Entrepreneurs

[JoshSD]

As a recent college graduate who worked full time through school I feel like I know what it means to have a job. My job is what some people (coworkers) refer to as their career.

However, I can't picture myself doing this for 40 more years only to settle down once most of my life is over. Ideally i would like to secure myself financially before I have kids and to achieve this goal I need passive and reccuring income. So in my mind a job is the last thing I want.

This leads me to entrepeneurship. I've got a strong business mind and can visualize markets and cashflow. I've also got ideas .... and my fair share of obstacles to overcome.

The reason I'm posting this is to hear your personal stories of what pushed you over the edge from a "secure" job into your own endevors? What challenges have you faced in this process? And if you've always wanted to be your own boss but never have, what has stopped you?

[rickboone1]

My advice as well as my own path was to begin in sales. Sell cars, boats, houses, timeshares, pens, cups; the product or service you sell is irrelevant.

This will teach you a lot about entreprenuership.

1) The hard work and dedication
2) To be successful you will NOT work 9-5
3) You and you alone controk your income, generally speaking by adjusting 1 or 2.

Then, you must find something first that interests you. Secondly, you need to be an expert. Have a chat with some of our Vendors for a great example of this.

Listen. Listen to your buyers. Your competitors. I didn't say follow what they say, listening may tell you what NOT to do as much as it wil what TO do.

Don't be afraid of change and adaptation. Learn to evolve and mold yourself to your cusomers' needs. This is an art. I didn't say fall below your beliefs ir to compromise your standards. What if all manufactuers said G has the market with carts and we are nit producing anymore DE blades? Many a person may be in a fix. Look at the shaving world for yet another example. Big Box and mainstream have stopped with DE's (the occassinal pack you find amongst others doesn't count). But, many vendors and experts in the field of wet shaving hav e stepped up to the plate and provided the consumer an alternative.

Which, above all, one of the most important things you can do is to educate your clients.
Pick up the phone and call one of our honers, or one of our (our meaning they're a member here) other vendors. They will educate you and help you along. I have found in my own life that this technique produces lasting results. You have to stand above, be remembered. As a photographer I send all of my clients a birthday card. Everyone in the family, even the dog. Do things to be remembered and keep them coming back. This works much better than pushing for the big sale up front. Residual is better than right now.

And lastly, dispose all negativity from your surroundings. I've had a successful business for years, but when a slow month comes along I hear it... "Why don't you get a real job?" "Ever thought of being a cop again?" Blah Blah.

And if you sell cars or are in a place with other salesman, do NOT associate with them. You're there to make money and tons of it. Not friends. If you want friends, stay in college. These other people will only bring you down. Look at what the top producers do. Participating in breakroom bitch sessions isn't one of them. They blame not the economy, the this, the that, only themselves. Back to number 3.

[JoshSD]

Any reccomendations for books on sales in general? I understand that real world experience is more valuable, but I'd like to jump in with somewhat of a knowledge base.

[rickboone1]

Any reccomendations for books on sales in general? I understand that real world experience is more valuable, but I'd like to jump in with somewhat of a knowledge base.

Yes. Anything you can get your handas on. There are many that are great, some you will take and leave information.

Jeffrey Gitomer writes well and has good information. Zig Ziglar. Les Brown. I also think things such as "The Secret" help too. It is important to remain positive and focused on the goal. As a Man Thinketh He Doeth...

[gaseousclay]

i'm still trying to launch my own t-shirt company so i'm not quite there yet. i've learned a lot about the business aspect in the last 8-9 months but there's always room for more. i've also invest a few thousand dollars to get my feet wet, but with the wife not having stable work it has made my endeavors more difficult. my advice would be to do your own thing. this is the one thing i've struggled with in the t-shirt business. there are a lot of copycats out there but the ones who do things differently than everyone else are the ones who will probably stay in the game a little while longer.

[stobes21]

I recently started my own law practice. It's pretty unusual these days for folks to hang a shingle straight out of law school, but the combination of the current job market and my own desire to make it on my own convinced me to give it a shot.

I don't really have a whole lot of advice, but I would suggest two books. The first is Getting Things Done by David Allen. It's extremely popular and there are a ton of reviews and explanations of the system on the internet. I won't get into it here but the idea is to take all of the disparate spinning thoughts you have in your brain and organize them in an effective, proactive manner. I've always been a very disorganized person and it has helped me get my act together.

The other book is Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi. It's an excellent book on the value and how to of networking.

[Hutch1]

+1 on the sales job. It's a great place to start, and the stepping stone for many a successful entrepreneur. It also looks good on a resume no matter what type of position you may apply for if you go the corporate route. You'll find that entrepreneurship is not coming up with a great new idea, or working hard (many people willing to do that), but how well you sell yourself and your product/service/idea.

My bit of advice, draw up a detailed business plan whether you need one to secure funding/capital or not. It will help organize your thoughts, and provided a road map for you to follow the first 2-3 years.

Many good books - some success stories, some more "how to" oriented. I try to devour as many as possible. If you get one good idea out of each book, great.