Money isn’t your only goal or even your most important one.

Think of your business as a series of small steps that you are taking toward a specific goal. The goal may change and the steps to get there may sometimes lead you backward but having a vision of what succeeding in your business means, will help you keep focused on what you need to do to get there. Enjoying what you are doing and not just the outcome and results, makes for a higher quality business.

Keep it simple. You shouldn’t think of your business as complicated or a chore.

Sometimes people make things more complicated than they have to be and your business is the same way. By adding unnecessary chaos to the way you work, you are diverting your attention in too many directions and diluting your ability to focus on the most important items. Polish your business  skills and spend your time on what will bring you the best return for your efforts.

Learn enough about each part of your business that you don’t spend your time worrying.

If your business has expanded to the point where you can no longer keep an eye on everything, or you lack the ability to make informative decisions, it may be time to go back to school and take some business classes. This is also a good time to think about bringing in a virtual team, one that can handle the extra load while keeping you informed on various aspects of your business that you don’t have the time to take care of.

Make a plan that transforms your business into a part of your life, not your life into part of your business.

Too many business owners find that their business takes over their lives. When they first started their business and enthusiasm ran high, they were able to handle everything and wanted it that way. As their business grew and the responsibilities grew along with it, they lost the incentive to blend what they wanted to do with what had to be done to keep their business going. As you reach each small goal that you strive for, step back and take the time to go over your future plans. This will ensure that you are in line with what you really want to achieve, which is a successful business that doesn’t take over your life.

Always treat yourself with respect.

Just a final reminder, that while it is your customers that keep you going, if you fail to look after yourself and treat your time and health as important, you won’t have the energy to focus on your business properly. Defining your own business success means you are in charge, you make the rules and your life benefits from your decisions.

© Chris Draper, DemGen Inc 2013

“The possibilities of thought training are infinite, its consequence eternal, and yet few take the pains to direct their thinking into channels that will do them good, but instead leave all to chance.” – Marden

Along with my Strategic Team here at DemGen, I’ve been reading the “Master Key System” by Charles Haanel written in 1912.  (*More notes about the author and work at the bottom of this post.)  We read books as a group that are relevant personally and professionally that enhance our ability to serve ourselves, team, clients and general entrepreneurial community.  We seem to have a knack at going deep, with works that are just right for the moment or cycle of our business.

And having the intention of being a heart-centred or conscious business, sets the bar high, which suits us just fine.  I’ve always seemed to be attracted to pursuing works by the researchers of the researchers or influencers of the influencers.  Charles Haanel is no exception to this as this work along with “The Science of Getting Rich” by Wallace D. Wattles (which we’ve also studied and made available to our community on our website) was referenced as a major influence to “The Secret”, a book our entire company read as a team when it first came out.

There have been many many aha’s throughout our reading this work and more so many validations that we are on the right track with our thinking and intention in business.

The quote I referenced is but one of many and I felt compelled to expand upon it.  I know I’ve referenced in a previous blog post about my experience with mediation.  Yet, it’s worth repeating as I feel it’s a foundational/essential skill equal to or even greater than that of reading and writing.  A lot of school work is essentially rote learning, while meditation is self learning.  And more importantly it teaches you to take control of your thinking, to train your mind.

To restate that quote once again, ” The possibilities of thought training are infinite, its consequence eternal, and yet few take the pains to direct their thinking into channels that will do them good, but instead leave all to chance.” – Marden.

I’ve had many lessons and re-awakened myself to be in charge of directing my thoughts.  I remember being with friends while playing the game “cashflow”, basically a more detailed and closer to life version of monopoly.  I wasn’t doing so good and was just basically playing along for the fun of it.  I was nearing bankruptcy, when one of my friends said “what are you thinking of when you roll?”  AHA, I woke up, set intentions and intentionally played the game and focused on every roll.  I made an exhilarating come-back to win that night.

I feel the same to be true for all of us…sometimes we just need some support, a nudge, a renewed intention and the taking back of control of our thoughts to win the game.

We look forward to sharing more about The Master Key System with you in the near future.

Get your game on!

Gary

*The Master Key System is a personal development book by Charles F. Haanel (1866-1949) that was originally published as a 24-week correspondence course in 1912. It was later published in book form in 1916 by Psychology Publishing, St. Louis and The Master Key Institute, New York.

Along with “The Science of Getting Rich“, by Wallace D. Wattles, the Master Key System is the source of Rhonda Byrne’s inspiration for the book and the film “The Secret” (2006).[1][2]

©  Gary Evans, DemGen Inc 2013

Image source

These days, we’re all busy.  This fun infographic shows useful tips on how to stay focused in the age of distraction.

Entrepreneurs are the way of the future. Our ideas change the world.

We take risks to bring new innovative ideas to the marketplace. We don’t have a cushy salary to fall back on and are used to overcoming challenges. We push forward because we believe in what we’re doing and know it can benefit others. We are in the business of inventing and re-inventing.

The best ideas throughout history have come from entrepreneurs that challenged the status quo. Steve Jobs, Sir Richard Branson and Henry Ford have all succeeded because they thought outside the box. They envisioned something new.

Entrepreneurs have the genius ability to go against the tide, look to the future and fill the gaps many don’t even realize exist.

Such is certainly the case for co-founder and head of product design for Tesla Motors, Elon Musk.

After hitting it big with PayPal, Musk could’ve taken the easy route and simply founded another internet company. Instead, he thought bigger and founded a space-transport company, SpaceX and Tesla Motors, makers of the world’s sexiest electric car. (The original Roadster is a thing of true beauty and my favorite car.)

His latest endeavor is even more electrifying. On August 12, Musk plans to unveil the Hyperloop, which he claims is similar to a “Jetsons tunnel that whisks you away”.

In his own words from an interview with Sarah Lacy at PandoDaily:

“This is prompted by the California train thing, it has the dubious distinction of being the slowest train and the most expensive per mile. What is the theoretically fastest way you could get from LA to San Francisco. This system I have in mind, how would you like something that can never crash, is immune to weather, it goes 3 or 4 times faster than the bullet train… it goes an average speed of twice what an aircraft would do. You would go from downtown LA to downtown San Francisco in under 30 minutes. It would cost you much less than an air ticket than any other mode of transport. I think we could actually make it self-powering if you put solar panels on it, you generate more power than you would consume in the system. There’s a way to store the power so it would run 24/7 without using batteries. Yes, this is possible, absolutely.”

If that isn’t enough, Musk also plans to publish his designs publicly which will allow open source development.

Musk’s visionary way of thinking is a common trait for entrepreneurs. Instead of doing what’s easy or simply enjoying the wealth he’s amassed, he continues to push forward with groundbreaking ideas that can change the world as we know it, for the better.

Instead of trying to solve small problems in the marketplace, he’s thinking of the big picture for the future. Musk is living proof that big ideas can be achieved and that by never resting on our successes we can achieve constant momentum in our business.

As entrepreneurs, we all have the same motivation. To truly change the world, we need to be constantly looking towards the future. The menial tasks of the day are always vying for our attention, but small activities will never make a big impact.

The next time you find yourself lost in the day-to-day, take a step back to look in the mirror. Are you thinking BIG or are you acting like your own assistant? You chose to be an entrepreneur for a reason and should always be maximizing your genius abilities.

Dream big. Stay focused. Entrepreneurs can change the world. We’re doing it every day!

P.S.  Here’s the full interview with Elon Musk.  It’s an hour long, but worth the watch…

© Tamara Smith, DemGen Inc 2013