How Did You Learn the Business of Business??

[SquarePeg]

What's your story? Did you take a course? Watched your parents? Read some books? Learned by plunging headlong into your own venture, or while employed in an operational capacity for someone else??

[Margarita888]

I started at around 11/12 yrs old and haven't stopped. Over the years you just learn to figure out how to create businesses & systems to fill a need or a gap in whatever market you want to get into. You can't learn it all from books, courses, schools, or even working for somebody else. At some point you just have to stop asking questions and start doing something.

[Monty]

Did I degree in International Business and started a few Businesses. The degree definately helped but the only way to really understand how Business works is to start something.

[Peterw]

Books, training materials and the school of hard knocks.

The school of hard knocks has been the most effective for me. I read some really good stuff on building and running a business but somethings you just have to learn from experience.

Like going to business networking evenings and coming up against people who just try an pick holes in everything you do and try and get a discount. Books on face to face sales can't prepare you for the real thing.

People you do work for (think websites/SEO cmapaigns) continuing to come back to you time and time again trying to squeeze as much extra stuff (changes/redesign/getting SEO'd for different keywords) out of you as they can making out it's part of the original job. Putting an agreed contract of work explaining exactly what you will do for somoneone, what you need from them to do it, timescales, milestones, sign offs etc is very important, and you've got to be harsh and ruthless asbout it.

Getting an outsourcer to promise you that they will do a piece of work by a certain deadline then dropping off the face of the earth for a week after they were meant to deliver ignoring your calls/emails leaving you to explain to your customer why you've failed to deliver what you promised them. Delegating and project managing effectively is incredibly important.

People pretending they are interested in your product/service and getitng you to put in hours of pre-sales 'consultation' and asking for a detailed proposal then pretending they don't know you while they get their own web people to do it or go the DIY route with your info. A structured pre-sales process where you decide exactly how much you're prepared give away to get the sale will help a lot in sniffing out when you're being taken advantage of.

There are probably more - these are just some examples of lessons I could never learn from any book or course. Sometimes the best thing is to just get out there and do it.

[SquarePeg]

Originally Posted by Margarita888

I started at around 11/12 yrs old and haven't stopped. Over the years you just learn to figure out how to create businesses & systems to fill a need or a gap in whatever market you want to get into. You can't learn it all from books, courses, schools, or even working for somebody else. At some point you just have to stop asking questions and start doing something.

I think you're a natural entrepreneur! What was it, a neighborhood organic veggie juice stand??

Yeah, I get the start doing something bit...but you know what, all this blabbin' on my part, it's just a kind of foreplay...I'm trusting that once I get a rhythm goin' a natural momentum will propel me to my destiny....

[SquarePeg]

Originally Posted by Monty

Did I degree in International Business and started a few Businesses. The degree definately helped but the only way to really understand how Business works is to start something.

International business? Import/export??

Local colleges here in NYC are offering certificate courses in them...have always wondered about that.

Anyway, I'm of the opinion right now that what I lack is the proper mindset -- and I don't mean positive thinking, et cetera -- I mean the mental outlook of an entrepreneur.

Like, I can do math problems but I'm not a mathematician -- relationships between numbers don't occur naturally to me. And if I just started a business, well, I don't quite know all the elements involved (I'm sure it's rather more complicated than supply/demand, income/profit, etc.) and how they relate to one another...so I'm trying to stack the odds in my favor before any foray by at least having what I imagine to be the proper outlook!

Which, I do realize, isn't something neatly packaged -- the ability to think outside the box doesn't come in a box! But hopefully my Jungian unconscious or whatever can spontaneously synthesize all that I'm learning....

[SquarePeg]

Originally Posted by Peterw

Books, training materials and the school of hard knocks.

Hmm, what training materials? I'm keen on signing up for this Kauffman Fondation (very respected non-profit dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship) affiliated course that's $500...then there's something the dude who wrote "The Personal MBA" offers as well...yes I like a structured classroom setting!

Originally Posted by Peterw

Like going to business networking evenings and coming up against people who just try an pick holes in everything you do and try and get a discount. Books on face to face sales can't prepare you for the real thing.

People you do work for (think websites/SEO cmapaigns) continuing to come back to you time and time again trying to squeeze as much extra stuff (changes/redesign/getting SEO'd for different keywords) out of you as they can making out it's part of the original job. Putting an agreed contract of work explaining exactly what you will do for somoneone, what you need from them to do it, timescales, milestones, sign offs etc is very important, and you've got to be harsh and ruthless asbout it.

OMG, you sound just like my boss!! (Oops, better finish up my leisurely lunch and get back to work pronto!)

We get that crap all the time. I keep tryin' to get him to develop a better category of clients, but he ain't interested...he likes his little ethnic community despite declining business and folks always trying to put the vice to him....

Originally Posted by Peterw

Getting an outsourcer to promise you that they will do a piece of work by a certain deadline then dropping off the face of the earth for a week after they were meant to deliver ignoring your calls/emails leaving you to explain to your customer why you've failed to deliver what you promised them. Delegating and project managing effectively is incredibly important.

Yeah, this is why my boss rarely outsources.

Originally Posted by Peterw

People pretending they are interested in your product/service and getitng you to put in hours of pre-sales 'consultation' and asking for a detailed proposal then pretending they don't know you while they get their own web people to do it or go the DIY route with your info. A structured pre-sales process where you decide exactly how much you're prepared give away to get the sale will help a lot in sniffing out when you're being taken advantage of.

Wow, I guess all small businesses gotta deal with this crap, eh?? Makes me wonder just what it is that turns a small business putting up with crap into a large one where they can afford a take-it-or-leave-it attitude!

Originally Posted by Peterw

There are probably more - these are just some examples of lessons I could never learn from any book or course. Sometimes the best thing is to just get out there and do it.

Oh hell no! In my innocence I'd never imagine folks would stiff you, cheat you, rip you off, and all but **** all the women in your family!!

I mean, these are businessmen, right...not crooks!

[Margarita888]

Originally Posted by SquarePeg

I think you're a natural entrepreneur! What was it, a neighborhood organic veggie juice stand??

Uh..no. Where I grew up, that would have been a losing proposition right from the get-go. I made chocolate-chip cookies myself and sold them to my classmates. I was too shy so I asked one of my classmates to sell on my behalf. My first lessons in hiring sales reps Except I didn't pay commissions. My classmate just did it for fun. It was also a 100% profitable venture because my mom paid for the ingredients, I kept all the money from the sales and never paid her back.

Originally Posted by SquarePeg

Yeah, I get the start doing something bit...but you know what, all this blabbin' on my part, it's just a kind of foreplay...I'm trusting that once I get a rhythm goin' a natural momentum will propel me to my destiny....

You talk too much! There's no getting into a rhythm....finding your destiny.....waiting for the stars to align...or unicorns to come out. You either start doing it or you don't. [insert cracking the whip sound]

[SquarePeg]

Originally Posted by Margarita888

Uh..no. Where I grew up, that would have been a losing proposition right from the get-go. I made chocolate-chip cookies myself and sold them to my classmates. I was too shy so I asked one of my classmates to sell on my behalf. My first lessons in hiring sales reps Except I didn't pay commissions. My classmate just did it for fun. It was also a 100% profitable venture because my mom paid for the ingredients, I kept all the money from the sales and never paid her back.

LOL -- like I said, you're a natural entrepreneur! Ever consider public office?? ;-)

Seriously, seems like some folks just have a talent for connecting the dots...me, I'm probably what the rat race calls a, um, female genital...when I was a kid, I could've sold my used Atari cartridges to another kid for $125 (still remember the amount) but I wanted him to try 'em out first, to make sure he really like the games...of course, I knew right away that I'd never make the sale, but for some reason it was important to me that he got something he could really use, long-term.

I remember this very clearly 'cause my mom was proud of me for being "entrepreneurial" but I was feeling embarrassed inside 'cause I already knew this friend would reneg!

Anyway, some time in Army infantry has cured me of a lot of my beta malehood so no worries....

Originally Posted by Margarita888

You talk too much! There's no getting into a rhythm....finding your destiny.....waiting for the stars to align...or unicorns to come out. You either start doing it or you don't. [insert cracking the whip sound]

LOL

Just revving up my engines here, testing them out...it's when I don't talk that the Fortune 1000 oughta be worried!

[Le Roi]

Originally Posted by SquarePeg

Anyway, some time in Army infantry has cured me of a lot of my beta malehood so no worries....

What do you mean by this? Do you mean now that, unlike when you were a kid, you don't mind selling them things you know won't they won't enjoy for a long time? You aren't careful anymore to make sure the item you're selling is a good match for the buyer?

[Monty]

Originally Posted by SquarePeg

International business? Import/export??

Local colleges here in NYC are offering certificate courses in them...have always wondered about that.

Anyway, I'm of the opinion right now that what I lack is the proper mindset -- and I don't mean positive thinking, et cetera -- I mean the mental outlook of an entrepreneur.

Like, I can do math problems but I'm not a mathematician -- relationships between numbers don't occur naturally to me. And if I just started a business, well, I don't quite know all the elements involved (I'm sure it's rather more complicated than supply/demand, income/profit, etc.) and how they relate to one another...so I'm trying to stack the odds in my favor before any foray by at least having what I imagine to be the proper outlook!

Which, I do realize, isn't something neatly packaged -- the ability to think outside the box doesn't come in a box! But hopefully my Jungian unconscious or whatever can spontaneously synthesize all that I'm learning....

Yep, importing, exporting, business systems, business models and modelling, international trade barriers, globalisation etc. also did a few modules in enterprise, finance and e-commerce.

also read countless books, been on courses, public and private sector..

I'd agree with some comments on here, just get involved in stuff in your area, anything govt. run? get yourself to a library or bookshop and start reading. Most of all if you are interested in small enterprise just START a business...I've done all sorts at the beginning from selling cupcakes to selling vintage clothing on e-bay- just do ANYTHING. Because anything is better than nothing or sitting around pontificating.

[Margarita888]

Originally Posted by Monty

just do ANYTHING. Because anything is better than nothing or sitting around pontificating.

Or you can just spend the rest of your life on these forums talking about starting a business. It's like sex, or riding a bike. You can watch, read, study, talk to other people about it all you want, but until you actually get out there and do it, all this info will be useless.

The first thing you really have to figure out is WHY you even want to do it. It seems to me that the thought of having your own business is a fascinating idea to you, but something that you don't really know enough about, so you just stay in your little crib until you think you know enough before getting the guts to get out and do it. Your method seems to be aim...aim....aim....aim....and maybe fire! Most successful entrepreneurs I know do it the other way around. They fire first before they aim because they're so passionate and excited about getting the ball rolling. Just like kids & legos. You give a 5 yr old a box of legos and they'll rip open the box and start putting the pieces together. If they're smart, they'll look for the instructions and glance at it as they go just to make sure they're on the right track. You seem to be just staring at the lego box and analyzing it to death trying to convince yourself if it's something you want to get into.

Is this something you really want to do? Why? If your WHY is big enough, the HOW will take care of itself. Which is why there are tons of success stories from high school/college dropouts to single moms from the projects making it big. None of them probably knew everything they had to know about business. But every single one of them tried. They all had a burning desire on why they did what they did. Everybody's WHY is different. It can be as trivial as just wanting to explore something amusing to needing to feed your newborn baby to wanting to make a global impact. The thing is, are you interested or are you committed? If you're interested in business, you'll do what's convenient. Which is what most people do. If you're committed, you'll do whatever it takes.

[mlj]

I started learning business from the job I used to work at.

I studied the behaviors of the executives in the company, and I also learned a lot about business right here on the internet.

I have gained so much information over the years and never looked back.

[SatvikBeri]

Originally Posted by Margarita888

Or you can just spend the rest of your life on these forums talking about starting a business. It's like sex, or riding a bike. You can watch, read, study, talk to other people about it all you want, but until you actually get out there and do it, all this info will be useless.

I dunno, I've read some pretty good manuals on how to ride a bike

Is this something you really want to do? Why? If your WHY is big enough, the HOW will take care of itself.

This is a wonderful statement and applies to pretty much everything in life, not just business. Definitely worth remembering.

[RichGrad]

I took a technopreneurship minor in university... Then after I left my first job, I took on $20k in credit card debts to invest in personal development, wealth creation and internet marketing seminars and read over 500 books on those topics. I've since made back many times that amount =)

[jaydeschizo]

I learned from diving in headlong and reading books and taking courses on specific topics while already in the business. But the school of hard knocks will be the best institution you can ever attend, though tuition may be steep sometimes.

[falcan]

I like how you think Margarita888 I know a similar woman, she always amused me by "complaining" how starting a business was soo easy (for her it sure was!)..

Anyway, me being always a software developer(of whatever software), I really started doing "business" last year. And yeah, I just started out with a simple idea ... my motivator was, I didn't want to work on contracts, because it felt like a job and I wanted to be free(financially and both do whatever I really want). Also wanted to make much bigger impact. I thought I had what it takes to also do the business side...not look for investors all the time, giving them the power in exchange for not taking care of the business(it was my fear in reality). I just like to be complety independent and free, that's probably my biggest motivator right now.

I'd say trying out stuff, not stopping when failures come and learning from your mistakes is basically all it takes. And trying to be smart helps too To save yourself work I mean.