That "ONE SECRET", Your Best Advice for the Aspiring Entrepreneur

[IceCreamKid]

Many people fail at biz due to unreasonable expectations. They fail to respect the fact that acquiring customers requires time, energy, and failure through testing/optimization. Accept that the road is hard and that process is necessary.

I hate that this advice is so general, but it truly is what I'd give to a wantrepreneur because it seems that so many think starting the next bestselling app or social network is a walk in the park. They spend a few hundred bucks on marketing then give up, assuming that the project never would've worked out.

Neat of you for taking the time out to provide some value to the young'ns. I wish somebody told me years ago to respect process.

 

[Kak]

Not three sentences, but three easy concepts.

1. Because I can.

2. Start now. The clock is ticking. You don't need to pay your dues, graduate or have an internship before you jump in. The day they graduate the world won't look any different. (This kind of thinking by my peers in school always bugged me.)

3. Always think scale from the beginning. Don't waste time building yourself a job.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Since this is an intro class, I'd stick with the cat/tuna thingy. If I was going to speak, this is what I'd say:

You can survey the class before starting...

How many are here because they're tired of working for some corporation? (Most of the hands raise.)
How many are here because they want to be their own boss? (Some raise)
How many are here because they want a chance to work at home and not fight traffic? (Some raise)
How many are here because they want to get filthy stinking rich!? (Many raise)
How many are here because they'd like to earn a passive income?! (Some raise)
How many are here because they'd like a new career?! (Some raise)
How many are here to follow their passion or do what they love? (Some raise)

Great.

Because NONE OF THAT SHIT will help you succeed at entrepreneurship.

Then go into the cat/tuna (money/value) paradigm and how most miss the boat.

My second choice would be @IceCreamKid first post and how everything boils down to an event/process relationship.

 

[Unknown]

You know that annoying lady at your office? Five years from now she'll still be there. Will you?

 

[wade1mil]

Don't use fear as an excuse to not take action, because fear doesn't go away until you take action.

Interested to see what people write.

 

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[EvanOkanagan]

Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up... it knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.

Every morning a lion wakes up... it knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.

It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle: when the sun comes up you'd better be running.

 

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[SBS.95]

"Money is like a cat. If you chase the cat, you'll never catch it. If you focus on what attracts the cat, the tuna, it will come to you."

I don't know if I got the quote exactly right. But that cat metaphor from TMF has stuck in my head like nothing else. This little contest aside, I believe you need to somehow incorporate that. People go their entire lives having a fundamentally flawed view of obtaining wealth.

---

Also, I don't know how anyone could think the ball's air pressure had an outcome on that blowout of a game. But since you're a Dallas fan, I know you're used to having excuses for anything, so I suppose I'll give it a pass and move on.

 

[Darius]

Failure is a part of success, so why would you quit while you're succeeding?

 

[Kak]

1. You reap what you sow in business and life.
2. Make goals and dream big because it's free.
3. Don't start a business that isn't SCALABLE... I am aware I said this twice.

 

[Damage Inc.]

My contribution here is 3 quotes that all hit on the importance of giving in order to get.


"If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it." -J.D. Rockefeller

"No man becomes rich unless he enriches others." -Carnegie

"I soon realized that if you give the market something it needs in terms of value, money follows." -MJ

 

[RHL]

1. Look at people nearing retirement it in your business niche or workplace: If you don't want to be them, stop climbing the ladder they're on top of, because that's where you'll be when you "make it."

2. You make bank by banking on below average success and letting yourself be surprised, rather than needing spectacular success to stay afloat, and then being disappointed.

3. Don't start by looking for a million dollar idea, start by finding a way to consistently get $50 an hour for your time rather than $25, and repeat the process.

 

[Mark Anthony Le]

"Someone once told me the definition of hell... The person that you have become will meet the person that you could have became."

 

[Mohammed Hamza]

 

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[Vigilante]

Professor? Hardly.

In an ironic twist of fate, I am speaking to a couple of classes of small business entrepreneurs on Monday at a local community college... ironic because I flunked a few courses there in years past. (In my defense, I also happened to ace their macro and micro economics classes.)

Basically, what I was asked to speak on is thinking outside of the box. These, for the most part, are small business majors who are back in school as they are looking for continuing education, career enhancement or career changes, and inspiration. I am going to teach them how to break society's rules.

In three sentences or less, what would you put forth as your best, concise advice for wantrapreneurs?

I will take the best few responses (as voted by LIKES by our fellow forum members) and read them ver batem to the classes as part of my lecture. Our fellow forum members will determine the life changing value of your post... so choose wisely.

The deadline for submission is Sunday afternoon, so there can be enough time for your post to gain some likes before I put together my final notes Sunday evening.

Ideas could be :
favorite motivational quotes
favorite MJ DeMarco quotes from the book or otherwise
an original thought
a paraphrase of a fast lane concept

Please limit your post to three sentences or less, or a picture meme. Contest is limited to two posts max per person, so make them count. One thought or subject of three sentences or less per individual post. No duplicate posts containing anyone else's quotation.

Oh... and who ever gets the most LIKES on a single post by 3PM Central Time Sunday that meets the criteria above will get a $50 Amazon gift certificate OR a $75 donation to a non-profit charitable organization of your choice with proof of donation provided privately.

And, Tom Brady, no deflating the balls to win the game (if you know what I mean.)

 

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[tafy]

Don't listen to the inner a**hole inside yourself, telling you you cant do this or that. You can.

 

[splok]

This one concept has affected my life more than any other.
YOU, and no one else, are 100% responsible for every single aspect of your life, good or bad.
Even though this obviously isn't true, your life will be far better it you believe it anyway.

 

[smarty]

I wanted to quote the late Greg Plitt because he will remain my all-time motivator to break down my own self-imposed limitations:

(1)

(2)

(3)

 

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[DennisD]

Money is not hard to come by, it's earned quickly.
There is no reason to sit around all day planning, you're literally 1 months away from your big break, if you can just figure out how to get there.
Find the shortest point between concept and execution, then hustle.

 

[Andy Black]

1. Your business growth is a reflection of your personal growth (business could even be seen as the truest form of self-expression).
   
   
2. R + R = Profit (where R + R is Repeat Business and Referrals), and this won't happen if you're not adding value.
   
   
3. Launch and Learn.

 

[Andy Black]

Sneaky second post, and the most important learning for me this year so far:


You are your biggest obstacle

We all have the "I am not enough" gene (evolution favours species with that gene).

*BUT*... that "I am not enough" gene will be with you at EVERY STEP of your journey.


Whenever you feel it whispering to you, just say:

I am enough.​

... because I said so​

 

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[Vigilante]

How'd it go Dave?

Well, I must not have totally screwed the pooch, as I got an invite to come back and two weeks to speak at the Carlson School of Management to their MBA students.

It went GREAT. I had a blast. It was very rewarding. The 60+ students were extremely engaged, and the questions were awesome.

I will be highlighting it this weekend on the podcast also, along with many of the key points from this thread.

 

[Ma Co]

“The best kept secret in the global economy today is this: When your service is awesome, you get so stinking rich you have to buy new bags to carry all the money home.”
- Tom Peters

If you learn the skills of people who make $20 I guess you can make $20 an hr. If you learn the skills that can make you millions, then...well, you get the point
-- Jay Abraham

"When you're externally focused, when you're connected and compelled to make the experience of the transaction better for the other side than even for you, you cannot help but succeed at higher levels than you ever dreamed possible"
-- Jay Abraham

 

[ddall]

I've posted it before and I will post it again. Consistent, daily action towards a goal will, over time, compound to huge benefits.

"Success is never owned...it is merely leased, and rent is due every day".

Slight Edge Thinking

1) "The Slight Edge is really a philosophy on life that talks about how the little choices we make that may seem insignificant on a daily basis are actually the key to living a life full of success, optimized health and amazing relationships"

2)"You are either on a success curve or a failure curve. The problem is that most people don‟t really completely realize which one they are on until a lot of time has passed. That‟s because we all make a lot of small decisions everyday that don‟t have immediately noticeable results or effects.

3) "Success is more like a marathon than a sprint. You must have self-discipline, persistence and be willing to do what most will not do."

4) "The right choices and the wrong choices you make at the moment will have little or no noticeable impact on how your day goes for you. Nor tomorrow, nor the next day. No applause, no cheers, no screams, no life of death results played out in Technicolor. But it is precisely those very same, undramatic, seemingly insignificant actions that, when compounded over time, will dramatically affect how your life turns out."


Include this slide if you want:

 

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[Deleted2BB3x9]

So you're coming back to school to change your life?

Don't expect this college to do that for you.

Get out there and change it for yourself!

 

[Vigilante]

Many people fail at biz due to unreasonable expectations. They fail to respect the fact that acquiring customers requires time, energy, and failure through testing/optimization. Accept that the road is hard and that process is necessary.

I hate that this advice is so general, but it truly is what I'd give to a wantrepreneur because it seems that so many think starting the next bestselling app or social network is a walk in the park. They spend a few hundred bucks on marketing then give up, assuming that the project never would've worked out.

Neat of you for taking the time out to provide some value to the young'ns. I wish somebody told me years ago to respect process.

SO many great posts in this thread. Nearly every post is GOLD. I will be folding a lot of this into what we talk about tomorrow. I will let you know how it goes as I will be opening their eyes a bit to how we think. Several elements from the tuna to the raging river will also be folded in, as CENTS will likely come up.

Meanwhile, it should come as no surprise that ICK came up with the post that you all voted #1 post in this thread. So, I will shoot you a private message @IceCreamKid but you can either take the cash (paypal) or direct the donation to the charity of your choice.

I will be bringing in 60 cans of Coca-Cola for the students, and at the end of the presentation will tell them why the Coke is significant.

Thanks for everyone that participated in this thread. There is a lot of gold in here for people who come behind us to discover.

 

[Solrac]

I think it comes down to this. Here are my 3 sentences.


We all want to take action, we all want x or y.
But we can't depend on ourselves for that necessarily, Ever since I started having accountability partners my business has accelerated like crazy. I think it's essential to talk about taking an idea and setting up masterminds maybe with just one person you can trust.

So yeah having people holding you reliable to actually getting it done. I mean I was a wantrepeneur for two years. I'm now an entrepreneur. Because of strategic relationships that benefit the both of us.

 

[mars]

Ready. Fire. Aim. Is that three sentences?

Let them know that being fearful and not taking action, is still taking action. Don't stress trying to find clarity or a perfect plan before taking the next step. Taking action will bring you that clarity.

 

[Vigilante]

I have to feature this content on the Mind Your Business show. This is literally one of my favorite threads on the forum because of what each of you did here. You highlighted the most critical parts of the Fast Lane to you personally. This is the stuff people spend a lifetime trying to discover. I may work this in for this coming Saturday.

 

[socaldude]

Be economics and value minded not money and egoism minded. Entrepreneurs seek to perpetuate economic systems or consumers by providing value given that resources are scarce. You as a business survive by helping other businesses or consumers survive. -Socaldude

This is what I would tell my 18 year old self.

 

[Ninjakid]

Make a decision for yourself. Decide if you want to be the guy (or girl) who slacks off and makes plans they never live up to, or if you want to be the guy (or girl) who builds that business, and achieves their goals? The decisions you make every day will determine your story.

 

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