What does bad advice for your start up look like?

You can find more advice than you actually need about starting a business. In fact, you might find it overwhelming: so much you could read, learn, and study, not to mention everything you feel you MUST do to get started on top of all the information.

So how do you know which advice to pay attention to and which to dump? One of the key skills I teach new entrepreneurs is how to make decisions as if you'd already done this a few times. That way decisions can be made based on the skills from real experience, not just all that advice out there.

And when I find someone who "gets" the fact that not all advice is useful, it really excites me. In fact, I'm so excited by what Dr. Goodwin wrote I've asked to interview her for the Online Entrepreneur Bootcamp that starts July 1, 2010.

Dr. Goodwin wrote a great article, "Ten Tips to Ignore When Starting a Business." I highly recommend investing the few minutes it will take to read her article. Get ahead by reading this brief, pithy piece and get her wisdom for yourself. Her ten tips to ignore (as quoted from her article) when you're starting your business are:

1. Career freedom means starting a business.

2. Don't worry, be happy.

3. Visualize success.

4. If you can dream it, you can do it.

5. If other people can be successful, you can too.

6. You will probably fail.

7. If you feel energized about your goal, you will be successful.

8. You can always go back to what you were doing before.

9. You have had a successful career so far and you'll figure out to be successful now.

10. You will be fine; you just need more confidence.

Dr. Goodwin introduces a common challenge in the startup arena: mythology! The number of myths about starting a business and succeeding may be higher than those told in ancient Greek history. In many cases, these myths are embedded in your personal and social consciousness. What you believe about success and business influences your choices, behavior and results.

I find the doctor's willingness to point out some of these myths inspiring and valuable. If you haven't already opened up her concise article, read it now. Just click here. I guarantee you will be glad you did.

Wishing you Success & Heart,

Heidi Sue Roth

New Entrepreneurs, Secret #4---Finally!

Good afternoon, all.

While it's fun to discover what I thought was a blog post is actually an entire book, or at least a large chapter in a book, it's an interesting experience to write and write and write...and know there's more to put down to actually complete the idea. And then create an edit that's useful for others while not 100 pages long!

Here's the first slice of the Kinds of People you need to success as a New Entrepreneur and WHEN You need them!

Secret #4 It’s not just who you know, it’s how and when you tap that connection

Another business truism is “It’s now what you know, it’s who you know.” I agree with that statement to an extent. I suggest you add that timing matters as well. When you tap your connection resources is just as important as having connections!

You need a few different kinds of people around you and your business if you want to succeed. To boost your success potential, be specific about timing your conversations with the various types of people who support an Entrepreneur in different ways.

What matters most is carefully choosing when you tap your personal resources of people and connections. Connecting too soon or too late for different kinds of people you already know is potentially a large factor in succeeding—or failing--as a New Entrepreneur. These are the types and times to reach out:

The Seer: The Seer is another person who can see your vision. He or She gets excited with you, for you and about your dream. You do and will continue to need this kind of support on the journey.

When you need this person: Regular check-ins and support from this person weekly or a few times a month with one or 1x a month with a couple of these people is essential support

The Aggregator: The Aggregator is someone is can actually be a little confusing to have around. This is one of those people who constantly shifts the different aspects or qualities of your venture are gathered up by an Aggregator. You may feel confused by all this person takes in at first. And if you're looking for a good lawyer, consultant or coach, this is who you want. (And yes, that's definitely the kind of person I am.)

When you need this person: At the beginning, regular, consistent contact is key. If you ever feel it would be helpful to have someone keep you on track and maintain your progress, an Aggregator is really helpful to get you doing THE key things not just all the busy stuff!

The Connector: This kind of person has more contacts than you can imagine and when they hear about your business what comes to mind for them first is someone they want you to meet. This person loves to provide introductions and they are priceless.

When you need this person: Connect with this person towards the end of your development/organization phase. Have a clear idea of what you want to do even if you don't know how before approaching the Connectors in your life.

The Analytic: This person gets into the details and frequently it feels like your vision and motivation is being torn apart. As a result, you are probably tempted to avoid them. Don't! This perspective is priceless. He or she finds all the gaps between steps or logic and points them out to you.

When you need this person: Any Analytic that you have in your life is your best support when you need to be sure that business presentation needs to be flawless, clear and persuasive to a point. If you want to make fewer mistakes and spend less money along the way, invest in honoring this person at these key times in your evolution as an entrepreneur.

The Client: The client is a person you know or meet who clearly needs what you offer. If you meet new people who are potential clients, practice listening more and speaking less. Perhaps you have an existing friend who is also a match for your work, Stop there. Let that person come to you in their own time. This is one of the hardest "sells" in the biz, so don't make it harder.

When you need this person: Engage with a potential client once you can describe what you do in less than 3 sentences and who you work with in 2 lines or less. Since the key is listening more, you're not ready for these conversations as a New Entrepreneur until you've started to get clear and concise. So, don't wait--this will change a lot over the first couple of business cycles. Start now and be ready sooner.

The Influencer: The Influence in many ways is a blended person or function. This person may also be strong in any of the previous traits. The Influencer connects you with people, but he or she does it in a completely different way than a Connector. An Influencer brings others along. Perhaps without even being a client.

When you need this person: You rarely have a bad time to spend time with any Influencer you know. For this relationship to work for everyone you need enough organization and confidence to be professional and effective. You do not need to be perfect. You need to have the tools to be ready to accept clients.

There you have it! These are the five kinds of people you need to support you as an Entrepreneur. Of course, as the book grows, I'll record the questions, conversations and tools I've used for a couple decades with these folks to grow my own businesses.

Have a super weekend!

Heidi Sue

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

Make a Smart Choice for Your First Business

Your best bet for your first business will be easier and more successful if you choose something with the following specific qualities. By incorporating these factors you’re your first business, you increase your profit potential while reducing your risk. Those qualities are.

Time-Based Success. This simply means a business that depends more on your expertise and time than on investing in how much stock in storage somewhere. Use your expertise as leverage to keep the cost of being in business lower. The cheapest business I ever started cost me $100. I already owned most of what I needed and the real invest was my time to make it work. In today’s market, time is your most valuable and important commodity.

Focus on Service. Regardless the business you choose, the ability of you and whatever size organization you create to provide personal, top-notch service to people is a make-or-break reality. When service is what you sell, this becomes an even more powerful component.

Expertise is the Valuable Product. The easiest, fastest way to turn an idea into something profitable is to re-frame your existing expertise. While this can be a challenge as we discussed during the first secret, it’s also the kind of business that has your lowest risk.

Profit from Skills instead of Product. This basic concept is to take your expertise and turn it into a system or educational package that teaches others how to master the things you’re the best at.

Overall, you want to choose and design your business for success from the beginning. Starting a business that involves product or stock that you need to store and sell increases your success challenges. Even if you work with a company that has a formula for working this kind of business (say a franchise or network marketing organization) success through product has the potential to be burden and means it takes longer and more money to succeed.

Your first choice in business success is a chance to get your “sea legs" and I recommend an easy sail. Being in business on your own is challenging; you can make the experience easier. You may decide that this isn't that path for you--passion and vision need to come first. And I still recommend doing the lower-risk/higher-return part first!

Wishing you Success & Heart,

Heidi Sue

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

Third Age 'Trep Tips: Secret #3

Secret #3 Spend Your Time and Save Your Money!

Have you heard the saying that that #1 reason businesses fail is not enough money? I’m here to challenge that belief. In fact, you already got a hint of that in Secret #2; in 20 years as an entrepreneur the conventional wisdom about being in business rarely worked.

I’ve watched so many business owners throw money at situations believing this old saw--if they just had more money or spent more money, success could have been obtained.

And I’ve seen the opposite: an entire new software product created and successfully launched without direct, measurable funding.

How is it both of these are possible? The reality is that success has less to do with how much money you have to spend than how you spend it. The first three stages of your business have a common task you must make a high priority: keeping money! This is completely opposite most common advice and business logic out there. Remember that tech boom and bubble? Well the “burst” of the bubble had a lot to do with spending money and not protecting any of it. Most of the companies that burst spent money and did not make any. Sadly, lots of tech ventures still follow this model.

Give yourself the mindset of an investor and you’re more likely to succeed. Treat the money you put into your business as if you are your own Angel Investor.

What do I mean by that statement? Investors do not pump money into your business because they believe in the product or the people. (Just check out how often the founders are pushed out by investors early on so you can get clear on VCs [Venture Capitalists] are NOT in it out of the goodness of their hearts.) While I do NOT recommend putting yourself into a business situation you don’t believe in heart and soul, when it comes to money and success, you also need the ability to step back and be brutally honest.

Most entrepreneurs want more of something and that’s why the go into business. More income, more freedom, more control over their own ideas or life…If you spend your money first you’ll always end up with less.

Spend your energy, your time and your passion first. Back all of that up with your investment capital. Be creative first. Out think the competition first. Get outside your comfort zone first—a long way out! Combine these practices with protecting your cash and capital and you create long-term potential for success and income.

When’s the last time you chose a product or service because of the fancy offices, impeccable art display or expensive ad campaign? There is no need for you to spend like big business to get your own business off the ground.

Other people will tell you this perspective isn’t true. Many business coaches and even experts will insist that lack of money is the primary reason businesses fail. I suggest you go ask people who are or have been in business a while how many times and on how many different things they’ve spent money without any evidence of increased profit or income. You don’t have to believe me. But don’t just assume anyone else is giving it to you straight either. Most business advisors have a vested interest in your slow, expensive progress.

My goal is to teach you to succeed faster and for less money just like I do in my own businesses.

Coming next: Secret #4 It’s not just who you know, it’s how and when you tap that connection

Wishing you Success & Heart,

Heidi Sue

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

Over 50 New Entrepreneur Success Secret #2

Secret #2 Thinking Like a Corporation Doesn't Turn Your Business into Corporate Success

Study and observation bring out two distinct ways of thinking about business that can be beneficial for a corporation with a number of employees and a downfall for your start-up. Today, I’m going to share with you those two arenas and how you can avoid making these mistakes in your business.

I want to start with perhaps the most confusing and most time-consuming thought patterns that is useful at an intermediate level of business while really jamming things up early on. And the topic is accounting practices.

Start by understanding that modern business accounting practices serve a variety of purposes. These practices support acquiring hard-good business assets such as machines, vehicles, and buildings with as little tax implication as possible. In addition, these number-crunching techniques are designed to make it easier to obtain these items while off-setting the money spent on the purchase.

Likewise, modern business account practices are designed to off set growth and profit in ways to reduce tax liability. Are these things useful? Of course they are—when you have a business that is actually making you a decent amount of money AND you want to get more out of your business for less tax and more outcome.

So, what can you do? Develop the habit of watching and managing the cash flow of your fledgling business. With the advent of online banking this is easy and near-instantaneous. And that’s a very good thing! Thanks for formal accounting practices, this can be a tricky thing for someone without the training to find in all those numbers. Since this is perhaps the single most important real-money number you need, a checkbook ledger attitude gives you a great foundation to succeed.

You see, what really matters in your business is how much money you get to take home. How much money comes in matter, but if you never get to pay yourself anything, you do not have a business. Some of my clients have heard this definition before.

Until your business is paying you, what you really have is a very successful hobby. A hobby that pays for itself is a brilliant idea. A business actually not only pays the bills for it’s own existence, it also pays you for the time and effort you put into it. A start-up operation does need some time to reach this level; profit rarely happens right away. In my programs I teach you how to reach the level of being profitable faster and with a lower investment. To even have an idea of how that works, you need to watch and understand how cash flows in and out of your business.

Your ability to re-frame your thinking in another arena also contributes to your success. When it comes to branding and advertising, your ability to NOT think corporate directly influences your success at this stage.

Image and branding are a huge investment for a corporation. If that includes a product instead of a service, that investment and need for control is of mammoth proportions. And you’re going to hear a lot of business advice about designing a logo, developing your brand, and unifying your message. Understand I’m not against these business practices—at the right time! Most of the start-ups I’ve worked with and people I’ve coached are not ready for these investments during the first 6-18 months. Some people need even longer to prepare for this type of thing.

What you need the most at the very beginning are paying clients! You need to be out there talking to potential clients, meeting them, hanging out where they hang out, and more. At this stage of the game, your brand, your message starts and ends with you. You don’t need a fancy logo or website at this point. You need face-time with the appropriate people. Since you are the best ambassador for your business, clean, basic, professional looking materials are far more important than anything you can have custom designed.

Why is that?

I’ve watched literally 100s of businesses and professionals spend a one or two thousand dollars in their first year of business only to spend even more 12-24 months later on re-designs and upgrades. At the very beginning they could only make educated guesses about who their best clients would be and what kind of materials those people would like. Its painful to spend early and then need to spend again during the first few years of business to better represent your business to your best clients.

So just don’t do it. Seriously, don’t. Stop now. Get that new business making some money and have some consistent clients before diving into that arena. You’ve got access to lots of affordable, temporary shortcuts (VistaPrint.com is just one).

If you can adjust your success-concepts when it comes to money and advertising from corporate reality to start-up mentality, you’ll increase your chance of success. The opportunity to make money faster with less investment is also a huge plus.

Coming next: Secret #3 Save your money and spend your time at the beginning.

Wishing you Success & Heart,

Heidi Sue

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

Success Secrets for New, Mature Entrepreneurs

Are you at least 50 years old and starting, or even re-starting, your business venture? This week I’m going to share with you some secrets for getting your successful business off the ground. Your experienced success as an employee, manager, or executive mean an aware of the pitfalls and benefits of your history is essential to your own successful business venture. This is the first in a series to support and inform your success.

Secret #1 Previous, Experienced success is Both Your Strongest and Weakest Quality

Have you ever considered offering a job to someone who used to for your competitor? If you did, it’s likely you had questions. “Can this person learn our way of doing things?” “What kind of conflicts will come up?” “Will they fit into our corporate culture?”

You are basically in the same situation when you know success in an organization owned or run by someone else. Transitioning to your own business venture means you have both demonstrated successful traits and have no guarantee that you what you know will translate successfully. Just like the employee scenario, you are entering an arena where the success you have already experienced is both your best and worst trait.

Success you’ve already experienced is a powerful indicator that you are talented, capable, and knowledgeable. The challenge you face entering the Entrepreneur Arena is the change from success inside an organization to success being the organization.

What can you do to improve your ability to transition and succeed? Fortunately you’ve got a number of options you can choose—so using the one that best matches your temperament and style is possible.

Michael Gerber, who created the E-Myth series (highly recommended!) suggests dividing the tasks that need to be done into the common categories that actually become departments in a large organization. Even if you’re a solo entrepreneur who gets to do everything, in a sense you create multiple hats and determine the group of tasks assigned to each hat. Then you shift between the different business functions in blocks of time or days. Eventually, you off-load some of these jobs to a Virtual Assistant (my recommendation) or an employee.

Another way to handle this is using a laser-style focus on the immense to-do list that you end up with to start and run your business. At any moment, as, yourself “What is the #1 thing with the most impact right know I can do to move my business forward?” Most new entrepreneurs spend far too much time doing “stuff” and not attending to the key actions each day that will ensure the business succeeds.

Here’s an example, perfect for our early April. This time of year an entrepreneur may have this kind of daily task list:

• · Meet with the web designer
• · Get missing information for the tax preparer
• · Write copy for an advertisement
• · Follow-up with clients from last week’s conversations

If this was my list (and my Monday, April 05, 2010 looks a lot like that list) here is how I would prioritize these items. First would come follow-up with clients from last week. Here’s why: Even if I do file my taxes on time, if I don’t have new customers and new revenue coming it really doesn’t matter. I won’t be in business next year or even perhaps next month. So at the first moment of my day, connecting with customers and potential clients is the top priority to move forward in my business.

My second priority is the tax information: now that I’ve contacted as many clients as needed, this becomes the essential action. In this case, failing to file my taxes in a proper and timely manner can shut down my business. Delaying the ad copy and the web site do not immediately threaten my business (assuming your primary source of income is not internet sales—then I’m sure you can figure out how this will all change). And so the internal conversation on what to do next continues.

This is a different internal dialogue from the one that created your success inside an organization. Unless you were specifically in direct, outside sales, it’s likely that administrative items had a higher priority than those than specifically creating revenue for the organization. The organization relies on the paperwork and numbers to see how or if revenue is moving forward supported by the small divisions of actions and tasks within the company. (Or at least that’s the plan!) You want to succeed NOW and stay in business—so your number one focus must be on doing those actions first that generate income for your business and you.

You also want to remember at the beginning that most people find the things they like doing the most create long-term income cycles for the new business venture. This is an important thing to do. However, neglecting those less-enjoyable activities that pay-off in the shorter term guarantees you either go out of business OR you end up spending your hard-earned cash to stay in business. Either way, you increase the likelihood of failure. Even the best scenario from this approach means your business makes less.

Remember as you move forward, your new business is not just a small version of the larger organizations you’ve worked in. Learning to ask new questions and look at your work through different eyes is the key to success.

Coming next: Secret #2 Thinking like a Corporation won’t get Your Business to Corporate Success

Wishing you Success & Heart,

Heidi Sue

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

What do you want to do with your Returnment?

I ran across this word-play today for the first time. Guess I was slow on Googling this term. My bad. And I love it. I’ve been in serious returnment three years now and didn’t even know it.

Success & Heart Training is literally the result of my taking an early retirement after selling off one of my businesses. I spent five years exploring, relaxing—sailing, what a life! I learned to succeed without working 20 hours a week, stressed out by the demands of Big Business.

I learned my lessons—and ended up completely bored! I missed being in business, doing business. I jumped back into the entrepreneurial world. Now, my inner Kick Ass Business Chick is overjoyed.

(Maybe you're retired but not done working, like this gentleman from Michigan.)

Success & Heart Training is a vehicle for being myself, using all my experience and gifts. And the most fun I’ve ever had doing business in over 20 years. While many would consider me young to be in “Returnment” it is still true. I don’t want to work 50-60 hours a week any more. Heck, in the past I managed to sometimes work an insane148 in a 2 week period. I’m not willing for that lifestyle any more. Are you in Returnment? Find out…you can read more here.

Success & Heart Training is designed to develop relationships, business relationships teaching you how to succeed in Returnment exactly how to do it. Thanks to repeat, entrepreneurial success I have a great foundation to work from. Here’s my very first suggestion:

If you’re getting busy advice from any source, always ask yourself, how might this advice NOT be true? How could this information NOT be appropriate for me and my business?

That’s perhaps the number one skill you need to succeed as someone who with professional success to repurpose that into your own, new venture (whatever your definition of success). I’ve watched so many people spend money following the traditional paths of business coaching and end up with very little except less cash. Like the current round of Chevrolet ads challenging the idea of “Everybody Says,” I encourage you to check and re-check if what you’re being told is true for you and your self-employed dreams. You can read and hear lots of familiar advice; not all of it is true, even less of it may be true for you.

Best wishes planning and creating your Returnment!

Heidi Sue Roth

© Copyright 2009-2010 Heidi Sue Roth. All Rights Reserved.

Don’t get “Stuck” with Niche Marketing

Everywhere you turn, you hear the rule about niche marketing making you rich repeated. This ranges from pick a niche so you can have a logo designed to the idea that you’re not really in business until you have a niche market. What if the pressure and approach doesn't improve your relationship with your business and your clients?

I’m here to challenge that wisdom, as you probably already know. Niche Marketing includes some serious sticking points that may indicate it’s NOT your best option. I want to take a quick look at those points today.

Niche Marketing is presented to entrepreneurs and business owners as the fix-all, do-all solution. While I agree we can learn some important lessons from Niche Marketing, it’s a direct reflection of some of things that are seriously wrong with the business and economic model that has failed so gloriously (and mysteriously if you listen to the experts).

This approach to doing business is a direct out-growth of the drive to specialization. From tinkering with genetics to higher education focused on less and less content, business, life, and talent has been driven to focus on increasingly narrow ways. The drive to know more and more about less and less is now THE embedded way for you to also do business. To sustain this model, business must take over and limit access to information, resources, rights, and property.

Another impact of focusing all your efforts exclusively on Niche Marketing is you can miss opportunities. Creative application of skills and services is one of the hallmarks of small business. The drive to niche can make it more expensive to offer your services through multiple channels. You can end up confused by the drive to serve all the customers who move you. Your efforts can get way-laid by the "rabbit chasing syndrome" aka chasing multiple objectives.

Yes, the niche-driven perspective is not a business model I’m willing to enlist wholesale in order to finance my passion and drive. Are there other options?

Yes! There are other ways to work with your business the incorporate the lessons of niche marketing while not being held hostage to the over-specialization of virtually everything in our world.

Surviving the changes that have arrived and continue to present takes something other than what we already have. From Einstein to other great thinkers, we already know that the thought and behaviors patterns creating the problem are not what is needed to solve the problem.

What do the other ways look like? They are personal, customized, connected and flexible. Niche Marketing has become one-size-fits-all. What is really needed is creating a business structure, approach and methodology that specifically matches your heart. The planet, your customers and your well-being can no longer sustain this single-answer, knee-jerk methodology.

Your values and the value you offer is the beginning point. Just like the new Pepsi ad campaign about One Tribe and funding entrepreneurs reeks of marketing ploy cloaked in warm-fuzzies, so is a Heart-Based message driven primarily by Niche Marketing becomes an unclear representation of who you are and why you serve. What if instead of chasing any rabbits you were by the home-base where rabbits would return when they were tired of running!

When it comes to the methods you choose for marketing you and your business, other choices might just be something that serves you better. You and your clients deserve more!

Wishing you Success & Heart!

Heidi Sue