How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur Essay Example for Free

How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur Essay Regardless of your definition of success, there are, oddly enough, a great number of common characteristics that are shared by successful businesspeople. You can place a check beside each characteristic that you feel that you possess. This way, you can see how you stack up. Even if you dont have all of these characteristics, dont fret. Most can be learned with practice and by developing a winning attitude, especially if you set goals and apply yourself, through strategic planning, to reach those goals in incremental and measurable stages. The Home Business Musts Like any activity you pursue, there are certain musts that are required to be successful in a chosen activity. To legally operate a vehicle on public roadways, one must have a drivers license; to excel in sports, one must train and practice; to retire comfortably, one must become an informed investor and actively invest for retirement. If your goal is success in business, then the formula is no different. There are certain musts that have to be fully developed, implemented and managed for your business to succeed. There are many business musts, but this article contains I believe to be some of the more important musts that are required to start, operate and grow a profitable home business. 1. Do what you enjoy. What you get out of your business in the form of personal satisfaction, financial gain, stability and enjoyment will be the sum of what you put into your business. So if you dont enjoy what youre doing, in all likelihood its safe to assume that will be reflected in the success of your businessor subsequent lack of success. In fact, if you dont enjoy what youre doing, chances are you wont succeed. 2. Take what you do seriously. You cannot expect to be effective and successful in business unless you truly believe in your business and in the goods and services that you sell. Far too many home business owners fail to take their own businesses seriously enough, getting easily sidetracked and not staying motivated and keeping their noses to the grindstone. They also fall prey to naysayers who dont ake them seriously because they dont work from an office building, office park, storefront, or factory. Little do these skeptics, who rain on the home business owners parade, know is that the number of people working from home, and making very good annual incomes, has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years. 3. Plan everything. Planning every aspect of your home business is not only a must, but also builds habits that every home business owner should develop, implement, and maintain. The act of business planning is so important because it requires you to analyze each business situation, research and compile data, and make conclusions based mainly on the facts as revealed through the research. Business planning also serves a second function, which is having your goals and how you will achieve them, on paper. You can use the plan that you create both as map to take you from point A to Z and as a yardstick to measure the success of each individual plan or segment within the plan. 4. Manage money wisely. The lifeblood of any business enterprise is cash flow. You need it to buy inventory, pay for services, promote and market your business, repair and replace tools and equipment, and pay yourself so that you can continue to work. Therefore, all home business owners must become wise money managers to ensure that the cash keeps flowing and the bills get paid. There are two aspects to wise money management. The money you receive from clients in exchange for your goods and services you provide (income) The money you spend on inventory, supplies, wages and other items required to keep your business operating. (expenses) 5. Ask for the sale. A home business entrepreneur must always remember that marketing, advertising, or promotional activities are completely worthless, regardless of how clever, expensive, or perfectly targeted they are, unless one simple thing is accomplishedask for the sale. This is not to say that being a great salesperson, advertising copywriting whiz or a public relations specialist isnt a tremendous asset to your business. However, all of these skills will be for naught if you do not actively ask people to buy what you are selling. 6. Remember its all about the customer. Your home business is not about the products or services that you sell. Your home business is not about the prices that you charge for your goods and services. Your home business is not about your competition and how to beat them. Your business is all about your customers, or clients, period. After all, your customers are the people that will ultimately decide if your business goes boom or bust. Everything you do in business must be customer focused, including your policies, warranties, payment options, operating hours, presentations, advertising and promotional campaigns and website. In addition, you must know who your customers are inside out and upside down. Become a shameless self-promoter (without becoming obnoxious). One of the greatest myths about personal or business success is that eventually your business, personal abilities, products or services will get discovered and be embraced by the masses that will beat a path to your door to buy what you are selling. But how can this happen if no one knows who you are, what you sell and why they should be buying? Self-promotion is one of the most beneficial, yet most underutilized, marketing tools that the majority of home business owners have at their immediate disposal. 8. Project a positive business image. You have but a passing moment to make a positive and memorable impression on people with whom you intend to do business. Home business owners must go out of their way and make a conscious effort to always project the most professional business image possible. The majority of home business owners do not have the advantage of elaborate offices or elegant storefronts and showrooms to wow prospects and impress customers. Instead, they must rely on imagination, creativity and attention to the smallest detail when creating and maintaining a professional image for their home business.

Original Writing Essay -- Papers

Original Writing A crunch of pebbles as a perfectly crafted square of engineered metal falls to the beach. 5 figures crawl from their vessel onto a dreary beachhead. The rain beat down on a terrible Tuesday night. Silver, a man in his prime of physical fitness, shivered in the cold. Like lambs his men followed him intently, without question. In their minds, however, they were at home. With their wives and girlfriends, away from the war. Too many men have perished on this 2-mile stretch of coastline for man to contemplate, for a war that is yet to be understood. Since the last attempt at taking this beach, which was a major failure, there has been an armistice. Everything has been quiet, apart from the occasional fire drill inside the enemy's frontline campus. "Omaha Squad, state your position" Crackles Silvers radio equipment, breaking the deadly silence abruptly. In code, he makes his reply. Omaha Squad, led by Silver, was ordered to infiltrate the G25s communication tower to gather intelligence. Hi...

Policy of Appeasement: Good or Bad? Essay

After the Great War, Germany and a couple other countries were greatly punished, having to pay reparations and territorial losses. Hitler, soon to be a dictator, wanted to change that. He believed that Germany had been punished too severely and wanted revenge; because he had such a strong government and military, there were many ways of going about stopping him. During the 1930’s, the policy of appeasement was the most effective response to Hitler’s aggression because of many reason but mainly that it keep peace and didn’t start war, the people did not support the war, and because the British needed more time to prepare for war. First of all, one reason why appeasement was the most effective response because for the time being, it kept peace throughout Europe, and after only 20 years of peace from the Great War, people didn’t want another. While Chamberlain was secretly trying to get more time he claims that he is just trying to keep peace but if necessary, he will take action, â€Å"I shall not give up the hope of a peaceful solution†¦yet if it were sure that any nation had made up its mind to dominate the world by its fear of force, I should feel that it must be resisted†¦but war is a fearful thing† (Document 7). This quote signifies that although Chamberlain said he was a man of peace that if he thought it was necessary he would start a war. One problem with appeasement is that some people think that war could have been totally avoided if Hitler had been stood up, â€Å"because the Czech defenses were very strong†¦ and because the German generals, conscious of Germany’s relative weakness at that moment, were actually prepared to attempt to remove Hitler† (Document 9). So if the British had stood up to Hitler and beat him, the war would have been over and Hitler subdued. Furthermore, appeasement was a good policy because even if Chamberlain had wanted war, the Congress didn’t and after just coming out of a pointless war that killed many lives, nobody was willing to do another. British historian Keith Eubank states: â€Å"Neither the people nor the government of (Britain and France) were conditioned to idea of war†¦Hitler had done nothing that any major power considered dangerous enough to warrant a major European war† (Document 10). Another problem with appeasement is that if you are going to have a trust between people over a controversial topic, you can’t do it with a man like Hitler who is known for backstabbing and disloyalty. Trusting Hitler was a risky thing for Chamberlain because while they are resting in peace, Hitler could sneak attack and take an advantage on a very important war. Lastly and most importantly, Chamberlain made the most effective response of Hitler’s aggression because at that time, the British needed more time to update their weapons and prepare for war. They were not at all ready and Germany was acting very aggressive lately so Chamberlain made the right choice of buying the British time so they could win the war. A British foreign secretary describes his meeting with other governments, â€Å"public opinion was strongly opposed to any action against the Germans†¦most people were saying openly that they did not see why the Germans should not occupy the Rhineland†¦taking almost any risk in order to avoid the situation† (Document 12). It was also believed that if Britain had more time, they would win the war, â€Å"time is in our favor†¦it would be better to fight her in say 6 – 12 months’ time, than to accept the present challenge† (Document 13). The most important reason as to why appeasement was a bad thing is because it gave Hitler more land and freedom. When Hitler received Sudeten territory without having to lift a finger causes him to believe Britain and France don’t want to fight a war (which they didn’t) and makes him think he can get away with more things. Hitler sees their peacefulness and takes his aggression into action, â€Å"Germany toady cast off the last shackles fastened upon her by the Treaty of Versailles when Adolf Hitler, as commander-in-chief of the Reich defense forces, sent his new battalions into the Rhineland’s demilitarized zone† (Document 4). Britain used appeasement to buy precious time to prepare and Hitler thought of this as them backing down and took force, which almost won him the war. The whole idea of appeasement was a controversial topic between politicians. It was a good idea because it kept peace throughout Europe, people wouldn’t have agreed to the war aspect anyways, and that it bought British the time they needed to recover for another war. It was a bad policy because it gave Hitler confidence, Hitler may have been overthrown if a little opposition was expressed, and that Hitler couldn’t be trusted. In conclusion, the policy of appeasement was the most effective way to stop Hitler’s aggression.

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut Essay - 821 Words

In an interview on Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut states, â€Å"I worked as a miner of corpses, breaking into cellars where over a hundred thousand Hansel and Gretels were baked like gingerbread men† (â€Å"Vonnegut†). Vonnegut Jr. (1922-2007), born during the Modern Age, wrote his first story in 1947, known as the Contemporary Period. The Modern Age was different from the Contemporary Period because of its focus on art while trying to connect with traditions in the world due to their desire to have a connection with a person or idea emotionally. The period after in literature, also called Post-Modernism, uses metaphors and symbols to emphasize the use of intrusions and was known for its breaking of tone, tendency to interrupt point of view, and†¦show more content†¦The critical work of Beaird Glover, Slaughterhouse Five, writes about Vonnegut’s literature and the religious aspect that Vonnegut takes. Glover talks about the experimental writing and progress in the evolution of literature. Vonnegut uses truth and humor by describing the holocaust and the Allies to readers in order to help them understand by imagery. Vonnegut has the ability to implant suggestions and ideas into the minds of the readers by his uses of words. Also, he uses Biblical situations which impresses Glover; introducing the concept of Christianity and kindness into the minds of people. The critic points out the fact that Vonnegut does not take all matters seriously and is very humorous with his writings. Other critics tend to see Vonnegut as not being highly acclaimed or not accepting to the academic canon. Lastly, Glover points out the fact that Vonnegut uses time travel to help create imagery into foreshadowing and creativeness. Vonnegut is an effective writer and makes an impression on numerous literary fanatics. At first, many readers did not like Vonnegut’s writing for its solemn tone and its Postmodernist ideas. Lastly, I agree with Vonneg ut’s religious views in his writings and ideas of spreading Christianity. During the time period, many people â€Å"established him [Vonnegut] as being the best fiction writers of his era† (Glover). It is important because without this,Show MoreRelatedSlaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut534 Words   |  2 PagesSome people may think the novel Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut is a failure. In fact, Kurt Vonnegut himself calls it a failure. A lot of people disagree with that, many think that Slaughterhouse Five is one of Vonneguts best novels. They say it is the most successful book they have ever read, just for reasons of the author himself. From him being bluntly honest, to his great wit. So if it is such a failure in his eyes, why did he write it, what was his purpose, and why was it even publishedRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut1458 Words   |  6 PagesThroughout the novel Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Barry Sadler singer of the song Ballad of the Green Beret and novelist Kurt Vonnegut maintain comparable tones regarding their literature pieces representing the war and the underlying image that is portrayed by the Green Beret. Sadler insightfully states that the impacts that committed soldiers fought through and the sacrifices their families had endured: represents honor, courage, and is described as jingoistic. It is an exceptionallyRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut1560 Words   |  7 Pages Slaughterhouse-five strives to remember the tragedy of the bombing of Dresden. Kurt Vonnegut constructs his novel around a main character who becomes â€Å"unstuck in time† (23). 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The combination of his writing style and his use of humor to degrade the human in the event of war is highly effective in the fact that it causes the readerRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut1348 Words   |  6 PagesSince the last time I wrote a journal, I started and finished Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five and started Neal Stephenson’s Seveneves. Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five had a total of 275 pages, and Neal Stephenson’s Seveneves has a total of 854 pages, however, I am currently on page 50. Slaughterhouse-Five is a piece of historical fiction that explores the hardships of war, the odd simplicity of death, and the confusing topic of time. The novel stars Billy Pilgrim, a physically weak and strangeRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut3749 Words   |  15 PagesMario Peà ±a Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut â€Å" ‘Is it an anti-war book?’ ‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I guess.’ ‘You know what I say to people when I hear they’re writing anti-war books?’ ‘No. What do you say, Harrison Starr?’ ‘I say, ‘Why don’t you write an anti-glacier book instead?’† (Vonnegut 4). 1. The author Kurt Vonnegut and a filmmaker, Harrison Starr, converse in this passage, which introduces the topic of Slaughterhouse-Five. In which Starr makes fun of Vonnegut’s idea for planning on making Slaughterhouse-FiveRead MoreSlaughterhouse Five By Kurt Vonnegut1242 Words   |  5 PagesSlaughterhouse Five, a novel written by Kurt Vonnegut, depicts unchronological and sometimes nonsensical moments of the life of Billy Pilgrim as he â€Å"become[s] unstuck in time†(Vonnegut S. Five 23) Billy has no control over where he will end up next. â€Å"He has seen his birth and death many times, and he pays random visits to all the events in between†, and â€Å"is in a constant state of fright, ... because he never knows which part of his life he is going to have to act out next.†(Vonnegut S. Five 23)Read MoreSlaughterhouse Five, By Kurt Vonnegut941 Words   |  4 Pageslargely fatal events, the survivors reflect upon the unbearable guilt and emotions they have experienced. Billy Pilgrim, the main protagonist In Kurt Vonnegut’s novel Slaughterhouse-Five, serves as Vonnegut’s vehicle to communicate his feelings and contemplations as a survivor. Throughout the story, Pilgrim, or the reader encounters an animal that Vonnegut uses to convey the range of emotions and incidents that humans are subject to as a result of war. 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Death is the central point to which all action in the book connects. The story is primarily about the death of 135,000 German civilians in the bombing of Dresden narrated by Billy Pilgrim, a man who experiences death from