Connecting Mind, Body and Business Issue: IU League 10 Week of: August 29, 2011 NETWORKING COMMUNITY Inspired Living is a publication from Inspiration University for the IU League. www.InspirationUniversity.com SUCCESS TIPS 5 More Ways to Reward Employees Without a lot of Money! INSPIRATION 3 Keys to Entrepreneurial Success: Passion, Purpose and Knowledge BUSINESS SOLUTIONS Women Lead Differently From Men CONNECTIONS What Does Your Handshake Say About You
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3 Keys to Entrepreneurial Success: Passion, Purpose and
Knowledge
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By Jerry Osteryoung
“Only passions, great passions can elevate the soul to great things.” ~Denis Diderot
I give many speeches every year, and in each one I always include time for questions. By far, the most fre-
quently asked question is what attributes are needed to be successful as an entrepreneur.
After observing more than 3,000 entrepreneurs, I can tell you there are three simple keys to success: passion,
purpose and knowledge. Most folks have two of these down, but you really need all three if you are going to
be successful.
Passion is the burning force that keeps you going no matter what happens. Many of the entrepreneurs we
deal with have cash-flow crises, but they just do not quit. Somehow they find a way to make payroll or pay
that bill. Instead of getting discouraged, they just make a commitment to never end up in that situation again.
Entrepreneurs who lack passion are almost guaranteed to fail. I have seen many aspiring business owners start
a company because they either got laid off or could not find a job. This is a recipe for certain disaster, because
not having another option does not provide the pure and unbridled passion that you must have to be success-
ful.
Passion alone, however, is not sufficient. You must also have purpose to be successful, because purpose is
the force that focuses your passion on a specific activity or industry.
Too often, people tell me they want to start a restaurant because they are good cooks. Being passionate about
being a great cook is OK, but it is the combination of passion with purpose — serving clients and making
money, for instance — that makes for success.
The third piece of the entrepreneur's formula is knowledge. I cannot overstate the importance of knowl-
edge, because this is how you are able to avoid costly mistakes.
There are three critical knowledge areas entrepreneurs must master. First, you must have a great understand-
ing of marketing and feel comfortable promoting yourself and your business. After all, there is no better sales-
person for your company than you.
The second is finance. You absolutely must be able to interpret your financial statements and have a clear un-
derstanding of the financial ramifications of your decisions.
The third and final element is knowing how to manage people effectively. All businesses need people, and
being able to manage those people is a requisite to success. Knowledge takes passion and purpose and trans-
forms that light into a laser beam for your business.
Before you start a business, make sure you have the three attributes that are vital to success: passion, purpose
and knowledge. If you are unsure if you have these components, you probably do not, in which case, I would
advise you to wait. If, on the other hand, you are sure, now is the time to move ahead.
You can do this!
_______________________________________________
Jerry Osteryoung is the Director of Outreach of the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship in the College of Business at Florida State University; the Jim Moran Professor Emeritus of Entrepreneurship; and Professor Emeritus of Finance. He was the founding Executive Director of the Jim Moran Institute and served in that position from 1995 through 2008. His newest book “If You Have Employees, You Really Need This Book” is an Amazon.com bestseller. View Osteryoung's past articles at www.jmi.fsu.edu/Services/Jerry-s-Articles. You can e-mail him at [email protected].
Women Lead Differently From Men
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According to one successful businesswoman, there are 12 natural talents that all women posses. These skills,
that men covet, help women lead and succeed in the workplace.
Women lead differently from men — and that’s a good thing, according to Susan T. Spencer, an entrepreneur
and business professional who has risen to the top in more than one male-dominated industry. In her book
Briefcase Essentials (www.BriefcaseEssentials.com), she identifies 12 natural talents that all women possess
that help them lead and succeed. Here are a few qualities you can make work for you in a professional setting.
1. Perceptive Communication: Women are natural communicators. Women’s ability to communicate is not
just their ability to talk; they are sensitive to what others are thinking. All of women’s senses contribute to
their special talent (touch, smell, taste, vision, and hearing), giving them a decided advantage in evaluating a
business situation. These traits, along with other observations that women instinctively notice, such as body
language, facial expressions, tone of voice, and body movements, collectively represent what women in busi-
ness uniquely possess — the ability to be perceptive communicators.
2. Being Empathetic: The ability to identify with and understand someone else’s feelings or difficulties is a
female leadership skill that engenders employee loyalty and trust. It’s a rare moment when most bosses or fig-
ures of authority show the softer, more emotional side of themselves, but if it’s sincere, it’s a moment that
will be appreciated forever by everyone who witnesses it. Empathy is an awesome skill when it is used care-
fully and wisely in business situations.
3. Being Engaging: When women greet each other, they hug, they smile, and they look each other in the eye
and say how good it is to see one another. This is true even if they’re business colleagues. These gestures are
more than symbolic — it’s how women use body language to communicate the importance of relationships.
When you meet a businessperson in the ordinary course of business, being engaging includes the way you meet
and greet other businesspersons. It begins the moment you extend your hand and continues throughout the
greeting. Don’t miss an opportunity to make a great initial impression by using your natural skill of being en-
gaging.
4. Being Inclusive: Businesswomen are comfortable relating one-on-one with people at all levels of an organi-
zation. We make it a point to know the names and faces of people we are working with; we want them to
know us and we want to feel comfortable with them as well. Businessmen tend to act impersonally and do not
interact at all levels; in other words they are exclusive, not inclusive. For women the term “inclusive” carries
with it an implicit acknowledgement that “people come first.” By being inclusive with every business contact
— whether customer, supplier, or employee — the natural talents that women apply to business give them a
decisive edge.
5. Being Resourceful: One of the most important business skills — and a talent that women seem to be able to
handle better than men, is juggling lots of balls in the air at one time. Women problem-solve the same way —
they think about several options instead of zeroing in on one, toss them around in their head, weigh alterna-
tives, consider several points of view, and come up with more than one way to proceed.