8 Secrets of Success
Looking for the secret to success? Aren’t we all? Well, Richard St John boils down the secret to success in 8 words and three minutes in this video.
Who is Richard St John?
A self-described average guy who found success doing what he loved, Richard St. John spent more than a decade researching the lessons of success.
So What Are The 8 Secrets?
John has 8 words that he thinks are the main attributes to success. The “magic” words are:
1. Passion
2. Work
3. Focus
4. Persist
5. Ideas
6. Good
7. Push
8. Serve
He goes into detail on each, and describes why they are important, how they relate and play off one another. Well worth 3 minutes of your time, in my humble opinion.
Running Time: 3:33
Source:
http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_st_john_s_8_secrets_of_success.html
Have your own secrets for successs? I’d love to hear them in the comments section below
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Photo Credit: jcbmac
The Key To Innovation And Growth Is Ignoring Fear
Today we have Matt Heinz, of Heinz Marketing, sharing some wisdom on the topic of fear. In my opinion fear is responsible for more failures than any other business obstacle you’ll face, learn to control it and you’re 90% of the way to success.
One of the most powerful obstacles to innovation and success is fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of what’s ahead, fear of failure.
It’s easy to be paralyzed by fear in any capacity, but in our work – especially for business owners – it can stifle innovation, growth and success.
Successful Entrepreneurs Have One Thing in Common
Listen to successful entrepreneurs talk (or read their writing) and you realize quickly they have little to no fear. Otherwise there’s no way they’d have attempted what they were able to do. Successful entrepreneurs get that way by doing what nobody has ever done, or by getting there on a path nobody has traveled. Taking that path not only requires a lack of fear, but it also often is paved with failure.
Look at the history of successful entrepreneurs and they’ve failed – often many times. But that didn’t deter them. Didn’t faze them. They kept going, kept innovating, knowing they were onto something and knowing they would reach success. Sometimes that fear is based in ignorance. No matter. By ignoring the fear and obstacles, they did something incredible.
The Many Faces of Fear
Fear also comes in many shapes. Fear keeps some from starting their own business in the first place – quitting a steady job, putting their family at risk, taking a gamble on something they want, something they believe in. For some, fear is enough to keep them from getting started.
For others, fear is more mundane. Fear of testing a new partnership. Fear of hiring a full-time salesperson. Fear of opening that second retail location.
Fear is What You Make of It
Not having fear does not equate recklessness. Those who work without fear still make calculated, smart choices. Research can mitigate risk which reduces fear, certainly. But giving that business or project or hire or expansion the green light is the ultimate test.
Business owners work incredibly hard, and as Branch Rickey once said luck very much is the residue of design and hard work. But that work and dedication is colored by fear.
But you know what? The thing you fear isn’t real. Yes, failure is possible. But you control that. The new sales rep might not work. But you can fix that.
To grow, you need to embrace opportunity, ignore fear, and move forward. Sure, the risks are still there. But most of the time they aren’t actually in your way.
About Matt
Matt brings more than 12 years of marketing, business development and sales experience from a variety of organizations, vertical industries and company sizes. His career has focused on delivering measurable results for his employers and clients in the way of greater sales, revenue growth, product success and customer loyalty. Read more from Matt at his blog, www.mattonmarketingblog.com. Follow Matt on Twitter at www.twitter.com/heinzmarketing.
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Top Ten Money-Saving Tips for Your Business
Not wanting to miss out on the cost saving fun we’ve been having around here, Barbara Weltman offers her Top Ten Money Saving Tips for Business in this guest post.
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In today’s current economic environment, finding new and creative ways to save money while obtaining the things your business needs, can help your business survive and thrive. Here are some great products and services that you can explore in order to save money and increase profitability.
MyFax lets you send faxes online, saving paper, ink and more. Faxes can be sent domestically and to over 40 different countries worldwide. You don’t even have to set up an account if you send no more than two faxes (ten pages each) per day.
Add It Up™, a new online shopping portal recently launched by Bank of America, allows small business owners to earn up to 20 percent cash back from more than 270 retailers when they shop online with their Bank of America check card. Participating retailers include top names such as Staples.com, HomeDepot.com, Walmart.com, and Costco.com.
SCORE provides free business counseling through its 11,200 volunteers nationwide. Find an in-person mentor by zip code and schedule an appointment to critique your business plan, review your marketing plan, or discuss start-up or expansion plans; or, ask a question online.
Small Business Development Centers, like SCORE, offer free counseling and training from a network of more than 1,100 service centers.
Work.com offers nearly 3,000 free how-to guides about e-commerce, legal contracts, sales and marketing, business plans, or other subjects. These guides, which are rated by viewers, are concise articles on the topic, with links to resources. Particularly helpful are the guides of regional interest, including state-by-state guides and guides for those doing business internationally.
Refund-Retriever and Refund Technology can get you refunds on shipping costs. You may be overpaying because of packages you send that arrive late (an estimated 10% do), third parties use your account without permission, or the shipper erroneously charges you for items you didn’t send. They keep 50% of any recovery.
Business.gov can help you over regulatory hurdles by connecting you with the federal agency that can help. Also cut through red tape at the state level by finding the right person (go to www.business.gov/contacts/state and then click on your state and the rules you need help with).
Avery Dennison Office Products gives you access to low-cost and royalty free photos and illustrations that you can use for business cards, brochures, post cards, catalogs, a website or other marketing materials. (FYI: If you download an image from the web without permission, you risk legal exposure for copyright violations.)
Guru.com is the world’s largest online service marketplace (a database of more than 100,000 freelancers) where you can find experts to work for you. Hire by the project and you won’t incur payroll taxes and other costs related to employees. Ensure your satisfaction by paying the freelancer through Guru’s SafePay Escrow; if you’re not completely satisfied, Guru refunds your money.
Health savings accounts is a website from the Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration to provide small businesses with information about HSAs. HSAs can be a perfect solution for health coverage. The site contrasts HSAs with other health care options and suggests ways to save money through HSAs.
Author Bio
Barbara Weltman is a top selling author and has written the titles “The Rational Guide to Building Small Business Credit” which features a foreword by Dun & Bradstreet, “J.K. Lasser’s Small Business Taxes” and “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting a Home-Based Business.” She is also a contributing writer for Inc.com, PINK magazine and New York Enterprise Report. Barbara has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Reuters, Forbes.com, Marketwatch.com, WABC-TV, Fox News, CNNRadio and CNBC.
Photo Credit: yoppy
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Stop Twittering Your Life Away Trying to Figure Out Social Media
The following guest post is from Jimmy Vee & Travis Miller the nation’s leading experts on attracting customers and the authors of Gravitational Marketing: The Science of Attracting Customers. Together they have leveraged over $96 million dollars in marketing into $12 billion dollars in profit for their clients.
Here are their tips on using social media make more money and keep you business growing. Be sure to check out their free report, the Social Media Success Blueprint to get your business up to speed on social networking in 37 minutes or less!
Creating Authentic Relationships
There’s one thing you need to do if you want to make more money and keep your business growing even when things are tough. In fact, if you do this consistently, you can keep your business from feeling the effects of a slowdown in the future.
You may be asking yourself, "What’s this magical thing you’re talking about?" It’s not revolutionary. It’s an old thing. It’s something that used to be commonplace but now is a lost art.
What we’re talking about is simply creating more authentic relationships with your prospects and customers — a connection, a friendship.
We all enjoy going somewhere we’re recognized and appreciated. We frequent the places where people know our names and value our patronage far more often than those that don’t.
The better your relationship with your prospects and customers, the more money you will make and the less susceptible you will be to feel the effects of an economic slowdown.
Leverage Technology
Today this is easier than ever. Technology allows us to connect with people from all over the world and connect with them like they were coming into our country store every single day.
The explosion of social media sites on the web gives you an even greater opportunity to create a connection with prospects and customers. If you’ve never heard of Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter then you are certainly behind the times.
More than likely, you have heard of social media and these sites. You probably know someone who’s on them. Heck, maybe you’re on them yourself but don’t really know why you’re there or what you’re doing.
Don’t Worry – We’ll Get You Up To Speed
Social media is information content created by people using highly accessible and scalable publishing technologies. It is intended to facilitate communications, influence interaction between peers and with public audiences.
That definition sounds complicated and convoluted doesn’t it? Let us break it down. Social Media is basically water cooler chitchat going on 24/7 between a whole bunch of people regardless of geographic location or time of day.
Think about the kind of relationships that are formed by the water cooler, in the break room, golf course or at the Starbucks in the morning before work. Now these same relationships can be formed without leaving your home or office by "hanging" out with others on social media sites.
We’re aggressive implementers and testers. Especially when something can potentially be used as a cheap/free lead source. With that being said, we’ve been testing and researching to find out if social media can be used to generate leads and make sales.
As of right now our belief is yes it can… but there are some pretty big butts. Because these sites are about building and leveraging relationships it’s not fast. It takes time and work to build quality relationships, friendships, confidence and trust and that’s what you need to be doing on these sites to get them to work.
Depending on where you are in your business, how much time you have available to invest and other resource issues, social media as a traffic source or business tool may or may not be right for you.
Social Media Success Blueprint
With that being said, here are some short cuts we’ve discovered by using and testing social media sites. Download the free report to get all the tips, tricks and hits on getting up to speed on social media fast.
Author Bio:
Jim & Travis help entrepreneurs attract more customers and get the FAME & FORTUNE they deserve NOW by "leap frogging" traditional hurdles and positioning them as the RECOGNIZED EXPERT in their field. Using both online (video & social media) and offline (radio, print & direct mail) they help their clients double their customer base in as little as 6 months with NO STRESS and ZERO MARKETING WASTE. Start Attracting More Customers Now by getting their FREE Customer Attraction Starter Pack at http://www.GravitationalMarketing.com
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8 Patterns Of Highly Effective Entrepreneurs
Are there certain habits, or patterns, many successful entrepreneurs share? What distinguishes entrepreneurs from everyone else?
Brent Bowers, author of 8 Patterns of Highly Effective Entrepreneurs
First: Opportunity
Entrepreneurs have an aptitude for spotting and seizing opportunity.
Second: Leadership
Entrepreneurs are compelled to be in charge, and act as natural and very capable leaders.
Third: Innovative
They have a history of innovation, and the entrepreneurial spirit has been with them since childhood.
Fourth: Adaptation
Entrepreneurs are quick to adapt to almost any situation thrown at them. They have an ability to think on their feet, and “just go for it”.
Fifth: Drive
Entrepreneurs naturally have a strong drive and determination to see their idea succeed.
Sixth: Passion
They have a passion and enthusiasm for what they do.
Seventh: Unfailing Pragmatism
Entrepreneurs act as their own best check and balance system. They take calculated risks, but never gamble.
Eighth: Setbacks Equal Opportunity
Entrepreneurs see setbacks not as failure, but as opportunity to learn and grow.
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Photo Credit: Leo Reynolds’ photostream
Drivers of Entrepreneurial Success
When you are thinking about starting a business it’s natural to ask yourself if you have what it takes to succeed. You see other successful business people and think “how did they get to where they are?”. Then you start comparing yourself against them, and your perceptions of what it takes to make it.
What Does it Take to Succeed as an Entrepreneur?
So what are the main factors in order to make it in business, or as an entrepreneur? Maybe you’ve thought that to hit the big time you need one, or all, of the following:
*MBA from an Ivy League School
*A great idea that nobody has thought of before
*Luck
*A “secret” weapon that guarantees success?
*Good looks
*All the above
There must be something right…I mean they are successful people, and if you haven’t even begun it can be pretty easy to assume they have something that you don’t. Keep reading.
The Real Drivers to Entrepreneurial Success
In a recent survey conducted by SurePayroll of small business owners and entrepreneurs, when asked “What are the drivers of entrepreneurial success?” they answered:.
1. Person’s drive and ambition 27.2%
2. Person’s passion for a specific business venture 14.9%
3. Hands-on experience in the industry 13.5%
4. Easy access to capital to start a business 13.1%
5. Personal connections 11.5%
6. Family members who are entrepreneurs 10.0%
7. Formal education 9.9%
If you’ve been sitting on that great business idea because you were second guessing whether or not you have what it takes to succeed, this survey should give you reason to rejoice.
I don’t doubt for a second that anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis doesn’t have drive, ambition, and passion.
If you’re thinking about starting a business – those top three should come naturally. And look how important they are in the minds of all those “successful” people that you have been comparing yourself too.
Does that change your outlook at all on what it takes to make it?
Let’s hear from you. Do you think the survey responses reflect the true drivers to entrepreneurial success?
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The Hardest Easy Question to Answer
Are you successful?
Do you know the answer to that one, seemingly simple question? And if you answer YES, can you tell me why you feel this to be so?
The way you go about defining success in your business will shape the way your business evolves, what drives it, and what keeps you moving in the right direction.
It’s surprising how few people have a specific definition as to what success means to them, and as such never know if their businesses are doing what it takes for them to be “successful”.
Have you taken the time to sit down and really think about what it means to you, and what it means to your business to be successful? Do you know what it looks like? Without this you are a rudderless ship, always moving, but with no guarantee you’re heading in the right direction.
Keep in mind there is no “right answer”. Your definition will be unique to your situation, but it needs to be defined in such a way that you can feel it, smell it, visualize it, and stay focused on achieving it. Your definition needs to be something that is you, and becomes you, for it to ever be a reality.
Success for some could be as simple as taking the risk and starting a business, everything after that point will be icing on the cake. For others success could mean being able to serve a purpose and help people. Some will be monetarily driven, others spiritually, neither would be more right than the other.
Find your answer to this question. Be specific, be focused, and then drive your business in a manner that leads you to what you visualize today as successful.
Spelling Out Success
This family turned a childhood game into a multi-million dollar business.
By Lindsay Holloway | August 21, 2008
Jera, 34, and Brad Deal, 39
Sticks And Stones, Peoria, Illinois
Projected 2008 sales: $10.5 million
Description: Custom keepsakes made using framed photos
Picture perfect: When Jera Deal took her oldest daughter “letter hunting,” it was merely a way for the 15-month-old to learn the alphabet by finding letters in nature and architecture. Four years and two kids later, however, that game had evolved into a full-time business. When they needed a unique and memorable gift for a wedding, Jera and husband Brad framed photos of the letters that spelled the newlyweds’ last name. The keepsake was a hit, and the Deals quickly realized they were on to something.
Show biz: Following the 2005 launch of their website, the Deals got into their first catalog and set out to get their product into as many hands as possible. There was one person, however, who they especially wanted to reach: Oprah Winfrey. After a couple of trips to her show and “a little bit of luck and persistence,” says Brad, they finally managed to reach the icon. “I stood up in front of 300 audience members and [gave] her a keepsake,” he explains. “She opened it and loved it”–so much so that she commissioned one on the spot for Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Says Brad, “We were already self-sustaining at that point, but having [Oprah's approval] helped a lot.”
Word bank: Today, Jera and Brad continue to build their letter inventory, brand, reach and sales. They’re inking deals with a third catalog and are working on relationships with Disney and Hallmark. But staying true to their original vision remains a priority. “We don’t ever want to come across as commercialized,” says Jera. “This is a family business [that started] as a hobby with our daughters. We want to maintain that integrity.”
Follow their lead: Even a successful business can benefit from a high-profile endorsement.
What is your secret to success?
Brad and Jera: The gut answer is faith. We can’t tell you how many things got answered in our business because we prayed and prayed. But from a business standpoint: building the brand. When you think MP3 player, you think iPod. In our small industry, we are like that. We are the iPod of our specific market.
What advice would you give other entrepreneurs?
Brad and Jera: Seek out people who have done it before or who can help. Don’t be afraid to humble yourself and ask. And don’t be afraid to go straight to the top. Ask for the producer’s name; ask for the editor’s name.
When did you know you’d “made it”?
Brad and Jera: Getting on Oprah’s show as an audience member and giving her a keepsake. When she said, “I have to have [one] for Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes,” the audience collectively gasped because they all knew what that was going to do for business. She’s the most recognizable face in the world. We would have been a nameless catalog company without her.
What was the first toy or reward you bought for yourself when you became successful?
Brad and Jera: Honestly, we have not bought a thing for ourselves. We just donate it. We’re house hunting and we’ll get a new car at some point, but we already have nice cars and live in a beautiful home. We already have a blessed life, so it’s a privilege to give back to the community. In January, we bought new desks for our daughters’ classrooms at their private school. The desks have been around since 1972; they were falling apart.
URL: http://www.entrepreneur.com/worklife/successstories/youngmillionaires/article196568.html
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