About the Author: Brian Reese is the co-founder and CEO of TestSoup.com.  He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the United States Air Force Academy, CO, where he was a distinguished graduate in 2007.

“There is no such thing as one brilliant or earth-shattering idea.  Ideas are cheap.  Implementation and execution are what set apart the entrepreneurial contenders from the entrepreneurial pretenders.” –Brian Reese

For many people, the word “entrepreneurship” conjures up illusions of grandeur—thoughts of instant success and overnight riches.  For the great majority, however, the word “entrepreneurship” means late nights, early mornings, and sweat equity.
My assertion is this:  Entrepreneurship is neither about capitalizing on that one monumental idea nor about making millions of dollars.  Entrepreneurship is a passion.  Entrepreneurship is a continual process with many ups and downs.  Entrepreneurship is a mindset and a way of life.  Entrepreneurs constantly ask questions such as:  How can I make this process better?  How can I save my company both time and money?  How can I develop a new way to attack this old problem?

An entrepreneurial contender views entrepreneurship as a passion and a personal mantra for living one’s life.  He/she is thinking of ways to improve people, systems, and processes constantly.  An entrepreneurial pretender views entrepreneurship as a contest of thrills rather than a contest of wills.  An entrepreneurial pretender thinks that because he/she has a good idea, fame and riches are right around the next corner.  This is far from the truth.

I personally believe that every possible idea for a new product or service already has been thought of by somebody else.  Having a good idea does not make you a successful entrepreneur—it simply means you have a good idea.  Implementation and execution are what separate the entrepreneurial contenders from the entrepreneurial pretenders.

Successful entrepreneurs have the foresight to take decisive action to achieve desired results.  At the same time, successful entrepreneurs know when to persevere through adversity and when to quit and shift valuable resources to other projects.  Nobody likes to admit failure; however, entrepreneurs do not think of it as failure, they think of it as the “shifting valuable resources.”  In addition, successful entrepreneurs are not afraid to take on various roles within a start-up.  For example, in the early stages of a start-up, you may need to wear many different hats:  CEO, CFO, marketing manager, product development, etc.  This is completely normal.  Cherish this opportunity because your chance to call all the shots diminishes over time as more people and resources get involved with a start-up.

The bottom line is that there is nothing glamorous about being an entrepreneur.  Moreover, there is not one idea or implementation method that will guarantee a return on your investment.  It’s a tough process and not meant for the faint of heart.  Expect a constant teetering of risk and reward.  Don’t be afraid to take some calculated risks.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained.  Do not forget that sweat equity goes a long way—especially in the start-up environment.  Above all else, never be afraid to fail.

This article is neither meant to scare you nor prevent you from chasing your dreams.  Think of it more as a “truth tool” to show you what you are up against.  A venture capitalist told me a long time ago that he expects one out of every ten start-ups he invests in to provide a decent return and the other nine to fail miserably.  So, you might ask, why even bother in the first place?  Because, if you recall, entrepreneurship is a mindset.  A ceaseless desire to create, change, revise, and improve people, systems, and processes.  Successful entrepreneurs are not afraid to fail.  Successful entrepreneurs love to challenge the status quo—especially with the odds stacked against them.

About the Author: Tracy Campbell is CEO of Simplicated, LLC, Productivity Consultant, trainer and speaker.

“You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.”

Taking literary license and a spin toward the business owner, I suggest that, “Your business/career will be the same in five years as it is today except for the people you meet and the books you read.”  (Let me qualify “books you’ve read” to include all avenues available to learning, whether they be books, trainings, educational courses, etc.)

Given the above, I venture into the blogosphere following a theme, speaking to the books I read or the people I meet.

In Work The System, The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less, author Sam Carpenter comments,  “Too many corporate managers and small business owners see their businesses and the world as a complex mass of sights, sounds, and events.”  Speaking to the foundational reason for business mediocrity and failure, he goes on to state, “The leader isn’t seeing the mechanisms that are producing the bad results. If a leader is blind to the mechanics, he or she won’t be able to climb out of the morass.”

I unequivocally agree. Whether you are a seasoned business leader or recent start-up, failure to understand the mechanics of your business and create systems and procedures  in written form to support those mechanics will result in business chaos, stress, and mediocrity.

Statistics indicate employees who lack understanding of employer expectations and company operating procedures cost employers as much as $2,733 per employee per year in lost time and inefficiency. The “math” is easy; stressed employees that lack an understanding of expectations, policies and procedures will result in unstable, unpredictable products and/or customer service.

Conversely, when employees know what is expected of them, where to find what they need and how things are done, everyone benefits. Employees are more productive, less frustrated and more customer centric. Clients and customers find interactions professional and seamless. The company saves money and increases efficiency by minimizing training time and downtime.

What’s my point?  Create standard operating procedures for every step of your business, write them out, keep them current and make sure to respect and support your employees by training them step-by-step.   You’ll increase the caliber of your staff, the value of your business and the experience of your customer.  The satisfied customer is your best business strategy.

About the author: Carolyn Castleberry writes books for Simon & Schuster and Random House on money and time management, with a unique measure of faith added to the equation.   Find out more at www.carolyncastleberry.com

Before you solicit free investment advice from your hairdresser’s bookkeeper or your cousin’s neighbor’s insurance agent, do your homework. Think of your investment strategy as a relay race. You go as far as you can and then hand the baton to someone who can take over where you left off. The smart investor surrounds herself with a team of advisers who are professionals in their respective fields — stocks, mutual funds, real estate, finances, tax laws, and more. Unless you’ve got degrees in law, business, and accounting, and you’re a licensed stockbroker and real estate agent, you’re going to have to rely on the knowledge and skills of others in order to avoid costly errors. Here are three tips to get you started:

1. Save Hundreds of Dollars by Refusing to Pay Avoidable Fees.

One of the most important things in saving money is to find out exactly how people are charging you. For example, with a financial planner or investment adviser, the payment might be a percentage of the value of the assets he manages for you. Or it might be an hourly rate or a fixed fee.  With any payment arrangement, particularly fixed fees, be certain you understand what’s included for the price. Ask your consultant to alert you when you ask for a service that will involve an additional fee or commission. And don’t be afraid to ask for a detailed explanation of charges in advance. Doing this will save you hundreds, possibly thousands of dollars.

2. Watch for Conflicts of Interest

Also be aware of potential conflicts of interests in dealing with financial “experts”. Ask the consultant who else benefits from the advice he provides you. For example, does he receive referral rewards if you use a certain company? Who benefits when you purchase insurance or securities? It’s also fair to ask for the approximate percentage or premium the consultant receives when you purchase financial products. Be clear about potential conflicts of interest, and ask for a written disclosure of any relationships connected to your plan and its execution.

3. Keep Asking Questions about Your Money!

In choosing a stock broker – asking these questions will save you big bucks. How is the broker paid? First of all, you pay the broker a commission on the trades (purchases and sales) she makes for you.  She also may charge fees for transferring assets, closing an account, wire transfers, inactive accounts, not maintaining a minimum balance, and IRA custodian fees.   Ask your broker about her fee schedule before you start racking up excess – and avoidable – charges. If you don’t understand what this person is saying, keep asking until you do… or move on.

At the Wasabi Ventures Entrepreneurial Bible, we like sports and often work them into our business postings.  So, it was a special treat when we go to interview a start-up who was actually trying to make a business in the world of sports.  This week our Start-Up profile is Scott Swanay – President & Chief Sherpa , Fantasy Baseball Sherpa & Fantasy Football Sherpa.

Question and Answer:

Q: Have you ever started a business from scratch before?

A: No, prior to starting my fantasy sports advice business I worked as an actuary in the property-casualty insurance industry for 17 years.  I have an Applied Math degree from Harvard – it just took me a long time to discover that I wanted to apply my math to fantasy sports!

Q:  When you first lost your professional job, was creating a new business the first thing you thought to do?

A: Yes.  I’ve actually been laid off twice – the first time (2000) as the result of two regional offices within the same company being combined; the second time (2004) as a result of a merger between two companies. When I was laid off in 2000, I wrote a business plan for an online insurance agency that would serve as the middle man for small to mid-size companies looking to purchase business insurance.  However, after writing the business plan I realized I needed a lot of money ($25-50 Mil) to make the project work, and I also needed a nest egg that would allow me to go without an income for a couple of years.  I had neither.  So, I decided to take another actuarial job in the insurance industry, then put all my discretionary income at the end of each month into a “career transition account”.  When I was laid off for the 2nd time in 2004, I immediately began planning to start my own business using the savings I’d accumulated over the past 4 years.

Q:  What is the largest challenge you have had as you started a new business?

A: My industry (fantasy sports advice) is unique in that happy customers generally will not recommend my service to others – they view me as their secret weapon or competitive advantage, and they don’t want to share that with others!  This creates a marketing challenge:  how do I get the word out about my business when I can’t rely on my customers’ word-of-mouth?

Q:  What is the largest lifestyle change you have had to undergo as you moved to being an entrepreneur?

A: Constantly thinking about finances.  When I worked as an actuary in the insurance industry, I made a good salary, and since I don’t have any expensive hobbies, I could generally spend money whenever I wanted to without having to worry about it.  As an entrepreneur I’m much more conservative in my spending, and I watch every penny like a hawk.

Q:  Do you ever see yourself going back to the corporate world?

A: I have a strong preference not to, but I’ll never say never.  If a bigger company were to acquire my business and offer me a personal services contract to continue managing the business, that’s something I’d have to seriously consider.

Q:  When will you consider yourself a success as a start-up?

A: I already consider my start-up a success in that I’m doing something I love, I’m following my dreams, and I have customers willing to pay for my service.  However, it will be nice when I get to the point where my customer base is large enough to support some of the plans I have for future expansion.