This past weekend I had a blast with my family at Hershey Park. As season pass holders we visit the park all the time. But, this time I learned a few surprising lessons about my business (and my life) when I decided to go on the Great Bear roller coaster. (Yes, that photo is the exact coaster I went on… dangling nearly 100 feet in the air at speeds over 60 mph.) What a rush!

So, what does my experience on the Great Bear coaster (named after the roaring sound it makes as it tosses and turns you in its corkscrews and loops) have to do with business? Here are the top 3 lessons I learned while the G-force riveted me to my seat.

Seize The Opportunity

Has an opportunity ever passed by that you wished you had taken? That’s how I’ve felt the past 10 times I’d left Hershey Park. I’d watch people on the Great Bear and wanted to go, or I heard the “roar” of the coaster on the tracks and I’d feel the pull to hop on line. But, I never did for one reason or another. But, this weekend was different. As I walked by the Great Bear I had a strong sense this was my time to “just do it.” With a quick glance to my husband and daughter I waved bye-bye and followed my instinct to get in line.

I can’t explain what caused me to seize the opportunity this time. Perhaps it was the way the park lit up at dusk, maybe it was because the line was short, or the gentle breeze in the evening air woke up my sense… perhaps it was because I just had a “warm up” run on the log flume with David and Janet Rose. Whatever it was I knew it was time to say “Yes”!

What I learned was that sometimes you have to take advantage of the opportunity the moment it feels right. Had we walked by the Great Bear 5 minutes earlier or 5 minutes later, it may not have been the right opportunity. So, keep your senses open and tuned into knowing when it’s time for your “roller coaster ride.”

Control… and Let Go

As I approached the coaster there were plenty of warning signs posted. “Hold the grab bar tightly and keep your head centered and firmly pressed against the head rest.” Then, the loudspeaker blasted the same warnings again. I noticed myself getting tense about holding the bar and pressing my head back. I asked myself, “Should I really be doing this”? But, once I got on the coaster and locked down my safety bar, and obeyed the safety warning…. I decided to control what I could (hold on and press my head back) and let go of everything else.

The same goes for my business; and yours too. It’s OK to control what you can and let go of everything else. You can control the amount of stress you put on yourself, you can control your attitude, you can control which clients you work with and who you choose to network with, etc. But, beyond those things within your control, you must venture into the world of trust, surrender and faith in the Divine unfolding of your business, and your life. There is a greater plan in place than your own, and the more you let go of thinking you have control over it, the more you can surrender and be lead on your Divine journey.

Just like the Great Bear took me on a “journey of the unknown”, the future of your business is a journey of the unknown. The more you let go (and trust your Divine plan), the more fluid and easy your journey becomes.

Enjoy The Ride

So there I am; going up a 100-foot incline about to be launched on a 60 mile per hour thrill ride and I’m loving it! Rather than participating in the collective screams of fellow riders, I found myself giggling and laughing as my feet dangled in the air and my body catapulted through corkscrews and loops. High atop one loop I managed to catch a glimpse of the shimmering lights and the pink dusky sunset and fully enjoyed every moment of the ride. As we pulled into the unloading dock I wished the ride had lasted longer, while being grateful for the time I had.

Sometimes in business, it’s easy to forget about enjoying the ride because you’re too busy, overwhelmed, scared or burned-out. But, no matter what stage of business you’re in; you have opportunities to enjoy the experience of being an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship is the journey of a lifetime and it’s meant to be enjoyed… even when you feel like you’re flying 60-miles per hour through twists and turns holding on for dear life. It’s in these moments especially, it’s important to seek the experience of joy! Remember… the “ride” will be over in the blink of an eye.

So, the next time you feel like your business is leading you on a roller coaster ride, remember to seize the opportunity, control what you can and let go of the rest, and enjoy the ride.

copyright 2007 Christine Kloser

Reading Business Books: A Must-Do for Entrepreneurs

As a business owner, one of the most important things you can do to boost your business and improve your professional skills and knowledge is to take the time to keep up with the latest business literature.

Staying motivated for the long haul is both challenging and necessary. We live in a fast-paced society where instant gratification is the norm. We may discover that we need skills and attributes to help us stay positive and on course as we deal with the ups and downs of business. We come to learn that growing a business is a process that requires patience, flexibility, trust, and the ability to deal with uncertainty, among other things.

It is important to note that we can learn new skills and attributes to help us in our business. Entrepreneurship is no longer something someone is just “born to do” instead it is something we learn. Through practice and patience, we have the ability to change what is not working and enhance what is working so that we can successfully grow our business.

Below are 7 ways to stay motivated for the long haul:

Make/Renew your Commitment – Being committed to one’s business venture is essential to staying motivated for the long haul. When we make a commitment to ourselves and our business, we are able to move beyond fears, doubts and insecurities that in the past may have held us back. I know this to be true because I experienced it. I didn’t make a commitment to my business until I was in business for almost three years. I would fluctuate in my commitment depending upon the circumstances. When things were going good, I was committed, when they weren’t, I thought about giving up. It wasn’t until I made a written and verbal commitment to myself that I was going to give this business my all, no matter what, that I began to reap the benefits of being an entrepreneur. What I learned is that when we are most challenged is when we need to be committed the most.

Be Agile/Flexible – Combined with being committed is being agile and flexible. Bill Rancic, winner of The Apprentice reality-tv series was recently a guest on my radio show, The Entrepreneur Hour. He said, “having a business plan is important but being flexible with the plan is more important.” Bill completely revamped his marketing strategy for his cigarsaroundtheworld.com business when his original business strategy wasn’t working. He shared about how we need to leave our egos at the door and just do what needs to be done.

Develop a support network – A support network includes friends, colleagues and family who celebrate our successes and help us through our challenging times. While it is easy to call a support person to celebrate a success, it can be difficult to call and ask for help or express a difficulty. It’s at the moment when we reach out and share our challenges, or ask for help that we begin to experience relief from the problem or challenge, see solutions and recognize the value of the people who support us. The support we receive is as strong as our ability to share the good times and bad.

Stay Balanced – When we are balanced within ourselves by getting enough rest, having healthy eating habits and taking take our spiritual needs, we are better able to cope with challenges. If you find yourself becoming irritable, impatient or the like, check first within your being – mind, body and spirit to see is you are in balance. We are always better able to cope and stay motivated when we take care of our human needs.

Be Realistic -Being realistic means that we know and expect ups and downs while growing and operating our business. These ups and downs may include anything from success to disaster. Our opportunity in being realistic is to know and believe that we have the skills within us to deal with any situation, regardless of the circumstances.

Choose a positive attitude – Having a positive attitude is a choice we can make at any moment of any day. We might be dealing with a difficult situation and while our natural tendency is to feel negative, we can choose to be positive. A positive outlook and attitude is a necessity in staying motivated for the long haul.

Stay Present – When we stay present to our business and to ourselves, we stay out of fear and worry. Staying present means that we “stay in the day” in our minds. We do this by not projecting our fears into the future or worrying about something that may or may not happen. Just like worry is a habit, we can develop the habit of staying present and being free from worry. Sometimes it helps to remind ourselves that all is okay for today.

Staying motivated for the long haul is a one day at a time journey. Enjoy the ride!

Owning and running a business can be stressful — after all, the buck stops with you. If you’ve come from the corporate world of regular paychecks and support systems to help you get your job done, the challenges of entrepreneurship can be doubly stressful.

IBSCDC strives on its strength to promote quality research in business management. Well over 2000 case studies stand as a testament to this, covering a variety of management subjects and businesses. INSEAD, LBS, LSE, ISB, OXFORD, IIMs, McKinsey and Goldman Sachs etc have been regularly buying them…Our cases have been adopted by international textbooks and have been translated into German, Russian, Spanish, Chinese, languages.IBSCDC has become Asia-Pacific’s largest repository of management case studies , Business Case Studies, Organizational Behavior Case Study, Business Strategy Case Study, Case Studies in Finance, Economic Crisis, Marketing Case Studies, Leadership Case Studies, Entrepreneurship

Less than 10% of business start-ups in the UK are by twenty-somethings, because the continuing trend is for men and women in their later 30s and early 40s to set up a small business once they have support behind them. But this doesn’t mean that young entrepreneurs are unimportant. With not only the enthusiasm of youth but also their relative lack of responsibilities, they can often afford to try their hand at business, without worrying about whether they will be able to pay hefty mortgage instalments and support children.

I don’t have to tell you that starting a business is not for everyone. The idea of starting a business sounds wonderful, but can you make that dream a reality? It’s been my experience that almost every working person thinks about working for themselves. Why do so few take the leap and do it?

Prepare For Disaster

There may be an instance where you hire a person for a very important position, but the person simply resigns – after all the money you spend on them during the training process. This situation can be very stressful, but you can reduce your stress by being prepared.

You should be mentally geared for such developments and take them in stride. Be prepared for emergency situations. When it comes to your employees, make sure that every one of them is cross-trained in at least 2 other departments.

Business Realities

Always submit a proposal to a prospective customer after taking into account the cost of the employees involved in the project and the investment in providing the product or service, with a little margin. Consider the cost of labor and material.

But, in spite of this, if the contract goes to some other company and at half the price you quoted, this is a reality that you will have to live with. Just like you can’t please all the people all the time, you will lose customers to competitors sometimes.

If this happens to you, it isn’t total disaster – simply the cost of doing business. Don’t be afraid to learn from the loss of a customer – ask them why they chose the other company and figure out what you can do to get their business the next time around.

Attitude

As an entrepreneur, a lot of your success (or failure) will have to do with your attitude. It’s easy to be optimistic when things are going well, but what do you do when things go wrong?

By keeping a positive attitude, you are mentally expecting success. If you have other employees, keep in mind that their mindset about the business and how things are going will be greatly dictated by the way you react – to everything.

Finances

To pay your employees and vendors in all circumstances is truly one of the toughest parts of being an entrepreneur. Sometimes, your only option is to use some of your savings and invest in the company to bridge the gap. If this is the case for you, try to find alternate sources of financing, such as a small business loan or a loan from relatives.

If all else fails, consider a home equity loan or second mortgage.

Gradual Success

Sometimes entrepreneurs meet with big-time success overnight – but this happens only rarely. When it comes to entrepreneurship, be diligent and persistent, and you will eventually enjoy the sweet smell of success.

What is Advertising?

It is hard to find a satisfactory definition of advertising.
A picturesque way of putting it is to call it business imagination, an imagination that sees in a product possibilities which can be realized only by appealing to the public in new ways to create a desire where none existed before. It is a very broad word, an omnibus word conveying different ideas to different people.

No advertising definition is here possible except as this entire article may be accepted as a definition. So rapidly has advertising advanced through its various changes that even the latest dictionaries and encyclopedias are out of date in their attempts to define it. The advertising of yesterday is not the advertising of today. Men not so very old have witnessed its entire development from an untrustworthy instrument of quacks to its place as an engine in the conduct and expansion of business.

Advertising in the dictionary sense has a history as old as that of the human race. Just as soon as there were enough people in the world, some sort of formal announcement had to be made. The early history of such announcements – from proclamations to the beginning of pictorial and lettered inscriptions, from these primitive posters to the discovery of printing, and from the advent of printing to the beginning of real advertising – is of interest only to the archeologist. It is of no value to the business entrepreneur. It would be of no assistance to understanding modern advertising than ancient Phoenicians coins would be to comprehending the principles of a modern bank.

Every attempt to secure the sale of a product or service is advertising. The wares of the primitive merchant displayed invitingly in front of his booth is advertising. A want ad, to secure a job or an employee, is advertising. An inscription on a wall, the barker in front of a side show, the promises of an internet marketer, the announcement of a new online technology, membership in an affiliate program, wearing a peculiar shirt or distinctive sticker in your car – all these are forms of advertising in that they seek to attract attention to a product or a service that is for sale. For a product or a service of general use, rich and poor, high and low, men, women and even children, must be appealed to.

At least one principle we know of, stays constant, not eroding with the passing of time or the use and or abuse of men, not concerned with the weather outside, nor considering your personal health status, or taking into account your surrounding circumstances, and that is that you have to keep doing it, it has to be fed, no way around it, it keeps asking for every ounce of your commitment if you expect any kind of visible returns.

Whatever the appropriate definition of advertisement is, one thing is to conclude, it is because it has been. And every succeeding year since the beginning of the human entrepreneurship it has left its precious deposit of new ideas, better methods, larger and swifter efficiency, and the promise of an even greater growth.