Saturday, February 27, 2010

It is hard to change just a little. Easier to change a lot.

To succeed as an entrepreneur you have to pay attention. You must pay close attention to what is going on around you – to your company, your market and to your own mindset. And quite often you will discover that you need to make changes.

The problem with change is that changing just a little is often harder than changing a lot. Your old mindset still has its old values and attachments that inevitably will slide you back into your old groove. But when you change enough to create a new mindset, you can free yourself from your old way of looking at things and create a new groove.

The older we get, the more difficult habits are to break. The more we have done something one way, then the more difficult it is to do it another way. The longer we have a perspective, the harder it is to change the way we see things. This is human nature.

Want to make a change? Make it a big change not a small one. Trying to wake up 15 minutes earlier each morning is harder than deciding to wake up 1 hour earlier. The transition is greater and the effect will be more noticeable and likely to stick. Trying to simply improve your sales skills is much more difficult than committing to making a significant change in your sales strategy (enroll in a course, hire a sales coach, employ a consultant). The point is that if you first come to the realization that you need to change something in your life, then make it a big change. You might find it easier and you will more likely succeed.

Want to turn-around your business and achieve results in record time? Contact me to discuss Executive Coaching, Group Facilitation and Management for Hire services for technology companies. You can learn more at www.ricksalmon.com and at www.xelerator.com.

Rick Salmon is an energetic entrepreneur who lives in Norway and believes that this beautiful world that we have created needs our help. Subscribe to this newsletter/blog to receive frequent updates and tips.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Laid-off?... then Become An Entrepreneur

These days, the workers in the Northeast of England have the feeling that things have not been worse since the famine and plagues of the middle ages. Unemployment is at an all-time high, problems are escalating and you have a whole new generation growing up without any means of work or income other than government subsidies. Only fools entertain optimistic thoughts, let alone dare to leave the house with smiles on their faces.

Then to make matters worse, I just read an article about a group in the Northeast that is encouraging people who are facing layoffs from their jobs to consider becoming entrepreneurs.

How dare they? Is becoming an entrepreneur really an option for someone facing redundancy and unemployment?

My Story
What got me started? 20 years ago I was working for Norsk Data, a large corporation that went through several big rounds of layoffs. One year after the third round I learned from my boss that my name had been on the list of those to be fired in the last round. Being familiar with my work, he had rescued me from the list. Learning this news shook me to the core. I had never even imagined that I could lose my job. In spite of all the layoffs, it had not even been a remote possibility in my mind. After all, I was so smart and talented (I thought). Leaning this fact shattered my ideas about job stability. It made me completely rethink which career path was ”safe” and which was ”risky”. I vowed to myself that I would never again put myself in a position where another person’s whim could affect my future in such a dramatic manner. I decided that by becoming an entrepreneur, I could control my own fate and shape my own destiny. Within 3 months of receiving this news, I was involved with 2 software programmers in my first successful tech startup called BlueSky Software (renamed eHelp Corporation). Since then I have been involved with over 12 different startups and early stage ventures. It became a good career for me.

The threat of being laid-off prompted me to take action. How would you deal with this same situation? I sincerely believe that more people who are faced with layoffs should indeed consider becoming entrepreneurs. I will not promise you that it is an easy path to walk, but for the right type of person, it is a good move to make.

Excerpt from: Forum urges recession hit people into business:

“No one is ever going to suggest that starting a business is the easy option – such a step into the unknown can be daunting or even intimidating. But there has never been a better time to give it a go because you’re not alone. There are plenty who are in the same position and plenty who’ve been through it, come out the other side and once they’ve worked through the doubts and challenges never look back. And their stories are always inspirational.”

"Entrepreneurs have an increasing role to play in the future success of the economy and we should see this as an opportunity to transform the economic make-up of the region."

Want to turn-around your business and achieve results in record time? Contact me to discuss Executive Coaching, Group Facilitation and Management for Hire services for technology companies. You can learn more at www.ricksalmon.com and at www.xelerator.com.
Rick Salmon is an energetic entrepreneur who believes that this beautiful world that we have created needs our help. Subscribe to this newsletter/blog to receive frequent updates and tips.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Coaching Athletes vs. Coaching Entrepreneurs

COACHING ATHLETES:

All professional athletes have coaches. No serious competitor would attempt to compete at peak level without one. A coach is not just another player or colleague; a coach is a specially trained person with a very specific role. A coach does not have to be a star athlete. Sometimes the best coaches were never really good at the sport. They have different skills. So why do athletes need a coach? Is there a real purpose that the coach fulfills? Is it really necessary?

Let’s look at what a (good) sports coach does:

  • Assess the athlete’s overall strengths and weaknesses
  • Be objective – give honest feedback aimed at improvement
  • Design game tactics that favor the athlete’s strengths
  • Create training exercises that strengthen the athlete’s weaknesses
  • Track the athlete’s progress with training and exercise programs from month to month
  • Design strategies for long-term improvement/mastery
  • Recruit other specialists if needed
  • Help the athlete set specific goals and outcomes (Gold Medal, World Champion, etc.)
  • Keep the focus on the goals (removing any distractions)
  • Offer encouragement in times of defeat
  • Celebrate the victories!

COACHING ENTREPRENEURS:

There are entrepreneurs who succeed but there are many more that will never succeed. Just ask any investor. How do you pick the winners from the losers? Most investors will tell you that the most important aspect is the people involved in a startup. So what makes one entrepreneur more likely to succeed than others? It is the mind-set. It is the mental strength and determination of the entrepreneur that is usually the key deciding factor.

Coaching entrepreneurs is very similar to coaching athletes. Even natural sports talent needs to be developed. It rarely just happens on its own. The best entrepreneurs are not always those with the biggest IQs and the most distinguished PhDs. They are, however, the ones that

are observant, who listen carefully, who are willing to take good advice and who are quick to adapt and change.

Let’s look at what a (good) entrepreneur coach does:

  • Assess the entrepreneur’s overall strengths and weaknesses
  • Be objective – give honest feedback aimed at improvement
  • Design business-development tactics that favor the entrepreneur’s strengths
  • Create training exercises that strengthen the entrepreneur’s weaknesses
  • Track the entrepreneur’s completion of goals from month to month
  • Design strategies for long-term improvement/mastery
  • Determine the ultimate outcomes/goals (IPO, exit, investors, etc.)
  • Keep the focus on these outcomes (removing any distractions)
  • Offer encouragement when there are setbacks
  • Celebrate the victories!

Why hire an Entrepreneur Coach?

If you are a serious athlete, then you probably already have a coach. If you are a serious entrepreneur, then you owe it to yourself to explore this tool. I think you will be surprised how effective and also fun it can be. I have used many different coaches over the past 5 years. Each time I am embarking on an exciting new venture or entering into an especially challenging project or transition period, I hire a coach. It is great to have the help and guidance during these kind of periods. Sometimes I only use them for 3 months. The longest I have gone is 18 months with the same coach.

Put your startup company into to a new high gear. Challenge yourself to give 100% focus over the next 3 months and you will be amazed at how your business will change and prosper. If you are committed to your startup and if you have a sense of urgency about building your business, then sign up for a free trial session today. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

If you are not really serious about your startup business, if you do not whole-heartedly believe that you can and will succeed, then don’t bother with this.

Participating in an executive coaching program can be a very fulfilling and rewarding process. It is a time for you to reflect on your strengths, your past successes and also to identify areas of your life and business that you would like to enhance.

For many of our clients it becomes a major turning point in both their professional as well as their personal lives. It is a great way to re-ignite your passion, to help to identify your purpose and to accelerate your growth quickly.

Want to learn more? Try a free, no-obligation, no sales-pressure coaching session. Click here

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

The Most Common Mistakes that Startup Companies Make

There is an old saying that goes:
  • Success is the result of Good Judgment
  • Good Judgment is the result of Experience
  • Experience is the result of Bad Judgment

Have I learned anything after almost 20 years of doing startup companies? I try not to make the same mistakes more than at least 1 time. Today I sat down and decided to make a list of the most common mistakes that I (and other entrepreneurs) typically make.

1. Overestimating the market potential

I have been so sure about my products, and known that they would change people’s lives that I just couldn’t imagine not capturing at least 75% of the market… OK, or at least 10% of the Chinese market.

2. Overestimating the necessity of my products or services

Not only will I capture that 75% of the market, but there is no way anyone can live without my products and services. They’d be fools not to line up at my door…right?

3. Falling in Love with my own Technology

I have this great, unique and patented technology that surely almost everyone will want. The problem is that I haven’t yet figured out who will be willing to pay for it… Pushing a technology that is in search of a problem to solve is like pushing on a rope.

4. Creating Products not Markets

Technologies come and technologies go. Think of all the big, fancy new technologies that have appeared like a flash fire in a frying pan, then just disappeared. The technologies vaporize, but the markets usually last much longer. My new technology may solve a problem in a market. If I make an investment in getting to know this market well and in providing more solutions to other problems that this market has, then I will end up with a loyal market and a sustainable business, no matter what technologies come and go.

5. Creating revenue projections to make the numbers work

As entrepreneurs we usually believe so fully in our idea or business concept, that we often end up “tweaking” the numbers just a bit to validate our beliefs. It’s usually not intentional and seems harmless at the time to say “yeah, maybe we’ll get 3% of the market instead of 2%…yep, see now look how wildly successful this will be!”. Or saying things like, “Nah, I really don’t think expenses will run at 30% of revenue…it’s probably more like 25%”. Do your homework, make your projections as accurately as you can, then live with what the bottom line number tells you.

6. Trying to do it all myself

It is so easy to fall into the trap of trying to do it all. One of the key strengths of good entrepreneurs is that they are usually capable of doing lots of different things – and all relatively well. I am pretty good at lots of small business tasks (sales, marketing, social media, technology, finance, communication, negotiation, etc.), so I am often tempted to try to do it all myself. The problem is that I don’t have the time and pros usually do a better job (there is a reason they are professionals and I am not). Outsourcing tasks and building a team are key factors to accelerating business development… but not easy for most entrepreneurs like me.

7. Underestimating timelines

From idea conception to product launch in three months, no problem! My rampant enthusiasm often leads me to believe that I can do things quicker than is humanly possible. It is good to set timelines that push the limits, but keep in mind what is realistic.

8. Believing that short term goals will lead to long term success

If I keep achieving my short-term goals, then I should be on the right track for the long term, right? Not always. If I took the time to determine my long-term (3-5 years) goals and then mapped them to my short-term outcomes, then I am probably going in the right direction. Short-term goals without a long-term strategy is like driving in the dark with no map or GPS. If I can only see as far as my headlights reach, then I may end up going in circles forever.

9. Underestimating the competition

It’s often easy for me to think that I will be able to enter and dominate a market due to my superior business model and my flamboyant skills. It’s also pretty easy to underestimate the competition. The fact that they are already in the market gives them a big advantage. Respecting this fact causes me to get clever and to devise strategies to outthink and outperform the competition.

10. Forgetting to work ON my business instead of just working FOR it

Building a business is not the same as running one. These two things are not the same. I sometimes forget that my job as an entrepreneur is not to do all the work myself, but to be the strategist who puts in place systems that function and tasks that others can do. Building scalable and sustainable business is the goal. The majority of my work needs to be on how to grow then business, not on the actual doing.

www.xelerator.com