I won't quote you statistics, you can find them anywhere on the internet these days. Try your local branch of the Small Business Administration for some great statistics on how many businesses fail within the first two to five years. The SBA is a great place to start if you are researching a business, industry, or demographic. Great for help with a business plan also. I preach business plans for one main reason; it FORCES you to look at EVERY angle of your new business, from your target market to your projected future income (and the expenses it will take to create that income). Take it from someone who has started from the ground up and has also purchased already established businesses. You Have To Have a Plan!
Today however, in our current business climate of worried consumers, a real estate market in flux, banks tightening the lending purse strings so tight that you could play a tune on them like a violin. Venture capital is out there but most of us can't get them to return our calls let alone listen to our pitches.
In times like these my friends, we need to get creative. We need to not only think "Outside of the Box", we need to think outside of "Conventional Wisdom" of what we have been taught for all these many years. We need to re-invent the way businesses get started. We need to use our collective entrepreneurial spirit to get out of this mess. Think of unusual avenues for getting around the roadblocks that are keeping us from moving forward with our dreams. Use our collective knowledge to kick-start new growth in the small business sector of our economy.
There are many of us in the same situation. What we need is a way to find out what is working and help our fellow entrepreneurs learn how to use new technology, new avenues of advertising, new sources of affordable startup capital, a forum so to speak for new business. When you find something that works, SHARE IT. I know keeping that competitive edge is something we all covet but that is the mentality that has gotten us where we are now. I know it sounds cliche but we really are all in this together. Together we stand, divided we fall.
I currently work in the Photography/Software Industry and one thing I have learned from this industry is that mentoring is a real necessity for a new photographer to make it these days. Without the help of our peers we will continue to make the same mistakes and miss the same opportunities. If you are starting out, find someone who is making it now and ask them for some simple advice over a cup of coffee or a meal. You may be surprised how much information you can get for the price of a good meal and a little time. You may even start a lifelong friendship or partnership you never could have had otherwise. If you are already established in your business or are contemplating retiring, take someone new to your industry under your wing. Offer to give them some of your time and experience. Believe me, it will make you feel wonderful and you will gain a friend indeed.
This country has always operated on the backs of small businesses. We pay more of the taxes, employ more people, buy more health care, dental, eye-care, fund Social Security, and fund more IRA's and 401K's than big business ever has. We need to stick together. We are keeping this country moving.
Talk to your local, state, and federal level politicians. Current and those that are running for the first time. Let them know what you are up against. Keep your problems current in their thoughts. And remember, change is good, necessary even, to move the country forward and into the next decade. Tell them to Think Outside of Conventional Wisdom.
Create a positive, collective, entrepreneurial spirit and pay it forward!
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