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Weighted CENTS

KLaw

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@Scot got me to thinking when he posted this...
"Run it through CENTS.

Do you have Control?

Do you have Entry?

Sure, scale, time and need (maybe) are there.
But violating Control AND a Low as hell barrier to entry, you’re either makingsomeone else’s fast lane or you’re setting yourself up for failure."
Are each of the C E N T S created equally? I.e. 20% each. Or are some more important then others? Do these weigh differently depending on...
Business type or personal goals?
 
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Supercar

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Scale, Time and Need are sort of binary. Without some of them the business will be either small or labor intensive.

Entry and Control are not binary, but they are time dependent. Facebook, Amazon and eBay initially entered their industries with almost no barriers. They will eventually get displaced if they do not keep beating every new entrant on price and service. And those who make millions selling on these platforms have no control, and no entry barriers. But neither the lack of entry barriers nor the lack of control has prevented many of them from making small or large fortunes.

Time, the greatest equalizer, the most important, IMO. I am still hesitant to close one of my businesses, even though it has no Scale. The Need, Entry, and Control are all there, and it takes almost none of my time. I wish I had 10x of such businesses.
 

JoelM

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I am in the process of partnering in a business that has the potential for a 1,500% ROI. It is very strong on Need and Scale, medium on entry and control, but very weak on time. My objective is to become millionaire, then reinvest in passive income. I believe that most businesses start ups lack some of the commandments, especially the time one. I think that the most important aspects in the short run are need and scale. If I have a plan b for the control aspect, I can leverage any situation with money, time and other resources. Time is the least of my concerns in the short term.
 

MidwestLandlord

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Don't over think it.

It's a guide to identifying weaknesses more than anything, IMHO.

My last business was weak on control for instance. My current new business has control and time issues, but massive potential for scale.

A guy I know quit a $100k per year job to open a scrap booking store for instance. Fails all of CENTS.

Using CENTS as a guide might have saved him from his current mess (maybe not, as "do what you love!" Is a strong force to contend with lol)

It also tells me a lot about myself. I obviously value scale more than control, as I def have a pattern of trading one for the other. So it gets me to ask, "why?"
 
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MJ DeMarco

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Are each of the C E N T S created equally? I.e. 20% each. Or are some more important then others? Do these weigh differently depending on...

I think the weightings fluctuate dependent on industry, opportunity, competition, etc.

However, I'd give NEED the most weighty value.

As I wrote in Unscripted , it is the table top, it's 4 legs are Control, Entry, Time, and Scale.

If you had a gun to my head and said, "Weight 'em biatch!" I go this way... (Scale 1 to 5, 5 more important)

  • Control: 3 (you can still make a lot of $$ and violate control, low control = big risk)
  • Entry: 4 (ties into the strength of need and competition)
  • Need: 5 (duh, product/service is everything, PRODUCTOCRACY!)
  • Time: 2 (time must eventually come into play so your time is freed, but too many people want this right out of the gate and it kills their chances of success. Look at TIME as a long-game, not short-game.
  • Scale: 4 (this is how you rapidly accelerate wealth, so yes, important.)
but very weak on time.

If you're making $10,000 an hour, yes, time can be displaced.
 

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