Welcome! read articles online

Everything about Entrepreneurialism - read all about it...

Ray Bradbury's quote, "You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down" may sound extreme but, as anyone building a business knows, it has a lot of truth in it.

As a newly self-employed journalist / writer and life coach, I found Barbara Winter's book, "Making a Living Without a Job" invaluable so when I got a chance to interview her and Nick Williams in London, I was delighted. Barbara advocates having Multiple Profit Centres so her approach is ideal for writers, coaches and other entrepreneurs as we often build our incomes by developing several strings for our bows.

Barbara co-founded the Dreambuilders Community with her friend Nick Williams. They are bringing entrepreneurs together so we can support and inspire each other. Between them, they have several decades of entrepreneurial experience.

Nick Williams has inspired countless entrepreneurs with his bestsellers including "The Work We Were Born To Do". Nick is also founder of Heart at Work London and a trustee Director of Alternatives.

Barbara remembers first becoming self-employed, "I couldn't find any kind of guidance for the sort of business I wanted so it was very trial and error. I didn't know anybody else creating a one-person business so I was a real slow upstart."

Nick says, "I always enjoyed working with people. I enjoyed helping people and being in service to people. So I began to think maybe that was what I was going to do but there was a lot of fear because I had to change my life and I didn't know how I was going to do it. So I think a lot of my teaching comes out of my experience and compassion."

Barbara wants to bring everyone together. She says, "I think we nag about that in the Dreambuilders Community, about building your own network of self-employed people. It's incredibly important."

Asked if he ever wanted to give up on his own dreams, Nick says, "I think, 'What else would I do?' Do I want to go work in a shop? No. Do I want to serve sandwiches? No. Really, I am totally committed to my life so any setback is just an obstacle to overcome. I get back on track by laughing about it."

Barbara adds, "Even in the dark times, I never believed it was permanent. With all the challenges, there was always a part of me that knew it was going to work eventually. It was something I still had to discover but I knew I would. And like Nick, I'd think, 'If I'm not doing this, what will I do?' And there was nothing else I wanted to do.

Nick says, "Once you get on the path, it's about committing. You have to just keep committing and saying 'I'll make this work.' So my focus shifted to 'How can I make this work?'"

From a coaching perspective, this makes complete sense. You decide on your goal, work towards it and check to see if you're getting the results you want. If you're not, work out what you can do differently to make sure you get the outcome you're after.

Nick and Barbara have different versions about their meeting. Nick says, "She stalked me."

Barbara says, "That's his version. You know, sometimes you meet people in your life and it's inevitable and that was it with him. I read his book and by the third chapter, I knew we had to work together. I'd never had that experience from reading a book before. I'd read books where I thought I'd love to meet the author but this was different. His email address was in there so we started emailing."

They are great ambassadors for self-employment. Nick loves, "being self-motivated, being able to generate ideas for myself and follow them through. If I have an idea I just do it. No committees or having to write papers and ask for permission. I like that ability to think and do."

Barbara struggled with loneliness but says, "In a way, that's really been a gift because I'm able to talk about it and understand people who find themselves on their own and feel very, very isolated. I've become a bit of a nag about the importance of having self-employed friends because they're the ones you call up and they understand exactly what you mean."

She adds, "We were talking about inspired parenting today. I think when people are happily self-employed and they have children, they become an amazing role model for them. So many people grow up with bad messages about work. Their parents go away all day and come back cranky. The children don't know what they did all day but it obviously didn't make them happy."

Nick says, "One of the things we can do with Dreambuilders is serve people by offering learning programmes. Someone who has an idea but doesn't know how to make it happen could come to our programme. We are looking at ways to create this for people. There's no course about it at university. People think you're either born with it or not but we could help people learn."

Nick and Barbara bubble with enthusiasm for all the embryonic businesses they want to support. They remind me of Mark Twain's quote: "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that but the really great make you feel that you too can become great."

Top Tips:

Barbara: "I don't know how long it takes to do something I've never done before. Be gentle with yourself." Nick: "One of the ways through resistance is a sense of humour." Barbara: "Sometimes the people who are ahead of you are there because they were born before you." Nick: "How we deal with failure links with how we feel about fear. Most people are brought up to avoid fear or to defend themselves against it." Barbara: "When we see someone who's really masterful, we forget how long it took them to get there because we didn't see their failures." Nick: "I used to think, 'If I could just face these fears and be clear of them, I'd be alright.' The day I realised it was a daily activity, I was very disappointed."

For more information about Barbara and Nick, see www.dreambuilderscommunity.com and www.alternatives.org.uk

Barbara Winter's 1993 book "Making a Living Without a Job: Winning Ways for Creating Work that You Love" began as a seminar she created and taught for several years. It has become the US's longest running adult education programme. Her most recent book, "Jump Start Your Entrepreneurial Spirit" is out now.

Nick Williams is the author of "The Work We Were Born to Do", "Unconditional Success" and "Powerful Beyond Measure". His most recent book, "How to Be Inspired" is also out now.

If you enjoyed this article and would like to order your FREE REPORT "Eight Common Business Goal Setting Mistakes and How to Avoid Them" or "Eight Easy Ways to Improve Your Written Marketing Materials", send an email (stating your report preference) to eve@applecoaching.com or phone 01277 632085.

Eve Menezes Cunningham is an accredited life coach specialising in coaching entrepreneurs and writers. See http://www.applecoaching.com for more information.

She is also a freelance journalist / writer and specialises in personal development, business and social issues.

RELATED ARTICLES Curb Your Enthusiasm Isn't enthusiasm a good thing? Aren't we urged to be enthusiastic about what we do? To be committed? Venture Capital Negotiating Issues When companies enter into negotiations with venture capital firms, there are several issues which need to be defined and agreed upon. This article describes the key issues. Rx for Falling Corporate Profits Once again the squeeze is on as renewed inflation worries slow the economy's growth and many companies resort to believing that cost cutting is the best means to scramble back to profitability in an uncertain economy. The problem with this classic approach is that it sends the clear message to your brightest and best talent that no matter how well they perform, today there is no job security. Not only does such a move have a serious impact on morale, but as the economy improves we will find ourselves once again in a very tight labor market. It will be next to impossible to replace laid-off workers and worse yet, your current work force, especially those brightest and best, may well decide that it is time to move on to greener and possibly more secure pastures before the next downturn hits. Is there a better approach than cutting off your nose today and spite your face tomorrow? Absolutely! Traits of The Successful Entrepreneur Want to know why certain people succeed and others don't. Well successful people have certain traits? Do you have them? Identifying the Right Venture Capital Firm Partner Venture capital firms are comprised of individual partners. These partners make investment decisions and typically take a seat on each portfolio company's Board. Partners tend to invest in what they know, so finding a partner that has past work experience in your industry is very helpful. This relevant experience allows them to more fully understand your venture's value proposition and gives them confidence that they can add value, thus encouraging them to invest. Protect Your ASSets in Business Many people are starting an online business without a thought about the danger this may pose to their personal assets. The type of protection you need depends upon the nature of your business and the amount of your personal assets. Developing A Contract As a service provider, the most important type of "boundary" you can set as a business owner involves those policies and procedures that govern how you interact with your clients. The more precise you can be about the services you provide, your fee structure, and what you expect from your clients, the smoother your work relationships will be. And the most effective way to make sure that each party involved understands these policies -- and that there is no confusion -- is to have each client read and sign a written contract. Starting a Company on a Shoe-String Budget A lot of people never start businesses because they believe they don't have enough money to do so. Unfortunately, these same people don't realize that many of the world's most successful companies were started on a shoe-string budget by an entrepreneur with limited resources. Below is a list of tips to help you save money when you're first starting a company: Manage your finances in MS Excel, not Quickbooks. Manage your contacts in MS Outlook, not ACT. Get free legal and accounting advice from law/business students or lawyers/accountants who are willing to do pro-bono (free) work. Look for and join organizations that support youth entrepreneurs and small business owners. Hire unpaid interns and make their job exciting. Partner with somebody instead of paying them. Use credit cards. Get free, professional advice from SCORE, Teachers, and Professors. Get investments from family and friends. Find organizations who incubate startup companies or companies who might have office space that might be willing to let an aspiring entrepreneur use it. Perhaps, your school will let you use their copy machines and phone lines. Swap services with a company instead of paying them. Learn how to do graphic design and web design yourself. If you have these two skills, the startup costs of every business you have in the future will be dramatically reduced. Do You Have What It Takes To Be An Entrepreneur? Q: I am interested in starting my own business. I have a business degree and lots of experience in my chosen field, but I don't know if I have the necessary skills to really make it on my own. Any advice? Marie C. For Business SUCCESS... Listen To The Voices of Experience Discover the pitfalls of owning your own business BEFORE... [you make a BAD choice!] What Makes an Entrepreneur? Rupert Steiner in his book 'My First Break' attempted to define the secret of becoming an entrepreneur and following interviews with over one hundred entrepreneurs, Steiner concluded that there was not one defined path. He has, however, drawn out observations of an entrepreneur's personality traits. They have a tendency to be rebels, outsiders, original thinkers, risk takers and break new ground. Entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for new business opportunities and have the guts it needs to start up a business. They have total commitment to what they are doing, which verges on obsession behaviour. Questions For The Entrepreneur To Be Entrepreneurial e-gnorance Secrets of My Favorite Government Auction I love bargains. And there's no better place to find bargains than an auction. And there are no better auctions than government surplus auctions. My favorite government surplus auction takes place the 3rd week of September every year in the County Park. I won't tell you which county park as this is my best-kept secret! Even though the auction is advertised in the local papers (as required my law), I usually find the same 20-30 people mulling around, looking at all the lots. And many of them I know are not high-bidders! Creativity & Entrepreneurship - Key Questions From My Students Hello Creative Entrepreneurs! The Magic of Float If you've ever received a service today and paid for it in 30 days you've experienced the concept of "float" ? the time difference between when you receive a service and when you paid for it. In most cases this time period is a convenience to you as a customer, but in the world of business marketing it can absolutely transform your business. In the last 18 months we've grown our marketing budget at Swapalease.com (the company that owns me) by more than 1000% by simply leveraging the concept of float. Achievements Outweigh Education and Experience Q: When it comes to succeeding in business, which do you think is more important: education or experience? -- Regina M. Top 10 Business Plan Myths of Solo Entrepreneurs Don't let these stop you from having a business plan for success! Dream It, Create It, Become It! Design a Dream Board Have you ever heard of "Dream Boards" or "Treasure Maps"? A Dream Board is a visual picture of the dreams you have for your life. Some of my clients also use this concept to visualize their businesses! It's their first business plan. One thing that is important to remember, though, is not to "get stuck" on your dream boards. We all have plans for our future, but it's important to watch the universe for signs of "its" plans for us. Otherwise, we might miss out on some great opportunities! Top Ten Ways to Increase Your Profitability 1) Go back to basics. Take a couple of steps back and address the fundamental facts or principles of your business. Going back to basics can mean cleaning the slate and focusing on basic elements that create success. Beware the Opposition! Any time you make changes in your life you are going to be met with opposition from people who would prefer you to stay exactly as you are. Sadly, these people are often the ones that love you the most; your family, friends, partners and even work colleagues. However, in your moments of entrepreneurial seizure, the greatest opposition that you will experience (particularly if you're a seasoned employee) will come from within yourself.