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Thought of the Week

In today’s email:

Up Front: It’s all about the “C-Word”

The Weekly Quiz: Will We Stump You This Week?

Subscribers Only: Why you Must Stop Being a Business Owner

Tip of the Week: How a Commuter Train Became the Hottest Ticket In Town

UP FRONT:

Dare to Leap: The Gutsy Heart of Entrepreneurship

Did you know that starting your own business is a bit like being a superhero?

Consider this: Most new businesses fail within a few short years, and that sobering truth scares away many potential business owners.

But for the true entrepreneur, that info would make you ready to jump in smarter and stronger!

Think about this: you’re at the edge of a cliff, and your dream is on the other side. Between you and your dream is a big gap.

Many people jump but don’t make it across because they aren’t prepared. They leap without looking. They believe in the “if I build it they will come” philosophy as demonstrated in the movie, Field of Dreams.

That’s all BS (bad story).

But not you. You’re going to be different.

Being prepared means learning all you can about your business before you start. It means planning ahead, knowing what you need, and being ready to work hard smart.

Of course, fear will show up. It happens to everyone. But when you’re prepared, you can use that fear to make you more careful and more determined. Bottom line: Preparation is the cure to fear.

And the flip side is that preparation makes courage easy.

Yes, the “C-Word” is Courage.

Keep in mind that virtually all successful business leaders have had their share of failures. That’s part of the deal.

The big challenge is how you handle those setbacks. Are they lessons to learn from? Or are they the situations that take you out of the game?

Smart entrepreneurs consider each “failure” to be a lesson—it's feedback on how to do better next time.

So, are you ready to put on your superhero cape, plan your path, and leap towards your dream?

Seasoned entrepreneurs don’t consider that they’re being courageous. They just consider that to be part of their DNA.

So whether you’re considering starting or scaling your own business, remember this: it takes courage, and courage is easy when you’re prepared.

So get to it!

What if you could sit at the feet of some of the greatest speakers, speaker trainers, most successful leaders using speaking today to grow their business, and people who know how to keep their speaking calendar filled year ‘round –and just soak up their wisdom! Actually you can! Click here for your exclusive ticket to the SpeakerTunity® Speaker Celebration Summit  

THIS WEEK’S QUIZ:

OUR PHILOSOPHY:

Why You Should NOT a Business Owner or Entrepreneur.

Most people have the dream of owning their own business. The smart ones plan it out and follow the strategies we discussed above.

Then there are the others that jump in, based on their emotions and their dreams.

Sure it’s gutsy.

But more often than not it results in a lifestyle of frustration, where the new entrepreneur ends up working harder for less money than before.

In fact, in many cases, his (or her) employees end up making more money than the business owner!

Ouch!

That’s due to poor planning and definitely poor execution.

Michael Gerber is famously known for stating in his must-read book “The E-Myth” that you need to work ON your business, not IN your business”.

Gerber is right.

But I think you need to take it a step further.

I believe that you need to consider your business as an investment.

You’re investing your time, energy and capital in an enterprise that should be producing an economic return.

Period.

If the business doesn’t produce money for you, then it’s not a business—it’s a JOB.

In my seminars over the years, I’d ask the audience what the letters J.O.B. stand for—the answer is “Just Over Broke”, which is exactly how so many business owners operate.

That’s why I want you to look at your mindset now. Be honest with yourself—

How are you operating your business? Is it really a job, or is it an investment?

One of the fastest ways to recover from that reality is to actually become an investor.

Invest in possibilities outside your core business (that’s called diversification—a smart way to protect your future).

Great investments might provide the firm financial foundation you need…and potentially some cash-flow to fund your business growth as well.

For instance, if you want to help people AND generate some significant cash, you might want to check out this presentation I did with Jason Palliser recently.

He’s got a revenue-generating system that is pretty remarkable. In fact, if you’re struggling with a business that simply isn’t going anywhere, this system could be more than investment—it could relieve the pain on a permanent basis!

We created the presentation for my PrideNomad community, but it applies to everyone who wants to create a location-free revenue stream.

You can watch it here now »

Remember, you can’t help others unless you’ve properly taken care of yourself. THEN you have the ultimate freedom of choice.

And once you see how you can generate significant income without actually “working” in a business, you may finally understand how to get yourself out of “management” and into being a consultant to the business!

TIP OF THE WEEK:

How an Old Commuter Train Became the Hottest Ticket in Town

What could be more boring than an old commuter train?

Well if you take that train and merge it with some creative minds, you end up with a sold-out experience called the “Tekno Train”.

To quote the story in TimeOut:

Taking the train doesn’t often blow your mind. Until now. In possibly the coolest Sydney news we’ve heard this year so far, Vivid Sydney is running an experience called Tekno Train by Paul Mac, as part of the epic Vivid Music program. And yep, Tekno Train is pretty much what it sounds like: a Sydney Train turned into a sensory sound and light experience that moves you along the tracks. 

This thrilling musical adventure isn't just be a one-night affair – this service is running hot for the 23 nights of Vivid, making use of disused train lines through Sydney’s city circle.

So why am I telling you about a techno train ride?

It’s simple.

You need to be creative in order to be different.

You need to think outside of the train (er, box!).

Using safe, boring words like “transformation”, “bliss”, or “optimization” doesn’t give a prospect a visceral experience to drive their emotions.

They’ve heard it before.

Yawn!

So in order to capture attention (and thus, customers and clients), I encourage you to adopt the philosophy of Dr. Suess.

So…instead of playing it safe…being like vanilla ice cream or the color beige (no offense Vanilla & Biege lovers!), consider going teckno!

Ask yourself: How can I take old, boring and forgotten and turn it into my own teckno train toward profit?

YOUR NEXT STEP:

Share this with your friends! We’ll be starting a referral program shortly…get a headstart now!

Quiz Answer