I have been an entrepreneur for over 20 years. Here are some things I have learned along the way that helped get me to where I am at today!
- Don't partner with anyone "especially family members".
- Don't take out a business loan.
- Don't find outside investors.
- Create vision boards of what you want in your business and personal life.
- Build a strong management team for your business.
- Don't get an office until your business can sustain it and requires it.
- Know your numbers.
- Never stop learning.
- Boot strap your business.
- Start a business that you can afford to start.
- Don't quit your day job until your business can support you full time.
- Pay and treat your employees well.
- Plan ahead.
- Be budget conscious "don't over spend".
- Fail fast.
- Never give up "even if you fail multiple times"!
- Spend more than 10% of your profit on marketing that's working.
- Set 50% of the profit from your business aside for yourself.
- Company culture is very important.
- Have a vision that your employees can believe in and get behind!
- Have big goals and also minimum goals you must meet.
- Get outside your comfort zone.
- Make fast decisions and don't go back on them.
- Measure and track everything.
- Pay attention to your competitors.
- Business isn't fair.
- Don't let anyone push you around.
- Get rid of employees who do not fit the company culture.
- Don't be too serious, lighten up.
- Use systems and tools to automate your workload.
- Leverage systems and other people to accomplish work.
- Leverage your time efficiently so you can build multiple businesses.
- Always keep up to date and never stop learning!
- Reward your employees for meeting goals.
- Use proven methodologies to grow and manage your business.
- Reputation is irreversible, don't damage it.
- Limit the amount of times you check your email and social media.
- Don't answer the phone, call people back at designated hours of the day.
- Work hard today so you can have fun tomorrow.
