Tired of working for the man? Or…the woman? Or anyone? Cool. Maybe it’s time to start chasing your dream and run your own business! I know first hand how much work, and determination you need to put in to make your adventure a success no matter what it is. But I also know how massively rewarding it can be.

One piece of advice I can give you is to find out as much as you can about the field you are planning to launch your business in. All of it! You need to know the good, the bad and the ugly so you go in with your eyes open.

Make an effort to talk to business owners (industry related or not) for any information or tips they might have. There are a million invaluable little nuggets that you may not have thought of that someone else can shed some light on.

You can also take that meet-and-greet mindset up a notch by attend different networking parties where you can meet lots of new people in your chosen field.  And keep in mind EVERYONE is a contact. The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is not just a movie trivia game, but a philosophy that affects business.  That person you’re chatting with may have no idea about the business you’re in…but his sister just happens to work for your dream client!  So maybe it’s not a foot in the door. Maybe it’s just your big toe in the door. The point is…the door is open. So be nice, follow up with a call or email and start working your connections.

Get to the point! Lots of people seem to have the mindset of asking for a favor from a potential new client or sponsor. So they start off with a “sorry to bother you…” approach. Kind of a negative foot to start on. My producer always talks about how in Canadians tend to think defensively (“I don’t want to interrupt”, “I should go slow incase it doesn’t work”, “Is this a bad time?”) whereas Americans tend to think offensively (“You have to check out this offer”, “I can really help your business”, “Give me two minutes of your time.”).

Which one do you think will get you better results? You can still be polite and charming…and assertive.

Finally, never under estimate the power of guerilla marketing and old fashion word of mouth.  In my opinion, word of mouth can be the best and most effective form of advertising. It has been the biggest and most effective marketing tool for
TwentySomething and we have been fortunate enough to have our small army of viewers spread the word to their friends to create and even bigger army.

Today and Internet series…tomorrow THE WORLD!!!

Now there is a business plan!

Peace
J

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