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3 Reasons Why You Need A Business Buddy

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Business Teamwork

Many entrepreneurs believe that going solo is the best approach towards being successful. When working alone, an entrepreneur has more power over their business and gets to implement all of the ideas that he/she wants to implement. Although there are several advantages associated with going solo, every entrepreneur needs to have a business buddy. Whether your business buddy is a friend, a colleague in another niche, or someone who owns half of the company, having a business buddy is very important towards the growth of your business. These are the 3 reasons why you need a business buddy:

  1. You will encourage each other to work harder. If you and your business buddy work side by side, you will encourage each other to work harder. You would not want to take your break if your business buddy was still working, and your business buddy would not take a break if you were still working. As a result, both of you will be more productive.
  2. Ideas get enhanced. Maybe you are trying to think of how you can implement your idea or some ways to make your idea better. Your business buddy may know a method to make your idea better. You can do one to one brainstorming with your business buddy, and one to one brainstorming is the best version of brainstorming available.
  3. You get more referred customers. If your business buddy knows a lot about architecture and you are a blogging expert, you can exchange connections. If someone who comments on your blog is looking for an architect, you can tell them about your business buddy. If one of your business buddy’s clients needs help with blogging, then your business buddy will refer that client to you.

Although going solo is the easier approach, it is better over the long-term to have a business buddy who you can exchange ideas with and help each other out. Having a business buddy will allow you to get more connections and be more productive at the work place. If you know multiple people who qualify, you can have multiple business buddies and meet with one of those people every time you work. Who is your business buddy? If you do not have a business buddy yet, do you plan on getting one? Please share your thoughts below.

The Entrepreneurial Secret Weapon

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secret folder

Actually, this weapon is not a secret. Everyone uses the entrepreneurial secret weapon. However, it is the uses of this weapon to create successful businesses that is the secret. The secret weapon is social media. Social media can build a business’ reputation and get more customers for that business. Social media can turn an unknown business into a thriving business with thousands of followers.

The reason why social media is a secret weapon is because most people do not know how to utilize their social networks to improve their businesses. Social media is all about building connections. There is no such thing as having too many connections. The more connections you have, the more customers and business opportunities you get.

In order to use the secret weapon, you need to be following targeted users. No one is going to know about your business unless you build your targeted following first. As people follow you back, and your business grows its social media presence, you will be able to see the full potential of social media.

Using social media properly to grow a business is the entrepreneurial secret weapon. Social media allows unknowns to become part of the well-known. Social media is the best thing you can use to grow your business.

What are your thoughts on the entrepreneurial secret weapon? Do you have additional advice about using the entrepreneurial secret weapon? Please share your thoughts and tips below.

 

6 Characteristics That Every Successful Entrepreneur Has

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There are millions of entrepreneurs in the world. Some entrepreneurs own thriving businesses while others are creating startups. Successful entrepreneurs possess characteristics that separate them from the average entrepreneur. These characteristics allow successful entrepreneurs to get better results and get more accomplished in a shorter amount of time. In order to become a successful entrepreneur, these are the 6 characteristics that you need to have.

  1. Persistence. There will be a complaint. There will be a day (and a string of days) when your product does not make any sale. You need to stay strong during these times and know that your business has a positive future. You just need to take it there.
  2. Dedication. This characteristic decides how many hours you are willing to put into your business. By being dedicated and loving what you do, you will spend more hours working on your business than you would if your business was something that you did not like at all. Having a lot of dedication makes going through the bad times easier.
  3. The champion attitude. In order for your business to be successful, you need to be a good champion for your business. You need to be the role model for others to follow and raise the bar higher. Every successful business has a good champion, and you need to be the champion of your business.
  4. Effective time management. It takes a lot of time and effort to create a business. Making that business successful takes more time and effort as well. By having effective time management, you will increase your productivity, get more done, and move your business farther.
  5. The desire for success. We all want and need to be successful. However, the successful entrepreneurs are the ones who have a strong desire for success. This desire inspires successful entrepreneurs to get more work done every day so their businesses become successful faster.
  6. Connections. Every successful entrepreneur has strong connections. In order to be successful, people need to know about your business. Making the right connections can get you referred customers, appearances in newspapers, and more. In order to get more connections, you need to use your social networks.

Those are the 6 characteristics that every entrepreneur has. By implementing these 6 characteristics, you are more likely to become successful and own a thriving business. You will not have a successful business overnight, but by consistently living by these characteristics, you will thrive. What are your thoughts on the list? Do you have any additional characteristics you would like to mention? Please share your thoughts below.

 

5 Reasons To Break Up With Bad Clients

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Difficult Client

Many people make the mistake of focusing on gaining clients instead of focusing on the most important clients. These people believe that they can change every client so that every client becomes a quality client. The problem is that the process takes too much time, and in the end, the client never changes. Ever. Instead of trying to make all of your clients happy, only focus on the clients who are the most important ones you have. Here is why you need to do that.

  1. Breaking up with bad clients will save you oodles of time. Imagine the amount of time it takes to write reports and talk to the client. That can take up several hours every week. Imagine how much time you would save if you could break up with 5 bad clients.
  2. You can focus more of your time on the good ones. Now that you have more time, your conversations with the good clients can get longer, and you can provide more insight in your reports. Focusing on your good clients allows you to treat them like VIPs. Giving them the VIP treatment will encourage them to do more business with you in the future.
  3. Bad clients will not refer you, but the good ones will refer you. In addition to saving more time, you are able to spend more time with the clients who are more likely to refer you to their friends. The good clients are the ones who tell others about what you do. Those are the kinds of clients who you want to talk to, not the ones who do not like what you offer and wouldn’t even think about referring you to their friends.
  4. You get to keep a positive attitude. You probably have a few clients who simply ramble on about their problems and bring you down. Breaking up with those clients will allow you to keep a positive attitude and be a happier person. Not only will this have a positive effect on your business, but it will also have a positive attitude on your life.
  5. It will be easier to get more quality clients. Quality clients are hard to come by. However, if you focus on your quality clients, those clients will refer you to some of their friends. Those friends will most likely be quality clients as well. In addition, you will discover the characteristics that your quality clients have. Then, you can find consumers with those characteristics and tell them about your business.

Those are the five reasons why you need to break up with bad clients as soon as possible. By eliminating the bad clients, you will be able to focus more of your time on your quality clients–the ones who pay on time, make you happy, and enjoy your service. What are your thoughts about breaking up with bad clients?

 

How To Build Your Entrepreneurial Stamina

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Stamina

Every entrepreneur is encountered with the option of giving up. Every business out there has experienced bad days, and many of them have experienced a chain of bad days. However, it is important to note that every business out there means every business out there. Amazon had some bad days as well as a chain of bad days. Let’s not forget to count Apple, JetBlue, Samsung, WalMart, and Whole Foods Market. The difference between these businesses and the ones that feel apart are that the entrepreneurs behind the businesses had more stamina. Once they discovered an idea they wanted to pursue, these entrepreneurs did not back down. In order to see your startup or product become successful, you need to have entrepreneurial stamina.

In order to build your entrepreneurial stamina, you need to respond to criticism very well. Many people are afraid of the critics. Some people act like the zombie apocalypse just happened when their book gets a 1 star review. Others are simply intimidated when someone says that the idea is doomed to fail.

Another way to build your entrepreneurial stamina is to have a vision in place. Where do you see your business down the road? Having a vision can give you the motivation that you need to keep the business open even when all odds are stacked against you. Apple was falling apart, went bankrupt, and only got saved because Bill Gates and Steve Jobs came to the rescue. Bill Gates came to the rescue financially while Steve Jobs came to the rescue with his vision and innovative mindset. Reading stories like Apple’s also helps towards boosting your entrepreneurial stamina.

A big part of your entrepreneurial stamina comes from your desire to do what you do. If you do not like your business, then your stamina will not last long. However, if you love what you do, then your stamina will be stronger. As a kid, Steve Jobs would create, tear apart, and recreate computers for fun. When Steve Jobs founded Apple, he was the head of a business that he loved.

In order to have a successful business, you need to have entrepreneurial stamina during the developmental stages of that business. You need to see the developmental stage of your business as a stepping stone towards success. With this kind of mindset, your business will go far.

 

How To Track Your Time

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Tracking Time

Time is our most valuable resource. However, not everyone is tracking how their time gets carved out day by day. Instead of identifying how long they stay on social networks, most people make an educated guess. However, an educated guess is not good enough. Chances are you know your strengths and weaknesses in time management. However, what few people know is how powerful their strengths are and how flimsy their weaknesses are.

In order to measure your strengths and weaknesses, you need to track your time. Before you start something, write down the time that you started. When you move on to another activity, write down the time that you stopped. Then, write down the time that you started your next activity and continue the process.

Here is an example: I start writing my book at 5 pm and stop at 6 pm. Then, I look at my Twitter feed from 6 pm to 6:30 pm. Then, I write blog posts from 6:30 pm to 7:00 pm.

By continuing this cycle, you will be able to identify how much time you are spending on certain activities. Maybe you are spending more than an hour looking at your Twitter feed. It is better to catch yourself than it is to make an educated guess. In addition, continuing this cycle and creating this kind of schedule will allow you to identify what you did on your most productive days. If you wrote blog posts from 11 pm to 12 am on 1 day, and you wrote blog posts from 6 am to 7 am, you would be able to identify the time in which you are the most productive for a certain task.

By tracking your time for a week, you will be able to find common patterns. You will be able to identify where you spend most of your time and what goals you need to spend more time on. Write everything down in a notebook so you are able to look back at your results months later. Although this process does help you find out where you are carving your time, the process of writing times and activities is a long one. My recommendation is to track your time once a week every month and compare your results. Then, you will be able to see how you should be carving your time throughout the day.

Time is truly our most valuable resource. In order to get the most out of our most valuable resource, we need to track how we are using time. The numbers may surprise you. What are your thoughts on tracking time?