When most people think of small or medium business, they instantly think of the shops and stores in their local community.  While these businesses certainly represent a certain portion of small business, there is a much more important segment to consider . . . and that segment is the single person home-based business.  Why is this segment so important?  It is important because anybody can start a home based business and scale it into a vehicle for generating recurring cash flows.  One of the most compelling mediums for this brand …

If you take the opportunity to walk into a bookstore and wander over toward the section on business books, you will see a vast multiplicity of titles on all manners of business, investment, and strategy.  Many of these books outline a ‘system’ for acquiring wealth that involves some clever means of generating superior profits from what appears to be a minimal amount of work.
However, there is a relatively simple principal that is the basis of all business success.  That principal is that you should always seek to offer a product …

Education is a recurring theme in discussions of public policy, economic growth, and personal development.  Unfortunately, there seems to be a pervasive belief that schooling and education are one and the same.  It is most certainly true that education and school frequently overlap to a significant degree, but it is problematic to limit your view of education to the content that is presented in a classroom.  The truth is that there are many things successful people will need to learn over the course of their lives, and not all of …

Each of us has read compelling stories of great innovators who overcame unbelievable odds to create great achievements and realize success.  These stories are often told to be inspirational by showing the persistence and resolve that has been demonstrated by great people.  Unfortunately, these stories can sometimes serve as a basis of comparison that makes my personal achievements seem weak and feeble.
When thinking about this subject further, it is easy to think that I will never be able to be a great innovator, since I haven’t successfully invented anything.  It …

Most people who have not been taking up residence in a cave are aware of Groupon, the web’s #1 group buying site and fastest growing company ever.  The notoriety of the company grew even greater when it turned down a $6B takeover bid by Google.  Many consumers are aware of the extremely low prices that are available through Groupon daily deals, but there is a basic problem implicit in its business model that may so the seeds of disaster for the small businesses that Groupon depends on for its revenue …

To people who have attempted business or investment ventures, they quickly discover that simply doing what everybody else does is a recipe for mediocrity.  Both the business and investment world are very competitive.  Simply handing your money to a stock broker cannot be expected to generate exceptional returns, because every other broker is working to find great deals for their clients while yours is trying to find one for you.  This results in competition for deals that quickly dissipates opportunities for exceptional gains.  Similarly, opening a business that is similar …

One of the common themes in success authors such as Napoleon Hill is the notion that people are frequently more successful when engaged in a line of work that they enjoy.  To these people, their work is much more than something they do in exchange for a paycheck.  It rises to a form of artistic expression or occupational poetry.  This phenomenon is extremely important, as artists frequently go to extraordinary lengths to ensure that their works are exceptional.  Similarly, businesspeople who view their work as a form of art will …

There is a popular french proverb that states “penny wise is often pound foolish.”A  The idea behind this cliche is to communicate how some people focus excessively on small things, insisting on consistent perfection but miss larger items that are more important.  In response to this observation, we advance the recommendation that people should seek to be pound wise and penny foolish.
There is a very specific reason that we advocate “pound wise and penny foolish” instead of simply being wise.  The reason is because each of us have a limited …

It is easy to become distracted by the long-term plans and strategic visions that dominate popular sentiment.  This is especially true in the midst of ’100-year business plans’ that were made popular during the 1980′s as companies rushed to emulate competitors from Japan that were realizing success.  This isn’t to say that strategy, vision, and long term plans aren’t important, but rather to say that their importance is held within the extent to which they guide decisions and actions in the present tense, and stay focused on the next step.
In …

The world of technology is very unique and interesting.  The internet is most clearly the primary ‘game changer’ that is still shaping the technology marketplace.  And when it comes to the internet, Google is the dominant “Strong Man” of the internet marketplace. Analysis of web traffic through Google shows that in 2007, they represented between one percent and two and a half percent of internet traffic.  However, by 2010 that number has risen to between six percent and 12 percent if Google global cache is factored in.
This dominance of internet …