Pearls Of Wisdom From The Business World

Not that I know much about business, but I've heard a few over the years. I'm currently looking at starting up my own part-time business. Do you have any yourself?


Never work with a company which offers 'solutions'.

There may be a gap in the market, but is there a market in the gap?

The customer is always right.

 

I wouldn't base your strategies and decisions only on clever pearls of wisdom. They don't always apply to every situation. For example, some might say that in order to be successful, your business must be solving some problem for the customer. However, many businesses have made millions based on fads and whims alone. Take the pet rock...they sold because they were cute. Stupid human behavior cannot always be explained.

Writing a complete and well thought out business plan can be an amazing eye-opener. You'll learn more about your business in that few months of research than 100 years of work experience could ever provide. Don't take the easy way out and just copy and paste information from other business plans. That's a certain death wish. Know how you will get customers. Know how much it will cost to get customers. Know what all of your overhead will cost. Know how much your own salary will cost. Know how much it will cost to restock and store inventory. Know how you will distribute your income and reinvest your profits. Know how to value your company. Know how you will grow. Etc, etc...

Running a business alone is like spinning plates. You have to pay attention to and tend to many things simultaneously. You have to be efficient, assertive, and creative all at the same time. But most of all, you have to have a passion for what you do. If you are just in it for the money, you will likely fail.

Good luck.

 

"The money and the guns are doing all the talking worth listening to" is my own pearl of wisdom whether you happen to work in business, the military, law enforcement, or almost anything these days. Increasingly, the business community is adopting military terminology and quoting Sun Tzu's "Art of War" which is mandatory reading in every military academy around the world.

 

buy low, sell high, stay diversified.
the business of business is monkey business.

 

“A man without a smiling face must not open a shop.” -- Chinese Proverb

For a person with a sweet tongue, nothing is impossible in this world to attain. - Sufi Proverb


"The biggest hurdle is rejection. Any business you start, be ready for it. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is that successful people do all the things the unsuccessful people don't want to do. When 10 doors are slammed in your face, go to door number 11 enthusiastically, with a smile on your face." – John Paul Dejoria



There are some salesmen endowed with a smiling face and sweet tongue who have had record sales in a single night and commissions gained of millions of dollars for inventory purchased. The trick lies in keeping a smiling face and positive attitude even in the midst of umpteen rejections.

 

"You might find better but you'll never pay more"

I actually heard a salesman say that to a customer when I worked for Lucent.