To this day, I still carry my old business card in my wallet.
The summer of 1998 was life altering. I was entering 7th grade in a small school on the Lac du Flambeau Indian Reservation. And while other kids my age were out being kids, I was doing something drastically different.
At the tender age of 12, I was building a business – a technology-handyman business to be exact.
What I had discovered was that the surrounding area was predominately home for retirement age folks all in need of a little technology help. And I had an unwavering drive to become their solution. So with some initial referral help from my teachers and parents’ friends, I came in to gobble up market-share. Since this was pre-Geek Squad days, business was-a-booming!
Here I was, a middle-school kid garnishing upwards of a couple hundred bucks an hour for things I enjoyed so much I would have done for free…
And the following 6 years would prove to be a huge learning lesson in business, money management, marketing and living an a-typical life.
How I Did It (and How the Concepts Still Apply)
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On the fence about starting a business? That’s completely understandable. It can be intimidating. But before you make your decision, read the following. I’ve listed my top 5 favorite benefits of owning a profitable business. Enjoy!
1. Eat What You Wish When Going Out
Never having to worry too much about the price of dishes in a restaurant is an amazing feeling. And since the majority of restaurant tabs are tax-deductible, order away! Add sautéed mushrooms for two bucks more? No problem… Another glass of wine? Sure, why not!
2. Do What You Want During The Week
Besides the occasional meeting, the self-employed choose their hours. There are no too weak, I mean two weeks, vacation time RFP’s. Daughter’s Afternoon Music Recital? Sit in the front row… Case of the Mondays? Go golfing and catch up on work a little later.
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“I can’t start a business, I don’t have any money!” I’d currently be on Forbes’ Rich List if I got a nickel for every time I’ve heard this limiting belief. My response? “Great, you’re in an excellent position to become extremely successful!”
The misconception that a business needs a loan to start-up is the old way of thinking. Here are 6 reasons why you should structure a bootstrapping business model:
Reason 1 – Because it’s Possible to Start Without a Loan
Some people say you need money to make money. This is 100% false. The era of needing millions of dollars to finance the equipment in a factory are no more. These days a factory can simply be a computer, Internet connection, cell phone and a strong passion.
Do you have a specialty? Start consulting. Are you handy or analytical? Create a repair business. Have a way with words and something to say? Blog it, gain an audience then sell something to them… The business options are literally endless these days.
Reason 2 – Less Stress
Worrying if you’ll make enough money to cover the next installment will keep you awake at night. The bank doesn’t care about you; they care about their bottom line. The same goes for VC’s… unless you think you have the next sensation, stay away from sharing a portion of your business in turn for a quick buck.
Reason 3 – Keep Your Friends and Family, Happy Friends and Family
It may be easy to call your rich uncle for start-up capital. But it will be extremely difficult to re-call him 6 months later to announce that you chose to go another route in life and the business will be closing.
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Shedding The Status
To an entrepreneur, what’s the difference between a vice president, a director, a general manager, a partner and a chief? Nothing. When creating your corporate governance and management structure, keep this in mind. A job title is nothing more than a tag line on a business card and an email signature. However, job titles in general are one of the most important elements when going into negotiations.
The Multi-Hat Advantage for Entrepreneurs
As a start-up, you are free to label you and your initial employees whatever you want. This means you and your team can virtually be any employee of the business. In essence, you can construct a much larger business in the minds of prospective clients, companies and the public. Do you think the CEO of your competitor is going on sales calls? Probably not. But the senior account manager is. Swallow your pride and shed the founder label. Become the account manager on sales presentations, the director of marketing when buying advertising and the vice president when negotiating for better insurance rates.
Why is this so important?
The most important negotiation tactic to expose upfront is higher authority. And what better way to make the other side assume you have little to no decision making authority than by lowering your job title. [click to continue…]
“Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.”
~ Unknown
The majority of the world’s employees will never take the leap into entrepreneurship due to an unfortunate reality; they have grown accustomed to a paycheck. When the thought of exchanging work for a steady income becomes one’s mindset, the prospect of starting a business fades exponentially each pay period. While not as powerful an addiction as drugs or gambling (or as with my addiction, golf), this craving for safe and recurring pay psychologically destroys all but a slim chance of breaking the cycle and building a business.
You’re on the Right Road
Seeing as you’re reading this, you either understand the benefits of entrepreneurship or have already joined the club. If your business concept is in its infancy the probability of launching will be directly correlated with how well you answer this question: can you work for weeks, sometimes months on end in lieu of little to no pay without any guarantee of success?
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