August 24, 2006

A Note from the Editor

Hello to All,

Welcome to this issue of The ART of Business newsletter and a big welcome to all the new subscribers. For the past month I've been busy mentoring an author to help him get his book to market, and in the process, I've learned a lot about myself. It's funny because his book is about entrepreneurs--10 people who basically started their business the "bootstrap" way--totally on their own with no outside help--and those are exactly the kind of people that the Women's Business Gallery is meant to help. Now I'm helping him to "bootstrap" his writing career!

This week's feature article, "Journey To Success" came from my reading about this gentleman's entrepreneurial clients, as well as the lessons I've learned in my own entrepreneurial business, which is the business of helping other entrepreneurs succeed. I hope you find the article inspirational and informative.

And now, let's take a...

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Journey To Success

So what do these people know that we don't? How can they reach such great heights in such a short time? I wish I could say there's some "secret" formula they used to get where they are now, but the truth is, there isn't. They pretty much just worked their tails off. And saved every penny they could get their hands on along the way.

Now this might seem like a no-brainer at first, but the truth is, many of us are not that disciplined when we first start out. We still might stop at Starbucks and spend two, three, or four dollars on a fancy cup of coffee once a week. We work hard, so we deserve a treat, right? Well, yes and no. If you knew it meant the difference between a six-figure or seven-figure annual income, wouldn't you be willing to forego that cup of coffee for your first year in business? I'm guessing you would.

So that's Success Lesson #1: delayed gratification. Save more now so you can accumulate wealth and spend more later--then you'll have lots more to spend! This doesn't mean doing without the necessities, it just means cutting back on "luxuries." For example, if you need a new car, do you really need a *new* car or will a good used vehicle work for the time being? Save money now, reinvest in other income-producing opportunities with your savings, then you'll have much more money to spend later on.

Success Lesson #2 might also seem overly obvious, but it's often the obvious that's overlooked: find a market need and fill it, or "Follow the money trail first, then follow your heart." Rather than starting a company that you would find enjoyable to work in as your first business, why not provide a product or service that customers want or need? Look around your neighborhood--Laundromats, convenience stores, daycares, fast food franchises, apartment buildings, grocery stores, taxicab services, Meals-on-Wheels--these are all controlling interests in your community--things that people want or need, and where the money is at!

Maybe you've already got your passion business open but it's not bringing you the income you need. Now might be the time to start another company--one that's got a built-in client base like those described here--and start bringing in the bucks that will allow you to keep running your passion business on the side. Later on you can hire a manager to run your breadwinner so you can go back to your passion work full-time.

What you really need to do is dedicate yourself to the business at hand--whatever it is that's making you money, you need to devote yourself to it 100%. And that's Success Lesson #3: focus, focus, focus. There are many components to narrowing down your focus:

• Goal setting
• Delegating
• Hiring outside help
• Systematizing your operations

to name just a few. The point is, you need to give your heart and soul to the work that's sustaining you, and in order to produce the maximum amount of return, you need your business to run at its most efficient. Take care of your business and it will take care of you. And who knows, by next year, it might be your success story that others are reading about!

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Wishing you all the best in your endeavors,

Angel Brown

www.womens-business-gallery.com

Copyright 2006 by Angel Brown. All rights reserved.

Published by the Womens Business Gallery, Woodland Park, Colorado