2. Quick housekeeping notes
- Webcast & chat are at http://entrepreneurshiplab.net/live
- I’ll check in at the breaks
- 9 a.m. to Noon-ish Central Time
- Slides, recordings will be posted to member’s area after
- Would love for you to Tweet & Facebook all this
- I’m @corymiller303 and you can use hashtag #entrelab
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
3. Today’s Sessions
- Is Entrepreneurship For You: 8 Questions to Ask
- Your Startup’s First Critical Partners
- Finding the Right Business Idea For You
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
9. Monthly training topics
- Based on input and - Leadership and
demand Management
- Marketing - Products and Services
- Work-LIfe Alignment - Personal, Professional and
Career Development
- Customer Service,
Support and Care - Accounting and Financial
Management
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
11. Who Am I?
- Had 13 jobs since I was 16
- Being an entrepreneur is the BEST job I’ve ever had
- Started out in newspaper journalism
- 3 daily newspapers; 1 sports magazine; 3 nonprofits
- Always wanted to be an entrepreneur like my grandfathers
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
12. My Tipping Point
- Started professional blog in 2006
- Went from unknown to known
- Started learning web design at night
- Stumbled into a great freelance business
- Then my back started hurting from 16 hours days
- Wanted to build something bigger than myself
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
13. The dream made real
- Went full-time in 2008 with iThemes
- We build software & training for web designers
- 20+ employees, hundreds of products, thousands of
customers and on track for record year in 2012
- Named 7th Fastest Growing Co. in OKC in 2011
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
15. Why Start a Business
in the First Place?
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
16. Some Reasons to Start a Biz
- Create your ideal job doing rockin’ work
- Align work with life
- Work with people you like & enjoy
- Turn ideas into reality
- Make money building something you own
- And ...
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
57. A financial partner helps
manage this essential aspect
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
58. Questions to Ask
- What will I need to do or plan for this year? (Taxes, etc)
- What financial software do you use or recommend?
- Where do you bank and why?
- What services do you typically provide businesses?
- Do you understand my business?
- Do you have clients doing similar things to what I’m doing?
- What advice & tips do you have for me to ensure
maximum success?
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
64. The Team Could Be ...
- Volunteer Team Members
- Paid Team Members
- Financial Partners
- Equity Partners
- Vendors / Suppliers
- Collaborators / Joint Venture Partners
- Consultants / Contractors
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
79. By the way ...
This is an exercise to go
through with your S.O.
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80. The goal is to ...
Know yourself
and what you want
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81. 1. What are your life’s hopes,
dreams & goals?
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82. Questions to ask yourself
- What does success look like - What are your lifestyle and
at the end of the day? At the living goals? What does living
end of your life? a good life look like for you?
- Answer the old question: - Where do you want to be in 6
What do you want written on months, 1 year, 5 years … or
your tombstone? when you're 30, 40, 50, 60?
- Who do you love and cherish - What are those future facts for
most in life? what your life will look life
then?
- What do your family goals
look like? - What does success for you
look like and feel?
- What are you financial goals?
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
83. Let me ask it another way
What do you really want
your life to be about?
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
86. Two Helpful Discovery Tools:
Myers-Briggs Test Indicator
mbticomplete.com
StrengthsFinder
strengthsfinder.com
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
87. Why do these?
- Based on extensive survey and research
- Helps you understand yourself better
- See yourself from the outside-in
- Find what you’re naturally good at
- Avoid what you’re ridiculously bad at
- Recruit people to compliment you
- Find areas of interest that you might not have explored
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
88. The step that sometimes gets skipped
3. What expertise and
experiences do you have?
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89. List out your resume in detail
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90. All the jobs you’ve had?
Career fields, industries?
Favorite jobs & why?
Biggest impact you made?
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91. 4. What are your passions,
hobbies and interests?
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
92. The best businesses ...
- Champion a CAUSE (a better tomorrow)
- Come out of a CRISIS (an experience)
- Promote a CORE VALUE (a belief, philosophy)
- Offer a CURE (a solution)
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
94. Two tips for exploring ...
1. Be careful with stress relief hobbies,
a business could ruin it for you
2. You don’t know what you really like
until you explore it. Try it out.
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
95. Now a big question ...
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96. 5. What would people PAY
you to do that you would
ENJOY the most?
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97. Make two columns:
1. What you want to do most
2. What you think people would pay for
Find the top rated intersections.
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
99. The sobering up questions
It’s time to get really real
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100. 1. Is it the best way to
achieve your goals?
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101. 2. Will you enjoy chasing it?
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102. 3. Can you invest the
next 5 years pursuing it?
Count the cost
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103. 4. How interested in it
are you now?
Rate it on a scale from 1 to 10
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104. 5. Is your S.O.
fully on board?
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105. You should know now whether it’s time to ...
Take a next step
or reassess & start over
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
106. Business-Life Alignment
- Align with who you are & what you want
- Play to your strengths, not weaknesses
- Pursue what helps you best achieve your
goals & dreams
- And will capture your interest & secure your
long-term commitment to see it succeed
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
108. Next webinars
- The Great Entrepreneurial Experiment
- Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. Central
- Essential Steps for Bootstrapping Your Biz
- Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. Central
EntrepreneurshipLab.net
109. In the meantime ...
- Complete the member survey
- http://entrepreneurshiplab.net/dashboard/
- Post an introduction or question in the forum
- http://entrepreneurshiplab.net/forum/
- Invite someone else to join you ...
EntrepreneurshipLab.net