Saturday, May 17, 2008

LIVE THE LIFE YOU WANT

I just finished a reading Cameron Johnson's book "You call the shots".
It is a great business book,giving 19 essential secrets of entrepreneurship.
Cameron is a born business man,born in a family of entrepreneurs.
He started a printing company in his bedroom,at the age of 9.
He sold Beanie babies,made $50000 per year,at the age of 15.
He started 12 successful businesses before he turned 21.
He increased his Dad's dealership revenue by $10 million within a year.
Here are the 19 secrets from his book:
1.Put yourself out there.
2.Start small.
3.Make your money work for you.
4.Look close to home for great ideas.
5.Balance work with life.
6.Surround yourself with great people.
7.Make yourself your Brand.
8.Don't be afraid to negotiate.
9.Make your own tough decisions.
10.Adapt or die.
11.Find great mentors.
12.Seek out new knowledge every day.
13.Use the power of the press.
14.Sticl to your guns.
15.Get experience on the ground.
16.Never underestimate the value of your customers.
17.Creatively build on your experience.
18.Remember what it's really all about.
19.Be the Entrepreneur you want to be.

Every page,there is a line for me to highlight.I can't write all of them,as it will be a separate ebook.
Here are some his ideas from the book:

1.Networking is so important.One of the distinguished characteristics of all good entrepreneurs is that they are always growing their personal networks,always keeping in touch.
2.Free publicity is the best way to advertise.
3.Reinvest your earnings into your own operation.
4.Start small,Make sure,the business model is scalable,watch every single expense and justify it,Rely on the special skills of others,Focus on what you do best and don't take your eye off your goal.
5.Most successful entrepreneurs appreciate the true value of money and pay close attention to how they manage it.
6.If you take care of money,money will take care of you.
7.The purpose of building a business is to create more freedom in life,to exercise more creativity,and to contribute to the world around.
8.Investing your profits back into your business is probably the single best investment you can make.
9.Buy what you know.
10.For en entrepreneur,personal financial security is critical.
11.Put your energy into pursuing skills,knowledge and understanding,the money will follow you.
12.Keep your focus on building your business and delivering value to your customers.
13.One of the best ways to come up with a strong idea is to start with a problem
and ask yourself "How could i solve this problem?".
14.As a preplan to a business plan,have basic projections of start up cost,recurring monthly expenses,summary of how the company will make money,how quickly one expect to grow your customer base.
15.Risk is not something to be afraid of,it is the entrepreneur's best friend,the source of the best opportunities.The key is to understand what kind of risks are worth taking and which are not.
16.Depend on practiced,good instinct and thorough,careful reasearch.
17.Choose a niche,find a need and then see what could help those people do their job better.
18.Take care to choose people you trust.Surround yourself with the best people.
19.Keep a file of "not right now" ideas and revisit them periodically.
20.Keep a clear distinction of business life and rest of your life.
21.Opportunity is around us all the time.Be prapared and take action are the sparks thnat set off the dynamite of opportunity.
22.When you don't win,don't let that get in your way.Winning gives you the confidence and the courage you deserve - but it is important to know how to appreciate the opportunities for growth.
23.Honesty is the only policy if you want to be truly successful.
24.First and foremost,one must be able to sell oneself.You are your brand.
25.Ideal negotiation is win-win for both the parties involved.
26.Your level of success is determined by the character of your decisions,
the conviction with which you make them and how well you follow through.
27.Pay careful attention to how business is changing.
28.Keep one eye on the core principles,which never change and
another eye on the shifting business climate,which is always changing.
29.Have mentors,read books.
30.Quick to recognize mistakes and don't be afraid to change course.
31.Listen to your customers and give them what they want.
32.Persistence pays off.
33.Have the courage and ability to getting things done.Be confident,have clear objectives,never take no for an answer.
34.Eveyone wants to buy from a person they like and trust.Listen and become their friend.
35.Have continuous improvement by pursuing continuous learning.
36.Develop a feel for human nature and common sense,
and apply that know-how with diligence.
37.Don't let short term rewards overshadow long-term goals.
38.There are two ways to increase profits: increasing sales,cutting expenses.
39.Offer people an appreciale reward for their extra effort.
40.To stay in business,you can't just keep going for new customers,
you have to take care of your existing customers too.
41.Today's economy is a service economy.
Under promise and over deliver to your customers.
42.Finding a good name is the first key in the birth of the business.
43.Use your innate creativity and think outside the box.
44.Sound ethics is the foundation on which all business relationships are built.
45.True prosperity is not something you take from the world: It is something you share with the world.
46.There has never been a better time to start your own business.
47.Anyone can do what i did;there are truly no limits to what's possible.
48.Follow your dreams: do what you really want to do.

It is overwhelming to read it,it is full of practical business ideas.
There is an Appendix on Tips on getting started,quite useful section.
Great book to read and follow.

More details at:

www.cameronjohnson.com
www.youcalltheshotsbook.com

2 comments:

ஷைலஜா said...

Good post Kannan...
enjoyed!
shylaja

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