What does it take to be successful in business?

I gave a speech to the Entrepreneurship Class at the University of California at Santa Barbara. I asked them what they thought it took to be successful in business. The words the students gave me were absolutely right-on. It occurred to me after I left what the wisdom of these words could also illustrate.

Their words described what a success looks like from the outside-in. I’d heard similar words for years before and during the building of my business, but all of a sudden they had different meanings. How might you take what each of these words embodies and implant it into your psyche to function day-in and day-out with them as part of your own internal operating system? People will someday say that you too had a good idea, built a team, had talent, enjoyed some luck, persevered, had many customers, used creativity, and made a ton of money. Now let’s look through the other end of the telescope:

It looks like an Idea from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—You had a problem, solved it for yourself, and then created a product or service others could use to solve their similar problem.

It looks like Perseverance from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—You are possessed with the notion that there has to be a way to make something work. There is a way, you just may not know it yet, but you’re going to do it no matter what.

It looks like Talent from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—You’ve been learning, making mistakes, sorting out what works from what doesn’t, practicing and perfecting your skills.

It looks like a Team from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—You’ve figured out what talent you bring to your business and organized what needs doing, the additional skill sets needed and then, you hired the people that combine to form a productive company culture.

They look like Customers from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—Certain people have a problem or an interest. You have developed a unique or better way to give them what they want and need.

It looks like Luck from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—Preparation meets opportunity. When you can apply your background, interests, skills, and vision to the solution of a problem, and you know who else has the problem, so-called luck can be created.

It looks like Money from the outside looking in…
but, from the inside looking out—What do you need the money for? What if you could have whatever it is you want without cash? What can you trade? When I first ran my advertisements, I convinced a couple of magazines to give me credit. That way I could pay for my ad after I sold my products. That was much easier than finding money to first pay cash for the ads.

This is called Creative in business.

To be successful, keep looking tanned,
live in an elegant building
(even if you’re in the cellar),
be seen in the smart restaurants
(even if you nurse one drink)
and if you borrow, borrow big.
- Aristotle Onassis, Greek shipping tycoon

How Much is Enough?

The American businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow-fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.  
The Mexican replied only a little while. The American then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The American then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? 

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor.” 

The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.” 
The Mexican fisherman asked, “But senor, how long will this all take?”  To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said that’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions. 

“Millions, senor? Then what?”

The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

Do you have an article or some useful advice that you you'd like to share?
Please email the editor with your news to appear in Business Black Belt as well as on our website.

An expert is someone who is one page ahead
of you in the instruction manual.
- David Knight

The Seven Huna Principles

I've studied many beliefs and success systems, read books, etc. When I read this short list, the simplicity jumped out at me with reams of truth... The basic tenets of Huna are these:

1. The World Is What You Think It Is.
2. There Are No Limits.
3. Energy Flows Where Attention Goes.
4. Now Is the Moment of Power.
5. To Love Is To Be Happy With (someone or something).
6. All Power Comes From Within.
7. Effectiveness Is the Measure of Truth

http://www.huna.org

Thoughts come, thoughts go,
there are many things to think about.
- Serge Kahil King

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What you learn after you think you know it all is what counts.
- John Wooden, legendary UCLA basketball coach

Gratitude as a Business Practice

by Larry Dean

I recently opened a spa in Sonoma, that I named Spa Gratitude, which is one of the manifestations of an experiment in the power of gratitude that I began last year. I started a practice of acknowledging all the things I was grateful for, before going to sleep and before I arose in the morning. I noticed immediately that my attitude changed and I felt better throughout the day. Then I noticed many synchronicities that began to occur and noticed that they flowed out of my daily gratitude practice.

Friends treated me to dinner at Café Gratitude in San Francisco on my birthday last November. When we entered the restaurant, there was something happening that was very appealing and different than any other place we had ever dined. The wait staff was upbeat and enthusiastic and greeted us with terms of gratitude. I had never felt so appreciated in anyone’s business before. It came across as genuine and heartfelt. The other guests acted as if they were at home and enjoying the company of good friends. The food was all prepared raw and was totally delicious. When they found out it was my birthday, they enrolled everyone in the restaurant to acknowledge me. I left there totally fulfilled and pleased with my experience.

Just prior to this, I had negotiated with the Sonoma Valley Inn in Sonoma to partner with them in building a spa on site. I had begun developing the programs and menus around optimum aging. It felt like everything was moving through molasses and time was slowed down. I noticed while the idea appealed to me, optimum aging was not unfolding graciously. My business partner, Loma Alexander, suggested that I call it Spa Gratitude after our experience at Café Gratitude, and I immediately said yes. From that moment on it was as if the heavens of grace opened up and a new light entered. Friends showed up to help me, ideas on the décor began to flow and momentum increased to a point of joyous creativity. Everything fell into place.

I wanted to bring a new attitude into the business, similar to what I had experienced at Café Gratitude. So I met with Terce and Mathew Engelhardt, the owners, and asked them what they had done to create such an enjoyable experience for their guests. Each day they do a process with their senior managers they call “clearing.” It is a simple way to get them to let go of anything that is charged from their life outside the restaurant and to be in a clear frame of mind going into their day. They then choose a word or idea that is reflective of gratitude, like appreciation, beauty, or welcome that will be the theme for the day. The managers then do this with their teams until everyone is clear and inspired for the shift.

I am incorporating these practices and ideas into Spa Gratitude and am learning that gratitude is a better way to do business.

To experience Spa Gratitude for yourself, call (707) 944-0553 or visit Spa Gratitude at http://www.sonomavalleyinn.com/services.html#spa

You never know what you can deal with until you have to.
- DeAnna Sodoma, champion wheelchair racer

HYIP and the "Secret Banking System" Scams

HYIP, which stands for High Yield Invest Programs, are investment scams that are exploding right now. The scam artists focus on greed as well as spinning tales of the (non-existent) "secret banking system." The hype can be very convincing -- and millions of dollars of money is lost to
these scammers.

Here's how it works: The scammer says that they -- or their employers -- are one of only a handful of traders in the world who can pull of these special kinds of trades. These trades are usually only done at the $100M level, but for some (made up) reasons, you can now invest a small amount of money and quickly get the $100M level.

Why do they say that they are not just continuing to do the trades for themselves? They claim they've been doing them for 15-20 years, and they have secretly made hundreds of millions of dollars. So, they've now made enough money and they want to help you benefit some charity.

Naturally, you are told your money is not at risk, and that you can earn between 1% to 250% return per day! These high interest rates are tip-offs that the "investment" may well be a Ponzi scheme or other type of scam. Perhaps the most compelling part of these scams to many victims is that they supposedly tap into the (non-existent) "secret banking system" that normally only the very rich can benefit from. That's why they claim astronomically high rates of interest can be achieved.

There are many variants of these scams, including those that claim:
- There is a major U.S. bank that guarantees these investments.
- The U.S. government is covering up this secret banking system.
- The program uses International Chamber of Commerce Approved Forms.
- These programs are backed by the International Monetary Fund.

Action: Delete any email that promises you extraordinary investment returns. Recognize there is no "secret banking system," and regardless of the promises, your money is NOT safe. Don't be fooled by the hype. Remember: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is a scam.
- John Fenner

TIPS - High Performers and Networking

"High performers tended to have a paradoxical pattern to their networks. On the one hand they tended to have stronger relationships with a few colleagues, who themselves were well connected within the network... On the other hand, the high performers also nurtured diversity in their networks and were more likely to have bridging ties into other pockets of the network. Specifically, they were more likely to have ties into physically distant locations of the organization..."
- Thomas Davenport, Thinking for a Living

"During times of universal deceit,
telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act."
- George Orwell

Energy Update: Biofuel vs. Photovoltaics

In an earlier post “Power the World with Photovoltaics,” we demonstrate that the entire energy requirements of the human race could be fulfilled by a photovoltaic array 143,872 square miles in size. Insofar as this is only about one-quarter of one percent of the earth’s surface, or 668 square feet per person, there is no shortage of available space for photovoltaics.

With biofuel, however, there is a question as to whether or not there is enough land available to grow biofuel and also preserve farms and wilderness. For example, some of the best biofuel crops - biodiesel from jatropha and bioethanol from sugar cane - are able to produce about 6,000 barrels of fuel per square mile per year. This equates to about 55 million Btu’s of energy per square mile per year.

This means that using the best biofuel crops we’ve got today, to produce enough fuel to fulfill entire energy requirements of the human race (400 quadrillion Btu’s per year) we would need to devote 10.8 million square miles to growing biofuel. Considering there is only about 5.5 million square miles of arable farmland on the entire planet, this is not possible.

Biofuel is an important source of fuel, and in some parts of the world growing biofuel makes compelling economic sense, but today at least, biofuel doesn’t show nearly the potential of photovoltaics to efficiently turn sunshine into energy to power human civilization.

There is an interesting analysis “Widescale Biodiesel Production from Algae,” authored by Michael Briggs at the University of New Hampshire. He cites studies that indicate biofuel may soon be economically derived from algae. But he makes a huge assumption - stating that algae farms could yield “5,000 gallons per acre-year.” This equates to a yield over 10 times that of the best biofuel crops we’ve got.

Comparing various forms of solar energy boils down to how efficiently they convert sunlight into usable power. Since raw sunlight provides 100 watts per square foot, a photovoltaic array that produces 10 watts per square foot has an efficency of 10%. Some photovoltaic arrays can do much better than that, with efficiencies reported as high as 20% on high-quality production panels.

You can make the same calculaton with today’s best biofuel crops - diesel fuel extracted from jatropha and ethanol distilled from sugar cane both produce about 55 million Btu’s per square mile per year. Since raw sunshine provides about 41 trillion Btu’s per square mile per year, the efficiency of biofuel today is a paltry .13%.

If the promise of biodiesel extracted from algae is realized, and that's a big if, you will see a ten-fold improvement in biofuel efficiency, to 1.3% (based on 5,000 gallons per acre-year). At that level of efficiency - less than one-tenth that of today’s photovoltaics, but cheaper to implement - it might be feasible for biofuel to become a realistic alternative to petroleum.

Ed Ring is the Editor of www.ecoworld.com, an online environmental magazine. You can find his blog commentary on energy and environmental issues on www.ecoworld.net.

Do you have an announcement or promotion you'd like to share? Please email the editor with your news to appear in the Business Black Belt and also on our website.

Who was the first person to look at a cow and say,
"I think I'll squeeze these dangly things here,
and drink whatever comes out?"

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Tax Tricks -- New tax bill extends existing tax breaks

Here’s a summary of the major provisions in the new law signed by President Bush on May 17, 2006.

· Alternative minimum tax (AMT). Congress extended and expanded the temporary AMT relief they provided two years ago. This had expired at the end of 2005. Originally intended to apply only to the wealthiest taxpayers, the AMT has been catching more and more middle-income taxpayers in recent years. The new provisions increase the exemption amount from $58,000 to $62,550 for married filers (from $40,250 to $42,500 for singles) for this year only. You’ll also be able to apply some specific personal credits against the AMT.

· Investment taxes. The new law extends the maximum 15% tax rate on most dividends and long-term capital gains through 2010. The favorable rates on investment earnings were scheduled to expire at the end of 2008.

· Business expensing. Small business also benefits from the new tax bill. A tax break that allows companies to take an immediate deduction for up to $108,000 of equipment purchases is extended through 2009.

· Kiddie tax. The tax bill also contains provisions to help offset the costs of the extended tax breaks. One change makes the kiddie tax apply to children up to age 18, rather than age 14 as under prior law. Under the kiddie tax, a child’s investment earnings above a certain limit ($1,700 in 2006) are taxed at the parent’s rate instead of the child’s usually lower rate. This change will make income-shifting strategies less attractive.

The kiddie tax applies to investment earnings such as interest and dividends. It doesn’t cover earned income — wages from your kid’s summer job, for example. Here’s how it works. The first $850 of your child’s investment income is generally free of tax. The next $850 is taxed at the child’s own rate. But all unearned income above that amount is taxed at your tax rate, which is usually higher than your child's.

The intent is to limit income shifting. That’s the strategy of putting investments in a child’s name to take advantage of their lower tax rates. Previously the kiddie tax limited the benefits of income shifting up to age 14. Now it extends the limit to age 18.

Remember, though, income shifting can still produce some tax savings. Up to $1,700 of your child’s investment earnings may be taxed at a lower rate than you pay. But also remember that giving assets to your child has nontax implications too.

Other more technical provisions affect various business credits and taxes, as well as future Roth IRA conversions. There’s also likely to be a follow-on tax bill extending other popular tax breaks within a few months.

- Edward Mitchell, Manager, Management Resources Consulting Group Inc., www.mr-cg.com

The meek shall inherit the earth,
but not its mineral rights.
- J. Paul Getty, Oil Baron

Wisdom to live by...

• Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me either. Just pretty much leave me alone.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and leaky tire.
• It's always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal your neighbor's
  newspaper, that's the time to do it.
• Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.
• Always remember that you're unique. Just like everyone else.
• Never test the depth of the water with both feet.
• If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car
  payments.
• Before you criticize some one, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That
  way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.
• If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.
• Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he
  will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.
• If you lent someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably
  worth it.
• If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.
• Some days you're the bug; some days you're the windshield.
• Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.
• The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back
  in your pocket.
• A closed mouth gathers no foot.
• Duct tape is like "The Force". It has a light side and a dark side, and it
  holds the universe together.
• There are two theories to arguing with women. Neither one works.
• Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are moving.
• Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
• Never miss a good chance to shut up.
• Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the
  same night.

xxx

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