attend seminars and participate in business luncheons. There are also plenty of online communities that cater to small business owners and home-based businesses. These are great resources to turn to for business-related questions about your new start-up.
Don’t have the skills - Sometimes entrepreneurs are seen as being a special breed of business person who’s part creative, part risk-taker, part all-knowing genius. Well, in reality, anyone can be an entrepreneur. All it takes is an idea and the drive to turn it into a business. You don’t need to be anything but motivated. You can always hire someone to be the engineer, computer technician or marketing guru.
Fear of procrastination - With your own business you’ll have complete freedom of your workday, but that doesn’t mean you’ll automatically end up on the couch watching soaps with a boxful of bon bons. If you believe in your business idea and are excited about your business idea, then your drive for success is what will keep you working.
So, if you’ve been thinking about starting your own business venture, why wait? Conquer your fears by first understanding them and then realizing that, yes, you can overcome them. Remember, all you need to be an entrepreneur is an idea and some motivation. If you are driven enough, you can make the rest happen all on your own!
Tags: advice, Carrie Hinkel, entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, Starting a Business, startups, tips
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »
Alternative Marketing for Start Ups
Thursday, December 27th, 2007
If you are a budding business, you know that in order to be successful, you must think creatively. One of the areas of your business that lends itself perfectly to this is marketing. After all, it is by nature creativity oriented/driven. This article from the Hyper Passionate Entrepreneurs blog should help get the juices flowing!
Tags: entrepreneurs, Hyper Passionate Entrepreneurs, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, small business, Starting a Business, startups
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »
Is an MBA really necessary?
Thursday, December 20th, 2007
MBAs (Masters in Business Administration) are one of the most popular degrees our country offers. But there is a lot of dissension amongst business people as to whether you actually need one to get ahead and/or to be successful. Numerous polls and surveys have been conducted on the subject, but unfortunately the results are usually skewed.
Graduates of the top business schools in the country say yes, an MBA is necessary but this could be seen as merely a recommendation for their alma mater. But in polls taken from less niche populations, the results are a little less black and white. Many say that while an MBA is a nice neat little package wrapped with a bow, everything you need to know to start and run your own business can be learned sans formal education.
So I suppose the bottom line would be that if you can afford the time, money and effort, an MBA is beneficial, but if times are lean, you can still succeed if you make a point to educate yourself.
What are your thoughts?
Tags: business resources, business schools, entrepreneurs, MBAs, Rebecca Button, startups
Posted in Blog | 1 Comment »
Free Business Seminars
Friday, December 7th, 2007
If you’d like to expand your business knowledge by learning from successful business owners, executives and entrepreneurs, then attending a seminar is a perfect idea - especially when it’s free! Here are some terrific places to start your search.
Tags: Announcements, business seminars, entrepreneurs, free seminars, Product Sourcing, Rebecca Button, Small Business Resources, Starting a Business
Posted in Blog | No Comments »
Implementing Entrepreneurship
Tuesday, September 25th, 2007
Q: When I worked for Mercy Corps, it was a very entrepreneurial enterprise. For instance, if we wanted to take on a new project, we had to own it. Isn’t that how most small businesses are run?
Mara
A: Unfortunately, I think the answer is ‘no.’
The question above came from a conversation I had at dinner one night when I was in Jordan last month while eating kebabs at a breezy outdoor Lebanese restaurant. The woman who posed it had previously worked for that great humanitarian-assistance non-profit Mercy Corps (MercyCorps.org) for a number of years and I was fascinated with her explanation of how the organization is run.
Essentially, much of what they do is based on what they call "social entrepreneurship;" an idea that is, ironically, too often missing in most small businesses. Let me explain:
Let’s say my new friend had what she thought was a great idea for a new Mercy Corps program. Like any Mercy Corps employee, she was free to suggest it, but that was just the beginning. If she really liked the idea, she had to think and act like an entrepreneur:
* Like any entrepreneur, she had to show there was a genuine need for the program (i.e., her product), a need that wasn’t being already met;
* She had to figure out the best way to implement her idea;
* She had to figure out what it would cost;
* And, maybe most interestingly, like any great entrepreneur, if she could do the above, and could implement the program and solve a problem, she also had to take long-term responsibility for it and own it.
What became obvious to me over the course of the evening was that by treating its employees as entrepreneurs, Mercy Corps empowered them to be more than just employees. They were able to be creative individuals with the chance to think big and implement their vision when it made sense.
Isn’t that what we all want from the people we work with? People who think beyond merely doing their job and look to see how the whole can be improved? Yet how many of us have actually created organizations and businesses that empowers the people we work with in that way? I would venture to say not many of us.
Is it not ironic that entrepreneurs rarely foster entrepreneurship in their own businesses? I think most are so busy, happily being the boss, that the idea of people acting entrepreneurially is almost scary.
Am I wrong? Please let me know if I am, but I don’t think so.
Now, the best big businesses often get this idea; a new program won’t be implemented unless someone owns it and budgets for it accordingly. In fact, one such corporation created a whole new management system based on the idea of turning employees into stake-holders. Called Open-Book Management, it originated at a manufacturing company called SRC by a business owner named Jack Stack. As the name implies, Open Book Management ends the traditional practice of hiding the financial ball. The rules for Open-Book Management are that you must
* Give employees the training necessary to understand how their job, financially, ties into the overall business plan
* Give them all relevant financial info for the company - everything from what it costs to do their own job to what the CEO makes
* Give them responsibility for their own numbers, and finally
* Give them a financial stake in the overall company bottom-line
The result is that employees, by not having the financial ball hidden, and by having an ownership stake in the outcome, become more productive and entrepreneurial and the company flourishes.
What I am suggesting today is that this is not a bad idea for small businesses to look at. What would happen in your business if employees were encouraged to look for projects that could help the business, decide if those projects make sense, prove it, and then were given the responsibility for implementing and owning the project? A revolution in productivity and interest, perhaps?
Entrepreneurs, maybe it’s time to create an entrepreneurial business from the inside out.
Today’s Tip: For more information on Open Book Management, you might want to pick up The Open-Book Experience: Lessons from over 100 Companies Who Successfully Transformed Themselves by John Case.
Steven D. Strauss is one of the world’s leading small business experts. His latest book is the Small Business Bible. A lawyer, author, and public speaker, Steve has spoken around the world about entrepreneurship, including at the United Nations, and he has been on CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, The O’Reilly Factor, and many other television and radio shows. If you would like Steve to speak to your group, help your business grow, or if you would like to sign up for his free newsletter, "Small Business Success Secrets!" please visit his website - www.MrAllBiz.com .
Tags: entrepreneurs, Growing Your Business, MrAllBiz.com, small business, Starting a Business, Steve Strauss
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »
Are Entrepreneurs Made or Born?
Thursday, September 6th, 2007
Q: Do you think entrepreneurs are made or born? I say born, my partner says made. What say you? - Gerald
A: More often than not, I would say that someone is either an entrepreneur at heart or they are not. This is not to say that people cannot learn the skills necessary to be successful in their own business - of course they can, and they should. But do you want to start your own business? Actually, do you need to start your own business? That is the question.
I have a friend visiting from out of town this week. He has a great job - an excellent salary, amazing health insurance, a company car, a 401(k) that is matched dollar for dollar by his employer - you name it. I could only dream of such benefits. But do you know what? While he sometimes dreams of switching gigs with me, and vice versa, the truth is, we could never switch places.
Why is that? Some reasons are obvious: For me, the constraints, bosses, and policies he has to contend with would far outweigh the great benefits. And for him, the freedom and creativity that would come with being an entrepreneur would be no match for the fat paycheck and security he gets every two weeks.
We are two different breeds. While I am not saying one is better than the other, I am saying that people who are entrepreneurs should not be employees (indeed, they often make the worst employee), and employees usually should not try to be entrepreneurs (they may succeed, but often find the experience more stressful than enjoyable.)
How do you know which you are? Try this simple quiz: Let’s say that tomorrow you walked into your job and are given two weeks notice. Which best describes what you think your reaction would be:
1. "Oh no! What am I going to do? I have a mortgage, a kid to feed, and bills to pay. I need to find another job, pronto."
2. "Woo hoo! I’m free."
If your answer is No. 1, you are not a born entrepreneur, and of course, if your answer is No. 2, you are. The risk, adrenaline rush, insecurity, and lack of structure that comes with being fired fuel the entrepreneur.
Now, needless to say, the willingness to jump into the fire is not enough, not nearly enough, to become a successful entrepreneur. It is in fact just the start. But it is that start that is the dispositive factor here. You know you are an entrepreneur if you are willing to go for it, damn the torpedoes.
Now of course you will need a lot more than simply the willingness to take a risk - you will also need some business acumen, financial savvy, a good product or service, and a wee bit of luck. But aside from the luck part, those other things could be learned. My friend has all of those things in spades but he would make a terrible entrepreneur because security is more important than freedom to him. For me, and you too maybe, the teeter totters the other way.
When you combine that with say, family support, money in the bank, transferable skills, a creative idea and a strong work ethic, then all of the ingredients are in place to "make" a successful entrepreneur, but the first and most important ingredient - a burning desire to do it on your own - is the one that cannot be taught.
Today’s tip: Later this week, the State Department is sending me abroad on another speaking engagement. This time I am headed to the Middle East - to Jordan. There I will be meeting with and speaking about e-commerce with young entrepreneurs, government officials, and university professors. If you want to follow along (or see my pictures of Petra!), you can read all about it at my site, www.MrAllBiz.com .
Steven D. Strauss is one of the world’s leading small business experts. His latest book is the Small Business Bible. A lawyer, author, and public speaker, Steve has spoken around the world about entrepreneurship, including at the United Nations, and he has been on CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, The O’Reilly Factor, and many other television and radio shows. If you would like Steve to speak to your group, help your business grow, or if you would like to sign up for his free newsletter, "Small Business Success Secrets!" please visit his website - www.MrAllBiz.com .
Tags: career change, entrepreneurs, MrAllBiz.com, small business expert, Starting a Business, startups
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »
What is a Business Plan
Monday, June 25th, 2007
Individuals running small self-owned units with low revenues and lower profits are prone to ask - What is a business plan? They did not grow, simply because they didn’t have one, and never bothered to find out before. Evidently they don’t care much where their business is headed.
Others wish to expand their business but have no idea how to go about it. Ask them what is their business plan and they shake their head, skeptical. Simply wishing will not lead to success. You need to chart down your goals and figure out the way to reach them. This is exactly what a business plan is all about. It guides the enterprise towards stated objectives through carefully chalked tracks and processes, taking into account future conditions and contingencies.
It is your company resume and includes, among others, the following: a current and pro forma balance sheet, a statement of income, and an analysis of cash flow. An enterprising business plan is crucial if you want serious consideration of that important loan application. The plan will contain specific and organized company information and loan repayment method and details. It will also describe the company’s business model and guide your sales team and suppliers.
Your resources may be plentiful today, but only a business plan will help you allocate them wisely. Even with meager means, firms have managed to show record growth, due to careful planning. Good business decisions do not emerge from instant brainwaves; they stem from a predetermined strategy based on detailed financial projections, market forecasts and careful analysis of risks and uncertainties.
The next time someone asks you what is your business plan, be prepared with answers. Tell them a business plan is what helps you stay afloat in bad times and lets you tower ahead of competition in good days. Planning generally pays.
Article written and copyrighted by Growthink Business Plans . Reprinted with permission.
Tags: business plan, entrepreneurs, Growthink, small business, Starting a Business, startups
Posted in News & Articles | No Comments »