Entrepreneurial career paths
 

Hi,

Classifying our community, in no particular order:

There's the High-Fliers, like Sanford or that supersalesman in print, Gary.

There's the Professionals, like Phil, Marlon, J.F., David and many others.

There's the "Gurus."

There's the Suppliers, like list brokers or software creators.

There's the Novices.

There's the Strugglers; I'm still in the ranks of the Strugglers at the moment, though I should soon be able to move into the ranks of the Novices.

Escaping the ranks of the Strugglers is 95% of the job. Once out, following whatever career path you pick is easy in comparison to what you've already done.

I see a need for products that aid the Strugglers. This ain't it--> "1,000,000,000 Tips and Techniques For Making Money." Strugglers need blueprints and self-esteem builders. I realize these products are hard to make, because you have to tailor-fit the blueprint to the individual, yada yada yada.

Hope this was useful in some way.

Best,

-Boyd

Think you got it in one Boyd
 

> Escaping the ranks of the Strugglers is 95%
> of the job. Once out, following whatever
> career path you pick is easy in comparison
> to what you've already done.

> I see a need for products that aid the
> Strugglers. This ain't it-->
> "1,000,000,000 Tips and Techniques For
> Making Money." Strugglers need
> blueprints and self-esteem builders.

Boyd

I have just started out on this exciting, challenging road and what you suggest above is , I dont mind admitting, what I feel I need to break free from the chains and move up into the next stage (novice).
A lot of what you read on all the forums is great but it is normally from the viewpoint that your business is already up and running , fairly succesful, with a large enough database to feel comfortable etc etc.
Self esteem and the belief that you can suceed are the major stumbling blocks for a starter. Obtaining the first few customers who ,in a way, you are training yourself with and learning by your mistakes, so that you then have the confidence in yourself and your business to 'roll out' to a larger customer base is something thats rarely covered.
I know that once I get passed these stages I will be a success, that is the challenge facing a lot of starters and yes there is definitly a need and a desire for products/ services to assist.
eg Gordons new venture to work alongside that ladies new business and ensure her success, hell Id love that opportunity (put me next on your list Gordon "g")
All the books on self esteem and self improvement/ motivation are a help but its still down to the individual to take the action and if they dont 'love' themselves enough to take that action then nobody can help them but themselves.
So Diens earleir post re 'what makes people start their own business?' is a great question but also how do those who are at least at the novice stage get over the first few hurdles? A new posting if ever I saw one!!!

mike bailey


http://www.internetmarketingpromotions.com

Re: Entrepreneurial career paths
 

Hi Boyd,

> I see a need for products that aid the
> Strugglers. This ain't it-->
> "1,000,000,000 Tips and Techniques For
> Making Money." Strugglers need
> blueprints and self-esteem builders. I
> realize these products are hard to make,
> because you have to tailor-fit the blueprint
> to the individual, yada yada yada.

I agree with you, self-esteem I think is a big part of success in any area....

Regarding belief in yourself, there are some info products which are good at helping you to believe in yourself. I don't have very much experience listening to tapes (I mostly buy books), but one tape I liked was David Schwartz's "The Magic of Thinking Big." I really liked it!

But... I think the best method is to surround yourself with positive people. The "can do" types. I enjoy talking with Thomas, my brother, partly because we boost each other in our endeavors. I try my best to surround myself with other "can do" people too.... You don't need people dragging you down....

There are some people who are jealous if you have any success, and want to drag you down to "their level." You really don't need these types.... But there are others who are more "can do" supportive types. These are the kind of people to hang around and talk with.... Talk about your future plans with them....

Fortunately, we seem to attract a lot of the "can do" supportive types here.... :)

Of course, the other side of this is that you must try to be a positive type too. As they say.... Birds of a feather flock together!

Boyd.... Let me share with you some observations.... You're an incredibly intelligent guy. I can tell from your posts. There's no reason why you can't succeed BIG at what you choose to do....

I think we all tend to have "natural" strengths.... What are yours? You boost your chances of success, I think, if you go with your strengths.... (It also makes things more fun.)

However, I think Gordon is also right when he recommends that everyone gets some sales experience. I only have a little bit of sales experience, but even just a few days of sales experience I've found has boosted my confidence. You realize that there's really nothing to fear in approaching strangers, if you approach them in a friendly way. If you are friendly and respectful to people, they'll be friendly and respectful back.... This was a great lesson for me! (It also helps if you first go around with someone else who has done it before, so they can show you how to do it, before trying it yourself.... This is what I did.)

I'm still working on my own endeavors too.... It's not so much that I lack confidence (in fact, some have accused me of having WAAAY too much confidence!).... It's more that I'm finding my "natural" niche..... I think I've just about found it.

There are so many options for self-employment.... Product development. Providing a service. Consulting or contracting work. Distribution. Import/export.

It's also a matter of finding something you feel PASSIONATE about.... Something you LOVE to do, which you can also do for profit.

I quoted something below in response to my brother Thomas's post.... But I'll quote it again here, since it was quite far down the forum....

I wrote:

You reminded me of this.... Bill Heinecke is a very successful American entrepreneur who's based in Thailand. He owns many first class hotels there, as well as restaurant chains (he owns the Pizza Hut, Swensen's ice cream, Dairy Queen, and Sizzler restaurant chains in Thailand), and is the exclusive distributor for Piper Aircraft in Thailand.... and a few other businesses there in addition to that!

Here's what Bill Heinecke has to say....

If you don't enjoy your work, you won't invest the time and energy needed to make it a success. I don't know of any successful entrepreneurs who consider their work boring. For most, it's a stimulating and challenging game. It has to be, because many entrepreneurs also spend most of their evenings and weekends working.

Never work just for money or power - it won't satisfy your soul, please your family, or help you sleep at night. Believe in and be committed to your business more than anyone else. In the early days, I was able to overcome most of my shortcomings through the sheer passion and enthusiasm I brought to my work. It's far easier to do this when you enjoy what you are doing.

[...]

I didn't mind working crazy hours, because it was fun. I constantly ask myself, "Do I really want to be doing this? Is it enjoyable?" If the answer is "no," I re-examine the business.

[From William E. Heinecke with Jonathan Marsh, "The Entrepreneur: 21 Golden Rules for the Global Business Manager," p. 39-40.]

I really believe in this piece of advice.... I know it worked for me as a physicist. It seems to work for my brother Thomas in business (he's really passionate about business -- he's been thinking about business since he was a kid). It seems to work for Bill Heinecke.

I didn't quote this part of Bill Heinecke's book, but he also explains how he happens to love "pizza, ice cream and hotels, not necessarily in that order." And what are his businesses? Precisely.... hotels, Thailand's Pizza Hut chain, and two ice cream chains in Thailand too (plus a few other things as well). But he stuck to what he loved....

And when I think about other successful businesspeople, it also seems to fit....

Joe Sugarman tried many things.... But he really hit his stride when he worked with something he was passionate about -- electronic gadgets. (You can read about his early failures in his book Success Forces.... Although he doesn't say this, I suspect in those earlier years, he wasn't yet following his passion, the way he did later....)

Joe Cossman has mostly worked with what he loved.... novelty items, like "shrunken heads," baking soda driven fishing lures, and so on....

Anita Roddick was passionate about two things, cosmetic products and environmental activism. She combined the two into a highly successful business, the Body Shop.

And look at the successful people who post here.... You'll generally see that they are succeeding by doing what they are passionate about too!

I guess the key is to find something you are both passionate about, something you love doing or working with, and which can make you money too.... it's the golden combination. :) This combination is different for every one, as we are all individuals....

There may be elements you have to do which you don't like.... So I think the thing to do there is to outsource those services, hire someone to do them, or JV with someone so they do the things you're not passionate about (but which they enjoy doing)....

Of course, it doesn't have to be a product, but could be a service, or a consultancy. If you like programming, you can contract out your programming services. If you like solving certain types of creative problems (like I do), there are ways you can sell these services as a consultant. Then, if the demand gets high enough, you can hire others who, like yourself, also enjoy doing this type of thing.... There are lots of options....

Hope that helps.... :)

- Dien