Stay One Step Ahead of the Robots
by Case Lane
The rise of technology into every area of our lives has frightened many people into believing the unchecked advances will eventually overwhelm us. Humans will fight the machines…and lose.
But when humans face a new fear – diseases, rodents, other humans – the response has usually been to…fight. Throughout history, humans have challenged attackers head on. The survival instinct has made fighting part of human DNA.
The Rise of Robots
Now comes the rise of robots. Or more specifically the advent of robotic and artificial intelligence products and services that can replace the work currently being done by humans. The fear is that these technological marvels will render humans useless.
People with no work lose their self-confidence and dignity. They turn to substance abuse, violence and other harms to express their frustration. A world where humans believe they have no work is a world no humans would want to live in.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Although many people have been faced with technological change in the workplace, to the point of losing their jobs to technology, the response has been to expect more of the same.
But the response could be…to redefine your value.
The New Hope for Humans
The rise of technology matches the rise of human freedom and independence. Although there are many governments who will use technology to control their population, the difference with advances in the past is that those governments can also have technology used against them.
For the first time, the people have within their ‘brain’ power, the opportunity to override government action with technology solutions of their own. And in so doing to maintain their freedom and independence.
Aspiring entrepreneurs can take advantage of the same opportunity. The rise of a global, high tech future means the every day person has the opportunity to live life on their terms.
This type of freedom has never existed before in history. People were always constrained. In the beginning you were politically free but controlled by your resources, and up to the 20th century your freedom was politically controlled although resources were abundant.
Now the shackles are being thrown off, but a new fear has emerged. The one where you are so free, you are not wanted by anyone, and your value is reduced to nothing by technology that can do everything you can do.
Entrepreneurs Do What the Robots Cannot Do
For an aspiring entrepreneur, this potentially dire fate is actually an open door. Aspiring entrepreneurs can control of their own futures, by starting a business, defining the value you intend to create, and becoming valued for being human with the ability to deliver your product and service in a way only humans can make viable.
Entrepreneurs by definition identify new opportunities. Sometimes the product or service you intend to bring to market already exists in form. If you want to help people learn to paint, or sing or you want to create a new bag or t-shirt. Those products and services exist – but they may not necessarily exist for the audience you intend to target.
For the aspiring entrepreneur, your audience is the one that wants the product or service from you because of the way you design, produce and/or distribute it. You can buy books anywhere, but you buy books on Amazon because they are delivered to your door.
Many companies make computers, but people buy Apple computers because they’re slickly designed.
And when it comes to fashion – t-shirts to haut couture dresses, flip-flops to high heels – the marketplace wants an extraordinary variety of products.
Entrepreneurs fill gaps in the global marketplace. The plan for the robots is to do work that already exists. But not all work can be delivered by robots. Even if you believe that may not be the case someday, the chances that you living right now, will see robots do absolutely every single possible job in the world is probably zero.
Robots also do not do the most human-contact type of work from hair stylists to surgeons. As long as humans want to maintain contact with humans in professions where human thought and interaction are required, the robots will be one step behind.
The Technology Risk to Entrepreneurs
Now obviously there are no guarantees. Science and technology can accelerate at any moment and place your business at a disadvantage. But that has been the prediction throughout history. Sometimes when technology replaces an entrenched product or service, the product makes a comeback, or evolves to fulfill a new need.
Vinyl records now sell for 5 or 10 times the price people used to pay for them because the once ubiquitous item has become a novelty people purchase as a gift or collector’s item.
Other items like the 8-track tape player are not expected to return, ever.
But as an aspiring entrepreneur with one eye on the global marketplace and the other on your niche audience’s demands, you can hedge your own bets about what may or may not work by focusing on fulfilling the need your audience has right now.
The path to controlling your professional life runs through entrepreneurship. By turning yourself into a person who recognizes a gap in the market, you can deliver value to more people who are searching for the same thing.
Because you have to find a product or service that your audience wants or needs, by definition, that product or service does not already exist. And therefore the chance that robots or A.I. can deliver the product or service also does not yet exist.
If you are fulfilling someone else’s vision or working at a company where someone has a specific idea about how the product or service is delivered, you likely have limited flexibility within your job, and perhaps in the not to distant future, no job at all.
Any product or service that exists today is vulnerable to replacement by technology. Robots or A.I. can do many of the activities that humans have always done.
Which job is next for replacement?
At Singapore’s state-of-the-art Changi International Airport, one of the best airports in the world, passengers with time to spare can leave their luggage in traditional baggage storage, or self check-in the baggage at the same time as themselves.
The process involves no humans, only sensors, cameras and prompts provided to you by a screen. An airline ticket counter agent was a position that required training. But the functions were easily automated. The checks and controls gate agents used to provide were covered by cameras. And the rest of the task was left up to the passenger.
As you consider today’s employment field, focus on the positions that have repetitive and mechanical steps. Those are the jobs that can be replaced.
As an aspiring entrepreneur, you create the job for yourself and your team. You are not, at least not immediately, facing the same vulnerability to replacement as existing controlled positions. As long as you maintain your unique approach to the product or service you are delivering, you maintain your distinct advantage over the robots.
The job you create for yourself by becoming an entrepreneur puts you in charge of a future you create.
Cherish the Value of Humans
Your vision is singular. Can robots see the world as we do? Not yet, and probably not ever. Because it’s the essential humanness of ourselves that we put into our business that makes it valuable to other humans.
As long as humans value humans. We will value what humans do. And your opportunity to be your own boss and be part of the global marketplace comes from your ability to put something new and differentiated in to it.
You stay one step ahead of the robots by identifying the value you add to the marketplace, and making that value available to those who want and need your product.
If you are still trying to think of an idea, or you are working on building your business, either way, you are already ahead of the airline counter agents, and those like them whose tasks can be performed by technology.
And if you continue to build on your idea and make your business successful. You are also one step ahead of those who are missing out on the life they really want because they work on someone else’s dreams.
You get to your life dream through globalization and technology. Even if you have been negatively affected by the twin forces of 21st century change, you can use the setback to your advantage, by leveraging the exact same forces that upended you, to make a better world for yourself.
In summary:
Stay One Step Ahead of the Robots:
- Globalization and technology are the twin forces of change that are here to stay
- Many jobs from airline ticket counter agents and beyond will be replaced by technology solutions
- You can hedge your bets against being replaced by robots or A.I., by developing your business idea
- Your business idea is designed by you to bring value to the global marketplace based on gaps and opportunities that you can see need to be filled.
- You develop your idea based on your individual uniqueness and qualities that appeal to your audience
- You create a product or service that is valued for its innovation, production or distribution – and therefore is unique to the vision you have seen
- You stay one step ahead of the robots by creating your own business, providing a product or service that is valued in the global marketplace, and continuing to deliver results for your audience
How Do You Force Yourself to Do What You Really Want to Do
by Case Lane
Aspiring entrepreneurs can learn about entrepreneurship by reading about or listening to successful entrepreneurs like Bill Gates or Martha Stewart or Oprah.
But hearing about success sometimes leads to a limiting belief that what those people did is not possible for everyone. There is an idea that the successful are wired differently, and therefore have capabilities that do not apply to the average person. Aspiring entrepreneurs are left wondering, how the successful are able to actually do the work they do.
Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay
Famously Bill Gates spent endless hours tinkering with computers; Martha Stewart obsesses over every tablecloth; Oprah chased the good stories. They all seem to have some sort of special trigger inside them that propels them forward to success down the entrepreneurial path. If that’s true, how does the average aspirant to entrepreneurial wealth and achievement become one of the them?
Is it possible to make yourself…force yourself to become the successful person you’ve always wanted to be?
The Success Words
The chapter headings from Lewis Howes’ book The School of Greatness, read like the step-by-step lines from any familiar success manual. The headings are: create a vision, turn adversity into advantage, cultivate a champion’s mindset, develop hustle, master your body, practice positive habits, build a winning team, live a life of service.
The book emphasizes greatness in general, in how you live your life.
But the challenge for so many is that those success lines and even the tips that come along with it are all great advice that so many people have difficulty implementing. These are the actions and ideas you need to develop if you want to reverse the struggles of your life, or any type of past backwards pace. But understanding that fundamental fact is often only the first step.
Understanding the intention of the advice helps you realize what you need to do. The next, and more complicated step is to determine ‘how’ you are going to fulfill those success goals. And the ‘how’ must be compatible with your personality, your lifestyle and your best efforts.
The step to learn next is to figure out how you do the activities that you know you want to do because you want to achieve greatness by building your entrepreneurial dream.
Here are 4 strategies to help you achieve the ‘how’ for making yourself that person you wish you were…
1. Think about Your Plan all the time
The best way to cultivate your entrepreneurial mindset is to think about your business idea and your plans 24/7/365. Immerse yourself in your own vision of being a successful entrepreneur with a business you own, and control of your lifestyle.
The most successful entrepreneurs think about their business – the opportunity, scope for improvement, operations, the team, all aspects of the enterprises – in all situations. You can do the same with your business idea, and the plan for your business.
Image by Pexels from Pixabay
You become an entrepreneur, by being an entrepreneur. Transforming to your dream life through entrepreneurship is about reinventing yourself, changing who you imagine yourself to be, and doing what you have always wanted to do.
You may feel that constantly thinking and talking about your business will alienate you from your friends or family. But you are on a mission to improve your life. If those around you do not support your actions, they have alienated themselves from you.
Create a vision in your mind of your future as an entrepreneur, and hold to that vision in your present. Think it, operate in it, push it all the time as your singular purpose. At a certain point, you are going to want to be living that vision. You are going to want it as your reality because you have made it possible.
2. Clear Your Space
With the minimalist movement gaining support and adherents the idea of working in a less-cluttered environment has become a trend. But the clean-up is also a proactive way to set yourself up in a success-promoting environment.
You want to operate in an environment without distractions. Sometimes our inability to do the activities we need to do to become successful are a reflection of being around too many things we do not want to do – like cleaning up – that all provide an excuse for not moving forward.
Begin your movement towards being your own champion by clearing away a piece of clutter each day. Pick up the piece of clutter you have been seen in the same place for more than six months and…throw it away.
Top performers work in an environment that focuses on their business. You need the tools and resources you will use to be close at hand, and all other diversions to be tucked away. You are trying to put yourself in the same shoes as the most successful entrepreneurs you know. People who focused on building their business. If you want to be one of those people, you have to focus too.
Any item that is truly meaningful or beneficial to you should be appropriately organized. You may already have shelves, boxes or envelopes where you can put items of value. Everything else can go.
Clearing your space can reduce your sense of overwhelm by giving yourself room to function in the best environment you can create.
3. Look for allies
Setting out to build your own business can be lonely and difficult. You may not have any support among family or friends. You may be afraid to talk about entrepreneurship at work because you think people will think you’re out of your league. And you may be tolling away with trying to create your business idea without any help.
But you can find motivation and support by quietly, and confidently, asking around to find out if anyone is doing, or wants to do, what you want to be doing.
Unless you’re in Silicon Valley, finding people who support the idea of starting their own business may be a quick way to lose friends. But you can carefully begin looking for allies by speaking about your business whenever it’s appropriate. Learn who responds well and who quickly changes the subject. You may be surprised to learn who your allies are.
Say to your spouse, partner, sibling, colleague, friend a statement like: ‘hey, I’m doing some research about the business idea I’ve had for years, would you be interested in the things I learn?’
For every person who replies ‘no way,’ there may be one who says ‘yeah, I’ve always been interested in starting a business, tell me more.’ The idea is to find someone who aligns with you. If that person becomes your accountability buddy that’s even better.
To help you stay on track with your dream, and make your plan a reality, you can make a commitment to someone other than yourself. If you form an alliance with someone, you’re more likely to get things done.
However, if you come from a world where no one at all responds favorably to your low-key approach, you can still form alliances – with virtual mentors. Your virtual mentors are the people whose books, videos, speeches, interviews, courses and shows become part of your life when you are researching how to be successful with your business.
You can listen to hours of someone encouraging you to be strong, stay committed to your dream and so on. This provides you with effectively the background soundtrack to your aspirations. And a chance to be aligned with people who are on your side, even if you’ve never met them before in your life.
4. Plan to Work
Writing down goals you plan to complete is much easier than actually doing the work to see those goals finished. To make the exercise more tangible, write down goals, that are accompanied by specific action.
Step-by-step, hour-by-hour goals are designed to take you exactly where you want to be in an orderly and planned fashion. Instead of a lofty ‘I want to be a millionaire’ goal, write down exactly what you would have to do to become a millionaire. What would you have to do every day?
For example, in my book A Better Plan, I encourage financially challenged readers to calculate exactly how many hours they would have to work, at their current wage to earn one million dollars. If your current wage is $12 an hour, you would need to work eight hours a day for about 83,000 hours or 40 years. Once you have that baseline, you can figure which variables to change to reach your goal faster.
But at the same time, each hour that you’re working is still getting you towards your goal.
A detailed plan for building your business may take you months to write, but the goal is to get started. Think of the plan like the notes for your autobiography, how would you describe the detailed story for anyone who wanted to ask.
The plan becomes your blueprint for how you are going to create the business. Write the story in all its detail. For example if you get a loan for one million dollars, write out how you would go about procuring that loan. Who would help you and why? Write out every word. And take all the time you need on doing it.
You can write a line or two in the morning, or at work. Buy a planner or desk calendar and write on each of the days of the week. Lay out your plan in all its glorious detail.
The point is to give your a roadmap, a point of reference, a vision that you can use to lead yourself exactly where you want to go. And to help you to move forward on achieving your life dream.
These four strategies can help you think clearly about yourself as an entrepreneur. You can force yourself to do what you really want to do – which in our case is transition to lifestyle freedom by becoming an entrepreneur – by making strategic moves towards your goal.
Even if you’re still saying – but how? – think of these four strategies as the activities that help you identify the ‘how.’
If you want to know how to literally force your fingers to start writing, or how to open your mouth to ask a friend if they’re interested in business, you may not be committed to the goal of achieving the life you want through entrepreneurship.
If you are sit on the couch and do not move in any form or direction because you believe your dream will materialize without effort, then neither these strategies or any others will help you.
But if you’re ready to move forward, to take the initial steps, then you are on your way. Improve your life for yourself and take action to achieve your dreams.
To help yourself do what you really want to do:
1. Think about what you want to do all the time
2. Clear the space around you of distractions and diversions
3. Find some allies, either real or virtual, who will support you
4. Plan the work you have to do in specific detail
When you lay out your vision, you find you are compelled to move forward and bring it all into fruition. And before you know it, you will be walking, talking and living as the entrepreneur you have always wanted to be.
Disclosure: links to Amazon.com are affiliate links. I participate in the Amazon Affiliates program and earn for eligible purchases
How to Successfully Take an Online Course
by Case Lane
When researching how to become an entrepreneur, many people watch and listen to the pitches for online courses made by a variety of ‘gurus’ who claim to be able to get you to a million dollars, in ten minutes, doing nothing – if you just pay for their multi-part program.
Course are offered for everything from how to make money on Instagram to how to launch a product. These courses often come from successful millionaires with plenty of testimonials and ideas around – their ‘proven’ system that anyone can emulate.
And there lies the catch. The course program often comes from the creator’s process that led to success.
But how do you know if it will work for you?
Image by Jan Vašek from Pixabay
An online course is a shortcut. Instead of trial and error, you follow a step-by-step process that has a proven record of success. But people rarely finish the entire course, or they do finish, but are discouraged by the results. This disconnect can be avoided by understanding a few points about the process.
The Value of Online Courses
Online education in general is growing and critical to the way we function in the 21st century. Learning from successful people who have done the work you wish to do is highly valuable. But most people can only reach those great teachers through an online course.
The course price ranges from free to thousands of dollars, with access from one-time to lifetime, and the time commitment from fifteen minutes, to months. The results are just as varied and unyielding.
Some include plenty of additional materials, some provide access to a private Facebook group, some provide coaching, some keep trying to upsell you additional modules, some are subscription based – and everything in-between.
For an aspiring entrepreneur who wants to use an online program of study to learn how to start a business, the value for money offered by the program is important. This article covers this type of experience and intention, and covers how to evaluate a course, and use it to your advantage.
Courses provide aggregated information and save time in researching blog after blog or watching video after video about a specific subject. Many are set-up around processes you can follow to create and launch a business based on the topic you have chosen.
When it comes to online courses that make a promise for your business – like how to build an audience, sell more product, or grow X times – it is important to consider these four factors when deciding to whether or not to move forward with the course purchase:
1. Listen carefully – Do you understand the context for the promised success?
2. Do the work – Are you prepared to do the course work?
3. Hold the course creator to the promise of the course
4. Measure your ROI – How much will you need to earn to recover the cost of the course?
Audio fans! Prefer to ‘listen’ to the content of this blog. You can check out the podcast of the same name, Episode 48 of The Ready Entrepreneur Podcast is available at Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen to podcasts.
Before you start…
Keeping those four points in mind, there are also common ‘technical’ factors you should consider.
Price
If you are taking the course to learn how to start a business, you will have no idea if the course will be worth the money. Until you have seen the course, gone through the work, and applied it to your business, you will not know the benefit.
If you are buying the course because you saw a webinar or online seminar from the course creator – and that material was solid – you can have some confidence that the whole course will be good. At that point, you can consider the money an investment in your education like the $100 grand you spent on college.
Testimonials
Course creator will inevitability use testimonials to encourage you to believe in the value of the course. Go beyond the course creator’s word for feedback on the course. Sometimes this is difficult to find because people with buyers’ remorse are reluctant to confess they spent thousands on a course that turned out to be useless for them. But sometimes you can find the information you’re looking for if you look at forums or Facebook groups where people are posting comments
Time
Once you make the dollar commitment, you must set aside the time to work on the material. If the buy offer is time sensitive, you have to decide quickly if you intend to keep the course. Often there are money-back guarantees, but only if you act within a certain timeframe. So make sure you are ready to work right from the day you buy. More on this below.
1. Listen carefully – Do you understand the context for the promised success?
Many how-to types of courses are based on the course creator’s own experience, which is great. But you have to decide if that experience applies to you. When the course creator is promising success, listen carefully for the context that the creator is telling you about especially when they give background material about how they created the process.
Is the creator an expert in the field based on work or experience?
Has the creator taught others offline, and therefore applied the process in the real world?
Did the creator have a once-in-a-lifetime event like a specific mentor who propelled the business along?
Listen for what they’re not telling you. What part of their background story has been left out? If they seem to have gone from 0 to $1 million overnight, ask about that. Many presentations have Q&A sessions where you can ask about the details.
Take advantage of this time, or send an immediate e-mail to the facilitator or directly to the presenter’s business e-mail. You may be told the the answer is in the course, but you have to decide if the story makes sense to you.
Does the proposed path to success fit the circumstances of your life?
2. Do the work – Are you prepared to do the course work?
Sometimes a course creator will guarantee a refund within a specific time if you can prove you did the work. That is valid. If you’re going to spend the money at least do the work before complaining that the process does not work. Start from the beginning, and work through every module and exercise.
Determine the ‘extras’ you have to do to make the process work. For example, if the course is about how to use Facebook ads that will grow your business – does it include how to write copy, select pictures and create clever headlines? Or will you have to learn that separately or figure out how to outsource the work?
As you’re watching the videos or reading the documents, pay close attention to every step that you have to do. Keep a step-by-step list of exactly which resources you will need, and estimate how long each step might take. If you’re not sure about a step, send them an e-mail and ask for clarification.
For example:
If their example has images – make a note that you will need to look for images related to your product (and that takes time).
If the recommendation is to create an e-mail list, an account will be required, so you will have to sign-up.
If they are showing you software or apps, you might want to take a separate day or two to review all your options before picking the one they show you in the video. Often the course has a discounted offer, but you may not like the features, or it may not be the best option for your business.
Keep track of all these extra steps. Believe me when they tell you it will only take 5 minutes to do a particular step – it never does.
One way to get a good overview is to review every video once just to understand the general intent, and go back and do the work in ‘real time’ with my own business.
If you took solid notes on the ‘extras’ you’ll be prepared, and not overwhelmed by surprises.
3. Hold the course creator to the promise of the content
A good course should absolutely provide you with a support email or process for contacting the creator or course organization. Make sure you follow-up on any questions you have. You can send e-mails every day about the course materials.
Some creators may try and prompt you to their ‘coaching’ offering. But if you are asking questions specifically about the course materials (not your business), you should be able to get direct answers.
Especially ask questions if you followed the process to the letter, and it still did not work for you. Maybe policies have changed, or an application became super expensive, or any other reason that separates their method from your success. Although courses can be upgraded, materials are all created in the past, and can become outdated.
These clarifications are helpful to course creators who should want to know if there are mistakes or outdated material. Also by taking advantage of their support process by pointing out a disconnect between the material and the current marketplace, you might get an extra bit of coaching or assistance included in the price.
4. Measure your ROI – How much will you need to earn to recover the cost of the course?
Make sure you keep track of exactly how much you spend on the course, including any ‘extras,’ and therefore how much you want to get back in the form of increased revenue to your business.
If you’re just starting out and trying to learn as much as possible, you probably won’t have an ROI, but you could be saving money in the future because you are learning shortcuts that will help you in the business.
Keep track of these ‘wins’ to decide if the course is really valuable.
If you have been doing a lot of individual research and decide to do a course – compare the process of reading blogs and watching YouTube videos to having everything in one compact place. There are some courses that provide hints and ideas that do not appear anywhere else.
Courses are a great way to get started, gather a lot of information related to your business, and learn a path for moving forward. But you do not need to believe the promises made by the course creator.
Instead, you can methodically approach the material, and make sure it delivers to your expectations.
If you would like to ‘listen’ to this information. Check out the podcast on this subject, Episode 48 of The Ready Entrepreneur Podcast is available at Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen to podcasts.
What the UN says about entrepreneurship
by Case Lane
Entrepreneurs exist in every country, region, gender, ethnicity and neighborhood.
Even in countries facing oppression or government control, there always appears to be a go-getter who is trying to make a deal. And at the highest levels of international multi-lateral organizations that provide ideas and guidance to governments, countries agree that entrepreneurship is vital to economies.
So why is it that at the grassroots level, at our level, entrepreneurship is discouraged? And so many people want to start a business but do not actually get started? Why is there this conflict between the official policies of multilateral organizations you pay for, and the actions you and others take on your own?
Prefer to ‘listen’ to this blog. Check out the podcast of the same name: Episode 47 of The Ready Entrepreneur Podcast at Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen.
The Value of Entrepreneurship
The idea is clear: “entrepreneurship is a vital component of economic growth and development. The creation of new business entities not only generates value added, fiscal revenues, employment and innovation, but is an essential ingredient for the development of a vibrant small and medium sized business sector—the core of most competitive economies. It has the potential to contribute to specific sustainable development objectives, such as the employment of women, young people or disadvantaged groups.”
Those words appear in the Introduction to the Entrepreneurship Policy Framework and Implementation Guidance created by UNCTAD, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. A UN organization taxpayers pay for that among other things believes in entrepreneurship, and therefore believes in you.
Part of the mandate of the various UN organizations is to develop policies that countries can implement to achieve set goals. Effectively, they provide information about how to do the things you want to do.
You may be just starting out as an entrepreneur, and think you really don’t know if you have the skill or are the right type of person for the job.
The Definition of an Entrepreneur
UNCTAD states an entrepreneur is an individual who identifies opportunities in the marketplace, allocates resources, and creates value. Entrepreneurship—the act of being an entrepreneur—implies the capacity and willingness to undertake conception, organization, and management of a productive new venture, accepting all attendant risks and seeking profit as a reward.
But you should realize that entrepreneurship is a core global initiative, and you are exactly the person for the job.
The UNCTAD document is used to help countries develop their entrepreneurship policies. Money and time is being spent helping every country in the world develop entrepreneurs.
You may think you’re doing something bizarre because you’re the only person in your family who wants to run a business, or the only person among your friends. But in reality, you are the one who is taking the initiative, and in doing so, you join million of others around the world who are doing the same thing.
The UN policy framework at its core wants to “unleash entrepreneurial capacity and facilitate start-ups.” A goal that is directly aligned with yours.
UNCTAD focuses on 6 components for what they want to do for you:
1. National entrepreneurship strategy
2. Optimize regulatory environment
3. Enhance entrepreneurship education and skills development
4. Facilitate technology exchange and innovation
5. Improve access to finance
6. Promote awareness and networking.
Numbers one and two – national strategy and regulation involve talking about government. But three through six are directly about talking to you, the aspiring entrepreneur.
Enhance entrepreneurship education and skills development
Starting at number three, your skills and education, you can begin to develop your entrepreneurial dream immediately.
The best way to start a business is to start a business. Many aspiring entrepreneurs do not start because of concern about their knowledge and skill. But you do not know what you can do unless you go forward and try with the skills that you have.
If you have a business idea in your head, you need to do the preliminary research necessary to transform it into an active business. You do not need to study every facet of the business until you are too worried about having the right skills to actually get it done. You need to give yourself the confidence to move forward by taking on your business building tasks.
In the introduction to the skills section UNCTAD states “Entrepreneurial skills center around attitudes (soft skills), such as persistence, networking and self-confidence; and enabling skills (hard skills), including basic start- up knowledge, business planning, financial literacy and managerial skills.”
As you strengthen your own capabilities and desire by working on your business, doing research, and discovering the resources you need to move forward, you will indirectly be building the entrepreneurial culture in your own community. You will lead by example.
Mentoring is a major part of the initiative whether through formal programs, courses or the private sector. Many aspiring entrepreneurs are concerned about where to find a mentor, and how to get a mentor, but you do not have to find someone who will help you before you begin.
The purpose of a mentor is to help you navigate by providing knowledge you do not have. To that end, you can surround yourself with virtual mentors. You can follow people you admire online, watch YouTube videos of speeches and interviews, and read their books or articles.
You do not have to personally know all your mentors. But you do have to know what you would ask if you ever met them.
Create your own mentors and incorporate them into your life. As you go forward with building your business, you will meet people who are in your industry, or interested in your ideas. Those opportunities will eventually lead you to your personal mentor.
Technology exchange and innovation
Technology is absolutely critical to building a scalable global-business in the 21st century. For this factor UNCTAD states “technology provides entrepreneurs with new tools to improve the efficiency and productivity of their business, or with new platforms on which to build their ventures. In turn, entrepreneurs fuel technological innovation by developing new or improving existing products, services or processes and ensuring commercialization.”
Aspiring entrepreneurs have two parallel goals. You want to improve your own business by using technology resources, and you want to improve technology by providing new ideas to the global marketplace.
You may be thinking of your business idea in isolation of these larger goals, but your idea might be fuel for others. You never know what kind of impact you can have. That’s why you just have to get started.
Access to Finance
When you are ready to scale your business, or in some cases to just get started, you may face the issue of financing. Improving entrepreneurs’ access to financing is a key factor in the entrepreneurship policy framework for the UN.
Governments are encouraged to motivate lenders and investors to invest in the great business ideas of rising entrepreneurs. And entrepreneurs are encouraged to prepare to meet investors’ expectations.
Many initiatives to support entrepreneurs are aimed at fostering connections with the private sector. As an aspiring entrepreneur who is looking for financing, that is where you direct your attention.
NOTE to readers: For additional ideas about finding financing for your business, check out the video How to Find Money to Start a Business on the Case Lane You Tube channel. The video is specifically focuses on how you find your own financial resources from your own funds, but also covers some of the different avenues that are open to entrepreneurs.
Promote awareness and networking
A hesitant aspiring entrepreneur needs to find an entrepreneurial culture that will support the business dream. Many aspiring entrepreneurs do not get started because there is no general atmosphere aimed at new business people.
How many of you are simply afraid of what others will say, or of doing something that is not common in the neighborhood?
The UN wants countries to create an entrepreneurial culture.
UNCTAD says negative socio-cultural perceptions about entrepreneurship can act as significant barriers to enterprise creation and can undermine the impact of policy intervention in support of entrepreneurship. Under the UN, all governments are ‘officially’ aware of this conflict between what they say and what they do. And aspiring entrepreneurs should be aware of this disconnect also.
When receiving negative feedback around wanting to start a business, or being out on your own, you have to recognize that it’s a global issue that the world is trying to counteract. You are not alone in trying to get people to understand your desire to be an entrepreneur. But this all-too common issue has some universal solutions.
Aspiring entrepreneurs should create networks – of models, champions and references of success. You can go where other entrepreneurs are gathered and speak to them about their experiences. There are many similar stories of discouragement in the entrepreneurship world. Knowing you are not alone is a step towards counteracting the unfavorable comments.
You must also improve communication. The UNCTAD framework states “A country’s (or in your case friends and families) general attitude towards entrepreneurship is a product of societal values, tolerance of risk, fear of failure, rewards of success, encouragement of creativity and experimentation and recognition of persistence.
All of these factors are important.
So-called “soft” barriers to entrepreneurship, including negative cultural perceptions, are as equally important as the “hard” barriers, and because they tend to be deeply ingrained in a society, they take time to address.
But the positive image of entrepreneurs comes from you – the aspiring entrepreneur – and the people you highlight as examples. You can point out that entrepreneurs play an important role in addressing problems that are important to society, such as unemployment, social inequality and poverty, and by showing how entrepreneurship, including social entrepreneurship, serves as a key component of national development.
Focusing on this factor is about allowing you to be free from criticism so you can do what you most want to do. Get your business up and running.
Using the UN’s own words as a guide, the aspiring entrepreneur can feel encouraged that the world is working on making entrepreneurial dream come true. You are supported, and there are initiatives designed for you and people like you to become business people in the global economy.
Knowing that these initiatives exist should help you recognize you are on the right track.
The United Nations position on entrepreneurship is important to aspiring entrepreneurs because it reflects the collective intentions of global governments. You are a participant in a worldwide movement to enhance economic development through individual businesses. But you need to get started.
This blog is also a podcast. Check out Episode 47 of The Ready Entrepreneur Podcast at Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen.
Yes, Shy People Can Be Entrepreneurs too
Aspiring entrepreneurs who are a little intimidated by those ‘slick Willie’ type of entrepreneurs who come at you strong, almost shouting, about how you can do it too, as they ooze confidence and bluster all over a stage may think that the world of entrepreneurship has no place for those with less bombastic approaches.
For the quiet, serious and methodical in life, the question of whether or not there is an entrepreneurial personality type, also evokes the question of whether or not you’re on the right path.
But you are.
In studying entrepreneurs all over the world, one trait is clear, the common denominator is not personality type – it’s doing the work.
Entrepreneurial Personalities
When asked to name some entrepreneurs , many people pick from the same same dozen or so familiar people who are known to have started their own business. The most famous people are seen on TV, and make news.
And that’s not a coincidence. People who make noise, make news, and some make themselves famous as part of their overall business strategy. So outgoing people who happen to be entrepreneurs can become well known.
But the most famous people do not represent al entrepreneurs.
In the United States alone in 2016, the census bureau says there are 5.6 million employer firms, and that does not count the big Fortune 500 companies that were started by one person whose name you know. Around the world, estimates say there are 600 million entrepreneurs. That’s a lot of personalities. And it is doubtful that every one of them is a Slick Willie Salesman.
An entrepreneur is anyone with an idea that they are willing to bring into the public marketplace.
Using the definition from UNCTAD, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development:
An entrepreneur is an individual who identifies opportunities in the marketplace, allocates resources, and creates value.
Entrepreneurship—the act of being an entrepreneur—implies the capacity and willingness to undertake conception, organization, and management of a productive new venture, accepting all attendant risks and seeking profit as a reward.
The definition applies to action, not personality.
The definition does not say an entrepreneur must be able able to talk to strangers.
Nor does it say the entrepreneur has to be funny and make jokes in an interview, or on stage.
The definition definitely does not imply the ability to get rich quick, make a million dollars in ten minutes and let others know about it.
Being an entrepreneur is about identifying a big idea…and running with it. Since you cannot copyright an idea, you have to write the book. You have to bring your idea into fruition.
Entrepreneurs allocate resources – often your own. If you’re shy or slow or both, you only need yourself to get your business going. Allocate your own resources to researching your business idea, figuring out how to bring it to the marketplace, and defining the other tools and resources you may need to help you.
Working this way, you do not need to ensure that thousands of people ‘like’ you before you get started.
You need to create value. Entrepreneurs create value. And thousands or millions of people recognize that value if appeals to them and their needs.
If you have business ideas in your head and you are thinking about opportunities to bring a product or service to market that will help people. You have to get it out there. No one will know about it if it stays in your head. The key is to bring it forward for people to see. The validation comes from the market.
New products and services are introduced all the time. When speaking about your business idea, people love to make comments like – ‘it’s been done before,’ or ‘no one is asking for that’ or ‘why would anyone buy that.’
But time and again the market defines what it wants – after the product or service has been introduced.
So many products that we take for granted today like corn flakes – which apparently was a cooking experiment by a guy named Kellogg – were just invented and placed in the market. No one asked for the exact product, but the entrepreneur had an idea that could appeal to many others.
The definition of entrepreneurship does not include the need to laugh, smile or glad-hand (pretend to be nice).
You have to be a person – often exactly the type of person who is shy and slow – who is willing and able to turn the idea into a business, and willing and able to meet the risks – and more than willing to reap the rewards.
Options for promoting your venture
Even knowing this definition, an entrepreneur may struggle with the idea of bringing a product or service into the marketplace. At some point, the new venture must be presented to people in some forum.
When the product or service is developed, a shy entrepreneur can look for other methods for introducing the venture. For example, advertising, giving away free samples, writing promotional materials or creating a video.
When Help from Others is not Intimidating
If those activities fail to attract attention, you can partner with one or two kindred spirits, outsource to someone you pay to promote for you, or hire someone else with the skill to promote your product or service.
Each option has its own risks and rewards. But those factors can be considered in any plan you move forward.
The key is go ahead and create your business even if you think you are too shy or too slow. The personality traits you need to start the business applies to you regardless of who you see on TV, and who you think might be a more classic example of an entrepreneur.
It’s the people who start the business who are entrepreneurs. Willing and able to make it happen – that’s the key.
The common trait for entrepreneurs is getting the work done to bring the product or service to market. Successful people get the job done. You can work full-time, part-time, weekends, do all-nighters, take a month from work, take 15 minutes a day, update on the ride home – any time frame or time allotment that you can give yourself brings you one step closer to realizing your dream.
If you have business ideas in your head, you are already thinking like an entrepreneur. The next step to being one is based on your ability to accomplish your own dream.
If you are shy, or slow or doubting your entrepreneurial personality traits, understand that entrepreneurship is for anyone who is willing and able to do the work.
You are an entrepreneur if you identify an opportunity in the marketplace, allocate resource to it, and create value, which is something the shy and slow can definitely do.
The Information Privilege
Robert Kiyosaki’s best selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad explained a reality that is rarely spoken about out loud.
In life, some people are successful not because of demographics or wealth or education, but simply because they get great information early enough to apply it to their life choices; and other people…most in fact…do not.
In a world built on democracy and free enterprise, there’s a belief that people operate on a leveling playing field – that the society by virtue of its success values will encourage anyone to be successful. But in reality, success often comes to those who have the right information, and you get the right information by either having a ‘Rich Dad’ who will impart it, or by knowing where to get it.
Image by Shahid Abdullah from Pixabay
A ‘Rich Dad’ is any human who pro-actively teaches or demonstrates how to maximize wealth and grow for success; and ‘Poor Dad’ teaches nothing, but moving along with the status quo. So ‘Poor Dad’ leads a life of paying monthly bills, earning a salary, and scrimping and saving for retirement.
People who grow up with ‘Poor Dad’ often believe they are doing everything right, and they are, until they hit financial concerns. ‘Poor Dad’ learners are the ones who are shocked by financial crises, rising mortgage rates, equity market swings, and the interest rates on their car loans, student loans and credit card debt.
Being taught by ‘Poor Dad’ means spending on the items you believe you need like a house and car, and being worried that you cannot afford those same items when you run into financial difficulties.
With ‘Poor Dad,’ you are surviving life, and not exactly having a good time. Even the ‘Poor Dads’ who teach frugality, and end up with a couple million dollars in the bank at retirement, don’t seem to be having a good time because they have never learned how to spend money for enjoyment.
Many people who are interested in entrepreneurship and starting a business are discouraged by their ‘Poor Dads’ who preach caution and security. Entrepreneurial ideas go untested because of fear and the inability to break habits from the past.
But those same people, maybe even you, are watching ‘Rich Dad’ and trying to determine how to have a great life now.
Entrepreneurs are risk takers, but it’s calculated risk based on their ability to find gaps in the consumer marketplace. ‘Rich Dads’ are focused on long term wealth creation and never having to worry about money. Rich Dad teaches to invest to earn the money to buy the items you want, including a house or a car.
Since financial education is not taught in schools, you have to be exposed to a ‘Rich Dad’ to get the information you need to be successful.
If you have an intellectual ‘Rich Dad’ consider yourself among the privileged – you will end up living better than probably everyone you know because you have been given the information you need to be successful.
But if you don’t have a ‘Rich Dad,’ and you know you are missing out on the information you need, you create that valuable mentor for yourself by absorbing and applying the lessons learned. It’s never too late.
If finances are leading you to delay your business plans and questionable past choices are discouraging you from moving forward, focus on getting back up.
You can make yourself information privileged as an aspiring entrepreneur by giving yourself the information you need to be successful.
Read to Wealth
Start by reading. Of course Rich Dad Poor Dad, and many other books about personal money management will give you the crucial information you did not receive when you were growing up. These are books that can help you understand how to accomplish your dreams.
Being one step ahead of others and making life happen for you is about having information.
The Information Privilege means you know:
A) You do not have the information you need to be successful, and
B) Where to get the information
Even if the information is that you need more information, you are one step ahead of the next person who has no clue they are working themselves into a trip
Successful people rarely blindly move forward without some other piece of information that helps accelerate their business plans.
To get the information you need, and make yourself an information privileged aspiring entrepreneur:
1. You have to put yourself where information flows
2. Gather to the information
3. Use the information you get to drive the creation of other information that you can use
1. Put yourself where information flows
Attend meetups and conferences, go to college or vocational school, form a mastermind, ask a few questions at parties, offer to do activities at work that give you proximity to senior executives or leaders, volunteer in the community with accomplished people, and/or seek those with whom you most wish to align.
2. Gather the information
If you don’t like people or can’t afford to go anywhere, you must uncover and gather the information you need. Use books. If no one ever told you, you could get the information you need from reading books, consider yourself told now, but there are also other options.
Find the information in free YouTube videos and PDFs, and free ebooks. Sign-up for free ebook distribution sites that will send you a curated email each day or week with free books that are available in the genre you seek.
3. Use the information you get to drive the creation of other information that you can use
However you choose to get the information, use it to uncover more of what you need. Learn at every step. If you spend time developing your own website on WordPress, use that information to learn, for example, how people leverage websites to drive affiliate advertising. One thing can be the base or foundation for the next. You build layer upon layer upon layer.
You make yourself the top of the heap in your own sphere by learning and understanding the information that moves you forward as a person, an entrepreneur, and a deliverer of value for the product or service you bring to the marketplace.
Disclosure: Links to books are affiliate links to Amazon.com, and I earn from eligible purchases
Read to Wealth: How to Select Books for the Road to Success
by Case Lane
You have probably read that many successful people read. The world’s movers and shakers, billionaires and influencers read books (and magazines and newspapers). They read to stay informed, learn practices and strategies for success, and to continuously improve their minds.
Part of your success strategy for transitioning your life to entrepreneurship, should include reading.
But where do you start?
There are hundreds (probably thousands) of “best book” lists that you can Google and reference. But how do you even choose which books to read from that list?
One way to start is to think first about what you want to get out of the books. What do you want books to teach you? You want to be reading for implementable action, things you can do to improve yourself as you build your business.
Here are five categories of books to begin with:
The Definition of an Entrepreneur: Read biographies, autobiographies, and books about entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship to learn who entrepreneurs are, what they do and how they are formed.
Skills of Successful people: Read personal development books to learn how to improve your success skills and yourself, so you can move more efficiently in the entrepreneurial world.
General business environment: Read books about the business of business, the histories of specific industries and companies to learn how the broader global economy functions.
Think like a Billionaire: Read books about investing, the road to super-wealth to understand how markets work, and how entrepreneurs access private funds to fuel growth.
Life in Action: Read fiction about successful people, business people and business-related ideas to see the big picture, and get background and inside information about how people function in a success-driven life.
Here are suggestions in each of these categories. There are dozens of books in every category considered “the best” or “must-haves,” below are only some initial suggestions. You can start in any order.
If you find you would prefer to read books about your specific product or industry, of course add those ones as well. The key is you want to understand which books to read, and why. You want to be able to implement the learnings from the book into your lifestyle
DEFINITION OF AN ENTREPRENEUR
When you are starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur, and the only idea you have in your head the concept of starting a business, you might not be confident about what your vision will really mean.
To develop a more specific idea of how entrepreneurs are formed and what entrepreneurs do, you can read biographies and autobiographies, and books about entrepreneurial ideas. People often wonder: how did so-and-so get rich? One of the best ways to find out is to read the biographies about rich people, and learn the facts for yourself.
You are looking for an in-depth accounting of the entrepreneur’s story – what were the actual steps this person took to become successful. The best biographies tend to be those thick ones that take you back not only to the entrepreneur’s childhood, but also through his or her parents, or other significant influences. This additional insight will help you realize the most successful entrepreneurs come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and have had an even wider variety of experiences on the road to success.
While industry and technology do change our economic landscape, the day-to-day realities of humans rarely change. Everyone still must secure food, clothes and shelter to have a civilized life. The actions taken by John D. Rockefeller in the 1800s – walking up and down the street to ask for a job – are still relevant today. Despite all the online employment services, in the 21st century people still often find work by word-of-mouth.
Use biographies and autobiographies to help you understand how you can write your own story as you transition to entrepreneurship. Look for the lessons that explain the idea of an entrepreneur.
Books in this category include: Biographies and Autobiographies
The Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow
Shark Tales: How I Turned $1000 into a Billion Dollar Business by Barbara Corcoran
Andrew Carnegie by David Nasaw
Morgan, American Financier by Jean Strouse
Entrepreneurship:
The Four-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-to-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss
The Little Red Book of Selling: 12.5 Principles of Sales Greatness by Jeffery Gitomer
Zero to One: Notes on Start-ups or How to Build the Future by Peter Thiel
SKILLS OF SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE
Most of us are not born ready to take on the world with our entrepreneurial ideas. In fact, when you realize how big the personal development book market is, you realize that being an organized, attentive, polished, successful person takes information – ideas and strategies that you can learn and implement for yourself.
Successful people have a mix of skills, but they are not always the same. If you learn some of the basic, timeless behaviors, you can use those attributes anywhere. Personal development must be taught and practiced. It is not enough to read the books, you also have to implement the ideas from the book. And you must be consistent in applying the changes to your life.
Perennial sellers like Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich have been around for decades, yet the number of people who stick to the advice is certainly not visible in today’s economy. If everyone who had bought or read Think and Grow Rich had applied all the activities, average incomes would likely be much higher.
You can be an exception. You can use personal development books to actually make changes to the way you behave. The advice exists (and continues to sell) because it works. And it works because people like you make it happen.
Books in this category include: Personal Development:
Choose Yourself by James Altucher
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
GLOBAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
As an entrepreneur, you want to be thinking about the global economy in which you run your business. Even if you have a small enterprise, you are affected by global economic changes in the price of oil or the value of the dollar. Having a more knowledgeable background on these issues can help you manage your business rationally.
You can muse about inflation or trade like the average person, or you can read books that explain current economic development and trends. These books will provide you with an insight that you can use to develop your own business. They tend to be interesting histories giving you the information you did not know, and helping to dispel certain fallacies about business, trade and investment.
Although these reads can often be dense, they are well worth the effort to give you a broader grounding and overview of the business world that you now occupy.
Books in this category include: Business of Business:
Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk by Peter L. Bernstein
A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World by William J. Bernstein
Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry I. Porras
Guns, Germs, Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond
The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power by Daniel Yergin
THINK LIKE A BILLIONAIRE
As you read the biographies of entrepreneurs, you may notice a pattern – the big money, mega wealth, came from the stock market. Either the entrepreneur became an investor or was invested in, when the company was taken public. The real jump to billionaire wealth, comes from owning the factors of production, from owning capital.
You can begin to build your billionaire mindset by reading books about investing. These are books that help you develop a money consciousness, to see money not just as the tool that pays the bills, but as a factor that can be transformed into changing your life for the long run.
Many people have a poor financial management and investing education. Without these types of books, the situation would be even worse since this information is not taught in schools. In fact, good investment advice is passed on from one generation to the next within the same family, but not transferred horizontally through a society. This is information you are unlikely to hear.
So your best bet for putting yourself in line to understand the business of money is through an investment in time spent learning more about how investment works in the global economy. Educate yourself before you become an investor.
Books in this category include: Investing and Financial Management:
The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing by Benjamin Graham
Security Analysis by Benjamin Graham and David L. Dodd
The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis
The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley
LIFE IN ACTION
As a bonus, fiction books featuring characters in business can give you a broader overview of the world you are entering. By reading about fiction characters, you have a sense of day-to-day life, as well as the road to wealth.
Unlike a biographer, a fiction writer can tell you everything. You get inside the character’s head, and maybe even read words that resonate with you, and your entrepreneurial vision for yourself. You may even decide to emulate the behaviors and practices of business or success-oriented fiction characters who you feel connected to through the story.
Books in this category include: Fiction
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The High Flyer by Susan Howatch
The Financier by Theodore Dreiser
If you are starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur and looking for guidance on how to face the entrepreneurial world, start by reading. When you set aside, 15 minutes a day to work on your business, your time can be focused on reading, your research for creating the life you really want.
Many of the classic books now have e-reader versions and you can upload copies to your phone or tablet to read when you are standing in line or commuting on public transit.
If you have no idea where you want to start, begin with a few books. You will likely find yourself inspired to keep going until you have your business up and running, and you can begin to live your life on your terms.
NOTE: In future blogs, I will follow-up on each of these books and provide more detail about what you may be able to learn from each (especially the fiction) as you move forward on your entrepreneurial journey.
Disclosure: book links are affiliate links to Amazon.com which if used may result in compensation to the author to help support this business and future posts
Five Practical Tips to Get Started as an Entrepreneur
Maybe today was the day. The rudest person at work interrupted you for the tenth time, your supervisor ignored your brilliant suggestions, and you had to cancel lunch with a friend because a useless meeting was just scheduled up against your lunch break.
You’ve had it.
It’s time to get serious about starting your own business.
First question: Where do you start?
Many people know they want to start a business. And for many the reason to start is to gain control of your own schedule and manage your time as you see fit. Entrepreneurship is not easy, and will often be frustrating, but being the boss means you have ownership. You can make the process as difficult or complex as your resources permit.
Yet even after you’ve made the decision to start your business, you are often distracted by the endless directions advice you receive. From start a business plan to build a website to complete market research, deciding where to start your entrepreneurial dream can be confusing.
Here are five tips:
1. Pick a business idea (which can, and probably will, change)
If you already have a business idea, skip to point 2.
If you do not have a business idea, pick one. You do not have to stick with your pick. Having a business idea simply gives you the context for getting started on the rest of your business. Points you will learn about Idea A may help you with Idea B. So the time you spend on an idea you do not actually turn into a business will still be useful.
If you have no idea, start with your hobbies and interests. Where is there a gap you have identified in the marketplace when people say about a particular good or service: I wish we could have this? Or I wish it could do that? That is your opening to slip in your business idea.
Pick your business idea first because this will give you a specific topic to focus on while you get through the next four tips. It’s easier to say, you need 15 minutes to work on a specific idea than it is to continue to sound as if you are just “thinking about” starting a business.
But if you are still lost for an idea and really want to move forward with your entrepreneurial dream, then keep going. Part of “starting” your business will be to define your idea, you can still move forward on the next four steps.
2. Identify your Space
You will want to have somewhere to work on your business. But when you are just getting started your space does not have to be elaborate. You can decide to work in the bathroom or closet if that’s the only quiet place you can find.
Maybe you prefer the library or local coffee shop. All of these options are viable.
But if you choose a space that is not near your home or work, include the time it will take you to travel to and from that space in the time you are setting aside for work. So if you are going to do 15 minutes of work and it takes you 15 minutes to get where you need to go, you need to set aside 45 minutes to make it happen.
Be realistic about the time you need and how you plan to use it before settling on a space. You might find you need a spot closer to home to preserve your time.
3. Gather your tools
The tools you need to work depend on how you like to work.
When you are first getting started you might not even think about this topic, but the minute you sit down to do some research you realize you need a notebook (digital or paper?), a cup of coffee or tea, a brighter light (artificial or natural), a power outlet, a sweater/blanket, a timer, a bottle of water, some chips, maybe cookies, light music (Spotify or playlists?)….
And you do not want to make excuses or get up every minute because you forgot to put one of your productivity tools in your work space.
If you have no idea which tools you like to have around you, go ahead and start with nothing, and add your preferences at the end of that day’s work session.
4. Clear your distractions
In our busy worlds, distractions are not only living all around us – ie. kids and dogs – but digital also. You have to figure out how to turn everything off for the time you want to work on your business.
For the family, find the time to do your work within the family schedule. However that works best for you. Since you have your business idea (see #1), you can tell everyone what you are doing and how you really need to move forward with transitioning to lifestyle freedom.
For digital, you know what you have to do. Turn off the phone. Or at least turn off the sound and lay the phone upside down so you cannot see the screen. And don’t try and work around any other screens like the TV or your partner’s mobile.
You only need to give yourself that first 15 minutes to get the ball rolling, so push the distractions away.
5. Take 15 minutes
The best way to start a business is just to get started.
That may sound roundabout but it’s true. People often make excuses like they do not have enough money or are not sufficiently qualified for a business idea. But you really do not know the truth behind those excuses because you have never spent any time working on the business.
Take 15 minutes. I know you have it. Before you start bingeing on Netflix take 15 minutes to research your business idea.
What are you researching?
- Similar businesses to see what other people are doing
- Specifics about your business idea and your industry.
- Courses in your area of expertise or about the product or service you are interested in.
As you continue researching, you will begin to move towards creating your action plan for starting the business. But it’s just brain-storming at this point. You do not have to pursue anything formal. You will likely find that the more time you spend researching your business and putting together ideas, the more time you will have to work on your business.
Before you know it, you will forget to watch Netflix.
Once you get to number 5, you have started your business. Because when you set aside time to transition your life, every step counts. From here you will begin to formulate the questions you want to ask, the activities you want to do and even the courses you may want to take to transform your business idea into a viable reality.
You will also start to build your confidence. The more you know about your business idea and industry, the stronger you will feel about your capabilities and the possibilities you have for making your lifestyle dream come true.
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Understanding Tech as an Aspiring Entrepreneur
Why should you care about technology as an entrepreneur? Not the smartphone in your hand or the laptop on your desk, but the entire realm of technology advancement and achievement. The transition from an industrial to a technology society.
Technology is the practical application of knowledge in a particular area, or the capability presented by that knowledge (Merriam-Webster dictionary).
What does that mean to you as a business person in the 21st century?
How should you be thinking about these incredible tech developments as an entrepreneur?
In this article, we look at the use and application of technology for your business, lifestyle and the future, this article and the accompanying three-part podcast series look at technology not from a purely technical place, but from a more philosophical place.
As an aspiring entrepreneur in the 21st century, you should have an idea of how you view the advent of technology in our economy, and the impact on our society.
You can develop a tech plan that fits your business, lifestyle and future plans.
Business: As a business person, you will implement technology into your operations, but you will also have to be aware of how technology affects your business, and your customers.
Lifestyle: As you use technology to build your business, you (hopefully) will be in a position to transition your lifestyle, and use some of the advances you have learned to improve your own standard of living.
Future: And what does the future hold for your business and lifestyle as technology continues to advance and change our lives? What are some of the issues you should be aware of as you make the transition to the next century?
Your Business
As an aspiring entrepreneur, you need to formulate in your mind how you want to see technology as you build your business. Aside from determining which technology tools you are interested in using such as e-mail management software or websites, what will technology mean to you as you move forward?
Is technology a life force you will incorporate at every turn, a hindrance, or a conspirator in exploitation you will use for nefarious ends?
For comparison, we can look at how technology was viewed by witnesses of the transformation from the agrarian to the industrial age. Imagine how people had to view their lives when they began to see the transformation as described here in Frank Norris’s 1903 book ‘The Pit: A Story of Chicago:
…the life was tremendous. All around, on every side, in every direction the vast machinery of Commonwealth clashed and thundered from dawn to dark and dark till dawn..carrying Trade – the life blood of nations…bringing Trade – a galvanising elixir – from the very ends and corners of the continent…The Great Grey City, brooking no rival, imposed its dominion upon a reach of country larger than many a kingdom of the Old World. For, thousands of miles beyond its confines was its influence felt…It was Empire, the resistless subjugation of all this central world…whence inevitablity must comes its immeasurable power, its infinite, inexhaustible vitality…the true life – the true power and spirit of America; gigantic, crude with the crudity of youth, disdaining rivalry; sane and healthy and vigorous; brutal in its ambition, arrogant in the new-found knowledge of its giant strength, prodigal of its wealth, infinite in its desires…In its capacity boundless, in its courage indomitable; subduing the wilderness in a single generation, defying calamity, and through the flame and debris of a commonwealth in ashes, rising suddenly renewed, formidable and Titanic.
The character Laura says….”I suppose it’s civilisation in the making, the thing that isn’t meant to be seen, as though it were too elemental – primordial….”
The character recognizes a little bit of fear for this force of technology and industry that is changing civilization, but is also impressed and awed by its presence. At the turn of that century, and in the coming of the industrial age, people had to understand not only the obvious power of the machinery, but the impact it will have on humanity.
But in the industrial age, you could look technology in the eye. You could see it in its drama and majesty. The negative impact on the environment and the average worker was visible and obvious. The changes that were to come – in law and society – had plenty of examples about why they were needed.
Today, in the 21st century, in the transition to the technology age, many of the impacts are unseen, far-reaching and unknown.
Certainly you know Facebook is a gigantic company used by billions, but you probably have no idea what the technology is doing each time you click, post, like or follow on a page.
As an aspiring entrepreneur, when you think about how you want to build and grow your business. Think about how you will use technology, and consider these four issues: privacy, opportunity, accessibility and impact as you either formally or informally create your tech plan.
Privacy
The changing concept of privacy is one of our biggest challenges. Most people have traded privacy for convenience, the right to use free services. But few truly understands what their acquiescence means. Technology companies do not reveal the details of their algorithms, nor the scope and range of how they use and manipulate data. 
An entrepreneur, using the Internet in any form, must be aware of these issues. For example, you may collect e-mail addresses. What are you going to do with those e-mail addresses? When you add a Facebook pixel to a webpage, what data are you collecting and how will you use it?
As an entrepreneur, you should be prepared to explain what you are doing with the data you can collect. You should also be aware of your responsibility, and have a plan for protecting the data. The blanket ability to collect data does not necessarily mean you should blindly participate in the process. But if you do, you should also have policies that clearly define how you are participating and your intentions going forward.
Opportunity
With new technologies, opportunity is rapid and tempting. A new software, service or device may allow you to change your business model, provide better products or make more money. New technologies are rapidly adopted, and companies encourage early adopters to promote their views.
As each new technology comes on line, even if the product permits you to have access to data or applications you were not expecting, you must still consider if using the product makes sense for your business and your consumers.
You may have an opportunity to do something spectacular or destroy your business with recklessness. Opportunity does not necessarily mean an open door.
Accessibility
Technology is everywhere and there are many ways that you can use it. Accessibility in this case does not refer to tech tools for the physically-challenged. This accessibility concept is about how a global audience can find you.
As a globally-thinking entrepreneur, you want to make your product or service as accessible as possible through the available tools. When you do this, think about who you are trying to reach and the best methods for spreading information about your offering.
Some potential customers may only access the Internet on their phone, others may use public services with time limits. If you want to spread your message widely, use technology in a way that lets others access it as well.
Impact
You have a chance today to make an impact far beyond your own laptop. In Frank Norris’s Chicago described in the book The Pit:
…axes and saws bit the bark of century-old trees, stimulated by the city’s energy…her force turned the wheels of harvester and seeder a thousand miles distant…spun the screws and propellers of innumerable squadrons of lake steamers….
The impact is direct and present.
In the 21st century as you build your business now, your impact is likely to be through words if you teach or coach online, or contact if you create an app or software as a service, or even directly if you place a product in someone’s hands.
In all cases, you are still part of an economy of industry and action, but with technology you can move faster and have a greater reach, even more so than in a newly industrializing city in the last century.
A 21st century entrepreneur should have a position on technology. For example, consider:
Technology as a force for good, one that will help us mend our ways and fix our ills – but only if it is deployed well
To make technology a force for good, society needs innovative practices, creativity and facilitation – recognizing that there are things we do and do not want in our economy.
In so many aspects of our lives, we want the best that technology has to offer, but we have to recognize that also means taking the worst. As an entrepreneur, are you fueling a hate-filled society by using social media? Or just trying to get the word out about your product?
Given the customer-facing issues discussed above: privacy, opportunity, accessibility and impact – you can create your own tech policy.
You may decide you will always protect your customers’ data and never sell e-mails to third parties. But you cannot stop there. You have to understand how other technology services that you are using affect your customers. You do not want to inadvertently break your own policy by not understanding the one used by entities you access.
On opportunity – decide to weigh your technology decisions carefully. You do not want to just chase the shiny apple. If there is an idea that might work for you, make sure the technology is really an opportunity and not just another fast sale from the latest hot thing.
On accessibility – think global, always. If appropriate for your product or service, keep your content simple, clean, clear, open and honest for an audience that can understand your message at all times. And even if your product or service is more ‘adult,’ remember you still have a global audience.
On impact – recognize you are delivering a message in everything you do. What is it? How do you want to potential customers to see you? And what should be the takeaway?
The purpose of Ready Entrepreneur is to help aspiring entrepreneurs achieve the dream lifestyle of financial and schedule independence by learning how to use the global marketplace and new technologies to start your own business.
In my book Life Dream: Seven Universal Moves to Get the Life you want through Entrepreneurship, you can find the steps you can take to help you move forward with getting your business launched. As you move through each of those steps, you want to be considering where technology fits in your progress.
The goal is to help you deliver the value you have as an entrepreneur to the global marketplace.
YOUR LIFESTYLE
One of the key benefits of becoming an entrepreneur is to live your dream lifestyle – right? Where does technology fit in that picture? Are you prepared to use technology to separate you from day-to-day work? Or are you just waiting for the cocktail-serving robot to get you through your day?
If you are a fan of technology, you may be thinking all the time about how you can incorporate technology solutions into your business to help facilitate your lifestyle.
Some of you may have the Hollywood vision – lying by the pool, being waited on, driving a fast Italian sportscar or a Rolls-Royce, and having people do whatever you say whenever you say it. You have no demands, no unmet desires and no troubles or issues.
Others may be thinking – you just want to quit your 9-to-5, get away from annoying people and do what you really want to do all day.
Some of you, like me, are traveling all over the world.
Considering your vision and how the idea of a ‘dream lifestyle’ plays out for you – what is technology doing to help you?
At Ready Entrepreneur, the idea is to get you started on your business. We focus on getting the confidence, time and money to get started, picking an idea that delivers value to the global marketplace, putting that idea into action, and then transitioning to the lifestyle of your dreams.
When you follow the path – confidence, time, money, value, action, lifestyle – how does technology move in to help you make that final transition into the life you really want?
And why do you care?
The idea is to develop an approach and understanding about technology and what it means to you, so that you can adapt your tech plan to your purposes as you make the transition to entrepreneurship.
And in your entrepreneurship transition is your new lifestyle.
For many people this means business runs in the background, which means tech tool are in place to transform your life.
Business in the background
In the typical entrepreneurial dream lifestyle world, your business runs itself. That means in almost all cases you will be using technology to make that happen. If that’s your approach, you are going to want to set-up systems and processes from day one that are automatic or independent. You may even want to build your business around this idea.
What are the ideas you can use to have your business running on auto-pilot without you?
Virtual assistants, concierges
You can start with remote personal help. In your dream life, you tend to be self-sufficient which means you may want to add a virtual assistant or concierge who supports your work.
When you go to work with someone virtually the key is to know exactly what you want that person to do and how you want them to do it – then leave them alone.
Once you have set up a good working situation with a virtual assistant, you can feel confident in freeing up time for yourself.
Outsourcing
The term outsource has become a bit of a dirty word in the corporate world where the practice removes people from their jobs and gives their tasks to people who earn less money.
But as an entrepreneur, you are likely going to look at outsourcing as a way to help you avoid tasks that you do not do well.
One of the best ways to use outsourcing is to fill in for the type of work that you do not like to do. This frees up your time to do other things while the job gets done in the background. As you develop your business consider the tasks you do not want to do and look for outsourcing options.
Once you have the business running in a way that frees up your time, what are you going to do with the time?
If you are a fan of technology, you will likely find apps or other tools to help drive your leisure activity as much as your business.
As you make the transition to an entrepreneurship lifestyle, keep in mind what you like to do and how you like to do it. Use the tech tools that facilitate your decisions and make your life easier. And stay connected to your own ideas about how you want to make things work.
Technology in your lifestyle does not have to be a burden – an extension of the always buzzing smartphone tied to your hand. It can be a support, an assistant, a part of the infrastructure of your new business that you are able to use to your advantage.
As you develop a tech plan for your business, develop one for your lifestyle too. Incorporate technology into your decisions beyond the obvious. And keep an eye out for new technologies that may be even more useful as your processes are understood.
The complete path to life as a ready entrepreneur includes making a successful transition to your dream lifestyle by incorporating the ideas and practices of your business life into your civilian life. You use one to support the other.
THE FUTURE
Is technology taking over the world? Will we eventually be slaves to the machine? And either way how do you manage to prevent this apocalypse from happening to you? As an entrepreneur you want to be ready for the future, for the role technology will play and for the adjustments society will have to make.
At some point in the not too distant future, we as a society are going to have to define what the technological revolution means to humanity. And you as a globally-thinking entrepreneur will be right there, trying to decide where we are going. Changes may be imposed on you by technology before you have even had a chance to think differently.
How do you plan to adapt?
Here are some ideas to think about:
The world is moving from an industrial to a technological society. In the past when we moved from agriculture to industry, the changes were profound. But human beings still maintained an element of control.
Now as we go from industry to technology, changes are happening quickly. So quickly, we do not even know all the changes that have taken place and the impact these processes have had on society.
As an entrepreneur, you need to be aware of these transitions because a changing economy, and evolving consumer behavior have an effect on your ability to deliver your product or service to the global marketplace.
If the government brings in legislation designed to control big tech companies, and it ends up limiting your ability to function online – what happens to your business?
If all education moves online, will you understand the knowledge background your potential customers have?
Do flying cars and drone delivery affect your business opportunity if you have to send everything via courier services?
In a surveillance world, do you have a product or service people do not want to be seen buying?
In the battle for online privacy, are you protecting your customer data? How far is privacy going – are you aligned with companies that are using your consumer data?
If law enforcement tools are enriched to target people before they act will your business be caught up in delivering customer information to law enforcement entities without your customer’s approval?
If social media and the use of smartphones changes consumer behavior, what does that mean for your business?
While all these questions may not all seem relevant today, you are probably aware that processes are taking place that already have upended common practices.
For example, if you are surfing online for something like – storage spaces – you begin to get promoted ads in social media for – storage spaces? Why does that happen? And do you care? You should care if you are in the storage business and not one of the promoted ads. And you should care as a businessperson in general.
We are learning to live with cross-site tech tools that follow us all over the Internet. But if your company cannot afford to compete at that level, can you afford to compete at all?
Online and digital tools are being invented based on the way society functions today. But how will we evolve if the status quo is literally coded in to our machines? How will your business be successful if the playing field is coded against you?
These questions are designed to plant into your mind the idea that technology is moving forward without consumer input, regulation or oversight. That’s not always a bad thing, but as an entrepreneur you have to stay awake, aware and ready to correct or adapt to advances that negatively affect your business.
In general, without an idea about how society wants to move forward or where we want to take our future, we do not have a say in the changes that are taking place and how they will affect us.
We need to develop fundamental ideas about where we want to end up as a society.
Do we want to trade privacy for convenience? In many cases, we already have.
Do you want a world that is free if you pay with your data? In reality, nothing is free. There is a price to be paid for the tools we are using for free. So far the price is your personal data. If these services move to pay for privacy services, the gap between rich and poor could also become a privacy gap.
How do we encourage creativity and innovation, reward those who do the work, but continue to provide free services?
Whose world do you want to live in?
Regardless of the laws or regulations created in one jurisdiction, a tech maverick can change the game by inventing new applications or software that upend the law. If democratic, fair and free jurisdictions do not encourage relentless technological development, undemocratic, restraining and corrupt jurisdictions might. In that scenario, we are subject to the more powerful technology and the race is won.
In the past when other major societal beliefs – women’s rights, climate, human rights – were evolving, organizations like the United Nations formed commissions that developed guidelines and blueprints for countries.
The United Nations has commissions on and science and technology. But there is no comprehensive global go-forward plan on the impact of technology and the opportunities and issues that are coming up for adapting societies. There is not yet a globally negotiated approach for the world on the changes facing humanity and the cross-border impact of the role of technology in our lives.
But almost certainly entrepreneurs will help drive these changes. Entrepreneurs who are operating in the global marketplace and can see the opportunities and constraints of technology and potential legislation will be in an excellent position to help define these processes going forward.
To start, define for yourself the world you would like to see. If you want to get some ideas, jump over to my writer’s site, www.claneworld.com and download the free Guide to the Future.
As an entrepreneur, look at the issues that affect you and your business and be prepared to come up with a solution before a solution is designed for you.
The best way to predict the future is to create it – Abraham Lincoln apparently once said. Which means you need to understand the possible future developments and make adjustments that work to your advantage.
Continue to ask yourself where you stand as you navigate your business. At Ready Entrepreneur, we use technology to grow our business and reach the global marketplace. But we cannot be indifferent to the impact technology is having nor the concerns from the consumer marketplace about privacy, surveillance and tracking.
We have to decide the world we want to live in. And as an entrepreneur, you demonstrate your decision by the way you run your business.
BUSINESS, LIFESTYLE, THE FUTURE
The world is changing and as active entrepreneurs you can see these changes daily. Technology will be used to facilitate the growth of your business and to improve your lifestyle. At the same time, you must stay alert to how the changes affect your customers and how you can protect data and processes from evolving negative practices.
Technology is a powerful force, transforming our society as dramatically as the world was transformed by industry. But this time, you are in the midst of it, and how you adapt and evolve with the changes can help build, or destroy, your business.
Disclosure: This website participates in the Amazon Affiliate program. Links to books and physical products are affiliate links to the Amazon store, and compensation may be paid that supports this work.
Turn Good Habits into Your DNA
Does this list describe you, or the activities you find impossible?
Get up early with a smile
Cleaning up after yourself
Complete a task from beginning to end
Listen
Be on time
Save money
Do you wish you could, or would, automatically do all the good behavior actions you are supposed to do? You know the activities you think will make you a stronger person able to achieve your goals like starting your own business. And imagine if the process of converting your good habits into your DNA is not annoying or a burden.
What if you could build good habits in to your everyday life and not have to be reminded to make an exception?
Having good habits is a skill on the road to success. People who are able to consistently perform and to get things done are the people who end up completing the work necessary to achieve lifestyle freedom by starting a business and becoming an entrepreneur.
Those that don’t have to settle for a life of struggle.
You can make yourself the person you want to be by focusing on six abilities: desire, effort, progress, consideration, reliability and thrift.
You have heard it all before, but how do you actually make those abilities part of the person you are on a daily basis?
Self-help books are full of ideas for developing good habits. But how many people are able to keep the habits? You know you want to be one of those people who function at the highest levels of competency at all times. How do they do it? And why is it so difficult for many others to embed good habits into our DNA so we are able to live in success mode all the time?
What does it take to turn good habits into your DNA?
Desire
To set yourself off on the right direction to embed good habits into your DNA, you have to want the goals you are striving for. And wanting does not mean you expect to be rich by doing nothing. ‘Wanting’ means you are absolutely committed to figuring out how you can be rich and do nothing, and then execute on the plan to make that vision a reality.
You will work to ensure you do not have to work.
People who are taught to get up early because they ‘have to,’ for chores or school, end up resenting losing the time they could have spent sleeping. But if those people were excited about every day, because they were anxious to learn or contribute to the harmony of their family life, they would want to be up long before anyone told them they had to be.
You have to match the activity to the desire for achievement of a higher goal to help convince yourself the work is worth doing.
Effort
Habits that require actual physical labor, like cleaning up after yourself, are not going to be sustainable unless you make the practice automatic.
We hate chores. We want to avoid work as much as possible and pursue a life of leisure. We constantly put off the activities we do not want to do and become more and more anxious as those activities pile up and begin to threaten our peace.
How do we make a chore part of our DNA? You do it by forcing yourself to complete the task at the exact moment you are aware of the work must be done. You have to train your brain to do the activity without thinking.
As you stand up from a table after eating, gather plates and cutlery into your hands. As you walk into the kitchen, go directly to the dishwasher and unload into the racks. Do not stop to place the plates on another surface, where they will be left for days.
Do the activity immediately without thinking about it. Resist the urge to moan and groan about something you have to do. For every chore you are required to do, make the prior act and the chore the same activity. For example, make the act of getting up from the table and removing your plate one continuous motion. Remember: no thinking.
Train yourself to follow all the way through until the work is done. Soon you will realize there are no more chores haunting you from the imaginary to-do list in your head.
Progress
Any task without a deadline inevitably is only done on deadline. Too often we do not complete work from beginning to end because we do not feel a sense of urgency. One way to overcome this lackadaisical approach is to focus on just one task at a time.
Instead of making to-do lists with 20 or 30 items you have to check off, make a list of one item. Just one that you must finish before you do the next one.
If you are afraid of forgetting your bigger list, write each item down on index cards (or tear up paper into smaller squares), and place the one card with one activity at a place where you can see it until the item listed on it is done.
Finish the task as if it’s the only thing you have to do. If the work is particularly difficult, it may roll over until the next day or the next, but you cannot put your card away until it’s done.
When it’s done, go for the next card. Before you know it, you’ll have no more cards to deal with, and you would have made incredible progress.
Consideration
Where does your mind go when someone is talking to you? Do you drift towards unfinished business at work, or maybe the bad date you had the night before? Do you forget to listen? We are easily distracted not just by actual events and activities before us, but by our own minds and our ability to think about too many things at once.
But when you fail to listen you could be missing a range of vital information from heartfelt confessions to a critical work assignment. You have to teach yourself how to hear what others are saying.
To do this, you can try hanging on every word. That is, make it a habit to repeat in your mind the words that are said by the speaker. When you are learning another language, you have to focus on every word the other person says because you are not familiar with the hearing and processing the sounds. The more you become familiar with the sounds, the more fluent you will be.
Use the same technique when listening to others. This will help you concentrate on the words the speaker is expressing and force you to transform those words in your brain to understanding, and perhaps action that supports your own goals.
Reliability
When the stresses and strains of modern living began to change our concept of politeness, we got out of the habit of always being on time. As soon as we had excuses like traffic, kids, and holiday shopping to deflect attention away from our tardiness, we used those words to elicit sympathy for our rat-race lives.
But you do not have to operate under those excuses. To avoid being late, leave earlier. Give yourself enough time to get where you are supposed to be. This applies to the meeting down the hall, as much as the dinner across town. When you have an important meeting with a senior executive or investor, you strive to be on time. The same reliability should apply to meetings with friends or subordinates. You know how long you will need to get there, make a point of preparing ahead.
This is not a trivial matter. Sometimes you are running behind the whole day and never find the scope to catch up. In that case, start your whole day earlier. If other people are late to meet with you point out their faux pas, perhaps in front of others, as a reminder that people are waiting. But do not be the one who others are waiting for.
Thrift
Money comes in, and money goes out. How can you keep any of it around for the times when you really need it?
We like to spend money, especially if we grew up with little and learned fear and scarcity about money. Or we feel an obligation to purchase items for others or in recognition of our own virtue.
But loosely spending money is detrimental to your chance to have a comfortable and secure future. You can discipline yourself to protect money by making sure you put a portion of your earnings away immediately. As soon as you are paid, have an automatic deduction taken and transferred to another account you do not touch. Put the account in a different bank so when you go online to check your accounts you do not see money accumulating that you think you should be spending. Make that designated percentage disappear so that it is available to reappear when you really need it to exist.
You can make good habits part of your DNA by focusing on these six abilities: desire, effort, progress, consideration, reliability and thrift. Once you have implemented the practices that turn your fortunes around, you will realize you are exactly that person who lives in success mode, all the time.
Disclosure: Links to ebooks or physical products are affiliate links to Amazon.com meaning Ready Entrepreneur may be earn compensation for purchases made through the link
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