THE JOURNEY CONTINUES . . .
Starting your own business? Easier said than done!
Watch these videos
What It Means to Be an Entrepreneur
25 Common Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs
Mark Cuban's 12 Rules for Startups
Randy Komisar: The Biggest Successes are Often Bred from Failures
Paul Yock-Startups: How to Avoid Being Squashed by Big Com
What Makes You Better? Business Plans and Highlighting Strengths.
Read these articles
Watch these videos
What It Means to Be an Entrepreneur
25 Common Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs
Mark Cuban's 12 Rules for Startups
Randy Komisar: The Biggest Successes are Often Bred from Failures
Paul Yock-Startups: How to Avoid Being Squashed by Big Com
What Makes You Better? Business Plans and Highlighting Strengths.
Read these articles
How to Manage Time With 10 Tips That WorkSuccessful Entrepreneurs Exude Courage10 Blessings That Come Hidden in Rejection, Losing and FailureSales Rule No. 1: Everybody Wants What Everybody Wants15 Startup Podcasters You Need To Follow5 Ways Women Entrepreneurs Can Overcome the Funding Gap
Elements of a Business Plan
Risky business - visionary, sacrificing
True entrepreneurial businesses are characterized by novelty; small businesses are imitative
many entrepreneurs are serial entrepreneurs.
Wealth is achieved in two ways:
1 Growing sales by: Selling more of the same Expanding your offerings Turn occasional customers into regular customers
2 Technology growth by: Improving efficiencies and profits Creating new products or services.
entrepreneurs are motivated by three goals:
Growth rewards come from facing problems and challenges and beating them or learning from them
Income rewards, unlike the "building great wealth" mentioned above, simply means matching or slightly bettering current income
Flexibility rewards mean that the entrepreneur can arrange his/her life around whatever needs they may face – family obligations, religious goals, etc
myths about small businesses
56% the people in the United States are thinking about starting their own business, only about 10% of those will ever do anything. Most are scared off by the most common myths about small business:
There's not enough financing.
You can't start a business in a recession.
If you fail you can't try again
Students don't have the skills to start a business.
90% of all new businesses fail within two years
Bootstrapping techniques are methods to minimize your cost of doing business.
In order to start a business, the four elements of the BRIE model need to come together.
Boundary: a government registration, a dedicated phone line or a specific location in the home dedicated to the business. This boundary gives a place to locate and preserve the business resources.
Resources: These can be physical assets such as equipment necessary to make/sell your products or inventory that you intend to sell. Your time devoted to the business is another resource. Information can also be a resource.
Intention: This is simply the desire to start a business About 50% of all Americans think about starting a business.
Exchange: This is the trade of resources for money (or barter). It includes purchases you make to set up and run your business. In includes the selling of your products or services
Recognize how small business is important to our economy and your community
Creative destruction is the process whereby new business, products and services tend to negatively impact existing businesses, product and services. Small businesses have the freedom to pursue ideas that larger firms may reject. Small business owners may put extra effort into these new ideas as they are motivated to grow and learn. Small businesses create new opportunities: Owners have not only flexibility, but the chance to improve their economic well being. People with unusual schedules and people with problems that might limit their ability to be hired (e.g. immigrants, handicapped) can achieve success by entrepreneurship.
When an entrepreneur tries to better themselves financial or introduce a new product into the world it is opportunity-driven entrepreneurship
When someone becomes an entrepreneur because there are no other opportunities for work, this is called necessity-based entrepreneurship.
E-commerce has had a large impact, allowing firms to establish a global presence immediately, a phenomena called virtual instant global entrepreneurship
Charities and civic organizations practice social entrepreneurship
Wealth or profit is not one of the elements as other gains such as mindshare, keeping customers happy or keeping the business going may be more critical than profit.
Entrepreneurs' stories often reflect these lessons:
Perseverance: If you don't succeed the first time, try again.
Scale back: If you don't have enough resources for your big dream, find a smaller version that will get you started.
Bird in the hand: Start with the resources you already have. This is one of the strategies in effectuation.
Pivot: Start anyway you can and then look for better opportunities as you go.
Take it on the road: Your best market may be elsewhere.
Ask for help: You can harness the wisdom of many with techniques like crowdsourcing.
Plan to earn: Figure out the best idea for you and plan to make it happen.
