On day 1 of any job, endeavour or project how much knowledge about it did you have? Now having been well into it compare your day 1 knowledge to what you know today. I'm sure the years, the challenges you faced, the experiences you've had all lead to your knowing much more today than you did on day 1. That's why  rookies in sports are looked at the way they are. Sure they have the raw talent and skill but it goes without saying that they will make rookie mistakes. If you track the history of any all-star you will see a progression of getting better and better from rookie to seasoned pro.  It takes time and it's not something that happens on day 1. Now take your business ideas, your projects, that charity you're working on. You may have aspirations and plans of great things.  Certainly you have others that you look to as a comparison, someone you aspire to be like. You aren't going to know everything you need to know from day 1, so stop waiting and get started. The challenge comes in realizing that and moving forward anyways.  You aren't suppose to have all the answers, all the ideas, even a complete picture of where you want to go.  On day 1 you just need the willingness and desire. That's what day 1 is all about, getting started. photo credit

You've heard it said before, less is more.  But is it really? I mean in a world where you can have it your way and get nearly anything customized beyond belief is it wise to pursue the less is more design theory? A problem that many of us face today is that we are all pressed for time.  So when it comes to consuming something, be it content, products or services, the simpler the idea the easier it is to decide whether that's something we need or want. There is a shift in the marketplace in which products and services that offer less will actually succeed more. Take the restaurant 5 Guys Burgers and Fries.  It's a burger chain that is growing exponentially that offers just what it claims to and nothing more. The decor is always simple red and white, everything is packaged in a brown bag whether your dining in or out and you can order burgers or fries. Simple, easy, successful. If you look at the iPhone a reason for its success can be attributed to the app store. While the app store does have thousands of choices, the choices perform very vertical simple tasks.  This is counter intuitive to what had historically been the norm in software. By purposefully limiting the capability of the software on the iPhone it allowed the options to flourish and the product to succeed even greater. Where is the opportunity for you to take an overly complex process or product and simplify it down to the basics, make it less.  Find those opportunities and there will be more customers. photo credit

All those business ideas in your head just bouncing around are being held captive by the don't. As in.. I don't have the time. I don't have the skill. I don't have the money. I don't have the knowledge. I don't have the energy. Perhaps all those are true, but what do you have? I do have the desire. I do have the passion. I do have a dream. I do have a vision. I do have hope. I do have excitement. Most of the time you find that the things you don't have can be obtained why the things you do have are innate.  Sure the innate traits need to be stimulated and encouraged (that's a purpose of this blog) but you already have those.  The don't is the thing that is holding you back.   Recognize the don't and navigate your way around it. Tak the leap, don't let the don't get in your way. photo credit

Green, Yellow or Red? Every color is clearly represented at your company. Your job is to figure out who's which color and then navigate your ideas accordingly. There are the Green light people whom are always open to new ideas, looking for ways to keep things evolving and moving forward. These are certainly good people to present your ideas too, however depending on there credibility they might have the reputation of saying yes to everything and be less affective at helping you move your ideas forward than others. Then you have the Yellow light people whom are cautious about anything you bring them.  The Yellow color people aren't dangerous to you but they will question the things you bring them. These are actually very good people to bounce ideas off of because they can help prepare you for the objections you are going to see later from the Red color people. The Red light people, just like the red stop light, seem to have an uncanny knack of putting a stop to ideas on a regular basis. Now it would be easy to say just present your ideas to the Green light people and be done with it.  The problem is that most of the time you are going to need approval or at least support from all three, Green, Yellow and Red. Just like a traffic light your ideas success will be based on getting cohesive buy in from all three.  In fact if you can bring a representative from each of those three groups your idea will become more powerful than if its supported by just one faction. Get moving now and get that project green lighted. photo credit

A good article appeared over the weekend that analyzed over 500 entrepreneurs and in that study a consistent pattern appeared. Entrepreneurs are made not born.  It's something I've been preaching for awhile. If entrepreneurs are not born then how are they made? "They simply got tired of working for others, had a great idea they wanted to commercialize, or woke up one day with an urgent desire to build wealth before they retired. So they took the big leap." It really is that simple.  At Lazzara Yachts we sell to very successful entrepreneurs and I make it a point to find out  how they got to where they are.  Nearly all of them have very humble backgrounds and quite frankly unremarkable stories as to how they were able to go from nothing to multi millions in a matter of years.  Now I say unremarkable with the utmost respect for what they have done, taking nothing away for their hard work, risk taking and vision needed to be as successful as they are.  The point is though that there isn't a complex back story to their success.  They are generally as simple as, having an idea and moving on that idea.  For most they didn't start out with clear visions of exactly how successful they would be, more a general idea that they had something that could work. Everyone's an entrepreneur is something I continue to say and while I realize not everyone will choose to be, I truly believe that everyone has the ability to be.  Whether you choose to exercise that ability or not is up to you.  Just know that you can be made into a successful entrepreneur you don't have to be born "into it" . What do you think? Leave a comment below and let me know?  Can anyone be made into an entrepreneur? photo credit