Two Interesting Entrepreneurial Link

The first website is Idea-a-Day.com. While listening to Purple Cow by Seth Godin. Idea-a-Day provides a subscription email service that, as one might expect, sends one product/service idea per day to your inbox. Today's (2/27/2006) idea was number 2020, meaning they have been providing this service for over 5 years. The ideas, range from interesting and immediately applicable, to products requiring years of R&D to implement. The ideas, however, initate a thought process and jump start creative thinking that can apply to any situation.

The second website is BPlans. I was searching for sample business plans and structures to follow in my composition of three business plans and came accross this site. It offers samples, outlines and advice on the structure and content for business plans. The site also offers excellent legal, marketing, financial and general advice for the entrepreneur. I've browsed around for 15 minutes getting a feel for the site and am under the impression that it offers even more than I have mentioned above.

The ABCs of Real Estate Investing by Ken McElroy

ABCs provides an excellent insight and how-to for anyone interested in Real Estate investing. Written as part of the “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” line of books the author, Ken McElroy, provides the well written informative book that loyal readers have come to expect of the series. Ken has been investing in Real Estate, primarily in Arizona, for many years and has developed quite a successful track record. He was approached by Robert Kiyosaki, originator of the “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” series, to write this book imparting his knowledge of the industry.

The basic premise of ABCs emphasizes investigating the local market, its current state, growth potential and individual properties, building a cohesive team and buying the right property to maximize return. Chapter subjects include; putting together the investment team (brokers, management companies, attorneys, etc), attaining financing, improving the facilities, and preparing the property for sale. All subjects are well described and investigated, providing recommendations based on years of practical experience.

I’ve read a number of books on Real Estate investing, but have yet to find one that provides the level of detail that can be found in ABCs. After reading this book, I have a much more concrete idea of how to initiate the investing process and how, through diligence and patience, one can find properties that have higher profitability and higher success rate.

Getting Things Done by David Allen

This book was phenomenal. In a market that is well-saturated with self-improvement books, magazines, websites and personal coaches, Getting Things Done seems to distinguish itself. Author David Allen discusses methods and the logic behind the methods that allow an individual to “de-stuff” both personal and work lives.

His premise is built on the fact that our memory is like computer RAM. It can only handle so many thoughts and topics at once. If we are filling this space up with thoughts of what to get at the grocery store, projects at work and weekend schedules, we are not at our intellectual peak and cannot be truly creative or stress-free.

Many people claim to use systems such as ABC prioritization, calendars, to-do lists etc. Often times these systems are imperfect and require a serious life change and large time allotments to truly have an impact. The system introduced by David Allen begins with the simple step of writing thoughts down, getting them out of your head and freeing up that mental capacity for more complex or original ideas. Once written down it goes into a trusted system of project lists, next actions, calendars etc in a systematic and formulaic manner that is extremely intuitive.

The processes outlined and discussed by David Allen will work for individuals to corporations and accommodate every situation imaginable. I am going to listen to the book again in a few months as suggested by the author to further implement his system. I highly recommend this book or audio book to everyone. It will reduce the clutter and “stuff” in your life, reduce stress and have an overall positive impact whether you follow all of his suggestions religiously or only implement some points.

When Two Companies Are Not Enough

When Two Companies Are Not Enough

This article introduced me to the term "Serial Entrepreneurs." These are individuals who become addicted, for lack of a better term, to starting up their own companies, making them successful and selling them. Many have made careers from working on a concept for 2-5 years and then moving on to the next opportunity. Serial Entrepreneurs view this "flipping" of companies as a game in which the score is kept in units of millions made and number of companies started. Their personalities make financial costs incurred and physical/mental stresses endured small prices to pay for playing the game.

I found this article interesting becuase these Serial Entrepreneurs have numerous ideas that they see through to fruition then move on. The don't have a short attention span, they simply have many interests and act upon them. I hope that in 5 or 10 years this term will be applicable to myself, my business interests and my entrepreneurial ventures.

The Ever-Leveling Playing Field

A Cyberfueled Growth Spurt
From The New York Times

This article was sent to me by my dad who is always on the lookout for interesting news bites especially regarding technology and its practical applications.

The article further investigates a now well-known concept; technology levels the playing field. The author cites how the evolution in the internet, email and programming is allowing companies to cater their services to small businesses (defined as ranging in size from 1 to 500 employees), a market segment previously ignored by larger companies. Using software like Microsoft's Small Business Server and search engines such as Google, companies are able to dramatically reduce operational overhead and target their marketing strategies on segments that are more likely to respond to their product offerings.

While not groundbreaking in its findings, the article provides interesting insights and specific examples which are encouraging to any entrepreneur and small business owner.

Photography

For the past week I have had the opportunity to shadow and work with Ken Redding, a professional photographer JHMR contracted with for photos of the resort. Ken has 30+ years of experience in the photo industry and has some big name clients he works with. His equipment ranges from WWII cameras to the latest in digital technology, from working with natural light to rigging entire studios with his lighting equipment.

Seeing how he setup shots, interacted with models and supplemented natural light with equipment was truly an interesting and educational experience. I came away with the realization that there is money to be made in the photography industry, but one has to be very focused, self aggrandizing, and talented. I can see how photography will play an intricate role in some future businesses and how it will be a hobby of mine for a long time to come.