by admin on November 29, 2009
Why Business is a marathon, not a sprint
One of the first things you will have to get over as an entrepreneur is thought of overnight success. Too many stories have been told about people becoming overnight billionaires and the speed at which these people made their wealth. What you have to learn is that these people are the exception to the rule. In order for your business to work you are going to have to put a large amount of effort in over a expanse of time, but the experience is worth the work.
Why you need to have realistic goals
People who enter business on the internet believe that it will be a place of easy money and “autopilot companies that make money while you sleep”. These notions are completely false; in order to be profitable you will have to work like crazy. The people who sell the ebooks on how to make money on internet are making money off of the people they sell to. This is how the internet marketers pyramid schemes work by selling overused ebooks to people who in turn sell them to new people. If you stop listening to their sales pages and start working hard then you will find greater returns then what they are promoting. The same realistic goals should be applied to your social media efforts. If you create your twitter account and believe that thousands will flock to hang on your every word then you will be setting yourself up for failure. Start small and listen to your followers and you will really gain followers without trying. They will be drawn to your advice and topics as opposed to you trying to bring people in with keyword-laden tweets. Instead of looking towards the end goal of being well received, live in the present and fight for every follower you get.
If one person cares to read what you say or buy your product, that is amazing
This is one of the most overlooked statements of online business, yet I cannot stress how important this is. The fact that someone has taken their precious time or hard earned money and has decided to give that to you is amazing. Your milestones should not be one million in sales or ten thousand readers, but instead one sale and one subscriber to your site. Thinking small and working your way up will not only help fuel your business, but make sure you are happy doing so. Making unrealistic goals will only hinder your work or make you make decisions based on “Will this get me noticed” as opposed to “Will this make customers stick with me”.
If you keep to a schedule, you will succeed
If you look at your business as a process that takes years instead of weeks you will prosper overall. This means that you do not let yourself get burned out by over posting content in a week, or letting a slow day of traffic get to you. Think of each week as hills and valleys for the overall company and do not let them wound your spirit. A great way to do that is to create a year schedule and stick to it. Try to have a development cycle or posting schedule down and stick to it. The main reason I say this is because everyone has tough weeks and if you are not planned for this then it can seriously put your business in danger. If you do not have a larger plan then small hiccups like this can cause you to lose moral or maybe even drop your project.
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by admin on November 25, 2009
This is the time of year where colleges close for the week to let everyone go back home and visit their families for Thanksgiving. While many students will be catching up with friends, resting up before finals, or eating as much home cooked food as possible, there are a few things motivated entrepreneurs can be doing to take advantage of the break from school.
1) Read business books
Thanksgiving break is a great time to read a book on what you are passionate about. As in my previous post about Why every college entrepreneur should read Crush It!, I recommend Crush It! and The Accidental Billionaires as great reads for people who are looking for inspiration for their ideas. These books will help you motivate yourself out of the idea stage and into the planning. If you are already past this step I recommend High tech start ups or socialnomics. These books will help you out with formulating your business plan and plan for the future. I will be posting reviews for more of these books as the blog goes along.
2) Stockpile blog post
I read a great article about Stockpiling Blog Post that got me thinking about how to use my time during Thanksgiving. Now is especially a good time to write some blog post to use during those tough times when finals take up all of your free time. I am aiming for one a day and doing this will keep my blog on schedule. This is a practice that you can use during any break in order to ease up your life during tough times. Having one or two lists posts on reserve is a great backup plan for unexpected deadlines.
3) Catch up on homework
While most people see Thanksgiving break as a time to rid oneself of all ties to school, more productive students can take this time and convert it into a productive catch-up session. Chances are that most students have either a large project or paper coming up or a test to study for the coming week after the break. Instead of going into educational hibernation and having to crash back into study mode the day you return on campus, study a little every day to keep you mentally aware. Believe me this will make the transition back to classes much easier on you as well as give you the advantage over these deadlines.
4) Build up your professional social network
The time away from college friends will allow you to build your professional social network. Start working on your twitter list to gain more followers or tweak your LinkedIn to make your resume pop. Doing these tasks will help your online identity look more professional and help you promote your personal brand, a topic covered in Crush It! These updates will help come next semester when looking for a internship or summer job.
5) Spend time with Family
I know this might sound corny but this is truly an amazing thing to do with your time during your break. I know that most people will want to catch up with high school friends but you have to remember your family most likely hasn’t seen you for a long time. I was only thinking about my parents and though “they saw me just a few weeks ago”, but then I remembered that my grandparents and other relatives haven’t seen me for months. Visiting them reminded me of the support net I have back home and really refreshed my spirits. The time I spent with them was well worth the time I gave up hanging with friends and I recommend you do the same.
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