In most developed countries, being a business owner or aspiring entrepreneur has become as hard as it has been for several years. The impact of the global downturn which started back in 2008 is still being felt today, as millions of people struggle to find long-term stable employment, while consumer demand in the US and Western Europe hasn’t reached pre-downturn levels yet.
When you factor in rising costs of energy, communications and, for the manufacturing sector in particular, several raw materials, being a business owner doesn’t seem quite so glamorous now, does it?…
So, you have been working 9 to 5, 5 days a week. You fulfilled your responsibilities as an employee but now you know it’s your time to switch over to the startup mode of business. It is going to be tough for you, we know but that is also a challenge and you cannot afford to leave it out. Switching over to a different mindset and having fulfilled the requirements of your new business successfully is going to be your first step to success.…
Are you under pressure right now? Well, if you are a small business owner – in whichever part of the world you are – the answer would unanimously be “YES.” With the uncertainty in the economic situation, Government regulations, market outlook… not mentioning the internal issues you may have, such as trust issues, “poisonous” workplace dynamics, internal thefts, poor service/management, and so on… it’s only normal when you feel overwhelmed at times.
When I ask small business owners, “Is this (your business) what you want to do?”…
I am always intrigued in the philosophy of Kaizen or continuous improvement. Specifically, I embrace continuous learning. Lucky me – doing so has saved me from the consequences of my failure in franchising – and has led me to an exciting and lucrative world of online business. Read on.
When thinking about failure, the first thing that jumps out of your mind is all bad; gloom and doom; hopelessness and lose of hope. But if you asked me, I will always be enthusiastic in sharing my story about my big failure in franchising.…
A picture is worth a thousand words. If you want to quickly learn how to start a business, there’s no better learning tool than infographics. In this blog post I would like to guide you by hand to journey into the land of entrepreneurship using infographics as a way to help you start-up with the right mindset and expectations.
Anna Vital of Funders and Founders once said that infographics help you learn 50 times faster. I don’t know where she got that fact, but I have to agree with her: Infographics have helped me to learn about anything faster.…
How come I missed it!? It’s too much, really! Man, I just discovered the update from Inbound.org. It’s about yet another cool Kickstarter project – this time in a topic I love so much: Entrepreneurship. You gotta check this project: Becoming an Entrepreneur – an upcoming visual guide by Funders and Founders.
Why visual guide rocks
You know what, I love infographics – for many reasons. I like (most of) their fancy design; I can learn faster about something; and so on.…
Help! I have many startup plans but all failed even before I actually start one…
Are you an entrepreneur who is keen to start a business (or businesses) but often failed even before you actually start one? You are not alone. Many of us are having the same problem as you do – and that’s including me.
Hello – I am addicted to planning.
Okay – it’s different from the AA meeting, but I often get absorbed in the planning stage, and eventually fail miserably when it comes to taking action.…
Fed up of corporate world? Getting fired? Want to turn your passion into a real business? For whatever reasons you may have, solopreneurship often comes up as an answer. However, here’s the cold, hard truth. It’s not for everyone.
Some who have embarked in to the journey were giving up and went back into the corporate world. The blog post you are reading right now is my attempt to help you turn your dream into reality. Okay, let’s do it, shall we?…
I like penguins. That’s partly why I name this business blog Biz Penguin. It’s a catchy name and I expect it to stick on your mind as a brand. Plus with our orange-themed front-end design instead of the typical penguins’ black-and-white, I expect this blog to confuse you a bit and at the same time getting our branding messages across 🙂
Jokes aside, I choose this blog’s name after the penguins because I have much respect to them: These flightless birds’ behaviours are superior among other birds.…
Making millions of dollars? Winning many awards? Doing things others can’t do? Yes, some of you would think that you have the right to brag about your achievements. However, be warned – someday, somehow, you will be caught off-guard; and when bad things happen while you are at the top (or at least you think you are at the top), it sucks big time.
Arrogance will destroy you, eventually
I was arrogant; I once the owner of two franchise units. I think I can play the franchising game.…
