“It’s too hard to start one.”
No it’s not. There are companies out there that handle all the work for you and help you choose between a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or LLC.

“It’s too expensive.”
No it’s not. You can do all the paperwork yourself and only have to deal with the licensing fees and such or again, you can get in touch with one of those company forming entities and lay down $500 or so and have them do it.

“I don’t have time.”
Really? Is “Wheel of Fortune” keeping you from achieving financial independence?

You don’t have to aim for the stars to get your own company going. Don’t think you have to compete with Microsoft, Target, Chevrolet…whoever it may be in order to succeed with your own company. There are so many niche things out there that you can do. Better yet, do what you like…and get paid for it.

Do you like to sew? Do it…sew to your heart’s content and then sell your goods online, at a flea market, at a consignment shop.
How about programming? I’ve seen some simple programs be the foundation of companies as they’ve grown over the years. You can do it too.
Photography? Design? There’s a need for that, both digital and print.

I just want to emphasize that you don’t need to make $100,000.00 a year with your new company to be successful. Wouldn’t it be nice to make an extra $20,000.00/year just by doing what you already enjoy doing? So why not do it? With unemployment rates the highest they’ve been in the past 14 years, it’s worth a shot. At least you’ll be pulling in some revenue in the unfortunate case of getting laid off. This can help you survive until your next gig. It can also hone your skills as you look for something new. If nothing else, it’ll show potential employers that you’ve got the will to succeed. It also affords you the luxury of not having to find such a high paying job out in the market place as you’ll already have this side gig bringing in supplemental income. That means you can have more jobs available to you as you get to lower your starting salary range.

Go on. Get out there. Start a new company. Many giant companies started in dorm rooms, in garages. If you want to be the best, there’s hope. If you want to keep it simple and simply have a supplement to your income, keep it small. It’s that easy. There aren’t many good reasons out there why you shouldn’t have a business of your own right now. Start up and have fun!

This thought all came about as I saw a friend earlier today. I had another idea for the venue that we are thinking about opening. When I saw him I brought it up but he was a bit busy. I said “I understand…we’ll discuss this later” and went on to talk about how I’d only do this with him…because I trust him. We volleyed the trust thing for a few more minutes and then were done with it. On the surface, this didn’t seem like anything out of the ordinary for me. However, later on I saw him again and he was telling me about some problems he was having with one of his other businesses. The trust thing really kicked in here as he was describing how someone had really thrown a wrench in the works by not paying up for some items that were purchased. Sure he’ll survive, but it’s the principle of the thing. Not only that, it affects him directly, his suppliers, distributors, and ultimately the customers.

All of this because of trust. One person (not my friend) trusted someone that he shouldn’t have and thus blew up the works for everyone around him. This one person betrayed the trust of those doing business with him and as a result there has been trust issues amongst those not even directly connected to this one deal.

This is just one instance where trust comes to play. I often take trust for granted because I try to associate myself only with those that are trustworthy. My dealings in business are focused on people I trust, on companies I trust. It makes doing business so much easier. Who wants to deal with that shady salesman? Or a company that has unscrupulous business practices? Do you want to partner up with someone that will screw you down the road?

Again…this all seems like such an elementary subject concerning business but obviously we need to have little reminders every now and then to protect ourselves and our businesses from those that might otherwise do us harm. Take a moment to do an internal assessment of who you trust within your organization and with those that you routinely conduct business with. You’ll find you can run a much more efficient organization if you can spend your time and energy focusing on growing your business rather than watching your back and making sure everything is being done as promised.

Nowhere in the history of gaming has anyone ranted about Apple as being a platform of choice for gaming. Nope. Just not there.

Enter the iPhone. Have you seen how many games are available for this thing? According to one article at the LA Times there are nearly 1,700 games available since the App Store opened in June. Good…freaking…googly. Those are mammoth numbers! From simple games developed by unknown developers to well-known games developed by the bigger names in gaming, games dominate the downloads for the iPhone.

When the iPhone was first released it was widely speculated that the iPhone was Apple’s Trojan Horse into the enterprise. Perhaps it is. However, one cannot ignore these numbers. With already 1,700 games…one thousand seven hundred…in a mere five months, Apple may be sneaking their way into a new source of revenue. We can only guess what they’ll do with this information. Perhaps they make a handheld gaming device to compete with Nintendo’s DS Lite or Sony’s PSP or maybe they’ll think bigger and go for a console gaming system. Maybe they’ll do nothing and let it be a niche product for the phone (can we really call 7 of the top 10 iPhone apps “niche”?). I don’t know…but Apple is clearly comfortable with exploring opportunities beyond desktop and laptop computers. Time will tell but I for will be keeping my eyes on this development.

Sounds like a simple concept, doesn’t it? Take the first step and be first to market. Often times this may be cost-prohibitive with R&D costs but more often than not you can be the first to act and watch your competition scramble to react to your moves.

In the business world it is often a sad fate of growth to become saddled with bureaucracy and other slow-moving policies when your company grows. It doesn’t have to be this way though. There are many companies that have realized if they want to keep their competitive edge they must keep this young thriving culture. Keep the ideas fresh. Keep pressing on. Be a step ahead of your competition. Let them be the ones reacting to your moves and struggle to keep pace with you. It’s much more fun to be the leader instead of the chaser.

I could go on and give specific examples of why this works. Why bother though? I want you to think about it yourself. Think about small companies. Large companies. Sports teams. More often than not you’ll see the groups that are hungry to succeed are the ones that are winning while the groups that are content with simply reacting to their competition to be lagging behind.

Get out there! Act! Let the others react to you.

The folks at MacDailyNews compiled a great list of quotes from various people that poo-pood on the notion of Apple creating a phone. These quotes of course come after the latest numbers reported by Apple showing that they are now the world’s third largest mobile phone supplier based on revenue and that the iPhone outsold the Blackberry last quarter. Not bad from a company that was once called “the beleaguered company” a number of years ago.

My favorite quote (probably based on my frustration with Palm as they keep fumbling the ball) is from Ed Colligan, CEO of Palm on November 16, 2006. He stated “We’ve learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent phone. PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They’re not going to just walk in.” 

Really? Good job Ed. While you sat there and and did nothing with your OS, some “PC guys” came along and created one of the most popular phones in history. 

It’s this kind of thinking by executives that drives me crazy. What should be a great company falls by the wayside because of a great mixture of arrogance and ignorance. I love my Treo but damn…it’s like a clunky old brick compared to the iPhone. If not for Apple’s exclusive deal with AT&T and my great plan with Sprint I’m sure I’d be yet another iPhone owner amongst my friends and colleagues.

So how did Apple do it? I’m pretty sure the “cool factor” of owning an Apple device played a role in their sales. However, Apple is known for massive R&D, for finding what the users want, for making things simple to use. While Palm (and everyone else for that part) was sitting on their ass, Apple was working on features, ergonomics, design, ease-of-use…and look where we are now.

Let this be a lesson to all those companies that think they have a particular market or even a particular niche cornered. Anybody can come in and rain on your picnic. In these days and times it is a dangerous thing to rest on your laurels. There is always someone looking to put a better product out there and if you rest, you’ll fall behind faster than you can imagine.

Good business practices are soooooo easy! Seriously people…just pull your head out of your ass and treat your clients with respect. That simple thing alone will keep your customers happy and more than likely drum up some new business for you. On the flip side, be an unscrupulous bastard and you will not only piss off your current customer (thus having no repeat business from them) but they’re probably going to tell acquaintances to steer clear of you.

So what are the rules for keeping a client happy? Rules for bringing them back and getting more business rather than pushing them away? Well…here ya go. After being an entrepreneur for countless years, working in big business, mom-and-pops, non-profits, and every other kind of business known to mankind I found these three rules to be king of them all. Customer satisfaction works wonders on building great rapport which in turn builds a solid foundation to a successful business.

1. Be honest - It sounds simple but damn it’s amazing what people will lie about. They lie about what they can deliver, lie about pricing, lie about the competition. Just be honest. If you can’t do something…let them know. More often than not the customer will appreciate your honesty and you can just find a way to deal with it.
2. Keep the lines of communication open - Imagine calling your client about a payment but never getting through to them. Frustrating, right? Now put yourself in their shoes. They’ve got a website that needs work, software that needs to be developed, plumbing that needs to be fixed. They call about THEIR business yet you can’t be reached. Of course they’d be upset. However, even a simple call or email now and then to let them know you’re still working for them and what the progress is will work wonders on building their trust. Even if you haven’t made any headway, a simple call can be a great way to maintain trust.
3. Think of your customers as friends - Be nice to them. Talk to them. Take an interest in what they are telling you. And then think of the other rules…no lying, don’t try to gouge them and make all your money from them, don’t talk down to them…

Obviously there are many other things to take into consideration but follow these three and you’re off to a good start. These simple rules work in other aspects of life also. Try it. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at the results you see.

Networking can be the key to your happiness! Seriously…with proper networking you can land a better job, you can have more contacts if you’re an entrepreneur, and hell…it just makes life better as you surround yourself with good people.

So what exactly is “networking”? Is it going to a “networking event” with a handful of business cards and schmoozing with people you think are worth knowing? I used to have that naive definition. Over the years however I have come to realize that it means so much more. It means getting out and meeting people. Given my love for building solid relationships and constantly expanding my circle, it comes as a more natural thing to me. Yet…it’s that understanding that networking is simply another definition of meeting new people.

This networking diatribe all comes about from a late night IM session I just had with a friend up at Carnegie Mellon. He’s a student up there…bright guy obviously. The conversation started with talks on his new girlfriend and by the end I was telling him about my new startup, what I want it to be, and how he can fit into the whole scheme of things. Soon I’ll have a nice branding package and he’ll have another item for his portfolio. My first client with the new gig was also someone I met many years ago that has decided to start up his own company too.

Networking is quite easy. If we stop thinking of it as some task that we must do and look at it in terms of utilizing resources we already have available to us, it’s quite easy! So get out there and network. Enrich your life, drum up some business, and have a grand time connecting with new people that create new opportunities.

WTF Palm? Did you happen to notice this consumer electronics company Apple taking big bites out of the smartphone market? Perhaps you didn’t see the news about that little search engine company named Google that has a free phone OS named Android that will be coming out in two weeks? Seriously Palm…do you REALLY expect to maintain any sort of competitive ability when you push off an OS by an entire year? I predict there will be dozens of Android-based phones out by then. Apple will have yet more market penetration. Even Nokia will be releasing updated versions of Symbian as they have already purchased the remainder of it and plan to open it up. We’re in the 21st century Palm. One year is quite a long time in technology time.

I love my Treo 755p. It’s an awesome phone, but I can’t say I’ll be wanting to lug this thing around in a year when my contract is up for renewal and I’m eligible to get a discount on a new phone. Why cruise around town in a ‘94 Civic when I can zip around in a 2008 Lexus? Loyalty only goes so far guys and you’re really really testing the limits of the Palm loyal fans.

The economy blows…there’s no denying that. Housing market sucks, stock market sucks, financial market sucks, and unemployment is getting scary again. I’m watching people left and right freak out for one reason or another…and for reasons well deserved. Many people (perhaps I should say “most” people?) have become complacent with where they are and what they’ve got. They have their job, they got their raises, they elevated their spending to keep pace with their income (or perhaps they’ve raised it even more and are piling on the debt). Now the economy is tightening and people are either losing their jobs or worrying about losing them. If they lose their jobs, they’re screwed. If they even take a slight pay cut, they’re screwed.

This is where it pays to have been an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs have been conditioned to not live too far beyond their means. They’ve come to live with the uncertainty of paychecks and bills. There is often no structured pay period…we can all strive for it but it still depends on when the revenue comes in. So when the macro-economic picture turns ugly, entrepreneurs are already prepared and pretty much continuing on with life as they know it.

So there you have it. Find your passion, start a business, and start doing something for yourself. Be in control of how you live your life. It really is that easy…and so so worth it.