Throughout the natural world, you'll find that physical and biological forces almost always take the path of least resistance. This effect is so prevalent, in fact, that there's a scientific term to describe it - the principle of least resistance. It should come as no surprise, then, that human beings are the same way. Think about the people you know and interact with - how many of them are inclined...

Let me lay it out straight for you - you're going to fail. Sounds harsh, doesn't it? But it's true. At some point, in some way, you're going to fail. And I'm going to fail. Any human being is, at some point, going to fail. And most of us are going to fail quite regularly. There's nothing wrong with that. In fact, failure is, in many ways, your very best...

You’re busy. There’s no doubt about it. Whether you’re already in business for yourself full time, moonlighting on the side, or still working entirely for somebody else, odds are good that you’ve got a lot on your plate. It’s a hectic world these days for all of us. time is a resource, like money or commodities, whose value is dictated by its relative scarcity – and unlike almost any other...

I've spoken at length about "how" to start a business. That is, after all, the primary focus of this blog. But one thing I haven't really spoken about is "why." Not why you want to start your own business in the first place of course, that speaks for itself, but why you are starting this particular business? While there are any number of explanations, it's my feeling that they all...

Experience is the key to surviving in your path through the maze of regulations, computations, and tribulations that will face you when you set out on your own business venture. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, experience is what you get immediately after you needed it. That's why it's so important to borrow the wisdom of others - and that's what mentoring is all about. Mentoring is a time-honoured tradition in...

In a very real sense, relationships are the fundamental building block of human society. It should come as no surprise, then, that when it comes to your business, the way you create and maintain your network of relationships is paramount to success. After all, a business is a vehicle for delivering goods or services between people – a transaction that is itself just another form of relationship. When you're in...

You might think  you're getting into business for yourself to pursue your dreams. Finally, you think, you'll be doing what you love and working for yourself, and you'll be happy. You might even be right. Unfortunately, odds are good that you're not. Even if you're getting into a business that you're passionate about - which you should be, if at all possible - working at anything for 18 hours a day,...

In many ways, your business is like an organic life form – it grows, it consumes resources and converts them into other resources, and if neglected it decays and eventually dies. It makes sense that business would in so many ways mimic their component human lives, just as the human life cycle so closely resembles (and is so utterly dependent on) the life cycles of its constituent cells. Another sense...

People talk about business when they’re getting serious. “Let’s get down to business.” “It’s business time.” “She’s all business.” And that’s no surprise – we live in a culture that takes business very seriously. It’s easy to think that the two words are synonyms. That leads to another common conflation of words – people tend to think that “work” is the opposite of “fun.” Again, that’s understandable – certainly most...

Starting, building, and managing a business may be your best chance to earn a real return on your investment, but it’s no cakewalk. The small business failure rate is substantial – in fact, on average only 29% of small business startups survive for more than ten years. That sounds risky, and indeed it is. However, not all businesses are created equal, nor do all types of businesses fail at the...