One of the great freedoms of entrepreneurship is creating a job that fits perfectly with your personal work style. If you don’t account for your own preferences before you launch a business, you are likely to lose interest in the project and have difficulty keeping yourself motivated. The most successful entrepreneurs are very self-aware and build their business ideas around their own strengths.
Your first consideration is whether to launch your business full-time, part-time, or in your spare time. Each option means different things as far as what type of business to select, how much time it will take to plan and launch, and whether you can expect significant growth. Spare-time startups are the natural result of an existing hobby or interest. If this is the case, be careful. If you take repeated deductions of business losses over several years, the IRS may re-classify your business as a hobby, leaving you on the hook for underpaid taxes.
Part-time startups are typically intended to supplement income or reduce risk in the hopes of growing the venture to a full-time endeavor. If you are looking to supplement income, then your part-time startup will have to limit growth and be a fairly flexible endeavor. Planning to grow a startup from part-time to full-time can be more difficult. Businesses tend to grow in step-change spurts, when a combination of efforts seems to pay off overnight. In these cases, it is critical to prepare yourself and your business through solid planning.
Another work style factor to consider is where you are happiest working. For some, a home office is ideal. For others, the other distractions of home life make it difficult to be productive. Some entrepreneurs prefer to always be on the move, traveling the area or the country on a regular basis. Also consider the level of interaction with others you are most comfortable with. Do you want to be chatting up strangers much of the time or do you prefer to be behind the scenes?
Develop a vision of what you want your work life to be. Define a typical day — where will you be? What will you do? Once you have a clear idea of how you do your best work, selecting the right business will be much easier, and your ability to turn your idea into success is magnified.…
The best thing I ever did for myself as a business owner was to become a student of success. That meant plunking down some cash to get the knowledge I now have. I truly believe that small business owners must never stop learning. When we stop learning, we stop growing and our businesses typically follow.
Today, I’m consistently investing in 5-figure coaching programs and I have no doubt I’d be investing in coaches that cost 6 figures before long. Hard to believe, but I didn’t start out that way. I started out on a budget. Here are 5 budget-friendly ways to get some revenue-producing knowledge for your business.
Magazines
Magazines cost very little. Typically $15-$30 a year (even less sometimes). Sign up for Entrepreneur Magazine or even better Millionaire Blueprints. Even my teenager is subscribed to the teen version of Millionaire Blueprints and he devours it. I recommend this magazine because it’s full of stories on how people created success. How they overcame the odds, how they remained persistent, and how they succeeded. Basically, success recipes. Feed you brain this kind of stuff every week and success will no-doubt become the way you think… and the way you are.
Books
I remember constantly being on in my search for how to create a successful business. And there were times I’d search for a book on Amazon, check out the user-reviews, then call my local library to borrow it (zero dollars). Books like the Guerrilla Marketing book series and many others. I devoured them all because it was all I could afford at the time.
I didn’t complain that “I didn’t have time to read.” I just did. I found the time because I was determined to feed my brain recipes for success. Don’t forget books on success mindset as well like Think & Grow Rich and Who Switched Off My Brain. Also check out the No BS series of books by Dan Kennedy for some unique marketing advice.
Free teleseminars
Just do a Google search for free teleseminars. They are happening every single day. Sign up and learn something. You’ve got nothing to lose. If you don’t like it, you can get off their list just as easily as you got on. I listen to about 6 teleseminars a week. Some free and some are included in the coaching programs I’m in. But all of them teach me something. Even if I get just one idea, it was well worth it.
Home Study Systems
If you cannot invest in a high-priced coaching/mentoring programs, a great alternative is to get the home study version. It’s always less expensive and they are rich in content. Read the testimonials to get a sense of what is valuable about the product. Most have some kind of money-back guarantee so you can check it out risk free. “Do it Yourself” home-study options are a great low-cost way to boost your business knowledge and your revenue with profit-generating new ideas and strategies.
Low-cost Seminars
In every …
When business schools teach entrepreneurship, too much time is spent on writing a business plan geared towards throwing darts at venture capital firms and getting interest in a company before it is even built.
This is hardly an effective plan because it wastes valuable time that could be spent on the business. Moreover, there is no reason for the entrepreneur to start a business only to give it over to 3rd party bankers who could and will pull the plug at first sight of turmoil.
Instead of chasing investors, the entrepreneur should be learning about business via getting their website up and diving in.
Until actual business and subsequent revenue is coming in, there is no real reason for the entrepreneur to take days speaking to an accountant or spend hours blogging about whether they should register their company as a LLC or a corporation. Taking others’ advice is the last thing the entrepreneur ought to do.
This advice is not coming from a columnist. It is coming from someone who started a highly successful company that is consistently eating up market share and now has multiple talented employees from a studio apartment in New York City.
If the entrepreneur wants their business to grow, they must start today. Forget a long, drawn out business plan, here is what the entrepreneur needs – 2 traits that must be quickly acquired:
Thick Skin – people are sensitive to rejection and human beings do their best to avoid rejection at all costs. Conversely, the entrepreneur must become completely desensitized to rejection as they must quickly come to terms with the fact that they are going to encounter resistance and judgment from others every step of the way.
Although I hate the term, entrepreneurs must “put themselves out there” and must buck the trend by ceasing to worry about what others think or what others say. Only if the entrepreneur develops a think skin, can they make a successful run at seeing the other side of the rainbow.
It’s great if the entrepreneur is born with this, however is not necessary as if the entrepreneur wants to be successful, they learn to desensitize themselves to resistance and this can be acquired over time.
Risk Tolerance – in college, too many entrepreneurs are taught to focus on controlling numbers and because of this focus, they don’t learn how to tolerate mass amounts of risk. Managing a high amount of risk is not easy nor is it fun, but it is necessary.
Entrepreneurs, until the business is completely done with its growth phase and can no longer grow at a fast pace, are going to have to live with a gut feeling that is indescribable.
Inevitably, there are certain periods in a company’s growth that will put excessive stress on the entrepreneur.
These company growth stages that tend to induce a large amount of stress include the transition to an office, the hiring of multiple highly paid employees who are crucial to the success of …
Three years ago I was not a runner. I was somewhat athletic but I certainly was not a runner. Now, here I was, approaching mile 22 of my first full marathon and self doubt was starting to creep in. “What was thinking? The longest I had ever run during training was 20 miles. What made me think I could get to the finish?” Every ounce of my body was screaming in pain. The worst part was the pain was so much more than physical; it was total mental and physical exhaustion beyond anything I had ever felt before.
So what could I do now? I had visualized myself finishing this race everyday for at least 100 days. I had given up so much of my summer fun to train and push myself to complete this challenge. I had recruited the support of my friends and family. So what could I do now that my body was screaming NO? I let my vision guide me through the pain.
With my little sister running alongside me, pushing and encouraging me, there was only one answer; just get to Todd. You see Todd is my husband and he was waiting for me at mile 22 so that he could “bring me home”. In preparation for the marathon, I had asked various members of my friends and family to run alongside me during consecutive segments of the race so that I would always have someone to help pace me. It turns out, Todd and Sarah’s job was about much more than pacing. They were great support to help me through the toughest physical and mental challenge of my life.
Why did I choose to run a marathon? It is simple, the search for constant and never ending improvement. I have learned to always keep challenging myself and to make big goals that both excite me and scare me at the same time.
For me, becoming an entrepreneur and starting my own business in specialty medical sales was one of the biggest and scariest goals I had ever set.
I was a nurse. I had transitioned to medical sales after a few years and I found that I was pretty good at it. I had a strong work ethic and I related well to the people I was selling to. But, I was educated as a nurse. I really knew nothing about starting a business. The self talk and self doubt were very loud voices in my head.
These voices are built over time from past experiences. These voices are there to keep us in our comfort zone. I believe most people listen to their inner voices when they have a big idea. A person might see a beautiful house and think “boy, I would love to have a house like that”. And then in the next thought they would have cancels that idea, with a negative like “I could never afford that”.
Well that’s exactly what I did at first. I pushed the idea …
If you have been thinking about starting your own home-based business, there is no better time to start than today! It has never been easier to start your own business from home than it is today with the ease of the internet and the fact that it is widely used across the world. While it may seem like it will be easy, you should realize that it is in fact a real business, so be sure to attack it with plenty of motivation, desire, and determination. There are a few really great ways to make your income, some of which can be very lucrative if you know what you are doing and are ready to work hard.
Here are three ways you can build a legitimate home-based business in a relatively short period of time, they include:
1 – Selling affiliate products
While this can mean many things, basically being an “affiliate” means you are selling someone else’s product and receiving a commission every time you make a sale. This is the fastest way to start selling something, however it is not the most lucrative, since you do not get to keep all of the profits from the sale. If you are not interested in creating your own products or offering a service, this might work well for you.
2 – Your own information products
If you have some knowledge or expertise in a certain area, you can create ebooks, audio courses, and video courses, and then sell them on a website. While this may take some time to put together the products, the reward is well worth the time since you only create the product once and then make money from it for years and years to come. If you do have some expertise in any certain area, this type of business can be very lucrative and is worth consideration.
3 – Consulting
Do you have a lot of experience in something that others will pay your for? If you do, you can start a consulting service and help people 1-on-1 via telephone, email, or even face-to-face. While this type of business may take more of your time since you must be there to consult, it can be very lucrative since people are willing to pay big money for others to help them with the topic at hand. If you are an expert in any field, you should strongly consider this type of business. You can even do a combination of #2 and #3, creating products to help others as well as offering your 1-on-1 consulting as a high-ticket item.
Whichever form of business you choose, be sure to explore the pro’s and con’s of each, choosing whichever fits your personality best.…
All too often online entrepreneurs start their business intent on learning as they go. They have a mindset that if they are going to be successful online then they have to learn everything themselves from scratch – Wrong Mindset:
There is a right way and a wrong way to develop and grow an online business. The right way is to find out who in your niche is currently successful and mirror what they are doing.
You must not copy what they are doing word for word but you must firstly:
1. Adopt their mindset – what do they focus on, who do they focus on? how much time do they invest in their business? who are they in business with? what are the names of the people that you associate with and who can really challenge you and help you?
2. Work on your own mindset – Be focused on achieving your success and you must be specific in order to do this,. Make sure you have committed yourself to the success of the business. You must be committed to working on your online business every day for an extended period of time – Are you prepared to make the necessary sacrifices. Make sure you understand the time it will take.
Many of the online scam businesses claim that you can make thousands of dollars from your first day in business by working only 1-2 hours per day. Most of the truly successful online entrepreneurs who have built sustainable, ethical, online businesses for themselves will have invested their time, their efforts and 100% of their focus to ensure success in their online venture.
If you are serious you will treat your business seriously.
On each of the Online Business Training courses that I have given and attended over the past few years, Mindset features on each and every one of them.
Being an online entrepreneur can be difficult to explain to people who have never operated online. They will however be experts in online scamming and will have heard all the stories!
Its important for both you and your own mindset to be very clear to these people that you are working on a serious business and that you are committed to its success and that you are working on yourself all the time.
You must make sure that you are spending as much of your time as possible speaking with and mixing with like minded success orientated people. This works if you want it to work.
Watching the news and TV and reading the daily newspapers will not help you to become successful online. Cut the time you spend on these activities to a minimum.
3. Find a proven system that works online and that has worked online for for many people. Speak to these people and understand what they have done to make it a success. Its the quickest way to becoming successful online.…
Many businesses rely on article marketing to reach out to their audience and develop a positive image. But it does not mean that you will have it down immediately. If you want to get into the world of article marketing, the tips and advice you find here are a great place to start.
Try using freebies. This gives the customer a feeling like they got more than they paid for and will entice them to purchase from you again. By including your logo on the freebie, you can get some great free advertising. Make sure that you use good discretion when you choose your product.
Vary the language in your writing, and communicate with everyone, no matter their level of education. Technical products should include technical writing. You should also include a more layman-style explanation for basic visitors. Keeping everyone informed with detailed explanations will earn more respect, and give you credibility with your entire audience.
Try using tools to boost visibility. Many tools and tricks can be utilized to get your articles greater exposure and readership, such as article directories. Some of these cost money, but there are some that are free. Track these down to get a cheap way to build readership.
Reading different material often will help you get better at writing. Reading helps to increase your comprehension levels which will allow your writing to flow smoothly. Introducing yourself to new reading materials will also help improve your writing style. The subject matter of your reading isn’t important, just keep reading.
After you complete an article and added it, have it sent to directories. Due to this, your article will be indexed in search engines and have added traffic to it thanks to the other articles.
Make your articles original and allow your personality to shine in your writing. Your authenticity will shine through to the readers and draw them in for more. If you are unique, your readership will grow.
Each article should focus on one primary keyword. When possible, you ought to incorporate keywords into the URL, titles of articles, headers and sub-headers. You can repeat this keyword several times in the article itself, after using it in the headings. If the keyword is used liberally it will be easier for search engines to spot it, and this should lead to more traffic.
A compelling, attention grabbing line is crucial to article marketing. Writers can use different tools to decide on the best content available.
When using your marketing expertise, be sure not to expand into unknown areas without doing the research first. If you overreach, you are going to get low quality work. It is better not to do something at all if you can’t do it right to begin with.
To promote your own business through article marketing, get ready to gain some web influence. It is essential that you understand how to draw readers to your articles, what format they should be in, and on what subjects. Use the above tips and …
Most people think that Forex is confusing. Trading on Forex without understanding how it works is a recipe for disaster. What you are about to learn in the following article is valuable information that will help you get on the right track with Forex trading.
Don’t let your emotions carry you away when you trade. You will get into trouble if greed, anger or hubris muddies your decision making. Letting your emotions take over will detract your focus from long-term goals and reduce your chances of success in trading.
When beginning your career in forex, be careful and do not trade in a thin market. Thin markets are markets that do not have a great deal of public interest.
For instance, if you decide to change your stop loss strategy after your overall Forex trading strategy is underway, this change could result in losing significantly more money than had you done nothing. Follow your plan and avoid getting emotional, and you’ll be much more successful.
Make sure to avoid using forex robots. Although it can produce big profits for sellers, it contains little gain for buyers. Do your own due diligence and research, and do not rely on scams that are targeted at the gullible.
To keep your profits safe, be careful with the use of margins. The potential to boost your profits significantly lies with margin. When it is used poorly, you may lose even more, however. Use margin cautiously and only when you are confident that your position is secure and there is a minimal risk of loss.
Forex is not a game and should be done with an understanding that it is a serious thing to participate in. People who are interested in forex for the thrill of making huge profits quickly are misinformed. Going to a casino, and gambling their savings would probably be less risky.
It is unreasonable for you to expect to create a new, successful Forex strategy. Forex trading is complicated, and experts have been monitoring it and experimenting with different practices for a long time. You are just as likely to win the lottery as you are to hit upon a winning forex strategy without educating yourself on the subject. Becoming more knowledgeable about trading, and then developing a strategy, is really in your best interest.
If you put all of your trust into an automated trading system but don’t understand how it works, you may put too much of your faith and money into its strategy. The consequences can be extremely negative.
Placing stop losses the right way is an art. It is important for a trader to rely not only on technical knowledge but on their own instincts. Determining the best stop loss depends on a proper balance between fact and feeling.
As was stated in the beginning of the article, trading with Forex is only confusing for those who do not do their research before beginning the trading process. If you take the advice given to you in the …
Starting a home business is both rewarding and potentially frustrating. Your rewards will be defined by the amount of time you invest. Even with luck, it may feel at first as if your earnings are not worth the effort. As with everything in life, you will have to put plenty of time and effort into making your business a success.
Try hard to be at your personal best when you work from home. Working from home can be fulfilling, but it can also be depressing if you don’t approach it well. Take a shower each morning, limit snacks, and take time to get regular exercise. Doing these things will make you feel like a superstar and make others think you are a superstar!
Record all the money you spend on your business, and you will have the opportunity to get money back at tax time. Expenses, such as Internet service, business mileage and office supplies, should all be kept track of. When you’re self employed, there are many business expenses that become tax deductible. Keeping track of every nickel and dime is essential, because there is no reason to skip out deductions you are entitled to.
Affiliates can be used to help you to market what you’re selling. Trade affiliate links with other home business owners and help each other grow your business traffic. Joining other successful affiliate marketing opportunities within your niche can help you promote your own products. This will give you a great boost in profit without spending a lot of money.
Write a detailed business plan for your home business. You can make adjustments to this business plan as needed. You could also start another one from scratch if you see it is not working. But a business plan acts as an initial guiding light and a to-do list that reminds you of where you want to take your business. Frequently update the details of your plan as your business evolves.
Do your homework early on to figure out how to concentrate your efforts on your target market for your home business. Even if you are an expert on the product itself, you need to know all that you can on the people buying it so that you can choose the best marketing and business plans to succeed. You should also think about the preferences of your target audience when you are creating your website since they are the ones that will have to use it.
If your business will hinder you, and your family you should think about going with something else. Anything that might drastically disrupt family life in the house should be reconsidered. You want the type of business you run out of your home to fit smoothly into the household.
Your idea might seem like it’s taking too much time, but know that many successful businesses started that way too. It’s easy to think success may come overnight, but if that were the truth, everyone would be wealthy. Give yourself every advantage …
It can be exciting to start your home business, but it is also a challenging situation. If running your own business is a serious course of action for you, take heed of the advice found in this article.
Tax deductions are a big part of running a home business. Keep in mind that the percentage that you deduct from your bottom line can only be what is used exclusively for your business and not for other uses.
If any business expenses arise from having to entertain clients, you can deduct these costs out of your taxable earnings. Such meetings would be considered legitimate business expenses. When doing this however, make sure to only do so with business associates or customers, because taking your kids to lunch and claiming a business deduction is not smiled upon by the IRS.
Form a contingency plan if your home business does not work out. Establish contingency plans so you can face issues such as your website being offline or problems with your distributors. If you plan ahead, you will not end up in a rut while trying to fix things.
An office is a must for a home business. You do not need a lot of space but do your best to create an inviting office. You should make your office a space where you feel productive, inspired, and calm. It doesn’t matter what size it is, you can do well in any space with the right planning.
Talk to a lawyer before starting your work at home business. Different states have their own unique laws concerning starting and running home businesses. If you take the time to speak with a business attorney, you can learn more about the laws in your state. This can help you to avoid legal troubles in the future.
When starting a home business, sell a product that fulfills a need. People like to buy products that solve common problems or needs they have on an every day basis. A successful product will solve a common, widespread problem.
Choosing a business name is important. Marketing should not be your only focus when trying to make the decision. You will see the name of your business frequently. Pick something that has a personal connection to you, and a name that will bring you pride when you hear it.
Determine if your home business is safe and make any needed adjustments, especially if there are children in the home. You might need to buy safety equipment and create policies concerning who can use your space. This is necessary for the safety of your family and should help you avoid costly accidents. Your business is always prone to being inspected, even if your office is in your home.
Contact other business owners and ask them to advertise for you; offer them the same in return. You will gain more traffic and higher search engine rankings. Advertise your business prominently and display links to your own and others’ sites so that readers clearly …