Team Altman Great Creating Buzz Video!

We are always in search of Entrepreneurs that have found and developed their pathway to success and share the knowledge and experiences they have acquired along the way. There is no better way to learn entrepreneurial wisdom and not only “what to do,” but also “what not to do.” Stephen Hanson, founder of B.R. Guest Restaurants in New York, speaks with WSJ’s Colleen DeBaise about establishing a successful chain of eateries and surviving the recession.

As always enjoy, and share the Creating Buzz!

Share on Facebook

                             

 

Entrepreneurs who have owned and operated their business for very long have learned to appreciate the impact the global economy can have on their businesses, even at a local level that seems to be in relatively good shape in comparison to other niche markets, and the ripple effect of negative market conditions tend to migrate both nationally and globally, sometimes very slowly, yet at times quickly depending on the initial market impact.

The track economies take always goes up in good times and then comes down in more challenging market conditions, and then back up, riding the optimism of good times followed by the pessimism of shrinking markets, and back up again, leaving the entrepreneur with greater challenges to successfully adjust operations during economic downturns, and the timing of the adjustments is critical to both lessen the effect of negative conditions, and take full advantage of positive market conditions in the most timely manner, and increase the positive effect on the bottom line profit.

The first thing global entrepreneurs need to do to master their markets is grow emotional skin thick enough to not only keep from feeling sorry when the economy slows, but also not to get too excited when the economies turn, start to grow, and begin performing at higher levels.

A realization and considerable understanding has to be developed and reached about the ebb and flow of economic conditions of the markets, as they are going to do what the markets are going to do normally in reaction to ever changing economic conditions both positive and negative, and of course there is very little that anyone can do to change the natural occurrence of economic events and cycles, although well-intentioned governments tend to always try and take actions to positively impact economic cycles, but too many times they only succeed in the exacerbation and extension of the negative portion of the cycles.

Once Entrepreneurs are able to gain greater control of their emotions it becomes easier to focus on the many processes of operating the business in the most efficient way in relation to economic conditions, with the goal of maximum efficiencies that directly translates to not only maximum profits, but maximized positive cash-flow as well. Also, when focused and clear thinking is developed, the easier it is to maintain greater focus and the more creative one becomes, the more success Entrepreneurs experience in making the correct, yet sometimes difficult strategic decisions at the right time, especially when there is some level of discomfort.

The focused mind set of the successful Entrepreneur always looks for ways they can use poorly performing economies to their advantage, making “lemonade out of the lemons” they have been handed, and they succeed through innovation, which is what the true Entrepreneurs are best known for. Not only are customers, products and services viewed and thought of differently, but promotional strategies are viewed with an emphasis on regular adaptation and modification based on challenges of shifting and evolving market conditions, or “lemons” the economic world has thrown at the Entrepreneur.

It is critically important to keep in mind that when the local, national and global economies improve, the fruits of innovative mindset thinking remain in the form of new ideas and concepts within the business, and the Entrepreneur has developed and put together a bigger bag of new market strategies, systems and processes that ultimately pay great dividends during both growing economies and recessions.

Entrepreneurs collectively with the other millions of small business owners throughout the world are the global economy’s backbone and ultimate solution to moving it towards any economic turnaround, whether locally, nationally or globally. Together, the collective entrepreneurial mind set of Small Business moves from pessimism to optimism, and as people become more optimistic they in turn spend money, and jobs are created.

The greatest advice to remember is to “think globally and act locally”, take the “lemons and make lemonade”, and always be part of the solution as the markets grow and recede, and economic struggles are fought, won and lost, and people go back and forth between optimism and pessimism.

Unexpected events and tragedies will always have an effect on the economy, but how the Entrepreneur views their business and markets, reacts to challenges and quickly develops innovations, will determine their ultimate survival and the level of success achieved, which is why any of us make the choice to become Entrepreneurs in the first place.

Share on Facebook

                             

 

When we think of the word “Success” it can have many different meanings to people including the top grade on a test, retirement to a dream location, enough money to take care of desires, or enough to pay for children’s education at the best schools. So whatever the individual’s definition is, it is always about achievement of that certain something or getting to that certain place.

We have discovered that as much as people in general say they want success, extremely few actually put in the time and effort, and seek out and get the help they need in order to define and achieve their goals for success. Time and time again we hear the excuses and weak reasoning, as to why they failed to follow through including “my parents didn’t prepare me,” “I didn’t get the right education,” “I’ll wait for the economy to improve,” and “I’m stuck trying to decide what to do.”

Through the experience of helping thousands of Entrepreneurs be successful, I have observed there are people that believe they can and will succeed, and those who truly do not, and as it turns out the overwhelming majority of the time, both kinds are almost always right. When we look closely at the strongest personality traits of the true Entrepreneur, they believe they will succeed, and will do whatever it takes to reach the goals they have set to measure their success and make their dreams come true. An out of work employee who hasn’t been able to find another job decides to run the risk of starting their own business, an Entrepreneur whose business is struggling just to break-even, and decides to seek much needed help from someone that knows how to improve businesses. They both know and understand that what stands in their path to success are really opportunities and challenges that need the right planning and effort to meet and overcome.

But when we look closely at those without the right kind of drive to achieve success, any kind of challenge gives them an “excuse” to put off, delay, quit, or as they almost always manage to do, lay blame for their failures on others, so they don’t have to ask someone for help, or even simply change how they do things. They fail to develop a plan to follow closely, and make the necessary changes and adjustments to stay on the path to success, and this is one of the biggest reasons why 45% of businesses fail within the first two years and 90% fail within 10 years.

People instilled with a strong entrepreneurial spirit know what they believe, and are willing to do whatever it takes including the steps necessary to clearly define their mission and vision, and concisely plan how they will achieve their goals and dreams of SUCCESS, and then successfully execute their plan.

Share on Facebook