A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“Money isn’t what motivates entrepreneurs; it is acknowledgement – a craving for your ideas to be acknowledged.”
Reuben Singh (b. 1977) British entrepreneur & author, Management Today (September 1999)
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Although many people decide to try and realise their dream of starting their own business, unfortunately it often turns into a nightmare for them. It is estimated that around a third of new small businesses fail within two years and that figure rises to more than 50% over five years. The problem that many face is making simple mistakes due to their inexperience and unfortunately these turn out to be extremely costly, resulting in the business failing before it ever really had a chance to grow. This article examines five of the worst rookie errors that a business owner can make.
The most common mistake is to underestimate the level of capital that will be needed in order to safeguard against miscalculations or economic slowdown. It takes time for a business to build and for the first few months you may only achieve a small number of sales. In order to keep the business afloat during this difficult period it is advisable to have around three times the amount of capital that you expect will be needed.
Another problem that small businesses have is mainly due to the attitude of the business owner. If he or she is stuck in the mindset that the business is too small to aggressively compete with and win customers from larger competitors then it will always suffer from a lack of drive and self-belief.
It is also generally a big mistake to think that you can save money by under-investing in technology. This applies to all aspects of your business – for example you could save around a thousand dollars by purchasing a very cheap computer for the office. However, this hardware would be far more likely to break down often and cost you money in terms of hours wasted. One of the greatest advantages of being a small business is the ease in which you can quickly implement new technology into the way you work, whereas any change for a large company is a lengthy and expensive process.
Also, it is important not to lose focus of your main priority as a small business: making money. Being creative is wonderful but you must be able to monetise your ideas or sadly they are useless to you. Every business needs someone dedicated to sales (even if it is just you) to make sure that customers keep coming through the door.
Finally, do not lose focus of the direction in which you are headed. It is easy to become distracted or head off on an unprofitable tangent. Make sure that you have a clear vision of where your business is ultimately going and make specific plans with achievable goals to steer you in the right direction.
A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“I found that everywhere articles, especially drugs, were being sold at ridiculously high prices… My idea was simply to buy tons where others bought hundredweights or less, thus buying more cheaply.”
Jesse Boot (1850-1931) British entrepreneur & founder of Boots pharmacy chain, 1930, reflecting on his early success in mass-marketing Epsom salts, quoted in Enlightened Entrepreneurs (Ian Campbell Bradley; 1987)
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A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“Too much creative involvement can blind an entrepreneur to the hard reality of the bottom line.”
Heather Robertson (b. 1942) Canadian author, Taking Care of Business (1997)
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A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“I’m a dirt-under-the-nails serial entrepreneur.”
Donna Dubinsky (b. 1955) US IT executive, ‘Secrets of the Fastest-rising stars’, Fortune (Patricia Sellers: 2000)
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If you consider that anything that makes the entrepreneur or small business owner lose business focus, you can’t but help to come to the conclusion that IT – Information Technology, computers to you and me, are bad for business.
I can hear you asking, ‘what is he talking about’?
The point is that ‘time’ is the most precious commodity of any entrepreneur or small business owner. Given this fact, does it make sense for you to spend your time setting up computers, networks or even your website? The answer is a resounding NO.
Firstly, not only will you do a bad job, because you are unlikely to have all the necessary skills to do a good job. Not even computer people have all the skills needed for a good IT installation these days, it usually takes a team of specialists to do that.
Secondly, not only have you spent money you shouldn’t have, now you have also spent your time on a non-profit generating activity. You are taking your eyes off the ‘business’-ball, which is something you can’t afford to do, especially in a small business or home business.
This all should make you consider your IT needs and how to get what you need without losing business focus. OnlineOffice and other cloud computing applications are the best way forward for micro-businesses, which is nothing else than a very cost effective way to outsource your IT skills.
When are you taking your business into the clouds, in more than one way? — ST.
A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“Where would the Rockefellers be today if old John D. had gone on selling short-weight kerosene… to widows and orphans instead of wisely deciding to mulct the whole country.”
S. J. Perelman (1904-79) US humourist, letter (25 October 1976)
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A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“Risk means not knowing if, or when, you can pay yourself, or anyone else. It means working without health and pension plans, regular promotions, and paid vacations.”
Heather Robertson (b. 1942) Canadian author, Taking Care of Business (1997)
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A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“It’s better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of a cow.”
Stan Shih (b. 1944) Taiwanese CEO of the Acer Group, referring to a Taiwanese proverb and the preference of entrepreneurs for running their own small business, quoted in Giant Killers (Geoffrey James; 1996)
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A small business quote a day keeps you thinking, inspired and entertained
“The younger you are, the fewer responsibilities you have, the more prone you are to take risks and the more commitment you can put into your business.”
Reuben Singh (b. 1977) British entrepreneur and author, Management Today (September 1999)
To find previous Quotes of the Day look here
