Do You Have a Business In You?
I am talking to people all the time. I always turn the conversation to their goals and what they want out of life. I ask if they ever thought of owning their own business. They usually ask why and I mention my book, website and that I feel anyone with a desire has a great chance of having $1,000,000 in the bank. That always gets the conversation going.
I am looking for more stories and I try to help everyone I meet. Recently I met four people in a row who were all employees, but had the entrepreneurial bug. They wanted to be more than just an employee with a set income; all four have already started a business on the side, while still working. However, none of them are thinking big enough.
Dental Assistant-Catering Business Owner
A Business Plan is the Key to Success
As I waited for the dentist the dental assistant chatted with me and I mentioned my book. Usually I just get the title out, One Million in the Bank, How to Save $1,000,000 Even if You Have No Money or Experience, and the other person takes off talking about their dreams. The dental assistant, Molly, a lady in her 50’s told me she has a catering company on the side. I told her a little about my book and she just started peppering me with questions to include “When will the book be out?”. She is trying hard having had had a few jobs, but is unsure about how to market better. She has no business plan and really has done little or no research about catering. I told her my book would be out soon and told until then, read my website and go see SCORE, the SBDC, or the WBC. I told her she needed at a minimum a marketing plan, but some form of a business plan would help her get organized. She was so excited, she told me, “The master had appeared when the student was ready. I am ready.” I felt good to have helped her in what ever small way I did.
Receptionist- Knitting School Owner
Sometimes You Have to Scale Your Business in Order to Progress
When I was checking out, the receptionist had overheard me and said she had a knitting business on the side, could she ask me a few questions? Of course I agreed and she started. She said she has a location and is a very good instructor. She made good money, but she was spread too thin. She worked and had her classes at night and on the weekend. She did not have a business plan and did not know how to make her business any bigger. I told her she would never make much money unless she can scale her business somehow. I suggested if she could make a series of videos with instruction for knitting different things that could be purchased on her website. Once she made it, it would take no more effort for the instructional video to teach others. She would need to make it unique and special somehow.
Cashier-Hairdresser at Night
Free Help to Start Your Business is Available
The same day I stopped for gas, a young black woman cashier, had her hair fixed in a very unusual and attractive way. I mentioned how nice her hair looked. She said, “Thanks, I do it myself. I was surprised and said you need to open a shop and do it as a business. She said she does get paid to do her friends and referrals hair on the side in her house or theirs. I only had a second but I told her about SCORE, SBDC, and the WBC. I wrote this on a piece of paper and told her get organized, take some of their business courses, make a business plan, get certified if you need to and think about really owning your own business. She was excited and told me as I left “Thank you so much, I had never heard of these places or knew how to really go about owning my own business.”
Security Guard – Security Company Owner
Once You Start a Business, the Momentum is there to Grow
The security guard in a building I often go into is always pleasant and says hi. One day I said to him “ever think of owning your own business?”, and he said, “I already do.” To my surprise I asked him what kind of business it was and he told me it was a security business. He went on to tell me, when he is not working he looks around for small security business opportunities. He said that he had 2 contracts and does the work himself on his off time. He makes about $20,000 a year extra from the extra work. He said he may eventually get all the properties of his current contractors. If he does, it would be a few hundred thousand dollars a year. He thinks he would clear about 40%, so he would be on his way. I told him about my book, and some of the resources available to help him. I mentioned he should be careful getting contracts for security jobs while he is employed by a security company, but he told me he ran it by his boss and they were OK with it as long as he did not approach any of their existing clients.
I Salute Their Initiative, But…..
All four of these people are obviously motivated. They are not just sitting around dreaming, they are doers. But they have done almost no planning. They are more or less just reacting as they work on their businesses. All of them need to at least do a functional business plan. They all need to do more research and see how others have succeeded in their type of business. They need to think about how to grow their business to where they can step out of it and just manage it. They also need to seek help and advice from all the free agencies they can, the SBDC, SCORE, and the WBC for the women. At least they are on the way; they have gotten off the couch– Have you? I will stay in touch with these people and hope to see them all as millionaires someday, but they all have work ahead of them.
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One Million in the Bank
How to Make $1,000,000 with Your Own Business, Even if You Have No Money or Experience
(will be available on Amazon)
Veteran’s Guide to One Million in the Bank
(will be a free PDF or available on Amazon)
Women’s Guide to One Million in the Bank
(will be a free PDF or available on Amazon)
