Entrepreneurship Archives

A Visionary Company: What It Is and What It Isn’t

The 3 Common Characteristics of a Good Business

What qualifies as a visionary company? What are the truths and myths about companies that endure? In Built to Last, bestselling author Jim Collins and Stanford professor Jerry I. Porras embarked on a six-year research project to 1) identify the characteristics that distinguished the very best companies, and 2) use these insights to create a framework for those who want to build a visionary company of their own. To this end, the authors identified and analyzed 18 visionary companies that performed exceptionally well over a long period of time. Read more to learn about the qualities of a visionary company.

How to Keep Your Business Afloat: Be Non-Complacent

In an ever-changing and fast moving world, how can you keep your organization alive? Is it bad for your company to always be changing? In their fable about leading change, John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber talk about the importance of being non-complacent. The authors stress that leading one successful change doesn’t mean that your organization is safe—you need to be sure that your changes stick and that you’re ready to change again if need be. Continue reading to learn what John Kotter and Holger Rathgeber had to say about being non-complacent in their fable Our Iceberg Is Melting.

Why Successful Teams Require Givers

What does it take to create a successful team? In what ways do givers make a team more successful? How can takers sabotage team’s performance? Givers—as opposed to takers and matchers—increase the success of the whole team because they focus on the goals of the group rather than on themselves. Their giving tendencies also tend to rub off onto other members of the team, so the more givers there are, the better the team will perform as a whole. Keep reading to learn why successful teams require givers.

The 3 Simple Steps to Building a Strong Brand

What does building a strong brand entail? Why do you need a strong brand to succeed in your target market? Building a strong brand involves grouping together products that share the same inherent capabilities under one brand, and developing competitive advantages that help that brand stand out in the marketplace. You need a strong brand if you want to distinguish yourself from your competitors. Read on to fully discover the process of building a strong brand.

How to Create Your Company’s Winning Aspiration

What is a company’s winning aspiration? Why must a company play to win? A winning aspiration is a statement of what success in the marketplace will look like to a company. Companies must always play to win because it is very difficult to win if you are only trying to compete. Companies that simply try to compete are at risk of being driven out by more aggressive competitors. Read more about the meaning and importance of having a winning aspiration for your company.

A Cooperative Business Model for Companies

What is the cooperative business model? How does it help build a better workplace for employees? A cooperative business model is a democratic company where the enterprise is collectively owned by all the employees. Employees elect leaders, and share profits and liabilities as a group. The model creates a better workplace because the opinion of everyone counts, which makes employees happier and more engaged. Read more about how the cooperative business model works.

The Three Certainties of the Straight Line System

What are the three certainties from Way of the Wolf? Why are the three certainties essential in Straight Line sales? In his book Way of the Wolf, Jordan Belford discusses the three certainties of the Straight Line system: 1) the product, 2) the seller (you), and 3) the company. If you don’t gain a prospect’s trust in these three areas, then you are less likely to close the sale. Continue below to learn more about the three certainties and what happens if you fall short.

Stretch Yourself: Big Results Rely on Big Thinking

What could you do if you chose to think big and stretch yourself? Is it possible to think too big? Many people fear “going big” or pursuing exceptional achievement in their professional lives because it sounds difficult or like “pie in the sky.” Lowering your sights seems more prudent and realistic than stretching yourself. But thinking big is essential to extraordinary results. Read more to learn why you should think big and stretch yourself.

Level Up Your Sales Game and Manifest Success

Is it possible to manifest success to increase sales? What two methods does Jordan Belfort suggest to create a success mindset? In his book Way of the Wolf, Jordan Belfort says that you can manifest success by using future pacing and state management. Future pacing is when you act as if you are already rich in order to manifest real success in the future. State management is a method of creating an empowered state of mind that will help you reach your goals. Continue below to learn more about Belfort’s methods for controlling your mental state and increasing sales.

Organizational Strategic Planning: Think Analytically

What is organizational strategic planning? What factors should you consider when devising a big-picture strategy for an enterprise? Organizational strategic planning is an organizational process of setting objectives and devising a plan for attaining them. According to Richard P. Rumelt, the author of Good Strategy, Bad Strategy, there are three general principles you should adopt when devising a big-picture strategy for your organization: 1) think like a scientist, 2) think like an analyst, and 3) avoid common faulty biases. Keep reading to learn about these guidelines and demonstrate them with real-world examples.