Michael Masterson

The Reluctant Entrepreneur (eBook, PDF)

Turning Dreams into Profits

• Format: PDF

Produktbeschreibung

Intelligent strategies for starting and growing a small business with minimal personal financial risk A comprehensive guide for entrepreneurs from one of the most successful business creators in recent years, The Reluctant Entrepreneur: Turning Dreams into Profits addresses the fears and misconceptions that many people have about starting their own businesses, walking prospective owners through the necessary decisions they need to make before even putting a business plan in place. Presenting solid, reliable strategies based on author Michael Masterson's own successful practices, and debunking some common illusions entrepreneurs have about their businesses, the book is a vital resource for anyone looking to avoid the pitfalls that threaten fledgling companies. * Packed with insights from an entrepreneur who has launched and sold dozens of business, presented in a lively and conversational style * Some 600,000 new businesses are launched each year and with an uncertain economy, more and more people are looking for a stream of income separate from their 9 to 5 job * Filled with highly applicable advice that budding and professional entrepreneurs can start using immediately Essential reading for small business owners and both first time and established entrepreneurs, The Reluctant Entrepreneur presents the smart strategies on starting and growing a small business that can make launching your own company a cinch.

---

Dieser Download kann aus rechtlichen Gründen nur mit Rechnungsadresse in A, B, BG, CY, CZ, D, DK, EW, E, FIN, F, GR, HR, H, IRL, I, LT, L, LR, M, NL, PL, P, R, S, SLO, SK ausgeliefert werden.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: John Wiley & Sons
• Seitenzahl: 192
• Erscheinungstermin: 6. Juni 2012
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781118227275
• Artikelnr.: 37353492

Autorenporträt

MICHAEL MASTERSON is not your typical businessman. An ex-Peace Corps volunteer, he never took a class in business, doesn't read the business press, and hates to talk business. He spends his spare time writing poetry, collecting fine art, and practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. His neighbors call him a bohemian. But he's also an entrepreneur. He started his first business when he was eleven years old, and in the forty-five years that have elapsed since then, he has started or co-started dozens of successful businesses. The author of numerous business books, several of them New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers, Masterson consults for private clients and writes the Palm Beach Letter, a newsletter for individual investors.

Inhaltsangabe

Foreword xiii Acknowledgments xix INTRODUCTION Entrepreneurship: What It Is
. . . and Isn't 1 The Reality of Calculated Risk 2 The Reluctant
Entrepreneur 3 Launching a Successful Business Takes More Than Motivation 4
It's Okay to Be Cautious 5 Success Is Not a Roll of the Dice 6 And One More
Thing . . . 6 CHAPTER 1 What, Exactly, Is a Reluctant Entrepreneur? 9
Philip Knight's Story 10 What We Can Learn From This . . . 11 Hatching a
Business While You Keep Your Day Job 12 The Myth of the "Entrepreneurial
Type" 16 CHAPTER 2 The First Question You Must Be Able to Answer 21 Rule
Number One of Reluctant Entrepreneurship 23 Your Initial Challenge:
Generating Positive Cash Flow 24 Educating Yourself About Business 25
CHAPTER 3 What It Takes to Be a Successful Reluctant Entrepreneur 27 The
Reluctant Entrepreneur Is a Smart Entrepreneur 29 The Foundation of Your
Business: Six Strategic Choices You Have to Make at the Very Beginning 31
It's Not Rocket Science 38 CHAPTER 4 Hatching the New Business: Overcoming
Fear and Taking Action 41 Your First Three Action Steps 43 How Do You Find
a Mentor? 48 Putting Fear on Your Side 49 CHAPTER 5 The Magic Happens When
You Hire Superstars 51 Recognizing Superstar Potential 52 Knowing What
You're Looking For 53 How Do You Find These People? 54 The Care and Feeding
of a Superstar 56 How to Structure a Superstar Organization 59 The Best
Investment You Will Ever Make 61 CHAPTER 6 Mastering the Art of Business
Relationships 65 The Reluctant Entrepreneur's Guide to Making Friends in
High Places 67 12 Ways to Get People to Want to Do Business With You 69 A
Simple Trick That Will Make Important People Want to Talk to You 72 How to
Get Others to Tell You Their Most Valuable Success Secrets--A Technique I
Learned From a Self-Made Multimillionaire 73 Never Pass Up the Opportunity
to Make a Connection That Can Do You Some Good 75 Seek Out
Mutually-Beneficial Partnerships 76 It Doesn't Take Much to Maintain
Relationships With All Your Important Contacts--Even Hundreds of Them 78
CHAPTER 7 How to Become a Marketing Genius 81 Every Business Is About the
Selling 82 The Beauty of Direct Marketing 83 Mastering the Art of
Persuasion 85 The Difference Between Wants and Needs 87 The Difference
Between Features and Benefits 88 The Difference Between Benefits and Deeper
Benefits 89 The USP: Making Your Product Stand Out From the Competition 90
How to Use Your USP to Create a Successful Advertising Campaign 91 Resist
the Urge to Try Something Completely Different 92 Short-Term Results Versus
Long-Term Profits 93 CHAPTER 8 Maintaining Control of Your Growing Business
97 Pushing Hard for Profi ts 98 You Can Never, Ever Stop Pushing on Every
Single Front 100 How Much of Your Profi ts Should Go Into Your Pocket--And
How Much Should Go Back Into Your Business? 101 Why You Should Ignore the
"Experts" and Determine Your Own Compensation 102 Create a Culture That
Respects Money 103 Keep Your Eye on the Numbers 104 Never Lose Your
Competitive Edge 105 How Tiffany & Co. Lost Their Edge--And Found It Again
106 Set High Standards for Customer Service--And Make Sure They Stay High
107 A Success Trap You Don't Have to Fall Into 110 CHAPTER 9 Leadership:
Keeping Your Vision Alive 113 Effective Leaders Motivate Others to Do Great
Work 114 Effective Leaders Focus on Work, Not Politics 114 Effective
Leaders Understand That Competition Has Its Place in Business, But It Is
Not Nearly as Important as Cooperation and Sharing 115 Effective Leaders
Care About Their Customers 115 Effective Leaders Make Fast Decisions 116
Effective Leaders Know How to Get Support for Their Ideas 116 Effective
Leaders Know How to Delegate 117 Effective Leaders Do Not Micromanage 118
Effective Leaders Create a Culture of Accountability 119 Effective Leaders
Understand That Teamwork Doesn't Always Work 119 Effective Leaders Are Good
Communicators 120 Effective Leaders Make Every Meeting Work for Them 121
Effective Leaders Know How to Negotiate 122 Effective Leaders Are
Considerate 124 Effective Leaders Don't Become Buddies With Their Employees
125 Effective Leaders Sometimes Zig When Others Zag 125 CHAPTER 10 Build
Your Business Like a Go-Cart 127 Building the Go-Cart, Step by Step 129
Conclusion 133 APPENDIX Do You Need the Mindset of a Champion to Succeed in
Business? 135 How to Use Humor in Business 139 Must You Be Cutthroat to
Succeed in Business? 144 The Unexpected Side Effects of Making Money (and
How to Avoid Them) 149 The Time-Management System That Works for Me 155
About the Author 159 Index 161