Well, I made money in the first year...in the first couple months, actually. I run a consulting business. The other guys...let's get some definitions going here. They made revenue. Unless they were totally hopeless, they had some cash coming in. But they also had expenses going out. Manufacture...
I'm going to give you a personal experience. I wanted some business experts to join a panel of judges and this was my "execution plan": Research universities and non-profits where this executives or business people give their time. Why? Most successful people that can teach (both are dif...
WHO THE HELL NEEDS A LIFE COACH? That's another name for "mom". How do you expect to charge for that? Being a warm shoulder to lean on is quite a bit different than being able to charge people to give them advice. I drink beer (and talk strategy) with people that I would NEVER pay to listen to...
Scared shitless. Self-doubt. Poor sleep. Waking up with pangs of fear. Doubt I made the right choice to leave my job. Doubt. Doubt. Doubt and doubt. The ups and downs will continue...for ever. The July thing that changes (if you stick with it) is you learn to enjoy the ride.
Of course! this is the modern day world - people don't remotely need to be in the same place so long as they are good at communicating
I have a three year old and a six year old now, and a company that's only seven years old. I thought long and hard about what it took to be an entrepreneur of a new company along with a dad and I've definitely learned my lesson(s) over the years. My biggest tips would be to make your workflow an...
The best way would be to hire an expert on oDesk, etc. which is fairly cheap and also reliable. But It sounds like you want to go even cheaper than that. Try posting on StackExchange, which is free. Another cheap option is to check local Meetup.com tech gatherings in your area and ask some expert...
Excellent question (and excellent answers here too). I'm 18 months into my start-up. That's 18 months of learning what is essential to survival and what is a waste of energy and space. Here is what is helping me most: 1. Communication essentials: Business cards (moo.com), laptop, phone, and Int...
This depends on your business, of course, but typically you will want to show that you are running as a viable business on the operations side (that you have clear processes and team members have defined roles and responsibilities). You will want to have established your market (i.e. have some cu...
Well done! You now realize that it is not the idea alone that matters. Too many would-be entrepreneurs miss this understanding. Marketing is an art when done correctly. It must be rooted in the 4Ps as we say, but it MUST be uniquely inspired by the goods and/or services that need to be "Crossin...