December 12, 2011

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It’s not necessarily something b-school will teach you, and most business books don’t touch on it. One of the most important catalysts in entrepreneurship is personal development.

A deficit of faith and confidence is the root issue behind small business failure. Statistics will signify one hundred and one reasons strategically and tactically why you’re climbing an uphill battle, but the root of the issue is self-doubt. We’ve all wondered – can I really learn this, execute on this and succeed at this?

Whatever your ‘this’ is, and in case no one has told you lately — my answer is unequivocally, “Yes. Of course you can!”

Turn Up the Volume on Your Dreams

A positive mindset and correct thought process is the highest common denominator to your success. If you read Success Profiles and Savvy Startups here at YFS Magazine – not one of them will advise you to think lowly of yourself. Rather, quite contrary the resounding theme is – “Believe in yourself!”

We’ve all taken different paths in entrepreneurship. Therefore, a culmination of varying experiences and perspectives will make starting your own business very easy or perpetually harder. Whatever stage you find yourself at right now, here are three proven tips to help you cancel out the noise and experience high quality surround sound entrepreneurship.

1. Start where you are.

Too often, I’ve heard “I just need (insert magical number here) to get my business off the ground, otherwise I can’t do this.” Newsflash – many of today’s successful companies started with zilch … or close to it.

a. Whole Foods Market founders (25-year-old college dropout and his girlfriend) borrowed money to open the doors of their small Austin, Texas store. Within a year, the couple was evicted from their home for using their apartment for storage. “Homeless and with no place to go they decided to save costs by moving and living at their store full time (businesspundit.com).”  Fast forward circa now, and Whole Foods operates 304 stores across the U.S. with revenues of $9.006 billion.

b. In 1872, young German born immigrant, Adolf Coors took an initial investment of $2000 and led Coors Brewing Company to become one of the largest brewing companies in the world.

c. Swedish immigrant, John W. Nordstrom, came to America with five dollars to his name. Unable to speak English several years later he saved $13,000 and opened his first shoe store. Years later Nordstrom grew from the one shoe store in downtown Seattle to the now multi-billion dollar retail empire.

The theme amongst these humble startups is clear – start from where you are right now, wok hard and don’t quit.

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