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002.27.12 Do business to succeed on your own terms

business to Do Business  

Ralph Charell said “Avoid the crowd, do your thinking independently, be the chess player not the chess piece.” Would you prefer to?

Be your own boss
Escape 9-5
Work for yourself
Be the chess player
& be the producer of goods and provider of jobs.

Well, it’s a fact that we spend nearly 35-40 years with 40-50 hours each week in a job.
We live from paycheck to paycheck without much flexibility in terms of freedom and financial betterment and often our active status of job brings cash flow to us.

That’s why; it makes sense. Instead of living flat broke from paycheck to paycheck and without much freedom and flexibility why not invest your time and money to start a business of your own.

Let’s proceed further:
Question: what’s that reason which holds people back or stops them from launching a business?

Answer: Fear of failure in terms of financial loss and bankruptcy.
And, these fears are valid because research by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that nearly six in ten businesses shut down within the first four years of operation. Another research indicated that 29% of new businesses never make it into their second year and 65% of businesses close their doors within the first 5 years. The ratio may vary from country to country but often failure % is quite more.

But contrary to above research, there’s another research that indicated that it takes 3-5 years for you to realize a decent profit from your business.

People quit because they not persist longer and they blame market and other circumstances. It’s very surprising that more people want quick profits and are not waiting and persisting. And, in the process lead themselves to the path of failure and frustration.

Mark Twain said once that “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog that matters – in simple, we need to increase the size of the fight in ourselves.

Well, how do you begin your journey toward opening a business of your own? The following steps are foundational:

IDEA: The first step is an idea and your idea should not be completely new, it can be just an old idea with some little improvement in it. If you look businesses around you’ll find much to learn from them.

Where to look for ideas?
Russell Conwell said in his book ‘Acres of Diamond’ to look for ideas under your own feet, because it lies in your own industry, experience and background and many business experts have stamped Russell’s opinion with strong authenticity. You may also connect your experience in one industry with another industry to borrow the ideas or to create something entirely new for consumers.

What if someone is laughing on your idea?
Remember what happened to Fred smith who in 1962 came up with an idea for overnight packages and he went to Yale university business professors and they gave him a C minus report and said “no one will pay more when US mail is available”. Fred smith despite of rejection invested in his idea time and money and today FEDEX is the leader. Believe in your idea but be prudent also.

Capital
The second thing to start your own business is capital. It can be your own money or you may borrow. But, remember to start small and grow gradually. These big giants began their businesses like — Google started its company with just two computers, Packard and Hewlett established Hewlett-Packard (HP) in Packard’s garage with an initial capital investment of US$538 and Walmart started by Sam Walton as a small store in Bentonville. And not to forget the story of rags to riches of Dhirubhai Ambani.
There are many such wonderful stories of successful businessman’s who started form zero or nothing and went on to become the leaders. Everyone starts small but the big question is to which height you want it to grow?

Sales
Although, after idea and capital there are certain things that are important to start a business but the ultimate thing is ‘sales’. In a research conducted by DnB (Dun & Bradsheet) on why businesses fail, they came up with one single result as a summation and they said:

Businesses succeeds because of high sales
Businesses fail because of low sales

Conclusion:
Consider this that the market is becoming too competitive, unemployment rates will rise, recession and inflation is effecting our finances and having a side business initially if not full time will safeguard you. Also why not take out 3 years from 35-40 years of service for the cause of business in order to work on our own plans instead of working on our employers’ plans, who in turn planned for us not much.

Ending Quote: “Success in business requires training and discipline and hard work. But if you’re not frightened by these things, the opportunities are just as great today as they ever were”. – David Rockefeller

References:
Books
The four hour work week – by Timothy Ferris
Unlimited Power – By Tony Robbins
Rich dad Poor dad
Websites:
www.Ezinearticles.com

http://outlookmoney.com/ArticleDetailView/tabid/203/ItemId/405/Default.aspx

http://hbr.org/

http://www.discoveringyourinnersamurai.com/2009/06/business-timeline-how-long-will-it-take-for-your-business-to-make-a-profit.html

http://www.entrepreneur.com/growyourbusiness/businesstimeline/article81266.html

WWW.wikipedia.com

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walmart

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_W._Smith

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhirubhai_Ambani

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hewlett-Packard

http://www.acresofdiamonds.net/

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010.31.11 4 ways to find a job

business to Career  

a difficult problem in your job search
let say is due to lack of networking contacts and trouble answering interview questions?

Problems in a job search are very common.

But have you ever written your problem down on a piece of paper?

I’ll bet you haven’t.

Because, when you write problems down, you take an immediate, huge leap towards solving them. Think about it: Every great invention or solution, from the atomic bomb to the Xbox, was first worked out on paper.

Why not solve your employment problems the same way?

Here’s a three-step method that will help you do it:

1 Start by asking the right questions:
Most folks put themselves behind the eight ball in their job search by asking questions that are depressing and demotivating.

Questions like, Why won’t anyone give me a job? or How do I network when I don’t know anyone?

Instead, start asking questions that motivate and inspire you.

Better questions to ask are:
How could I give people a reason to call me with job leads?

How did my 10 closest friends find their current jobs?
How could I brainstorm with them and use their methods in my job hunt?

What worked in my last job search? The job search before?
How could I do that again?
Important: Ask questions that you yourself can solve.

2 step two: Brainstorm at least 20 possible answers after you write down five good questions, circle the one question that looks most promising. You’re going to use it to get hired faster.

Let’s say you write the following question down atop a clean sheet of paper:

How could I give people a reason to call me with job leads?

Write a number 1 below it. Write a possible answer next to that number. Then move on to number 2, 3 . and don’t stop until you have at least 20 answers to your question.

By forcing yourself to write out 20 answers, you’re flushing the creative pipes while going deep into your subconscious mind to dredge up a winner.Don’t knock it until you try it!

3 Take action on one solution today:
Choose the most promising from your list of 20 answers. Then, get started — today — to make it happen. No excuses.

Let’s say the most actionable of your solutions is to throw a networking party where you can meet friends, family and acquaintances, and let them know about your job search.

Now. What do you need to do to make this party happen?

Well, you have to make the guest list, send invitations, get the food, etc. So write down all the sub-goals necessary for the party to be a success. Check each sub-goal off your list as you complete it. Before you know it, your networking party will be a reality.

After that, take the next most-promising solution from your list of 20 and make that one happen. Repeat until hired.

4 Apply to jobs – engage actively and post your CV to eveyr possible opportunity. Cope up with you lack of skills in an area by getting the desired education.

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010.01.11 Why Business Credit Is A MUST For Every Business Owner

business to Business Tips  

As an entrepreneur, you’re supposed to enjoy a greater level of risk than the average person. But do you enjoy the thrill of business and investing so much that you’re willing to risk:

-Being hounded by creditors?

-Declaring bankruptcy?

-Being denied a mortgage?

-Paying more than your fair share of interest on your loans?

-Losing your house?

I you’re like most entrepreneurs, investors, and business owners who say yes to above questions then you’re in danger of facing all of these horrific problems.

And it’s all because of your business.Entrepreneurs typically make one or more financially devastating mistakes when financing the launch, operation or growth of their businesses. In most cases, they don’t realize that they’re making a mistake.

Even when they do realize they’re making a mistake they lull themselves into thinking that the consequences will be a minor annoyance.

Until, one day, they can’t qualify for a mortgage. Or they can’t get the to-die-for financing offered on the new car they’re buying. Or they’re hounded by creditors and eventually have to declare bankruptcy.

It is all because they use their personal finances to fund the launch or expansion of their business. They then use personal credit cards to pay for business expenses. If you are in business or thinking about starting a business, business credit is must.

Let me explain, most business owner have no idea that they can establish business credit and even fewer know how to how to establish business credit.

If owners would take the time necessary to educate themselves about establishing credit they would no longer have to use their personal funds for start up capital or working capital.

They would also be able to use business credit cards which don’t report to their personal credit reports, therefore, not lowering the personal credit scores.

The most important goal of business credit though is to obtain unsecured business lines of credit, which can be done once the business credit profile is set up properly. Once a business obtains unsecured business lines of credit, they then have the working capital they need to start a business or expand their business.

The business owner has check book control to use the business lines of credit as they wish. And best of all, the business lines of credit don’t report to the business owner’s personal credit report.

If you have set up your business profile correctly there are a number of banks that will lend to brand new start up businesses. That is right, brand new start up business with no track record whatsoever. The banks will extend unsecured business lines of credit so they can have the start up capital they need to finance the business of their dreams.

Make no mistake about it; business credit is a MUST for every business owner. Don’t put your personal assets at risk finance or fund your business!

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009.21.11 Types of businesses

business to Business Tips  

Basically speaking there are three types of businesses

1. Manufacturing
2. Trading
3. Service

Under manufacturing – the business owner setup a factory, decides what to produce, hire labours, installs machineries, finds a location conducive to production and employs all his other resources to make a product which he markets and earns profit from it. Such a setup requires huge capital in form of sweat equity as well as loans from financial instituitions. Its incorporation takes lot of time due to legal formalities. But, overall speaking – a manufacturing concern makes lots of profit if he is producing the right product at right time and selling that at right price.

Under Trading – you buy manufactured goods from the manufacturer to sell it to the customers. Often, manufacturers sells their goods to wholesalers who in turn sell them to retailers and from there it reaches the customer. Under trading business you’re not required to have machineries or huge capital. But a certain amount along with registration and other facilities to start the trading business.

Under Service – Service business as implies deals with providing services to customers instead of physical goods. Have you ever been to a doctor? Yes, what he does is he provides services of his professional learning to you so that you may overcome your sickness. Service industry like manufacturing is also a very wide industry. For example it may include financial instituitions, insurance companies, healthcare, public services, etc, etc.

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007.25.11 What is risk?

business to Risk Management  

1) Risk is a possibility of an unfortunate occurrence
2) Risk is a combination of hazards
3) Risk is unpredictability – the tendency that actual results may differ from predicted results
4)Risk is uncertainty of loss
5) Risk if a possibility of loss

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