The Entrepreneurial Mind
Henry Moser, 5, of McKinney, Texas, tries on a Green Bay Packers' " cheesehead" at the NFL Shop inside the NFL Experience Saturday, Jan. 29 in Dallas. The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the Green Bay Packers on Feb. 6. (David J. Phillip / AP )
Super Bowl edition: entrepreneurial cheeseheads
Full disclosure -- I am one of those nutty Cheeseheads you have been reading about with the Packers in the Super Bowl.
There is an entrepreneurial angle to the Super Bowl XLV that involves the iconic symbols for both of the teams.
Packers are known for their Cheeseheads. Even our clergy are not immune to displaying their Cheesehead pride. (The Cheesehead label was originally used as a derogatory term by Chicago Bears fans, but was quickly embraced by those of us from the land of the frozen tundra).
As you might suspect, the Packer Cheeseheads are made in Wisconsin. Entrepreneur Ralph Bruno is the man behind the now famous foamy headdress. You can read a great profile and interview with him here.
But here is where the entrepreneurial story of Super Bowl XLV takes an interesting turn.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are known for their terrible towels.
But like the Packer Cheeseheads, the Terrible Towels are also made in Wisconsin! While entrepreneur Gregg McArthur has made a lot of money from Steeler fans making the terrible towels in his factory in Baraboo, Wisconsin, he is true to his roots and will be rooting for the Packers this Sunday.
"In the end, I think it will be a good game, but Aaron Rodgers has it," said McArthur in an interview with AOL Small Business. "The Packers will win by a touchdown."
This Cheesehead now living in Tennessee hopes he is right!
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
A pile of MasterCard and VISA credit cards are displayed in this file photo. Is the difficulty of accessing credit detrimental to small businesses? (Jochen Krause / AP / File )
The myth of credit for small businesses
There is a myth that a lack of access to credit is what is holding back small businesses in our economy. Washington keeps trying to enact policies to increase the pool of funding available to loan to small businesses and to encourage banks to lend to smaller firms. But supply of funding is not the problem -- it is demand.
I participated in a conference call with Denny Dennis of the NFIB this morning that offered some information that showed the fallacy of the so-called small business credit problem from a new report recently released by NFIB.
His data shows that recent small business loan approval is actually up in 2010 when compared to 2009, but that demand for credit is still low. Small businesses do not want -- or I would argue need -- more debt right now.
Some interesting findings include:
- Those who did not seek debt, were actually stronger financially than those who did seek new debt financing.
- Most small business loans are tied to real estate (both business and personal), so the real estate crash has diminished the ability and presumably willingness to borrow more money.
- Since sales are weak, business owners cannot generate the additional cash flow to cover new loans.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
A woman in Boston texts outside of South Station. Guest blogger Jeff Cornwall gives advice about encouraging professional behavior in students. (Melanie Stetson Freeman / Staff / File)
Getting students to spit out the gum and act professional
I hear a lot of concern that professionalism is dead or at least dying in the workplace as this new generation of workers has been entering the workforce.
Those of us preparing college students for their careers face it almost everyday as professors - students who seem to lack the professional skills and even basic social skills that they will need to succeed in business. We have students who text message as we talk to them in our offices, who wear their hats on backwards, who sleep in class, who check Facebook during lectures, and even some who answer a cell phone call during class.
Our natural tendency is to throw our hands in the air in frustration and hope it does not get even worse before the time comes for us to retire. After all, this is the always connected, constantly wired generation. This is their culture.
But some of the management faculty at Bradley University began discussing how to deal with the numerous behavioral problems and even rudeness in their classes and when communicating in person, via email, or phone.
Jennifer Robin, who teaches Organizational Behavior, developed a system of professionalism points, designed to replace participation points in class. Professionalism points suggest appropriate behavior that will be useful in the future.
Eden Blair, who teaches Entrepreneurship at Bradley, has adopted this system. She shared her experiences with using this approach to addressing student behavior:
• "'Professionalism' has different meanings in different classes. Thus, Jen could incorporate leadership theories associated with appropriate behavior in her class. I have students treat me and their classmates as future venture capitalists or new venture team members in my entrepreneurship classes, as future stakeholders/alliance members in my social entrepreneurship class, etc. In my creativity class, we discuss how multitasking is really a series of continuous distractions, provide theories in class how damaging that is to brain structures associated with creativity and the ability to be creative. Thus, playing on your phone during a creativity class isn't just rude, it also has an impact on a student's ability to create. My entrepreneurship students go to entrepreneur networking events in town and we discuss what behavior they saw was appropriate and what wasn't. What does it say about an entrepreneur who can't take an earpiece out of his ear the entire time of an event? Does that make him look busy and important or a complete tool (my students' phrase)?"
• "Treat students like adults. I do not care if they miss class, but they need to accept the consequences of it, excused or unexcused. I will not discuss what they miss and tell them that they should never ask me if they "missed anything important." They need to contact me ASAP if they are missing class and should ask politely for me to reschedule an exam, not expect that I will do it. I am under no obligation to do so. Students who act appropriately and as adults are far more likely to get what they ask for."
• "Teach students that small acts go a long way. Greeting me and their fellow students when they come into class, writing polite emails in the correct manner, being a good team member are all important."
• "Explain the long term consequences for unprofessional behavior. Falling asleep in class may not seem a big deal now, but it will when you need a reference to a grad school where I have a buddy or for a job with a local entrepreneur. A lack of punctuality makes me and fellow students less likely to help you in the future."
• "When you can't beat them, join them. I do allow students to have computers and phones in the room and try to utilize them in class. I teach students how to look up company websites and figure out what the site suggests about the current and future success. We then discuss whether students would fund the organization. Since I can't get the students to read, this at least allows for discussion. I have students text into a poll to help promote a discussion (polleverywhere.com)."
• "Enlist students' help when crafting professional behavior. When they state what behavior is appropriate and inappropriate, it is easier to chastise them when they act inappropriately."
To those of you in academia, the faculty at Bradley are in the early stages of developing this system, so they welcome any ideas or comments. Eden Blair can be contacted at esblair@bumail.bradley.edu
But I know they would also welcome thoughts from the rest of you who are dealing with these issues with young workers in your businesses. I am sure they would welcome your thoughts, as well. I also think that some of the ideas they are developing must also morph into orientation and training ideas in businesses to help address the behavioral challenges I hear from many of you when dealing with your young workers.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
Starting a business can turn entrepreneurs into bullies. Here are some ways to maintain civility under pressure. (Photo illustration / Robin Witek / Newscom)
Don't be an entrepreneurial bully
Sometimes entrepreneurs just can't help themselves. They get so wrapped up things like making the business model work and growing their ventures that they can lose perspective on their actions. They may talk about the importance of acting ethically and building a positive culture, but the pressures of the entrepreneurial journey can lead to behaviors that do not match their words and their intentions.
This can lead to entrepreneurial bullying.
Jackie Gilbert writes about this issue in a blog post from this weekend:
"The union of people with like traits thus produced a "super-strain" of individuals who were highly independent and self-sufficient. These same characteristics that were so useful at one time for survival purposes (and which still fuel our entrepreneurial society) - may however have detrimental consequences for our personal behavior. Although in theory we appear to espouse the values of mutual respect and democratic management, how often are these values forgotten when we are faced with an annoying situation? Our desire then to embellish our ego, to trounce an opponent, or to vindicate ourselves at another's expense may take precedent over conducting ourselves with a sense of decorum. In these moments of self-righteousness indignation, we seem to forget the Golden Rule, or as Tony Alessandra so eloquently coined the term, the Platinum Rule® - treating others as they wish to be treated."
Gilbert offers eight specific things to do that can help ensure better behavior when dealing with those around us. They are worth reading and putting into action.
I tell my students that real courage is to do what is right even when it is most difficult to do so. Being virtuous does not just happen -- it comes from an intentional and consistent pattern of behaviors that eventually become habit. That is how character is formed. Even the small interpersonal interactions in our daily lives shape our character over time.
Gilbert's tips offer actions that can help us avoid developing habits that turn us into entrepreneurial bullies.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above
The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2010 Report, which was released yesterday, estimates that 63 million early-stage entrepreneurs expect to hire at least five employees over the next five years, and 27 million anticipate hiring 20 or more people in newly created jobs. (Chantal James / CSM-Freelance / File)
250 million entrepreneurs and counting
How is entrepreneurship looking around the globe? The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2010 Report released yesterday estimates that 250 million people between 18-64 years old are actively engaged in starting or running new businesses in 59 economies around the globe.
The report states that an estimated 63 million of these early-stage entrepreneurs expect to hire at least five employees over the next five years. 27 million anticipate hiring twenty or more people in newly created jobs. The potential contribution of entrepreneurship in job creation across the globe is critical, as it has been entrepreneurs who have led us out of almost every past recession.
In 2010 GEM surveyed more than 175,000 people and over 3,000 national experts in 59 economies around the world. The report covers over 52% of the world's population and 84% of the world's GDP. This research is accomplished through an international network of national academic research teams, with global sponsorship by Babson College, USA and Universidad del Desarrollo, Chile.
I have to add that the study authors do offer some conclusions from their data that are concerning to me.
"Policy makers need to look beyond simply the number of active entrepreneurs. They need to understand the contribution these individuals make to economic growth and national competitiveness. Are these entrepreneurs creating jobs? Are they building innovative, global companies? These are the important questions to ask," states Professor Donna Kelly, one of the report authors.
The implication of this is that government policy makers know best what markets are worth pursuing, rather than entrepreneurs and their customers. Planned economies never work.
"Governments must encourage those with great ideas to pursue the opportunities they perceive. In so doing, entrepreneurs and governments build a foundation for future jobs," notes Ignacio de la Vega, chair of the GEM oversight board.
Not sure why governments feel that they need to be the ones to encourage entrepreneurs. Most surveys show that entrepreneurs simply want government to get out of their way.
The authors stress the importance of societal and cultural support for entrepreneurship. On this we can all agree. History shows that important steps to foster this type of support include: celebrating entrepreneurial success, rather than demonizing wealth creation; protecting property rights of the individual, rather than shifting property control to the state; and, creating tax systems with the single goal of funding the government, rather than redistributing wealth.
You can find the full report here.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
Between smartphones, computers, and telephones, can consumers succeed in listening to several voices at once? (Photo illustration/imago stock&people/Newscom/File)
Can you listen to five voices at once?
Lee Rainie, Director of Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project, gave an intriguing talk on their research into the current use of the Internet in the US at our USASBE conference this past week.
The trends they are finding on the use of wireless, social networking, the types of technology we are using to access information, and the types of information we are seeking is really eye-opening. Anyone who is working on ventures related to the Internet or that rely on it for marketing (I guess that pretty much includes almost every business today) should read their reports.
One of the interesting conversations that came out of their data was about the changing norms and social expectations that are developing due to technology and the Internet.
Most of us have experienced a situation where we are talking to a young adult who in the middle of the conversation begins to answer a text message. Those of us who are Baby Boomers find this behavior to be socially rude. But to younger people, this is absolutely socially acceptable.
An extension of this is the need to compete with our marketing to an increasing amount of "noise" out there. People receive multiple messages, often simultaneously.
Such multiple, simultaneous flows of information are becoming the norm in our culture.
If you try to fight it, you will likely lose. When culture shifts this way it is impossible to reverse or even slow down the changes.
The conversation reminded me of an interview I heard with Brad Faxon, who is a professional golfer. Faxon had tried his hand at television broadcasting with NBC sports this past year. He is getting to the age where he is not very competitive on the PGA tour, but not quite old enough for the senior tour.
He said that his contract was not renewed with NBC. He shared that one of the most difficult things about the job was being able to listen to five different voices at once coming through his head phones offering information about what was happening in the golf tournament. He had to discern which of the voices were relevant for his commentary, while at the same time carrying on a conversation with other announcers or making comments about what was going on in the tournament.
I think all of us may soon experience something similar in our daily lives. More and more information is coming to us through more and more media and sources. And it is coming to us faster and faster. It is not slowing down and it is not going to let up.
We will all need to learn to adapt to this new social/cultural reality of "five voices at once" both as consumers of information and producers of information to the marketplace.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
Organizers Lourdes Martin Rosa, Karen-Michelle Mirko, and Gloria Larkin stand for a photo during a 'Give Me 5' advanced workshop, where women entrepreneurs learned how to write winning proposals for government contracts, in Washington, Sept. 27. The workshop was organized by American Express OPEN and Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP). (Stephen J Boitano / AP / File)
More women pursue entrepreneurial careers
During the on-going recession, entrepreneurship is becoming an even more popular path for women in America. Elizabeth Fuller has an article in CSM that explores some of the common practices of women entrepreneurs:
"If opening a business demands courage, opening one in the aftermath of the worst economic downturn since the Depression demands a special steeliness, especially for female entrepreneurs. Because women-owned businesses are concentrated in retail and service industries - think Estée Lauder, Coco Chanel, Mrs. Fields Cookies, even Zipcar - they were among the first to feel the downturn. Now, in a fragile recovery, the business climate requires other qualities, like resourcefulness and patience."
Their strategies? Keep debt low and bootstrap at every opportunity.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
Selling your business is a complicated legal transaction, but don't give up too soon – it's worth it to sweat the details. All of the details. So take a deep breath and keep moving forward. (Illustration / Don Coker / Newscom / File)
When selling your business, sweat the details
My lecture on the exit process is one of my favorites to give to my students. I use my own experience in selling our company as a case study in the complexity of the deal terms and their implications. Even my more experienced graduate students have an unrealistic view of the exit process. Most seem to imagine a process more akin to selling a house.
They soon realize that issues such as what gets sold, how you get paid, when you get paid, what your payment is eventually based on, what you guarantee post sale, and how the deal gets structured can have huge implications on what actually finally ends up in your personal checking account from the sale of the business.
And then there all of those intense emotional questions that many business owners wrestle with. What will I do after I sell? What will happen to my employees? Will the culture I worked so hard to build be unraveled once the new owners take over? Did I sell too soon?
Charlie Crystle shares his own sorted exit story from the sale of his business in an article at CNN Money:
"My software company ChiliSoft sold for $100 million in 2000. Or $70 million. Or $28 million.
"It depends on the date you choose, the built-in triggers, and ego. Notably, from December 1999 to May 2000, my stake dropped from 40% to 15% when the deal closed. Most employee stakes dropped as well -- but not all employees."
Crystle's lesson learned from his experience is to "sweat the details."
While that sounds simple enough, many entrepreneurs get beaten down during the process of selling their business and end up agreeing to terms that come back to haunt them post closing.
I remember a phone call I had with our attorney as we were working on the details of closing the sale of our business. We were getting bogged down in the language in the various closing documents. I was worn out, as we had already had two aborted closings. I was worried that the whole thing was about to come undone. I just wanted to get the business sold. I said to him, "I don't care about all of these stupid terms. Just work it out and get the deal closed!"
My attorney was silent for a few moments on the other end of the phone. Then he said, "Jeff, I know this all seems incredibly tedious, but it really matters. Some of what seems trivial now could cost you dearly later. Get a grip and hang in there with me."
He was right. When I looked back on the deal post closing I began to realize why so many of the details that seemed at the time like lawyers being lawyers actually mattered.
For many entrepreneurs, selling the business is a once in a life time opportunity. Don't leave anything to chance. Know that the buyer has hired very smart and experienced M&A attorneys. You do the same and listen to their counsel.
Sweat the details, indeed.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
A crew member (l.) talks with a customer at an Apple store in Glendale, Calif., on Dec. 8. Talking with customers gives businesses, large or small, an invaluable insight into their needs, wants, and how best to meet them. (Fred Prouser / Reuters / File)
Who make the best consultants for start-ups? Customers.
A common myth about launching a new business is that you can sit at your computer and develop a comprehensive marketing plan that will guide the growth of your venture.
The truth is that until you get out from behind your computer and engage real customers, you probably won't know what it really takes to successfully launch a business.
Attracting early customers to a new business should be thought of as a courtship. The first phase of the courtship addresses two questions. Exactly who are your target customers? And, what do they really want from you?
No amount of Internet research or talking to experts can give you this information; only real customers have the answers you need.
Sam Dryden and John Price, former students in entrepreneurship at Belmont University, learned a great deal from their customers during the initial start-up of their company, My Outdoor Calendar (http://www.myoutdoorcalendar.com).
"We were pushing our software to individual fishing and hunting guides," said Sam Dryden. "It seemed like the right thing to do. We could help them get organized and manage their schedules. After a few months we realized that these individual guides didn't have trouble with their schedules. They had trouble getting exposure.
"As a result we now give away our booking tool for free to small individual guides. We can then take our growing list of individual guides to large outdoor-related websites that specialize in marketing activities that see value in our list of guides."
Business startups need to work with customers to establish "proof of concept." Start your business by keeping it at a very small scale, because the odds are that many of the assumptions you have made about your business model are wrong and your business will need to adjust and adapt.
You may go through many iterations, think of them as experiments, adjusting what you are trying to sell as well as who it is best to sell it to.
Once you answer the "what" and "who" questions, it is time to move to the second phase of the courtship. Develop an entry strategy, which is a plan for how you will get the market's attention and let potential customers know that you are open and ready for business.
Assuming the theory that "if you build it they will come" rarely works, you'll instead need to find creative ways to stand out from the crowd.
In the third phase of your courtship with customers, you are finally ready to implement a more traditional marketing plan to keep the flow of customers coming to your doorstep as you grow. In any new business you should think of the customers as your consultants. They can help you understand how to turn your business idea into a thriving venture plugged into long-term success.
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
Ricky Skaggs, shown here performing with Joan Osborne at Summerstage in New York's Central Park on June 8, has partnered with a entrepreneur Ben Cooper to write new songs and market them in new ways. (PNP / WENN.com / Newscom / File)
The music industry has turned upside down? Great!
Living in Nashville means that we see more of our fair share of people interested in making it in the music industry. And Belmont University, with its nationally recognized music business program, attracts many of these folks.
One of the challenges for those interested in the music industry is that it is in the middle of being completely restructured. We are not talking about the kind of turmoil most industries go through from time to time. Within the next five years the music industry will look nothing like it did when we moved here seven years ago. The result is that the traditional employment opportunities we had seen in this industry have all but dried up.
But this is where entrepreneurship comes in.
Those who are looking at the fundamental changes not as threats to stable employment, but opportunities to become part of the change are finding their way to success.
Quite a few of my former students are part of this entrepreneurial wave sweeping over the music business.
I just had coffee yesterday with one of my former students named Ben Cooper, who is finding a niche in songwriting. Ben was an entrepreneurship minor at Belmont, majoring in audio engineering.
Ben learned his entrepreneurship lessons well.
Like most successful entrepreneurs, Ben knew he could not make it alone. So he went to work to build his network. Part of that network includes key mentors like veteran songwriter Gordon Kennedy.
Building this network has helped Ben to connect with musicians, including bluegrass legion Ricky Skaggs. Ben co-wrote eight of the fourteen songs on Skaggs' new album Mosaic.
Ben also remembered his bootstrapping lessons. There are so many talented songwriters in Nashville that even some of the really good ones can get lost. So Ben is using some of the bootstrap marketing lessons he learned in our program to build his "brand awareness" as a songwriter. One of the projects Ben is working on is a blog on songwriting called The Songbird Project.
Not bad for only three and a half years out of college working in an industry turned upside down!
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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.
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