10 REASONS TO BE AN ENTREPRENEUR

WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT DRIVE AN ENTREPRENEUR?

I'm a big believer that money is not what drives people to work hard. If you want successful, happy workers, take a cue from what drives you. When the work is hard and the hours are long, these are the reasons founders keep doing what they do.

I recently asked fellow members of an Entrepreneur Council—a council of mostly successful young entrepreneurs--just what it is that makes them work so hard. Money? Success? Autonomy? Or do entrepreneurs just have big egos?

Being an entrepreneur myself, I wanted to know why others work with such persistence and dedication. I know that for me, it's not about money. Money is just a byproduct. So is it the same for others?

Not one of the entrepreneurs I spoke to mentioned money as the motivator.

Surprised? Don't be. When I write about company culture, I often note author Daniel Pink's philosophy that once money is off the table for people--meaning it's no longer a stress point or constantly on their mind because they're paid enough--they become driven by autonomy, mastery, and purpose.

So what are entrepreneurs driven by, if not money? I got more than 20 responses from these entrepreneurs. Here's what they had to say:

1. Opportunity

Susan Strayer Lamotte, a leader in talent acquisition and HR, says she's motivated simply by "doing great work. That's the difference," she explains. "All the other stuff is gravy, but as an entrepreneur, I can decide what the work is like. What I get to do. And that's the mecca for me."

2. Autonomy

Some entrepreneurs simply want to avoid the daily grind that comes along with a career that isn't self-sustaining. Says Aron Schoenfeld, founder of Doitinperson.com and DreamArtists Studios, "Fear of failure is what motivates me to keep going. [I'm] scared of going back to corporate and being a robot again."

3. Freedom

Aaron Pitman, president and founder of API Domain Investments, agrees. "Freedom is my driver," he says. "I always wanted to be able to call my own shots, be in charge of my destiny, and have the ability to set my own life."

4. Responsibility to society

For other entrepreneurs, there are bigger societal issues driving their work. "For me, it's also about an alignment of story," says Josh Allan Dykstra, a consultant, author, and speaker. "As entrepreneurs, we are always analyzing the state of the world, examining the larger stories that are playing out on a macro/global level. While we strive to make sense of these big-picture stories, we are also searching for the places our personal strengths and passions can make a larger impact on the world. We make the most difference when we find where the intersection point of the thing that makes us feel alive also lines up with the bigger story, allowing us to improve society in some meaningful way."

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5. Impact

Justin Beegel, founder and president of Infographic World, explains: "[I love] knowing every action [I] take truly has a direct impact on the outcome of the business. When you're an employee...what you do has limited impact. When you're running the company, each and every thing you do can make or break it."

6. Family

Ari R. Meisel, an entrepreneur, author, inventor, and tri-athlete, says what drives him to entrepreneurial work is simple: "[I love] being able to spend as much time with my family as possible."

7. Change

Trace Cohen, founder and president of Launch.it, says what drives him is seeing change. "My current and previous company have all been about providing value to our users to enhance what they are currently doing to either make it better or more efficient."

8. Legacy

Forging a lasting legacy is important for many workers. Both Dave Kerpen, CEO of Likeable Media, and Lewis Howes, lifestyle entrepreneur, noted that leaving a personal legacy is a huge motivator in their decision to do entrepreneurial work.

9. Accomplishment

"That is what truly makes people happy, a sense of accomplishment," says Pablo Palatnik, CEO at ShadesDaddy.com. "That's why I do what I do every day, to accomplish my goals, and that [means] building a successful company."

10. Control

Some entrepreneurs are driven by the sense of security that comes along with being in full control of their work. Joey Ricard says control of his own destiny--"or as some people like to call it, security"--drives his entrepreneurial efforts.

I'm a big believer that money is not what drives people to work hard. If you want successful, happy workers, take a cue from what drives you. Freedom, flexibility, social responsibility, the ability to do great work? Provide your workers with opportunities to thrive in these areas, and you won't have to deal with workers who are motivated only by money.

Credit: Thomas Barwick

6 CLEVER IDEAS TO RAISE MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP WITHOUT MAKING AN INVESTOR PITCH.

"Fundraising is going to be the death of me!"

That's how I've felt, oh, perhaps 10 times throughout my journey to date as a serial entrepreneur.

Any entrepreneur will tell you that raising money can be the toughest part of starting your own business. While the competition for funds gradually increases each day, your chances of securing investors significantly slim. Of course, finding an investor isn't impossible, but one of the best decisions a business owner can make is to find alternative means that will contribute to their financial success.

 

Tom Walker, President and CEO of Rev1 Ventures, has been helping entrepreneurs build great companies for most of his career. He's formed multiple venture capital funds, founded angel groups, is an angel investor, and has used Rev1 Ventures to help entrepreneurs build great companies by supporting them through the first phases of growth.

Having helped entrepreneurs for years through Rev1 Ventures and with his book, The Entrepreneur's Path: A Handbook for High-Growth Companies, I asked Tom to share a few alternate ways startups can raise funds without having to pitch to investors. Here's what he had to say:

One of the most common misconceptions by entrepreneurs is that they must raise a great deal of up-front capital to succeed. This is simply not true-nor is it usually possible.

So if you'd like to avoid giving up equity before you have to, heed these five tips to move from bright idea through prototype without raising bundles of investment capital.

1. Open your own wallet first:                                                                                                        Tap into savings, home equity, or retirement accounts. It's risky, but don't expect others to invest in your startup if you haven't put some of your own money in. Knowledgeable investors want to see founders show confidence with cash. They favor entrepreneurs with more than "just" sweat equity in the game.

2. Sign up strategic partners early on.                                                                                      There's nothing sweeter than finding a supplier, distributor, or especially a customer who stands to gain so much from your solution that they are willing and able to help foot the bill. This is a planning-for-success bonus play.

“Far better to create relationships and work out the kinks 

while your company is simple and small than to discover 

an issue when you're ready to scale”

If your solution aligns with a B2B business problem that the market is clamoring to solve, there will be potential early adopters who could make a strategic investment if they think you have a chance at relieving their pain.

These companies will be less focused on final returns and more interested in getting your prototype to beta.

Every startup has to sell its stuff. In-house sales teams are challenging to staff and a challenge to manage.

I've seen more examples than I can count of early relationship between startups and strategic partners that turn into something really special that endures for years.

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3. Bootstrap.                                                                                                                              Paying as you go by earning revenue from early adopters and managing every dime like it was a dollar is the most cost-effective way to stretch your company's resources-financial and otherwise. Nothing is scarcer than cash (except maybe sleep) when you're starting out. The more you can bootstrap in the beginning to achieve good market validation, the easier you are going to find your path to raising capital.

Bootstrapping Tips

-Hold fixed costs to a minimum:

-Share office services and equipment

-Co-locate with another company or move to a business incubator

-Use the computers and servers you have

-Delay capital purchases

-Lease instead of purchase

-Negotiate fees and terms with all service providers and suppliers

-Treat variable costs like you're spending your own money, which you are:

-Seek trade credit terms with key suppliers

-Save thousands on travel by using smart scheduling or teleconferencing

-Hire interns from local business and/or design schools

4. Pursue non-dilutive capital.                                                                                                     Grants, solicitations, and RFPs may not be a fit for every company, but make sure it's not "yes" before you say "no." Some industries, such as biotech, are especially conducive to federal grants. And don't forget to look in your own backyard. More and more cities, regions and states have grant programs or loans for high growth businesses at low-interest rates.The beauty of these sources is that a startup may qualify for large sums of money, which are milestone driven, which is the way you ought to be thinking and operating anyway.

5. Match capital to milestones:                                                                                                       Too much capital is as bad as too little. Matching capital requirements to achievable milestones keeps the company from giving up equity before it's required and a bonus.

6. Establish a line of credit.                                                                                                         Even if you don't use it, bankers will return your calls once one of their competitors has vetted you. There are no silver bullets when it comes to sourcing early-stage funding, but with the right capital strategy and a concentrated emphasis on bootstrapping entrepreneurs can avoid shooting themselves in the foot.

Now it's your turn. How have you attempted to secure your startup's financial success? Which of these methods have you tried? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below

Find me on Twitter: @samuelmao

Credit: Tom Walker, CEO, author, and angel investor shares a few skillful ways startups can raise funds without having to pitch to investors.

7 Simple Habits of the Super Successful People You Can Easily Emulate

PhotoCredit:HBO Movie Premier

Do you remember the first time self-development became important to you?

I do. I was 7 years old and I was in love with basketball. My mother had bought me a book called Rare Air, the autobiography of Michael Jordan.

Through this book, Michael Jordan brought me into his world. He shared stories of what inspired him, the emotions he felt, how he handled the failures and rejections and how he discovered his passion.

I was absolutely blown away and fired up after reading his book. It felt like my childhood hero was right there with me, teaching me about the importance of working on yourself and becoming the best you can possibly be.

I read this book every morning before school to be highly motivated for the day ahead.

Once that book was finished, I continued to read other books like 20 Ways to Make Pocket Money and Rich Dad, Poor Dad. As I made this motivation session part of my morning ritual, I noticed my belief, confidence and passion skyrocket.

I wanted to be just like these high achievers so I started waking up early, setting my goals and learning as much as I could about new skills and life each day. Little did I know that I was hard-wiring a series of positive unconscious actions that eventually led me to a life of multiple successes: Hosting radio shows, signing record deals, promotions to higher paying salaries, training with world-class experts, meetings with my idols, creating one of the top self-development websites in the world, being offered millions of dollars for my business and being featuring on the cover of magazines.

I became infatuated with the idea of growing and evolving as an individual so much so that over the past four years I’ve committed to interviewing hundreds of entrepreneurs, authors, celebrities, coaches and multimillionaires to find out what separates the super achievers from your every day “Average Self"

What I’ve come to discover is that a good 90 percent of the interviewee’s credit their success to the persisting energy bolts of action that we call "habits."

So being the curious cat that I am, I decided to go a little deeper and squeeze the juice out of this new discovery.

I started asking each high achiever what their daily habits are that keep them on top. I then averaged their answers out to break it down into these 7 simple successful habits:

Habit 1: Write Your “To-Do List” The Night Before

The high achievers would write their to-do’s every evening before dinner or bed so they were prepared for the following day.

Habit 2: The Mind, Body & Soul

Ninety percent of the super-successful practice some form of physical concentration time or health focused activity at some point in their day.

According to Deepak Chopra, meditation increases the amount of rest you would normally achieve through sleep and is almost twice as effective as taking a nap.

Habit 3: Goal-Setting and Visualization

Ninety-five percent of the successful achievers I have interviewed practice writing down their goals, plans, or vision first thing in the morning for success on a regular basis.

Doing this prepare your mental state for a day of challenges on the road to success.

PhotoCredit:Instagram

Habit 4: Gratitude and Positive Self Talk

Being grateful and focusing on the positive seems to be a common priority in the lives of the highly successful people.

Best-selling author and neuroscientist Joe Dispenza shared something this with me:

"If you’re saying affirmations like, 'I am abundant, I am wonderful, I am unstoppable,' but your emotional state is in fear, then your body is in opposition.

Thoughts are the language of the brain and feelings are the language of the body. Those thoughts will bounce off because they aren’t equal to the emotions of fear.

If a person feels gratitude, and has practiced it over and over authentically and they say affirmations like, 'I am wonderful, I am incredible, I am unstoppable' and so on… and it aligns with their autonomic nervous system then this is where the real power comes into play."

Gratitudes are powerful, and a lot of people nowadays are catching on to this.

Habit 5: Self-Development

The super-successful people focus heavily on learning new skills, reading practical books and listening or watching podcasts, interviews and informational courses.

Try and read 20 full pages a day, or even listen to an hour-long audio/podcast that roughly equals more than 36+ books a year of new knowledge. Wow!!

Habit 6: Networking

The high achievers know and live by the saying, “Your network determines your net worth.”

So they make it a habit to work on building new bridges, collaborating, helping others, attending social events, getting back to people and being a man (or woman) of their word.

Make it a habit to meet at least one new person a day or making one follow up/catch up a day.

Habit 7: Meetings and Accountability Sessions

Lastly, but not least, the seventh habit that was highly practiced by the uber successful was holding accountability calls each week and/or a coffee catch up with a mentor or business partner to hold each other accountable.

Find someone who is on a similar level to you in life and make a commitment between you and your accountability partner to hold a catch-up call or meeting once a week to share your achievements, struggles, new goals and what you have learned from the previous week.

This is a great way to stay motivated, knowing that you will have to come clean to your accountability buddy if you haven’t been sticking to your goals and habits.

If you are new to these habits then I would recommend starting with two to three habits and making them easy. The key is to commit yourself to at least two to three months of continuous implementation as your body adjusts to the new life you are creating and the habits you are conditioning.

Enjoy the process and make sure you throw in some fun habits, that focus on your mind body and soul also as balance is key to staying sane during this process.

See you at the top!

Awake the giant in you!!

Become the best you can be!!!

Join my “CONNECTION ECONOMY” follow me on Twitter @SpeakersBay @SamuelMao

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It’s a great day.

Credit and Inspiration to JOEL BROWN

Entrepreneur, Speaker & Founder of Addicted2Success.com