Getting into the entrepreneurial mindset

[Steve]

With the creation of my new blog HardcoreUnemployable.com I thought it would be appropriate to kick it off with the mindset you need to get a business started. First off no one knows for sure what is or what is not going to work. Especially when you are just getting started. One of the reasons why I like the lawn care business so much to get yourself into the entrepreneurial mind set is that you can start it with a limited amount of money and a limited amount of time. When you start on a small scale with a service business, it's pretty simple. You see how much you are making per hour and you can calculate your expenses to get a quick idea of your profit. Service businesses are wonderful ways to get started in the entrepreneurial world. When you come up with a product you want to design, fabricate, market and hopefully sell. No one knows if it's going to sell. That is part of the exploration you are to take. If you hit on something that sells, then good for you and scale it up to meet the growing demand. If you don't hit on something, that is ok too. I would venture to guess that most business ideas aren't going to work. Trying something and throwing it out for the market to decide if they want to buy it or not, is what it's all about. If something doesn't sell, that is ok! It's ok if it didn't work. The beauty of it is that you are building an understanding and an infrastructure to create, design and sell a product. What you don't want to do is bet the farm on it and say it's all or nothing. Why? Because if it doesn't work, you aren't going to get another chance at it. One of the secrets to success is giving yourself as many opportunities as possible to succeed. That means having money in reserve to experiment with the next idea. If your first one doesn't work, play with it. Add something or subtract something from it. Experiment with the ingredients in your mixture and then present the new idea. The most important part of it all is to not give up. You will be amazed at what you can learn when you give yourself time to experiment. If you have a thought on this or a story you have gone through, I'd love to hear it. I am sure it will inspire others.

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How to get lawn care customers - Vol 2

Originally Posted by Steve What you don't want to do is bet the farm on it and say it's all or nothing. Why? Because if it doesn't work, you aren't going to get another chance at it. One of the secrets to success is giving yourself as many opportunities as possible to succeed. I'm not entirely disagreeing, but in my case it had to do with age and how many times prior I had already tried... It gets to a point, we get older and we've tried a certain something so many times, how many more tries is it going to take? More specifically, how many more times am I willing to work so hard towards something, just to see myself and the enterprise fail? Having been around that very block enough times, I told myself if it didn't work out this time then I would just have to swallow the rest of my pride once and for all and go work for the man for the rest of my life. That was a tough cookie for me to swallow and it is a good part of what drove me, 8 years later I think I got it down this time.

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Last edited by 8307c4; 03-14-2009 at 03:04 AM.

[picframer]

I would agree with a couple of items in your thread, don't bet the entire farm.

Research, a good business plan based on it and a solid marketing plan will more often than not make the product/company a go, I base this on 18 years of Commercial and Corporate banking, having read hundreds of business plans and seeing the customer presentation, I put as much weight on the customer presentation as I did the plan, if I didn't see that they were confident, even if they had a solid business plan, I didn't approve the loan. In all these years I had two loans go south.

If a person/lender or consumer has the attitude this will probably not work out, then it probably will not.

In woodworking I do my research which includes asking a lot of customers and potential customers their thoughts, making a prototype and seeing the customer reaction, if positive then it's a go. In 18 years of using this simple idea I have never had a product not sell.

Lawn care will be interesting and I am eager to see the results, I did my research asking potential clients what they like and dislike about their current provider, I looked at the competition, my focus was the biggest company in my area and how did they get there, what were their clients feeling, what could I do better, that is what I am going after personally.

Some of my ideas don't fly and I am cool with that, before spending a lot of time on them at the start I ask family, friends etc what they think of the idea, by friends it's people that I have come across that have succeeded it business.

[swstout]

--> Steve said, “First off no one knows for sure what is or what is not going to work, especially when you are just getting started.” I feel that if you get started in something you actually enjoy, you will be much closer to having the mindset you need to succeed. Working for “the man” is easier than working for yourself because you only have one boss. Working for yourself is working for another “boss” with every customer you cultivate. I say cultivate, not obtain, because you must fill the needs of each new customer you get. If you enjoy what you are doing and take pride in your work, each new “boss” will feel you will meet or exceed his or her expectations. If you project this attitude, you will succeed.

Picframer relates the benefits of research “a good business plan based on it and a solid marketing plan will more often than not make the product/company a go”… “Lawn care will be interesting and I am eager to see the results, I did my research asking potential clients what they like and dislike about their current provider, I looked at the competition, my focus was the biggest company in my area and how did they get there, what were their clients feeling, what could I do better, that is what I am going after personally.” Again, an attitude of finding and developing benefits for the customer!

Steve