Guidelines For Entrepreneurial Success

Third article in Entrepreneur series - by Trevor Nel - in The Star Workplace:



Original submission:

Business entrepreneurs have to make their living in a rapidly changing world where competition is rampant and consumers, inundated with a myriad of choices, change their buying patterns in a flash.

One of the positive spin-offs of such uncertainty is that there is always a new opportunity for savvy entrepreneurs to develop new ideas to meet new trends and market demands.

Often, the biggest profits come from the simplest ideas that make it to market and which appear so obvious to everyone after the event. Being ready to snap up these opportunities requires business entrepreneurs to be mentally prepared to understand what is needed to succeed. Here are some guidelines:

The business of business is profit. Don’t let anyone tell you anything different. The scorecard of a business is measured by the profit that it generates. Everything you do in your business should be intended to lead to profit.

Pay yourself first. You can do nothing for society by bankrupting yourself. Let creation of wealth, personal growth and development be your primary objective for you and those who are associated with your enterprise.

Be innovative. Make it your continual goal to think of ideas to change the world and add value to society, and then put them into action.

Be aware. Constantly scan international news releases, web links and industry bulletins to identify new trends and subtle twists to ‘old faithful’ income generators.

Think BIG. It takes just as much time and effort to launch a small business project as it does to work on a big project… go for the BIG idea.

Think SPEED. Speed to market is the battle cry of successful entrepreneurs in the 21st Century. Be prepared to move from idea to implementation in a matter of weeks.

Do It Now! Be ready to complete your business plan, marketing plan, test market research and produce marketing material within a matter of days.

Don’t be afraid of failure. The more you keep yourself aware of trends and on the ‘bleeding edge’ the more projects you are going to put into action. Many of them will fail. Keep trying until you find your winner. Then keep trying some more until you find your next winner. Welcome failure!

Massive action. Give every resource and commitment you have to producing significant results in 90 to 120 days.

Be inspired. Look for ways to add UNIQUE twists to commonly accepted products and services. Use simple technologies to create a ‘WOW’ affect.

Be enthusiastic. Consumers can sense your enthusiasm in delivering a quality product or service. If it is really that great, you will be really enthusiastic.

Be persistent. Set your eyes on each goal and don’t stop until you achieve what you want to achieve.

Guarantee your quality. Stand by the quality of your product or service with your personal guarantee.

Ends. (Word Count 471)

Trevor Nel: INNER Circle Business Forum – www.innercircleforum.com - 011- 705-2790

Possible Headline Copy:
1. Guidelines For Entrepreneurial Success
2. Business Success: No Flash In The Pan
3. Business Entrepreneurs Credo

Regards
Trevor Nel - 011 - 705-2790 - http://www.innercircleforum.com/
trevor@innercircleforum.com

Entrepreneurs Are Not Born, They're (Self) MADE

Second article in Entrepreneurs series - by Trevor Nel - appearing in The Star Workplace:

Entrepreneurs are not born, they're (self) made

Original submission:

Forget about what the experts say is the right ‘profile’ for an entrepreneur, suggests Trevor Nel, author of Confessions of a SERIAL Entrepreneur, the reality is that entrepreneurs generally get into business because they want to… or because they have to.

Whether entering into entreprenurial business by desire or forced into survival mode by circumstance, it appears that entrepreneurs can surface in all shapes and sizes, regardless of race, colour, gender or creed, and are stimulated by very different painful experiences and/or pleasurable expectations.

‘In over 30 years of personal entrepreneurial business activity, I’ve yet to meet any two entrepreneurs who looked alike or who operated their businesses in the same manner,’ says Nel.

‘The truth is that entrepreneurs are a unique, independent-minded, innovative business breed who tend to take or make their own paths and create their own luck.’

Entrepreneurs generally have or develop the ability to:

· reduce the complex to the simple;

· to see that which others cannot see;

· to travel down roads that that others fear to tread;

· to treat every journey, twist and turn, as an adventure;

· to focus on their end goal whilst enjoying every step of the way.

The secret to entrepreneurship is recognising that business is a simple function of providing or developing a product or service that consumers want or need and who demonstrate that they are willing and able to pay for it.

Being keen life-long students of basic business principles, entrepreneurs understand that sales must generate more incoming revenue than outgoing costs, leaving a slice for the Receiver plus an acceptable after-tax profit to satisfy their personal needs and to finance their future dreams.

However, as with any new path in life, the astute entrepreneur recognises that the unexpected is waiting around every corner to sabotage every grand plan. Nothing is guaranteed in life, and neither is it in business.

Counter-intuitive to general expectation, savvy entrepreneurs tend to be extremely risk-averse in their planning and preparation. They have an intense understanding of their downside on new ventures and look to minimise their risks to a fault.

Comments Nel: ‘My advice to first-time entrepreneurs is to make certain you have enough capital in personal savings behind you, or to find a part-time job of some description, to make certain that you can feed, house and clothe your family... while you are building your business!

‘Put your family’s basic needs first.’

Young entrepreneurs therefore, between 18 to 24 years of age, who are still fortunate enough to be living at home and with little responsibility for supporting a family, have the greatest opportunity to test their skills in business by risking everything.

Ends. (Word Count 447)

by Trevor Nel – Developer: INNER Circle Business Forum – www.innercircleforum.com - 011- 705-2790

Possible Headline Copy:
1. The Makings Of An Entrepreneur
2. Entrepreneurship Made Simple
3. Entrepreneurs Defy Profiles

Regards
Trevor Nel - 011 - 705-2790 - http://www.innercircleforum.com/
trevor@innercircleforum.com

Entrepreneurs - SA's New Economic Powerhouses

Well done to JonT Schoeman for pulling off a media exposure coup with The Star Workplace.

This is the first article published.

Entrepreneurs - SA's new economic powerhouses

Original submission:

The time is ripe for South African entrepreneurs to be encouraged, recognised and feted for the critical role they will have to play in growing their national economy.

Entrepreneurs the world over are positioned to become the leading economic powerhouses in their respective nations, if they are not already there.

The signs are clearly emerging that entrepreneurs are rapidly taking the initiative to drive their local, regional and national economies.

When the world leader in entrepreneurial competitiveness - the U.S. - begins to seriously look over its shoulder to see who is rapidly catching up, then the rest of the world had better take notice.

In a new Feb. 2007 report, Where America Stands: Entrepreneurship - prepared by the Council Of Competitiveness - http://www.compete.org/ - entrepreneurship is seen to drive job creation, productivity growth and innovation underpinning U.S. global competiveness. Here’s how:

· Job Creation – Entrepreneurs create most of the new jobs in the U.S.

· Productivity Growth – Entrepreneurs underpin high-growth rate U.S. companies.

· Innovation – Entrepreneurs stimulate new ideas and technologies.

The report finds that entrepreneurship is a critical driver of regional economic growth: ‘A recent study for the Small Business Administration found that the most entrepreneurial regions in the United States had 125 percent more employment growth, 58 percent more wage growth and 109 percent higher productivity than the least entrepreneurial regions.’

So why is the U.S. concerned about their global entrepreneurial competiveness?

The report reveals the U.S. concern for how the rest of the world – China, India, the European Union – are encouraging more and more people to become entrepreneurs to underpin their economies.

‘Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME’s) are responsible for threequarters of EU employment,’ claims the report.

The reports bottom line? It warns the U.S. that their entrepreneurial leadership status is being threatened, which threatens their global economic competiveness.

It concludes: ‘The United States will need to work to maintain its leadership position – focused on strengthening the fertile environment for innovation, sustaining strong public support for productive risk-taking and entrepreneurship, and reigning in the costs of regulation and health care.’

Likewise, South African entrepreneurs and national leadership are urged to take note and proudly raise their entrepreneurial game to drive local job creation and productivity growth.

Ends. (Word Count 370)

by Trevor Nel – Developer: INNER Circle Business Forum – www.innercircleforum.com - 011- 705-2790

Possible Headline Copy:
1. Entrepreneurs: Your Country Needs You
2. Entrepreneurs: New Drivers of Leading Economies
3. Entrepreneurs: The Route To Mass Job Creation in S.A.

Regards

Trevor Nel - 011 - 705-2790 - http://www.innercircleforum.com/

trevor@innercircleforum.com