Sep 03

Why not 90 percent of entrepreneurs.

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Entrepreneurship has become the general dream work for both the employed and unemployable. Business opportunities are springing up everywhere, enticing and calling you to make the leap of destiny into the wealth and affluence you’ve often dreamt about. It is also notable that 9 out of every 10 businesses collapse within 2 years of starting. Even the best of well-read gurus collapse in the face of numerous tests that would have heralded the enthronement of a celebrated business idea.

Despite the numerous complaints about the challenges of building businesses in Nigeria, some are still transforming themselves into formidable forces of repute. It is therefore important to know the necessary factors that affect the entrepreneur, his idea, and his growing business.

Not considering pests!

Pests are crazy little creatures that cause immense damage to food and materials in a house, shop or office. Ok, I am not talking about local pests, but in business parlance means Political, Economic, Socio-Cultural and Technological environment; factors which are not necessarily within your control. Some other standard business books give their own academic variations.

PESTLE/PESTEL: Political, Economic, Sociological, Technological, Legal, and Environmental.

PESTLIED: Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, International, Environmental and Demographic.

STEEPLE: Social/Demographic, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political, Legal, Ethical; and

SLEPT: Social, Legal, Economic, Political, and Technological.

This considers external factors, which if not well considered, can suck life out of any aspiring business. I remember Sokoa Chair Center (Nigeria)’s story for which they explained how the National Government’s ban on importation almost ran them out of business. Her ability to navigate her business out of the murky waters of challenges became the foundation for the world class enterprise she manages today.

Political: political stability, security, freedom of press, regulation and Tax policy, and trade and tariff controls

Economic: Stage of business cycle, economic growth, inflation and interest rates, unemployment and employee turn-over, impact of globalization (Global Financial Crises)

Socio-Cultural: education and social mobility, market demand, public opinion, social attitudes trends,

Technological Environment: Impact of emerging technologies, (automation, internet, e-commerce e.t.c.). Compaq recently launched a 24hr laptop battery, while DELL was busy putting finishing touches to launch their 16hr laptop battery, if DELL were a run off the mill company, they are grounded!

Eating your investment, and not profit

No sooner than a small business begins to level up in terms of income, our wonderful entrepreneur begins to think of changing levels and status. He buys a new car, wardrobe, changes office space, all from the proceeds of the business which is actually the capital and not profits. When spending, it pays to separate personal funds from the business. The business pays you your money, and you must learn to live within that means. Problems occur when initial deposit is given for business only for our aspiring business man goes to celebrate the huge success of his business.

An entrepreneur seeking to build a business must understand the separation and marriage between business and personal life.

Mismanaging reality

When entrepreneurs venture out, they are usually motivated by a deep passion-either for themselves, their idea, getting rich, an opportunity or some other object of enthusiasm. Armed with such passion, they take risks and set sail against unexpected signs of reality.

Yet passion tends to distort reality. The ability to succeed in business depends on the skill of adjusting the plans and dreams to the prevailing conditions. The idea that the challenges will bow to your plans and dreams will burn the drain the entrepreneur’s time, energy, and money pursuing an ill-defined endgame without a realistic path. And when the issues start pouring in… expenses not turning into expected results , potential customers are not that crazy about the product, missed deadlines, shortfalls in sales,- objectivity and reason become even further blurred by the mind-bending distractions of doubt, fear and disappointing replies to investors. Entrepreneurs are found to cave in under these kinds of pressures not knowing it is a bend towards the shining light of achievement.

When personal failures affect business

The personal faults, habits and failures of an entrepreneur are usually obvious especially when he has a lot of people under him. Inability to manage funds, not being detailed and bad people management skills are some indirect factors responsible for the high rate of business failures. Entrepreneurs, like any pioneer, have their own lapses, but must be able to manage them extensively. I know an entrepreneur who does not negotiate price but leaves it to his financial manager because he never succeeds in negotiating a beneficial deal. Many entrepreneurs are successful in spite of themselves. The key is in working well, and enjoying, full understanding of their weaknesses and mitigating the likely risks.

Good at starting business, bad at running them.

This is very true of many entrepreneurs, since most of them are powerful initiators, but terrible managers. Most are more interested in making money than it is to build a business. Most technicians think because they understand their product or skill, they will automatically transform those ideas into business. Most of them have this great obligation to run their businesses and become a great manager. Working on a business and working in a business are two different worlds. While the entrepreneur works on his business, the technician works in the business. He feels if he gave in more, worked harder, profit will come. How untrue!

These are some of the factors I have considered and will love if you ponder on them while thinking, planning, starting and managing your business. Don’t forget also, out of the first 20 richest men in America, only 4 are employees.

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Sep 03

Car market.

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As per the recent reports, automotive industry is undergoing the recessionary period. The competition in the industry is on rise and the big companies like Ford Motors and General Motors Corp. are facing losses despite their best efforts.

So, if you are trying to market your products to automotive industry, you have to be more careful and planned. You have to provide the solution to their problems and not merely a product. You have to have an insight into their problems and customize your services accordingly.

How Can You Market To Automotive Industry?

In automobile business, there is great demand for hybrid cars and trucks. Due to this, there is an increase in derived demand for hybrid technologies. So, you have to market your products and services to these car makers with the aim of bringing the hybrid vision to marketplace at a faster pace.

Here are few tips that can help you:

● Traditional methods like trade shows still work very effectively to reach the prospects.

● If the client wants more information, you can give demonstrations.

● You can update your clients on latest information through newsletters, e-mails and mailing information booklets.

● You can provide the clients customized products and services that are cost-effective, improved and innovative too.

● You can also act as a manufacturing partner by offering services in the segments like supply chain management, operations and financial reporting.

● You can also provide an outsourcing solution. If the automaker is facing deficiency of experienced technical staff, you can provide solutions for the same. You can recruit and train young people according to the industrial needs.

● Strong performance and good after sales services should be the key point of your business

● You must provide good quality products and services at economical rates.

● You must have speed and delivery in your performance.

● You should not aim at providing a component to your client but at establishing and maintaining relationship with him.

There can be no end to sales and marketing. However, the only key for getting contracts on regular basis is rigorous performance. If your performance can make your customers feel delighted, you cannot only make a loyal customer base for your business but you can also win more contracts through referrals and goodwill in the market.

Before signing contract with any company, you also need to know the terms and conditions of getting paid. If you are not able to prepare a marketing program for this industry, you can take help of marketing professionals specializing in this field or you can surf internet for valuable tips.

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Sep 02

MBA courses in the scope of the operator.

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As we all know MBA has a reputed stand in the industry when it comes to work with top multi- national companies. So, all you aspiring professionals must try your hands on MBA!

Business management courses delivers knowledge in management, data stock, data withdrawal and business study to categorize, track and develop key processes and information of any organization. Over all, it makes you fully skilled and equipped with fight against any situation and grows the business further. If we talk about any specific business course that guarantees a success in your professional life by identifying and monitoring the trends of corporate, competitor and market performance then MBA in Entrepreneurship programs would be the best one to choose!

Scope of MBA in Entrepreneurship programs

MBA in Entrepreneurship programs (MBA- ED) is a course specially designed for those who are interested to gain a command over hard core business decisions. In today’s competitive business era, you need to be ahead of others to get the best. Business degree in Entrepreneurship programs trains you to be a leader in your relevant filed. MBA- ED is a must have for small scale business owners or any individual who wants to stand out in the industry by effective handling their ventures and by taking it to the next level of success. Any one who possesses this degree automatically comes in the limelight through their unmatched skills to develop business. Hence, becomes the first preference of many renowned companies.

Career Prospects in MBA Entrepreneurship

Any one with a business degree in Entrepreneurship is all set to rule the industry with their own skill and knowledge. Apart from this, all companies love to hire professionals who need less training and can individually handle the business projects. Here by the scope of career growth in this field is immensely high!

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Sep 02

Caultivating skills of operators.

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Entrepreneurship is a skill that seems elusive. No one seems to have a satisfactory answer to the question of whether an entrepreneur is born or made. Some people claim that there are people who are born with a special skill set – ambition, business sense, independence, creativity – and that this is the makings of an entrepreneur. They point to cases like Rockefeller, Steve Jobs, and Bill Gates to make their point.

There are other successful businessmen who didn’t start out in an entrepreneurial vein, however. Many successful businessmen started in managerial positions, or even lower positions, before catching entrepreneurial fever. These people are what could be called “made” entrepreneurs.

The question then becomes whether there are certain traits that are common to all entrepreneurs, and necessary for successful entrepreneurship. The answer is yes.

First, a strong sense of independence is crucial. By default, an entrepreneur is independent. For someone to be willing to leave behind a secure position or even a promising career for the risk and uncertainty of going into business for themselves, there needs to be a fierce drive for independence. Any successful entrepreneur will value the ability to chart his or her own destiny over the value of being safe and secure in a regular job.

The ability to maintain focus is the second necessary skill for successful entrepreneurship. It’s not easy starting your own business. There are so many little things that you have to keep track of. Everything from finances to inventory to marketing to employee relations is all your responsibility.

You have to be able to keep your focus on your goal. If you can’t, then your mind will wander and your profits suffer. Business success requires focused effort. All successful entrepreneurs know this, and are able to be disciplined about matters.

The drive to succeed is the final key ingredient to successful entrepreneurship. Without this strong motivation to be successful, it will of course be very easy to lose heart and let your business simply fold.

The startup period is a difficult and critical period in the life of a business, and it can be most disheartening. There is so much work that needs doing, and there are so few clients at the outset! A big part of the entrepreneur’s challenge is to stay motivated during these bleak periods. Plus, to keep your business moving forward you also have to safeguard employee morale.

These three components are the ones that I believe are utterly critical for any person who hopes to be a successful entrepreneur. That does not mean that other qualities, such as creativity or patience or even luck, aren’t also important. But, to me, the three I have listed above are the critical ones that will mean the difference between success and failure.

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Sep 01

Musings in the life of the operators – I do not easily and quickly. But success

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Entrepreneurship is not a quick way to an easy life of leisure and wealth. You cannot build a full time income with part time effort. These are just a few opening thoughts when it comes to the commitment that is required to grow a successful business. I learned these lessons early.

I married young, had my children by the time I was 20 and didn’t go to college until I was 28. By that time, I was so appreciative of the opportunity that I was the most motivated student on the whole campus. I thought I would find a life in the world of academia, but life happened, and things didn’t work out that way. I tried working a “regular” job for awhile after my children were a little older. I hated it. I could not bear the idea that I had to punch a clock at precisely 8:30 every morning and if I clocked in two minutes late more than 3 times, it was cause for a negative report on my personnel file. On the other hand, if I was needed by upper management to stay after work for 30 minutes, that didn’t balance out those times I was late. It didn’t seem like a good way to keep track of things to me. Bottom line – I was a bird who needed to be free to fly and not kept in a cage — the cage of employment.

So, I did all kinds of different things to earn money — I tutored, I worked at the local country club for private parties, I sold Tupperware, I became a direct distributor for Amway…and the list went on. Years later, when the children were teenagers and we were homeschooling, we all had businesses that we worked on together. My son had a window-washing business at age 14 and he made $20 an hour back in the mid 80’s. My daughter and I developed an after-hours office cleaning business and made WAY more an hour than either of us could have done working a “regular” job. We had a “mother’s day out” on Fridays for the other homeschool mothers who needed a break with the younger children. It all added up to a pretty good income for me and the kids. They got spoiled and have always had a hard time seeing the logic of working for just “wages.” I ignored the remarks from some people about why I didn’t go get a “real job.” I had a real job — raising my kids to be educated and to know how to be creative enough to earn money doing things they liked, all the while learning how to work and do a good job. To this day, if I need a team to help me accomplish something, I’d rather have my kids than anyone I know.

When the kids left for college, I turned my focus entirely on building a business that would be fun and provide a good income. I learned that the city where I lived did not have a good telecommunications company offering services that were available in larger cities. I did some market research, got a plan together, and launched In Touch Solutions in 1994. That business is still going strong and when broadband became available out here in the country where I live, I immediately moved my office home and do all my work with a remote hookup to my VoIP switch. In 2009, a partner and I launched an online business training website.

Sometimes people say things that indicate they think I don’t work much or that I have more free time than they do because I get to work at home. What working at home really means is that I have more time to work because I don’t waste time getting in a car to drive to work. I really work more than I would if I had to “go to work.”

Starting these businesses and growing them to success has not been easy. It has required a lot of sacrifice and many extra hours beyond 40 per week. 80% of all new businesses fail within the first 3 years. Mine have not only survived, but have thrived, even in a bad economy. I attribute this success to customer service and commitment. I have always delivered more than I promised. And I have committed myself to serving my customers to the best of my ability. It has also required commitment from my family – from my husband and our adult Daughter is with us.

For my life "Free Bird" or its all a sacrifice for the risk of a headache to be loaded always flirting with my Is a natural breath and I have not see drilling Yuk! To serious

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Sep 01

Business Success – Three ways to improve.

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We all want to be successful in business and life, however we personally define that. But success can be fleeting and illusive, and many who are very successful do not consider themselves to be. How can we increase our success and happiness with it? Here are a few ways that have helped many and may help you as well.

Celebrate small successes. The seemingly small things that go well do add up and can matter immensely. Too many people pay little attention to small positive indicators that are important.

Tackle the tough stuff first. Got something you really do not want to do but that needs to be done? Perhaps it’s making a phone call or answering a difficult email. It’s easy to procrastinate by doing other less important tasks first, but “eat that frog” and get it done.

Solicit feedback from others and do not discard unsolicited feedback and comments. Some may be worthless, but you can even learn things from idiots, and we all encounter a few in our personal lives. What others perceive matter, whether it fits our world view or not.

Build on your strengths. Sometimes your weaknesses can be ignored, delegated, or otherwise compensated for. Many of us have unique strengths that we can build on, while weaknesses that we will never improve much. For example Einstein supposedly couldn’t even balance his checkbook, yet he made enormous scientific advances!

Remember in the end success is in your mind. Business, and life, will have its ups and Depreciation and we hope not only. But we owe the success of nonlinear and does not expect that!

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Sep 01

Entrepreneurship – Do you have some

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Entrepreneurship is a fundamental and ever-growing component of today’s economy. More and more people choose (or are forced) to become entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is often a difficult undertaking, as a vast majority of new businesses fail. The success of a business is determined by a combination of many factors. I would, however, argue that key to all this is the attitude of the entrepreneur – or what I would call the spirit of entrepreneurship. Unfortunately not everyone has it. The following questions act as a guideline to see if you have it:

Passion. Do you have an overwhelming passion for business? This is the number one attribute of a true entrepreneur. People without passion do not generate enthusiasm and faith in any business venture.

Preparation. Are you wiling to do the necessary preparation? Many people have a basic idea and then want other people to do all the necessary footwork as well as take the risks. Scheming is not entrepreneurship.

Mindset. Do you have a solution oriented (can do) mind-set? If you see every problem as a mountain then stay away from running your own business.

Risk taking. Are you willing to take calculated risks? If you are risk averse then you should rather work for a big corporation, government or an entrepreneur – nothing wrong with it.

Commitment. Are you willing to do everything that it takes to make a business venture successful? Are you willing to go the extra mile? A genuine entrepreneur has an attitude of never giving up – if they fail they just try something else.

Listen. Are you willing to listen to good advice? Entrepreneurship does not mean that you should have a foolhardy attitude or that you have universal expertise.

Responsibility. Are you comfortable that the buck stops with you? Are you willing to lead from Page if you blame the failure of others to your service may not work for you.

Copyright 2009 – venter Wim ©.

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Aug 30

The challenge of organizational knowledge – the ability to slow the path to success.

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One of my fellow bloggers discussed the notion of positive thinking not being the end-all-be-all cure. I completely agree. As an entrepreneur, things are not going to go as expected all the time. If you are new to entrepreneurship, you are likely to underestimate the start up process and overestimate your benchmark of success. What I mean is your eagerness and passion for your product may cloud your vision to the realities of the challenges of starting a business from the ground up.

Lacking experience in starting a business, you just are unsure of what to expect. You can have the best business plan, top rate market research, and a phenomenal marketing strategy, but there still will be unexpected challenges. I firmly recommend not quitting your day job. Starting a business and generating sufficient income to pay yourself a full time salary is quite the challenge, especially, if you’re working with very little start up funds. Because I work with entrepreneurs interested in starting a nonprofit, and in most cases, they have no money, no business plan, and no idea how to run a nonprofit, I make them aware in the very beginning that quitting their day job in the near or distant future is likely not going to happen.

For the last couple of weeks, during my time of introspection, I have been conflicted and disappointed by my lack of external results. Yes, I have made some progress, but not the progress I had hoped for when starting 2 1/2 years ago. This disappointment has caused me to grow weary of theories about positive thinking. We hear from motivational speakers that positive thinking is the key that unlocks the door to success. What they fail to add in many cases, is that it is not the only key. I am learning that the door to success has several locks with positive thinking being one. Other keys that determine success are: patience (because success doesn’t occur overnight) and determination (the will to keep going when doubt arises, and more than likely it will).

The last four months have been an emotional roller coaster of uncertainty. Marketing is proving to be more of a challenge than I anticipated. And, because I have a menial budget to work with, I have to resort to the less costly and free marketing avenues. Because these products are free they are very time-consuming; time that could be spent accumulating billable hours. However time consuming if I want to stay in business, investing time in marketing is critical.

I am grateful to still be in business despite recent economic events that have negatively affected so many. I am fortunate to have realized success for two consecutive years and if I am to survive a third, I must go well beyond positive thinking. I must constantly be looking for ways to adapt my business model with ever-changing market conditions. As a consultant to nonprofits, my previous model emphasized grant writing fees as my primary source of income. After the wall-street crash in 2008 it became apparent that this model would not withstand the volatility of the economy. As a consequence of sharp declines in portfolio values, foundations and corporations are unable to provide charitable contributions at the levels they had before.

The mantra that I preach to my clients, “Diversify Your Fundraising Strategy” applies to for-profits and nonprofits alike. Whether it’s maintaining current levels or reaching new levels of success for your business, you must evolve with the market. If your programs are no longer working, change the model. Our survival at the end of 2010 is going to require of us greater mental tenacity, perseverance, and innovation. Our ability to be resourceful and efficient during this economic evolution will determine our existence or nonexistence at the end of the next 9 months.

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Aug 30

Population change in operations.

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Over the last 10 years, entrepreneurship has become a growing trend with growing importance within the global marketplace. In fact, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), about 330 million people, or 14% of the adults in the 35 countries surveyed, are involved in forming new businesses.

Whether it is the desire to be your own boss, pursue your own ideas or the hope of financial rewards, people are changing their outlook on how to do business. Within the scope of entrepreneurship there are four demographics that are increasing faster than ever.

Women Entrepreneurs

In 2002, the most recent year the U.S. Census Bureau collected business ownership data, there were 6.5 million women-owned businesses. That number is up 20% from 1997. Traditionally, women-owned businesses were most prevalent in the health care and professional services industries. But surprisingly, the fastest growing areas of women-owned businesses are construction (up 30%), agricultural services (up 24%) and transportation (up 20%).

Minority Entrepreneurs

The number of minority-owned businesses has also risen sharply over this same period. Growth in African-American owned businesses is up 45% from 1997 to 2002. Both Asian-owned businesses and Native American-owned businesses have also increased, at a rate of 24%.

Senior Entrepreneurs

Although the U.S. Census Bureau does not specifically collect data on senior-owned businesses, there is strong evidence to suggest more seniors are getting involved in entrepreneurship. This dramatic increase can be attributed to corporate downsizing, growing worries that seniors are going to need more income to cover future health care expenses, and an increasing desire for older workers to obtain personal fulfillment in their lives after retirement.

Young Entrepreneurs

Perhaps the fastest growing demographic of entrepreneurship is young people. According to a Gallup study, 7 out of 10 high school students want to start their own companies. Interest in entrepreneurship is also growing on college campuses. Presently there are 1992 two and four-year colleges that offer at least one course in entrepreneurship. This number is up from just 300 colleges in 1985.

No matter who is starting all these new businesses, entrepreneurship is undoubtedly a growing trend throughout Global economy and the struggle for – Close and have realized the benefit of entrepreneurs. . Five to eight organizations that want to, loss of land where we can jump on?

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Aug 30

Work at home business – make the changes.

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In today’s society, more and more people are starting a home business. No longer driving to work do you have to compete with others trying to make every green light possible. Or trying to catch that time clock before you’re late. However, when you have a work at home business, there are guidelines you must follow in order to be successful.

You may have the privilege of sleeping in a bit later, but you can’t sleep the day away either. As a matter of fact, you’ll need to be more committed and focused than you’ve ever been before.

Now that you have fired your boss, you have just been drafted into that position. Whether you like it or not, you are the boss!

Some people are natural leaders and don’t seem to have much of a problem with this transition. However, there are others who depend on another to keep them in line, which is why they are usually the ones who struggle transitioning from employee to entrepreneur.

Make extra sure that you are aware of this before you fire your boss. Becoming an entrepreneur can be very rewarding. But you need to look at the whole picture rather than the outcome. Because most of the time, when you start a business from home or any where else, the starting point is the most difficult of them all.

You no longer are paid by the hour so don’t expect to be paid hourly for your days worth. You may work sixty hours a week and see no income at all. This is usually the first shock that you experience. This is also where ninety percent will drop off and declare that “owning your own business doesn’t work for them.” The truth of the matter is, they didn’t give it an honest chance to find out!

Most often times they were looking at the benefits and not the work that come before the freedom you may get if or when you remain focused and steadfast. The challenge will be: What is the main purpose for starting your business? If the answer to that question is only money, you probably won’t last too long. This is not to say that money isn’t part of the equation, but it shouldn’t be the only driving force.

There are countless of Internet gurus who has already made enough money that is no longer in it for the money. Whether it is the competitiveness or just the willingness to help others, the goal of just money is oftentimes short lived.

Being your own boss, taking breaks when you want to, sleeping in if you wish are great benefits to running your own business, but you need to build the foundation of a business if you intend for it to last any good length at all.

When you were in the job market you could hardly wait for the clock to reach five o’clock; now you are an entrepreneur wishing there were more hours in the day! The difference are similar to renting an apartment verse owning a home. There is a since of accomplishment when you own something.

The best way to go about a business is to look for ways that will help others. Yes we’ve heard it time after time, but do we really believe it? Selfishness will never get you anywhere to be proud of. What’s the big deal of making it to the top when you’re the only one there. Concentrate on helping others and doing so you will notice that you are headed in the same direction.

Starting a work at home business will take a lot of effort on your part, and sometime may seem lonesome. But when you get engaged with a community and look for ways to help, you will soon see yourself having made that Change of contractor employees is the path to success and freedom.

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