Some business models are easier than others to start on a budget. Unless
you have a compelling reason to do something different, think about how
you can participate in the knowledge economy.
Action beats planning. Use the One-Page Business Plan and other quick-
start guides to get under way without waiting.
Crafting an offer, hustling, and producing a launch event will generate
much greater results than simply releasing your product or service to the
world with no fanfare.
The first $1.26 is the hardest, so find a way to get your first sale as
quickly as possible. Then work on improving the things that are working,
while ignoring the things that aren’t.
By “franchising yourself” through partnerships, outsourcing, or creating
a
different business, you can be in more than one place at the same time.
Decide for yourself what kind of business you’d like to build. There’s
nothing wrong with deliberately staying small (many of the subjects of our
stories did exactly that)
or scaling up in the right way.
It only gets better as you go along.
When we last left off, Jamestown Coffee Company was opening for
business in Lexington, South Carolina. Owner James Kirk had moved south
from Seattle and kicked things off. What happened next? Did a flood of
loyal visitors show up right away?
Not exactly. It was a tough start, settling into a community not familiar
with specialty coffee. The shop grew one customer at a time, with a focus
on providing personal experiences and encouraging repeat business. One
weekend, James and his crew gave out coupons for a free coffee at a local
golf tournament. A man stopped in to redeem his coupon and mentioned
that he normally picked up his morning cup at the gas station but was
inspired to try something new. The next day he returned, saying it was the
best cup of coffee he had ever had.
A morning group began to gather most weekdays, consisting of regulars
from all kinds of backgrounds—a lawyer, a clergyman, a computer guy, a
mechanic. People who used to buy instant coffee at the grocery store began
making a special trip every week to pick up the superior stuff at Jamestown
Coffee Company.
Slowly but surely, the business stabilized.
James thought back on the discouragement he had received from well-
meaning friends when he first told them about moving down south. “You
can’t start a business during a recession,” they said. “You can’t move across
the country without a job.” “Most small businesses fail within one year.”
“Almost all mom and pop restaurants fail within the first year.” On and on it
went. And every time someone gave him a reason he couldn’t succeed in
what he had set out to do, he made another note in his “non-planning”
folder: merely one more obstacle to overcome.
Elsewhere, Jen and Omar continued making their maps in Columbus,
Ohio, expanding to wholesale accounts in addition to the direct sales with
which they started. They were featured recently in an Expedia commercial
and are thinking about opening up a boutique travel store as part of the next
adventure.
Karol Gajda and Adam Baker produced two other mega-sales, each one
bringing in a six-figure payday for themselves and their affiliates. I asked
for their help in producing the launch for this book just as soon as they
finished carrying the bags of cash to the bank.
Brandon Pearce was planning a family move to Malaysia. The business
now brings in over $50,000 a month.
Benny Lewis was still language hacking his way around the world,
moving to Istanbul for a crash course in Turkish. Next up: a planned
attempt at learning Mandarin Chinese in Taiwan.
The Mondo Beyondo course started by Andrea Scher and Jen Lemen has
served more than five thousand participants, producing $500,000 in revenue
for the two partners.
Brett Kelly’s $120,000 e-book has become a $160,000 e-book. His wife
continues to stay at home with the kids, and they are now completely debt-
free.
Perhaps the most important lesson arrived in an email from Emily
Cavalier, who had recently left a high-paying job in Manhattan to pursue
Mouth of the Border, a tour and events business focused on ethnic foods. I
asked how often she still felt motivated to go it alone, and she told me:
“Every single day. The greatest benefit has been going to bed just as excited
as if not more excited than when I woke up. I get to work day in, day out on
something that fully engages me and elicits not just my passions but the
passion
of tons of other people, too.”
Yes, like Emily and everyone else in this book, you can do this too. You
aren’t alone out there.
Sure, you can learn through failure, and most likely you’ll have at least
one false start on the road to freedom. But failure is overrated—who says
you’ll fail? You can just as easily succeed. You can apply the lessons from
these stories and create the new life you want.
Ready?
Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: 
