Entrepreneurial Goldmine

The #1 Business Opportunity for you in 2010 is the business of YOU.  As we enter this new decade, the only way YOU will be able to achieve a sustainable level of success is to embrace the convergence of technology, social media and your domain expertise.  So whether you want to pursue opportunity #3 or opportunity #8, you must understand how to operate your business in the new world.  How do the external factors that are influencing global business change impact how YOU will drive success in the 21st century differently than previous generations achieved success three decades earlier? 

As my friend and colleague, George Benckenstein points out in his post, Welcome to Our Flat World, we now live in a world without barriers.  George says “So why do we call it a “Flat World?”  The world is being referred as a flat world, thanks to Tom Friedman’s  book The World Is Flat. The world is now so well connected with the ubiquity of technology in all areas which gives you, me, all of us, the power to collaborate, coordinate, produce and distribute seamlessly across borders, and cultural and language divides. In a flat world, everything of value is now connected — no more barriers.”  You see my friends, if you want your business to be successful, YOU must learn how to compete in this new world.  With opportunity #1, I try to focus on the critical elements that will help you prepare for success, no matter what opportunity YOU choose to grab!  (continue reading…)

Go into business for yourself, but not by yourself!  That’s the basic MO of the Franchise Industry.  According to the International Franchise Association,  (IFA) there are almost 1 million franchised small businesses in the country and they’ve generated more jobs between 2001 and 2005 than several of the nations major economic sectors.  This option is a great entry level route to fulfill your entrepreneurship dreams. For the right personality type, franchising represents an awesome opportunity to earn an income and increase your net worth, but it won’t come easy. 

What do you need to know before buying a franchise?  You need a SHERPA.  Someone to guide you through the maze and help you navigate the tough terrain of ‘the devil in the details’.   IFA provides a guide  that outlines the following research requirements to buying a franchise: (continue reading…)

In part two of this series, we provided the DFJ Mercury Presentation Guide to help you organize your pitch.   Now we’ll discuss the most important component of a successful pitch – Deliver the So What!  As Guy Kawaski  says in The Art of the Start  , ”get off to a fast start” in your presentation…your audience wants to know “What does his organization do?”.   “This information is the anchor,  foundation, or beachhead that your audience needs for the pitch to go well”.   After getting off to a fast start with the opening, your strategy for delivering the so-what to keep them engaged is critical.  As indicated in part two of this series, the DFJ Mercury team listens to thousands of pitches and as they discern the so what during a pitch, they want to know that you have technical expertise about your space and have a product that can drive a disruptive performance increase or dramatic cost decrease.  How do you communicate this to them?  (continue reading…)