Should Entrepreneurs Hassle With Graduate School?

For the average person in their 20s who has an entrepreneurial interest, should a Master's degree be a priority? Many say entrepreneurship cannot be taught. The media is always reporting on successful entrepreneurs who dropped out of college or high school. Is a Master's degree a risk or a smart idea in today's marketplace?

In writing the book, Handshakin Your Way to Entrepreneurial Success, I learned from Colorado's most successful entrepreneurs that aspiring entrepreneurs need to immerse themselves in strategic communities.  This qualifies them to get optimal tools, contacts, and meetings that they need to reach their biggest goals.  Community is the basis to building a sturdy and credible foundation as an aspiring entrepreneur, and a Master's degree will allow you access to more competitive, high-value communities:

• You will be seen as a more credible entrepreneur with a Master's degree--especially if it's in the same industry in which your startup is.  For example, the CEO/Founder of an app that helps with personal finance would increase his or her credibility by having an Master's in Finance.
  
• You will be part of a community of others with similar Master's degrees.  Remember all the friends you made in college?  All you guys have at least Bachelor's degrees--cool!  Remember everyone from high school that at least has a high school degree?  Same concept.  Build personal relationships with fellow graduates in your Master's degree to have a network of wealthier potential angel investors.  After all, it's a well thought out personal relationship strategy that leads to entrepreneurial success.  Only 8% percent of the population now holds Master’s degrees, the same percentage that held bachelor’s degrees (or higher) in the 1960s according to The American Interest.  Obtaining a Master's degree can allow you easier access to elite communities.
  
• You will learn how to meet demanding deadlines & sell an idea effectively.  These two skills are especially taught well at Daniel's College of Business, at the University of Denver, where I received my MBA.  Aside from the University, Denver is the 2nd best city in the nation to launch your startup according to Forbes.  

If you're interested in entrepreneurship, apply for a Master's degree right away.  If you're starting up here in Colorado like all of us at Startup Denver, Daniel's College of Business is the Harvard of the West, and the best business school in Colorado.  As an entrepreneur who relies heavily on shaking hands and networking, the people I met at Daniel's and the credibility of a Master's degree from Daniel's gives me all the credibility I need to reach the huge goals I have as an entrepreneur.  

4 Unique Ways to Think About Networking

Networking. As a small business owner, you will either be excited to hear that word or you will shutter when you hear it. Many love to network. They love to get out and meet new people. They live to socialize. Others see a room full of people and want to run back home. They would rather be by themselves. However, shaking hands is essential to grow your business.

Here are some other ways to help you think about business networking to take some pressure off and allow you to meet new people and grow your business.

• Making new friends. Tell yourself that you are just going to make some new friends. This might help really shy people by taking some of the pressure off about their business. Just go to socialize. Talk about your business but don’t push it.
• How much you can help people. Your business can help people so you should want to help as many people as possible. Spread the word by just wanting to help people.  Worry about the sale later, and focus on personal relationships first.
• New business opportunities. Remind yourself that every person you meet is a new potential business opportunity. You should try to meet as many people as possible.  
• You never know who can help you. Besides being able to help others, you might need help that you didn’t realize. Be sure to listen to others in case you need their help too!

Networking can be very scary for some people. It might help to think about it as if you are just going to make some new friends. Building personal relationships is how all of Colorado's most successful entrepreneurs flew to success on autopilot.  Try to take the pressure off completely. Who knows? You might just end up growing your business anyway. You should also remind yourself that every person you meet is a new business opportunity. You might also meet some people that can help you too!

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Shortcuts to Business Learning Curves

Building a business takes a lot of hard work and dedication. You will also make some mistake along the way. Just because you have bad days does not mean that your business will fail. Instead, entrepreneurs need to use their experiences to learn from them.  Here are some business learning curves that all entrepreneurs struggle with.

• It takes time to find the right way to do things. You might have to try to do things a few different ways before finding the best (and fastest) way to do something. You might ask people for advice but you still have to find out what works best for you.
• It also takes time to figure out your pricing. You might start out charging hourly or by project. You might realize that a project you figured would take you an hour ends up taking you five and you end up working for pennies. You will learn that some things are better charged per project if they are going to be hard to calculate how long it will take you while others that are going to take you a long time may be worth charging per hour.
• You will have to learn what products or services to offer. Some people do better offering a wide variety while others do better if they specialize in a niche. Many people prefer to specialize because they feel like they can ask for a higher rate if they concentrate in more technical tasks. Others prefer to help out however they can.
• Sometimes, you learn that you don't want to offer a service anymore because it is not worth it. If you don't enjoy doing something, don't do it anymore. If certain projects take you too long, then it is not going to be worth offering to clients. You will be spending too long working on them.
• Not everyone is born to be an entrepreneur and that is alright. They need a boss to keep them motivated to work. They will have trouble keeping a business going and there is nothing wrong with that.

Just because you have a good or bad day does not mean your business will fail. Instead, owning a business is a learning process. You will have to try different ways of doing things until you find the best way to do it. Ask yourself about these topics to create shortcuts. You will have to fiddle with your prices and even with your products and services until you are happy with what you offer. It takes time until you will be completely happy with your business.  Be patient and forever anxious, shakers!

Contact us to learn how personal relationship strategy can help you grow and launch your business.

Five Surprising Tips for Entrepreneurs to Increase Productivity

Why do some entrepreneurs seem to able to squeeze more out of their days than others? While it's true that we're all given the same 24 hours, some people seem to move mountains while the rest of us barely make it through the day. What's their secret?

Productivity is the efficient use of resources...including yourself. It's officially  measured in units of input (labor and capital) and output (inventory and profit). Informally, it's simply how much you can get accomplished.

If you're wondering how to increase productivity, here are five surprising entrepreneur tips that you can start doing today:

1. Take regular breaks! It might seem that taking a break would interfere with your concentration, but research shows that scheduled breaks during long tasks are actually refreshing, and actually increase concentration. Florida State experts have determined that 90 minutes is the maximum time that elite athletes can perform effectively.
2. Stop multi-tasking! Many of us pride ourselves on our ability to do several things at once. However, studies show that juggling tasks causes productivity to stall and results in time lost. Stick to one task at a time, and you'll find you have more time.
3. Limit meetings! We all know how meetings can eat up our day. According to software company, Atlassian, the average time spent in unproductive meetings is over 31 hours each month. Before scheduling or attending your next meeting, determine if the agenda items could be accomplished by email or phone. If you must get together, consider a "stand up" meeting, which can result in a shorter meeting and higher participation.
4. Schedule your day! Free up time for projects by turning off your email notifications. Then schedule time to answer emails and messages a few times during the day. Limit interruptions by posting office hours, closing the door, or even working at home. Once people learn that you're serious about protecting your time, they will respect your wish...and even copy your habits.
5. Find something pretty to look at! Whatever makes you happy--family photos, a plant, fresh flowers--can increase your productivity up to 15%. Maybe you prefer a scented candle or a picture of your future vacation destination. Research has shown a positive link between your happiness quotient and your work performance.

It's time to look at productivity in new ways. You'll actually do more by making a few changes in your day. Interested in learning more? Just contact us and soon others will be asking you for your secrets!

How Entrepreneurs Can Increase Their Chances of Long-Term Success

Entrepreneurs should always be thinking about their long-term success. While many strategies may help you in the short-run, they aren't guaranteed to hold up well over time. Here are a few things you can do to increase your chances of long-term success: 

Handshake with other thought leaders

As an entrepreneur, you need to realize that every interaction requires strategic thinking. That doesn't mean that you need to put everything into the context of Game Theory, but should always keep possible outcomes and consequences in mind. 

This is especially true in the case of networking. According to a recent Entrepreneur article, entrepreneurs need to strategically interact and network with other thought leaders in their industry: 

"Attend local meetups (like meetup.com/startupdenver), seminars and conferences, and reach out to people on various professional and social networks.  Do everything possible to start meeting people who can potentially become clients and/or business colleagues. You'll need to start thinking strategically about experts and the right people to be as lean as possible."

Consider these tips when networking: 

• Good networking requires genuineness and sincerity
• Ask open-ended questions to get conversations started
• Establish yourself as a thought-leader and a credible source
• Enter each networking event with a clear goal and strategy

Build long-term relationships with customers

Building relationships with customers is something you should start doing from Day 1. It's easy to establish a good reputation from a clean slate, but it's almost impossible to turn a negative one around. This requires a lot of work at the beginning, but the customer loyalty will do more than pay itself off generously in time.

You can build long-term relationships with customers by: 

• Being active on social media
• Starting an email list that speaker specifically to your niche audience with high value information
• Offering excellent and creative customer service

Keep yourself mentally and physically healthy

Entrepreneurs need to take care of themselves, or else their entire business can be put at risk. You need to make sure that your personal problems don't spill over into your professional life. 

According to a recent Entrepreneur article, all entrepreneurs need to have supportive loving relationships: 

"Fostering authentic, supportive loving relationships takes time. As an entrepreneur, you may think that making money and working on your business trumps all else, and in some respects when you’re starting out that will be true. However, you need to be sure to get this part of your life in check after you’re operating or lose it by the wayside."

You must consider your daily habits in the context of your long-term success. If your daily tasks don't do anything to contribute to your success, then you need to change a few things up.

To talk more about entrepreneurship, or anything else, please join our Meetup Group. Thanks Shakers!