10. Letting your gut-instincts keep you safe. This
is more than street-smarts. I believe that gut instinct is not just some
strange source but 1- the spiritual essence of us and our connection
with the source of life, but also 2- it is a lifetime of observation and
learning from experience. I surely have experienced life and I have
spent my life observing people. I have the ability to peer into the
insides of people. My mother could do it. She would make these
statements about people she barely knew and she'd hit the nail on the
head about their very essence. I too have this ability. The thing is
it's not always something you can verbalize but your gut tells you some
things right off the bat. This is a very useful thing in the business
world and I believe we all have this ability but not everyone taps into
it. Being able to read people doesn't mean that you immediately run or
become best friends, it means that you proceed with caution filing away
the info you've got on hand right now. If there is something queer about
a business proposition, keep this up front as you examine it. You know
in your gut when something's right and when something's not right.
9. A lifetime of self-examination - I cannot stress this enough. We
are a work in progress. You will make mistakes, your attitude will
change and you will grow. But if you don't take the time to examine
yourself and your attitudes along the way, you run the risk of becoming
stagnant and brittle. And brittle is a good candidate for crumbling
dust. Examine your relationships with people, your business practices,
not just your finances. In the end, it is your relationship with people
that makes you successful in both life and business. If you find
yourself having the same issues arise, it's time for some
self-examination. What are you doing to contribute to this issue? What
can you do to create a change?
8. Open mindedness to new ways of thinking. How many
times have we seen people, throughout history, hold on to what they
believe is the ONLY way to think, to find the world moving on without
them? It was generally thought the automobile would never catch on;
after all, weren't bicycles and trains more than enough? It doesn't mean
you have to change your way of thinking or embrace it, just examine it,
educate yourself about it and recognize that it may be here to stay.
7. Open mindedness to new technology--This relates
to number 8 but in a business capacity, it is even more important. A
pencil and paper may be your preferred method of working on finances,
but you had better know a few things about technology or you and your
pencil will be left behind. Sure you can hire others who know, but what
you don't know CAN hurt you. Read! You can learn so much about anything
by reading. And if you were tech savvy you would know the internet is
the greatest addition to the library in regard to learning about
everything!
6. Being streetwise and book-smart - There is
nothing more important than having a reasonable balance of both. Naivety
can cost you and not being educated to the level you need to function
well in your chosen environment can cost you as well. Don't leave your
street-smarts at the door in business environments but temper it with
real knowledge as well.
5. Education and constant re-education -- I am not
talking about college degrees here. Though they are a great start, you
must continue to educate yourself. Take part in seminars, read
everything, surf the net. Even when you think you've got it, press on.
4. A willingness to give back - First, take care of
yourself. Put yourself in a position to give back. I've had the
privilege to hear so many people speak about their ideas for new
businesses. The first thing they say is that they want to help people
and that they want to give away what they've got. Andrew Morrison, from
Small Business Camp and believer that
questions are more powerful than answers (see his book "21 Questions
that Will Build Your Business in 90 Days") always asks the question,
"Where's the money?" because if you can't support yourself, if you have
to close your doors because you are bankrupt, how can you realistically
help others? Sure there are exceptions to this, but most people have
been able to give back and help others because they helped themselves.
When you've helped yourself, GIVE BACK! I've seen many people become
selfish and bitter in this regard. "I had to do it for myself! Nobody
helped me!" They begin to dole out help in a miserly manner, looking for
something in return including gratitude. They also give with suspicion.
They suspect that those they give to will use it to steal something
from them. If you watch closely, here is where they will begin their
descent. If you feel like you got where you are on your own, look
carefully I say, because you did NOT get to where you are without help.
And much of it was given unselfishly and without restraint. Give
generously and from the heart and don't look back! (CAUTION: DON'T ALLOW
YOURSELF TO BE DRAINED DRY BY THOSE WHO LIKE TO PLAY UPON THIS NOTION
EITHER)
3. Love and caring for yourself - Here is a simple
analogy. When you board a plane you are treated to a demonstration of
what to do in case the oxygen masks drop from above. The first
instruction is to put your mask on first. This is especially important
because if you don't take care of your need first, you will not be able
to help others and that includes your children, your spouse or anyone
else. How does this relate to business? Create the situation that best
helps you first. Put yourself in a position of power or at least close
to the ear of power. Do a great job, first for you. Excel for you. Then
assist others, speak up for others, do for others.
2. How you treat people -- I believe in this. I
don't think you really have to right to abuse people. Some people think
that certain groups of people are okay to abuse. I am not speaking from a
standpoint of race here either. These people think that it's okay to
abuse "the help" i.e. countless waiters and waitresses, assistants,
maids, children. They also think it's okay to abuse what they deem "fat
people" or people they believe are "ugly". They believe it's okay to
treat "telemarketers" with disrespect when these are just people doing a
job (I'm not talking about rude or abusive telemarketers either!). I
believe that the golden rule is truth that still stands, because truth
will always stand. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, or
your daughter or son, or spouse, etc. I urge you to read "How to Win
Friends and Influence People", by Dale Carnegie, over and over again.
Study the lives of the charismatic. Success was written in their
everyday dealings with people. Not on a superficial level but on a
deeper connecting level.
1. Commitment to the journey - Here is what I
believe is the number one key to success for an entrepreneur. Are you
committed? What I am trying to say is that in all of my observations,
and from my own experience, I find that the journey is always the same.
It's a long road of self examination and improvement, skill examination
and education. It's making judgment calls about people, things and
situations. You continually correct the "course" until you are headed in
the right direction. To trust your gut, to keep the faith, to make it
through tough times, takes practice. The question is can you stick it
out? Do you quit because the money is low? Do you quit because you can't
find the right people? When do you say it's over?
Commitment to the journey. It is the key to success. Because you will
always see things that make you want to run. But you have to put your
faith on the table. You really have to stand against all odds. It takes
courage. And when you do this, you will succeed. As Goethe put it:
Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back,
always ineffectiveness concerning all acts of initiative (and creation).
There is one elemental truth, the ignorance of which kills countless
ideas and splendid plans--- that the moment one definitely commits
oneself, then Providence moves all. All sorts of things occur to help
one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events
issue from the decision, Raising in one's favor all manner of incidents
and meetings and material assistance which no one could have dreamed
would come his or her way.
