Dr. Adukia -Entrepreneurship- key to eternal happiness of society.pdf - DhanAshree

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ENTREPRENEURSHIP- A KEY TO ETERNAL HAPPINESS OF SELF & SOCIETY 1 WISH YOU VERY VERY ,VERY HAPPY, PEACEFUL, PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR Dr. Rajkumar S. Adukia author of more than 300 books Global business growth and motivational coach Passionate to make anyone speaker, writer, assisting in acquiring professional qualifications and promotion in job member IFRS SMEIG London 2018-2020 ex director - SBI mutual fund, BOI mutual fund B. Com (Hons.), M.Com.,FCA, FCS, FCMA, LL.B, MBA, Dip IFRS (UK), DLL&LW, DIPR, Dip in Criminology, Ph.D, IP(IBBI), MBF, Dip HRM student of , MA(psychology), LLM, CFE, IBBI(RV)+++++++++++++++++ ranks mumbai university 5th , inter CA 1st , final CA 6th , final CMA 3rd +++ Chairman western region ICAI 1997 Council Member ICAI 1998-2016 Mob: 98200 61049 Request to contact through email only [email protected] 2 Way forward Robin Sharma said ―Everything is created twice, first in the mind and then in reality.‖ Nearly everything around you- your chair, your laptop, - was first conceived in someone's mind, then created in the physical world. To create the life you want, you must start by creating the right thoughts. It's great to visualize, but it's also very important to act - create some plan, or just start to implement first steps. As Tony Robbins says - ―If you talk about it, it's a dream, if you envision it, it's possible, but if you schedule it, it's real‖. 3 WE AS GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURS MENTOR An Entrepreneur is not born, but he is developed from different vocations. Entrepreneur is influence not by a single factor but is the result of interaction of many such as further. a) Family background b) Socio-economic change. c) Standard of education and technical knowledge. d) Financial stability. e) Political stability. f) Government policy. g) Caste and religious affiliation. h) Availability of supporting facilities. i) Achievements ( aims and objectives) j) Motivation. k) Personality and personal skill. An Entrepreneur has to initiate the process of development crossing all the barriers in his way. Successful entrepreneur must possess the following qualities:  He should be a motivator.  He must possess self confidence.  He must be committed to the project  He must be prepared to work for longer hours  He must be a problem solver.  He must have initiative, accepting personal responsibility for actions and above all make good use of resources. 4  He must be a goal setter.  He must be a moderate risk taker Entrepreneur Mentorship: Success in any business is a combination of many factors and one of them is to keep learning about your business. The entrepreneur mentors have a direct impact on the growth and survival of their business. The early years of any business are therefore a crucial make-or-break period, and business mentors are vital to their success. 89% of small business owners who didn‘t have a mentor wish that they did. These highlight a need in the entrepreneurial community to find and connect with qualified mentors who can deliver solid advice to help a business over those shaky first years. We at Adukia Law Chambers can assist you and your organisation by being your mentor in willing to act as a trusted confidante over an extended period of time with an objective to provide advice, counselling from a fresh perspective, collaborate and help you as an entrepreneur stay focused on their long-term goal of making their venture a success. We as a navigator: It is important for budding entrepreneurs to understand the right route to reach their destination while embarking on their entrepreneurial journey. We as your Business mentors can expand an entrepreneur‘s viewpoint, helping you with multiple perspectives to solve problems and give them the ability and confidence to collaborate with trusted sources, ensuring you have a smooth and safe drive to your destination. Providing unbiased views: With our development-driven attitude, we firmly believe that we can view your business with fresh, unbiased eyes and guide you, instead of solving problems for you. 5 Dear Colleague, As we change the calendars to a new year on our desks and on the walls of our homes, we are welcoming new possibilities. We find the nature around us preparing for the spring. The weaving birds building the nests and the chirping of the new born birdlings creates a symphony of new songs that the life is suggesting us. The more we align to the nature the easier we feel is the flow of life energy that builds us for the journey called life. As professionals we are moving into a new phase of adaptability. Whether moving our office to home or managing our employees who are working from home, we are seeing changes everywhere. Our services to our clients have also undergone change, change in the matters on which our advise is sought and also the manner in which it is delivered. The court hearings are now online and so are the arbitration matters. Our webinars are online and so are our Board meetings. The metamorphosis we are experiencing is bound to make our wings stronger. It is helping us take higher flights. As Wallace D. Wattles says in his book, “The science of getting Rich”, the universe responds to our desires and the collective desires shape the universe’s desire. Creation and accumulation of wealth or riches is also very fundamental to this book which I use as a bible of my life. I am particularly drawn to the philosophy that one must work towards creating wealth in life. This may 6 seem quiet contrasting to the belief that lot of money is sin. I believe that money is source for creating endless services to society. We need money for the very charity that we wanted to do for so many years. Whether it is our desire to provide for education of your house-help or providing food for the needy, it cannot be only met with desire. It has to be backed by money. The desire to earn riches vibrates with the universe because universe responds to this vibration and brings in , lot of abundance into our lives. And our collective desire creates abundance in nature. As Stephen Covey in his book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” mentions that the synergy and not competition is the way to creating of wealth and success. He explains that with more people joining you , the pie gets a lot bigger than the common notion that it gets divided into smaller pieces. I also resonate with the 8th habit mentioned by Stephen Covey which says “Find your voice and help others to find theirs”. Stephen Covey makes the use of the word “Voice” to mean "unique personal significance." I believe that as professionals, our voice is to serve as many people in the society as possible. Our work creates for us our unique personal significance. We professionals collectively have the capacity to shape the future for ourselves and the nations. Today’s leadership is guided by this habit of the Covey. The other book which significantly has influenced me specially since celebrating my 61st birthday is “Die empty” by Todd Henry. The philosophy of this book motivated me to spend my day in the best possible manner. It taught me not to postpone the most significant task of my life to even a single minute. The author says that we should not withhold any desire today as this gets accumulated filling up the essence of our life. 7 Instead, if we bring our desire into action today and stop procrastinating, we would die empty, empty from unfulfilled desires. The philosophy also resonated with me, as I believe, the knowledge that one has gained over years should not die with us. It should be disseminated to others. And I have chosen to disseminate it by wring books. My “Die empty” moment comes when I write a book on any subject on which I have gained knowledge by research or taking up a any new course. This has motivated me to acquire knowledge through various courses. Some on professional development and some on self- development. Whether it is to write a book on Leadership and management Philosophies from Bhagvat Geeta and Bhagvat or to any technical subject, I have emptied my knowledge in the books with passion sown in very page. The book that I am sharing with you today is also one such attempt to share my knowledge. With wishing you a very happy new year, I invite you to write a book with me on the subject of your passion or we can discuss any new professional opportunity. Lets get together to create many happy days in the new year. You can reach out to me on 9820061049 or on email at [email protected] With best wishes. Dr. Rajkumar S adukia 8 INDEX Sr. No. Content 1 Skills of Entrepreneur & Marketing 2 Steps to Become a Good Entrepreneur 3 How to Expand Your Business or Profession by using the Marketing Strategies 4 Diversification 5 How to sale? Things to remember 6 Lessons to learn from the examples of strategies applied by successful businesses 7 Opportunities / Doors of Marketing 8 Brand Loyalty in the World of Marketing 9 Marketing trends 10 Digital marketing 11 Communication skills that are crucial for sale success 12 A relationship between Marketing and innovation 13 Marketing- a conceptual study 14 Government e Marketplace 15 Micro small and medium enterprises 16 Opportunities in agriculture sector 17 Make in India 18 Start-ups India 19 Invest India 20 Foreign trade policy 21 Export & Import 22 Commercial contract 23 Negotiation & Mediation Way forward 9 Chapter 1 SKILLS OF ENTREPRENEUR AND MARKETING Life is a sum of choices. What we choose consciously or sub-consciously – we receive. Self-actualization or the need to realize one's own maximum potential and possibilities is a desire which most people dream to achieve. Realizing the Power of ‗YOU‘ is the basis of life. What ‗YOU‘ think, ‗YOU‘ become. What idea ‗YOU‘ conceive, turns ‗YOU‘ into a success story. What ‗YOU‘ believe in truthfully and blindly from the depth of your heart ultimately happens to ‗YOU‘. ‗YOU‘ can change your destiny by ‗YOUR‘ karma. ‗YOU‘ are the architect of your own future. YOUR future is in YOUR hands. The essence of achievement in life is the acceptance of the fact that YOU cannot always determine what comes your way in life, but you need to equip yourself well enough so that you can steer yourself towards a more effective and fulfilling life – a life which takes you from Employment seeker toEmployment creator to be an Entrepreneur!! To be an entrepreneur is to think differently. While most people seek refuge, entrepreneurs take risks. They don‘t want a job; they want to create jobs. Their goal is not just to think outside the box but to own the box. Entrepreneurs don‘t follow the market; they define the market. This backward way of thinking is referred by Kevin D Johnson in his book ― The Entrepreneur Mind‖ to as the Entrepreneur Mind. Strategies for Entrepreneurs All entrepreneurs must ask themselves three vital questions that concern their business strategy: Where are we now? Where do we want to be? How do we get 10 there? If we don‘t know the answers to these questions, we don‘t have a strategy for success. Businesses with a clear and a solid strategy are prepared to win. ―Thinking Big‖ Despite its popularity,―Think big‖ is ubiquitous and the saying has no clear meaning, especially as it relates to business. In business, ―thinking big‖ simply means pursuing ideas that maximize the scope of your potential. Likewise, it can mean pursuing ideas that have maximum impact in the world. Despite its simple definition, thinking big is difficult to do for many reasons, but if you are aware of the obstacles you can avoid them altogether One of the main obstacles to thinking big is the inability to outgrow our environment and this result in inability to create businesses that go beyond the confines of their reality or environment. In other words, the environment in which we operate restricts our thinking to the point that the business suffers limited growth or even death. Many entrepreneurs lack the motivation to pursue big ideas. This mentality is prevalent among entrepreneurs who have had some level of monetary success in business that diminishes their willingness to pursue bigger ideas. The entrepreneurs remain in their comfort or have become accustomed to going for low-hanging fruit. It could also be that, these entrepreneurs could simply be overwhelmed with running their own business and don‘t have the bandwidth to do anything else. For overcoming lack of motivation, entrepreneurs should find an individual or team to hold them accountable for pursing their big idea, step by step. Several entrepreneurs lack the self-confidence to think big. They don‘t see themselves running a large organization, or they are frozen by the immensity of their idea. They may ask themselves, where do I start? How will I build a team capable of pulling this of? Where will I get the start-up capital for such a huge idea? To boost your self-confidence, devise and take small steps that start you 11 working on your idea. For example, do some basic research about your idea or write down your ideas. If you are like most people, these small wins will add up to increase your confidence and to propel you forward. An Entrepreneur may often lack the diversity and expertise of influencers required to think and eventually to execute in a big way. To jump this hurdle, one must establish a diverse network of individuals who think big and understand what it takes to arrive at that level. Likewise, they can help you to vet and improve your idea. Create New Markets If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses. — Henry Ford, founder, Ford Motor Company There are two kinds of entrepreneurs one those who create markets and second those who do not. On the one hand, the entrepreneur who creates markets is considered a revolutionary. On the other hand, the entrepreneur who competes in well-established markets is considered ordinary. Both approaches can lead to success in business, but research indicates that the creative entrepreneur has a better strategic position. Blue Ocean Strategy, a best-selling business book, makes a cogent argument that creating new markets known as ―blue oceans‖ is better than competing in overcrowded industries known as ―red oceans.‖Which kind of entrepreneur are you? If you have a blue ocean, you are on your way to tremendous success. However, if you are competing in a red ocean, it‘s time to adopt strategies to spawn innovation, leading your company to significant profits and to a sustainable competitive advantage. Work on Your Business, Not in Your Business 12 If your business depends on you, you don’t own a business—you have a job. — Michael Gerber, author, The E-Myth Until an entrepreneur‘s company runs without the founder, that person is just self- employed, the lowest rung in the hierarchy of entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurs are often overwhelmed with their business, doing everything from their own taxes to taking out the trash. They work nonstop not because they want to but because they have to. They may act as though they have a team that takes care of everything, but they don‘t. Before you even start your business, focus on planning how to get rid of yourself, especially if the business is service-oriented and you are the one serving. This outlook is absolutely imperative because once the business gets going; you won‘t have time to dedicate to planning when work piles up. You naturally will give priority to serving clients and generating revenue rather than planning your replacement. Finding quality people to fill all-important roles puts you in the frame of mind of running a business. In this mode, you are really an entrepreneur, and that‘s what it is all about. Once you have successfully eliminated the dependency of your business on you, you can focus on growing your business or even moving on to your next venture. All Risk Isn’t Risky Risk comes from not knowing what you are doing. —Warren Buffett, businessman, investor, philanthropist Among the several definitions of an ―entrepreneur,‖ there is a common word ―risk,‖ which is what truly defines an entrepreneur. The following simple definition by Merriam-Webster is one of the best: ―An entrepreneur is one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.‖ The focus then becomes understanding risk and how it factors into being an entrepreneur. 13 ―Risk,‖ as defined by the same dictionary, is the ―possibility of loss.‖ What‘s most interesting about this definition—and contrary to popular belief—is that it doesn‘t impart a negative value judgment; the definition merely declares the possibility of loss. In other words, an event can have a 1 percent or a 99 percent probability of loss. Our response to an interpretation of those two levels of risk makes all the difference. Entrepreneurs have a higher tolerance for risk than the average person when it comes to starting and running a business. Don’t Waste Time Procrastination is opportunity’s natural assassin. —Victor Kim, entrepreneur; former owner, New England Patriots The best entrepreneurs create environments of stressful urgency. Entrepreneurs know that startups rarely get anything done in a relaxed, take-your-time environment. For example, Steve Jobs, the cofounder of Apple, was notorious for pushing his team beyond its limits by setting seemingly unrealistic timelines. As a result, his company created products quicker than they had ever imagined was possible and thus gained a huge competitive advantage over rival companies like IBM. Doctors and psychologists believe that stress caused by time constraints or urgency has an upside. In fact, they argue that we all need stress in our lives to perform certain tasks at a high level, ranging from avoiding a car accident to finishing a report for work. A recent MSNBC.com article explored the benefits of stress: ―When the brain perceives physical or psychological stress, it starts pumping the chemicals cortical, epinephrine (adrenaline) and nor epinephrine into the body. Instantly, the heart beats faster, blood pressure increases, senses sharpen, a rise in blood glucose invigorates us and we‘re ready to rock.‖ The article also quoted Janet DiPietro, a developmental psychologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: ―When you have a deadline, when you have to perform, 14 you want some stress to help you do your best.‖ If you lack the sense of urgency to grow your business, evaluate why you want to be in business. Ask for Help Tell everyone what you want to do and someone will want to help you do it. —W. Clement Stone, businessman, philanthropist. When you start your business, lose the ego immediately. It‘s the main reason that entrepreneurs don‘t seek help. An overinflated ego even prevents those who ask for help from receiving it. Rarely do people want to help those who act as though they don‘t need it. And there‘s a difference between being confident and having an ego that‘s too big for your own good. Confidence attracts people; ego repels them. Do What’s Most Important First the key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities. —Stephen Covey, best-selling author, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Doing the tasks that are most important in business is counterintuitive. Normally, these crucial tasks demand more time, energy, and focus than we care to give. Thus, we avoid them, doing those simpler tasks that really don‘t have a major impact on our business Require Criticism and Disagreement in Your Company Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress. —Mahatma Gandhi, Indian nationalism leader, social activist. Making the decision to pass on a customer is especially difficult for young or new entrepreneurs who are hungry for business and revenues. However, choosing bad customers can cause a lot of frustration, drain resources, damage your reputation, and eventually put you out of business. To help you decide what customers are worth your time, consider four important signs which indicate that you should not take a client and gracefully move on from the relationship. These signs apply especially to entrepreneurs who run a service-oriented or consulting business. 15 1. be skeptical of a client who seems not to know what is needed or who constantly makes changes. For example, if you have a web or graphic design company, explain clearly your creative process and the time needed for the project. Also, a client should be comfortable with your capabilities and what to expect from you. Find out from new clients what attracted them to your work. Show your portfolio. 2. be careful if a client is not willing to pay an hourly rate or a piece rate of some kind. Agreeing to a fixed cost for your work is not bad per se. However, it‘s not so great if you end up doing more work than you anticipated. Many clients encourage you to lower your cost to lock in a good rate. In a gesture of good faith, sometimes the client will pay you all the money up front. That way, you are beholden to the client until it receives a deliverable it likes. These types of arrangements can be especially stressful and strain a relationship to the point of litigation. 3. Avoid any client who hesitates to sign a well-written agreement. This is a true test of whether a client is worth your time and effort. An agreement or contract protects both parties and outlines expectations. Without a comprehensive agreement you have no way to protect your interests, assess the progress of the work you have done, and verify the deliverable. 4. Take heed of any less than good feelings you have about a potential client. Don‘t be afraid to fire a client. Just because some customers want you doesn‘t mean you need them. A Bad Economy Is a Great Opportunity A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. —Winston Churchill, prime minister, United Kingdom (1940–45, 1951–55) In short, entrepreneurs do not allow a bad economy to hold them back from accomplishing their goals. Ironically, poor economic conditions often have the opposite effect; they motivate entrepreneurs more and propel them to succeed even faster. Times are not as great as I write, but entrepreneurs ignore the zeitgeist and 16 create positive circumstances. They roll up their sleeves and get to work, anticipating the next growth period. That‘s where you want to be: ready to grab the bull by its horns and ride. Chapter 2 STEPS TO BECOME A GOOD ENTREPRENEUR KNOW YOU ARE ENOUGH! You need to know that you are enough. Before anything else, it is of paramount importance that you are completely empty of self-doubt, self-limiting and unhealthy negative thoughts. Our self-image in our own eyes is the most important determinant of success. If an individual himself/herself has self-doubt of his/her ability and is skeptical of achievement of goals – it is impossible that success is ever attained by him/her. Every person is able and capable and there is perfection in every creation. Accept yourself and connect totally with who you are. Be comfortable with your identity which makes you what you are. Your beliefs, your likes, your dislikes, your perceptions, your character need not be similar to others. Your identity is central to you and controls your growth, if you waver and question your identity, then the growth trajectory also falters. Do not imitate others to achieve success. Be aware of yourself and that will give you confidence to succeed as yourself. 3 STEPS FIRST STEP – SET A GOAL TO BECOME ENTREPRENEUR Whatever it is that you aspire for, if you are passionate about it and desire it truly – it is your goal. ‗Goal‘ is serious business. Be 100% clear about the reason you have set your goal and the value your goal holds for you. When your goal is set in 17 the correct way, automatically the personality you desire to achieve this goal will come to you. Your goal can be attained only and only when it seems real to you. If you truthfully and faithfully believe in what you desire you will most definitely attain it. Nothing can stop you; no amount of roadblocks and no failures seem like dead-ends when you are focused on your goal and nothing else. Belief, faith, conviction are words that move mountains. It is a state of one‘s mind which can lead the owner of that mind to achieve things that no one has ever achieved just by the mere presence of this small little word ―Belief‖ - Belief in your idea, belief in your line of action, belief in the outcome, belief in yourself. Condition your mind to see that whatever comes in your way in your journey towards the attainment of your desire are not obstacles but situations which you will mold in your favor. The universe will work with you for you to achieve what you desire. REMEMBER STEP #1 - Set a GOAL to chart a journey from seeker to creator. SECOND STEP - ALIGN YOUR THOUGHTS WITH YOUR GOAL The ultimate power lies in your own thoughts. The single most important factor which directly determines your position in life is your own mind. The ‗Placebo Effect‘ is a proven fact that some patients' health improves after taking what they believe is an effective drug but which is in fact only a placebo (a substance or treatment of no intended therapeutic value). Therefore a person can recover from illness just by his own mind only thinking that he is being treated. Your achievement is a consequence of how your mind thinks. A ‗Thought‘ is the Alpha and Omega of success. Buddha said ‗what you think, you become‘. Accomplishment of your goal has already started when the seed was sown in your 18 brain as a thought. To be successful, you have to first train your mind. You must master your mind and have dominance over your thought. Imagine wealth, victory, success – and you will achieve it. You want success and the universe will serve it to you if you can control your thought process. A human mind is a reservoir of power: It can conjure up zillion thoughts. The art is in taking that one thought which you believe in, and turning it into reality. Fill your mind with positive thoughts. Let there be no place for negativity, gossip, worry and criticism. You will destroy the beautiful seed of pure thought even before it germinates. Water your thought, nurture it and let it grow into unimaginable wealth and success. Every individual is his own person. He alone knows what motivates him and drives him to achieve. With his personal experiences and emotions he alone can work on his impulse to make it a reality. Don‘t poison that beautiful ability by clouding it with negative thoughts. The aphorism, "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he," not only embraces the whole of a man's being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of his life. REMEMBER STEP #2 – Align your Thoughts with your goal THIRD STEP – JUST GO FOR IT! TAKE ACTION TO ACHIEVE Niyataṁ kuru karma tvaṁ karma jyāyohyakarmaṇaḥ| Śarīrayātrāpi ca tenaprasiddhyedakarmaṇaḥ||8|| Sri Krishna said: Perform your prescribed duty (karma) because action (karma) is superior to inaction. Even the maintenance of your body cannot be accomplished through inaction. 19 Action is imperative to achieve. Action is just the simple act of doing. It is common knowledge that no idea can be turned into reality without action on the idea. Creation of an idea and the desire to turn it into reality backed by all the monetary power available will still not guarantee riches unless there is action performed towards that idea. Over- analyzing and over-thinking will kill the idea even before inception. So, the key is to start and start now! If you want to earn your millions in your profession, have faith in yourself, just pick up a pen and paper and write down a detailed plan action schedule regarding the steps you will take to achieve your goal. Be ready to give yourself that push of ignition to just ‗begin‘ like the starter in a vehicle – your initiation of action to attain your goal can be compared to the starter in a vehicle because it is the most important device which is used to rotate an internal-combustion engine so as to initiate the engine's operation under its own power, without which the entire vehicle, the time and money spent on its creation is a waste, and the same holds true for your ‗action‘. So, if you want to become rich, successful, reach the great heights of success you have imagined in your life – it‘s not going to come to you while you just sit there at your table dreaming about it. The more you work, struggle and do whatever it takes to reach closer to your goal, you will observe that the worst is over and somehow things are getting better and better. Remember your goal and your well defined plan to achieve your goal, just focus on it; it will give you the strength to keep moving forward. Patiently persist. Don‘t lose your enthusiasm when you suffer setbacks on your road to success. They are mere stumbling blocks. Gather your determination and tenaciousness and with single-minded strength of purpose forge ahead. The harder you work, the closer your goal will seem. To reach the pinnacle of success you have to climb the small little steps on the staircase which will take you there. 20 REMEMBER STEP #3 – Take Action to achieve your Goal. Don’t wait for things to happen to you….Go out there and make them happen! SKILLSETS OF ENTREPRENEUR -―A you are what you think you are”-James Allen “If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” - Thomas Jefferson, American Founding Father and third President of the United States As an entrepreneur understanding what you want or what the goal that we wish to reach is determines the kind of business enterprises we will incorporate. The concept of karma (the law of Action) is the core idea of the Bhagavad Gita, the Holy Hindu Scripture. You have to find what you are truly passionate about. If today were the last day of your life, would you want to do what you are going to do today? If the answer is ‗No‘, it is certain that something is wrong and needs to be changed. For you will attract riches and fame only if you are doing something you are passionate about. Fuel the passion. Infuse enthusiasm into your work – then only you will achieve success. If you think you can - you will. If you think you can‘t - you won‘t. Your ‗WILL‘ can change everything. It can pull you out from the depths of misery. It can give you hope. It can make you millions. It can change your fortunes and your future. The ‗will‘ comes from ‗within‘. You are unstoppable once you have willed it. “Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage.”– Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, lecturer, and poet 21 Bhagvat Geeta describes the qualities of an individual that help him attain his goal. It says for a entrepreneur to attain his goal he should possess fearlessness, purity of mind, steadfastness in spiritual knowledge, charity, control of the senses, performance of sacrifice, study of the sacred books, austerity, and straightforwardness; non-violence, truthfulness, absence of anger, renunciation, peacefulness, restraint from fault-finding, compassion toward all living beings, absence of covetousness, gentleness, modesty, and lack of fickleness; vigor, forgiveness, fortitude, cleanliness, bearing enmity toward none, and absence of vanity. What differentiates a person who is goal oriented versus a person who has no goal set for himself is that the first one is determined to achieve it no matter what. Here are some of the skills you need as an entrepreneur a. Interpersonal skills and Customer Interaction. Almost every business requires you to interact with customers, vendors, debtors, creditors and other stakeholders on a daily basis. Your one to one interaction is important as the people judge the integrity, longevity and prosperity of the business based on their interaction with the people behind the company. So even the most innovative and productive idea may fall flat if the face behind the company is not dependable. The ability to communicate or interact well with other people (whether it is peers, subordinates or your team) is what is known as interpersonal skills. They may include a variety of activities like – Communication, Listening, body language, ability to collaborate, display of work ethics and workplace etiquette, display of personal etiquette, commitment capacity, professionalism, problem solving capability, decision making ability, self- confidence, receptiveness to feedback, showing appreciation, positive attitude and overall vibrant demeanour. Improving interpersonal skills will keep you in the good memory of people and attract people to do business with you. 22 b. Your AIDA – Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action –Model It is a fallacy that destiny will play a part in getting customers to your doorstep and taking your business to great heights while you sit nestled in your cocoon waiting for them to approach you. Action is imperative. In 1898, E. St. Elmo Lewis, American advertising and sales pioneer, developed a model which mapped a theoretical customer journey from the moment a brand or product attracted consumer attention to the point of action or purchase. According to this concept, every sale has four parts. These four parts are referred to as AIDA – an acronym which stands for Awareness, Interest, Desire, and Action. The Awareness stage stands for making the customer aware of the existence of a product or service; The Interest stage represents generating genuine customer interest in your product or service; The Desire stage involves getting the customer to make a decision; The Action stage is getting the customer to take the next step towards purchasing the chosen product or service. Get your AIDA model in order and analyze how you will take your customer from ‗awareness‘ to ‗action‘. By breaking down your way of dealing with the customer into these four basic parts, you will be able to identify areas where you need to put in more conviction and effort to increase your business growth. c. Customer Profitability The meaning of ‗customer profitability analysis‘ is simply analyzing whether a customer is profitable for your business or not. It seems highly inappropriate to suggest that a ‗customer‘ could be a deterrent for business growth. However, the idea behind ‗customer profitability analysis‘ is to determine whether it costs more to do business with certain clients than what they bring in. It is a method of 23 looking at the various activities and expenses incurred in servicing a particular customer within a given period of time while determining its profitability to the business. The rationale for doing a customer profitability analysis lies in the fact that once you are able to measure the customer profitability, you will be able to consciously manage it too. There are many ways to assess your customer‘s value to your business viz. sales volume, gross margin, profitability, number of transactions, and average sale per transaction etc. You can then use this information to identify high value customers for your business who value and will pay for your company‘s products and services and in turn focus your resources and energies on highlighting opportunities with respect to them. This will improve your productivity and result in business growth. d. How you manage your Time Much has been written and said about the importance of managing ‗time‘, but somehow everyone is always short of it. So, are you doing it right? If the Egyptians had known when they invented the 24-hour day that the future generations will use it as an excuse for not getting things done in time, I‘m sure they would have added a couple of hours more to the day. However, we would have found excuses of shortage of time in that scenario as well! Without realizing we have mastered the art of ‗blaming time‘ as a culprit for everything that goes wrong in our life. Now approach the 24-hour day with the attitude that you have 86400 seconds in a day! Now that‘s a lot of time. The reason a 24-hour day seems short is because when we prioritize our jobs, we take it as an excuse for never completing the ones on low priority. We all have things we don‘t want to do, but we have to do them anyway. However, in life you 24 cannot chose the enjoyable parts and leave out the unpleasant parts of a task. You have to do the entire job. That‘s the only way to reach your goal. The sense of accomplishment you will feel at the end of the most hard, boring and complicated task is immeasurable. There is a methodological way of increasing the hours in the day. For having more than 24 hours a day, improve your time management skills. Prioritizing is essential but it will not create more time; it will only tell you what is more valuable to be done first. We must prioritize but at the same time must realize that those tasks on low priority or also essential for business growth and we must eventually get down to them. B The Pareto principle (also known as the 80/20 rule, the law of the vital few, or the principle of factor sparsity) states that 80% of consequences come from 20% of the causes. Vilfredo Pareto an Italian economist and sociologist used this principle to establish the relationship between the inputs and outputs. The principle can be applied to various economic factors like land and illustrates the notion that majority of the things are controlled by the minority of the people. The Pareto Principle can be applied in a wide range of areas such as manufacturing, management, and human resources. The most important application of the pareto principle has been used in personal time management. Time management has been a challenge to most of the people. In order to effectively utilize the time, one needs to identify the "repeated patterns" in your daily schedule that may be causing problems to your productivity. The pareto principle states that most people tend to thinly spread out their time instead of focusing on the most important tasks. In terms of personal time management, 80% of your work-related output could come from only 20% of your time at work. C: Parkinson‘s law is an adage that ―Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion‖. The law was given by Cyril Northcote Parkinson who was a 25 British naval historian and an author in an essay published in the Economist in the year 1955. The law applies to any work; however Parkinson used this to describe the bureaucracy in an organization. The application of this law can be seen in every sphere right from the way we spend our time on personal tasks to the way how we spend our time in the organization. For someone who has a lot of time at disposal and has very few tasks to accomplish, they can expand their work to fill the available time. Whereas for someone who has many tasks to be achieved in lesser available time, the work shall be done in a quick manner shrinking the time available. One of the essentials of any goal we set, we have to have a clear definition of the time line we wish to complete the task. If we say we wish to complete the book in a year‘s time, we will expand our work of writing the book over a period of one year. Whether the actual time required for completing the book is one year, is something that each one has to decide. My experience tells me that, the longer one takes to complete, the enthusiasm gets diluted. The focus shifts and the idea die down. MANAGING SELF IS FIRST TASK OF ENTREPRENEUR/STARTUP OWNER Managing self is the first task of the entrepreneur. One must have control on all the five senses. Our thought either creates or destroys us. We have to be mindful of what we think. Our mind has to be our servant who can take instructions and not our master who gives us instructions Sales – impression of increase attitude- value addition of user of services/buyer of products Wallace Wattles in his book ―The Science of getting Rich‖ says that we should leave everyone with the impression of increase. 26 Simply put, to convey the impression of increase, you must want the same for everybody that you want for yourself. It‘s leaving others feeling better than before they met you.‖ As an entrepreneur the impression of increase gives us a mantra of sustainable business. The sense of serving the clients with your products or services with an impression of increasing creates a sense of satisfaction with the buyers or consumers of your service. When as an entrepreneur you provide services with value addition it creates a sense of delight among the consumers. Such consumers stick to you and your products or services. As is said there is no publicity like that from a satisfied customer, your customers bring in more customers for you. It must be borne in mind that this attitude of impression of increase must be followed by the businesses even when they are at the no 1 position in their field, it is often seen that entrepreneurs who bring gratitude and value addition together, survive any economic downturn because their customers hand hold them during these times. As an entrepreneur, this impression of increase helps you generate more and more clients and opportunities. This again leads to the triggering of the principle of attraction. More satisfied clients attract many more satisfied clients. 27 Chapter 3 HOW TO EXPAND YOUR BUSINESS OR PROFESSION BY USING THE MARKETING STRATEGIES Marketing refers to activities a company undertakes to promote the buying or selling of a product or service. Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. At a fundamental level, marketing is the process of understanding your customers, and building and maintaining relationships with them. Definition of marketing: “Marketing is an administrative and social process through which individuals and groups obtain what they need and desire by the generation, offering and exchange of valuable products with their equals‖. The above definition is from book ―Management “by Mr. Philip Kotler (born 27 May 1931), a renowned American Marketing author who has been the International Marketing chair holder at North western University since 1988, one of the most important business centres of study in the world. A process – wherein individuals/groups obtains- there need or desire- by exchanging/offering/ generating or creating/ products To understand Marketing in details emphasis should be given to the core concepts such as process, individuals/ groups, need, desire, generation /exchange/offer & products etc. 28 Marketing is a process involving set of activities, with an aim of making the apt promotion of product to reach it to the consumer Individual/group: when it comes to marketing or business consumer has an immense role to play. Ultimately it is the consumer who is going to decide the faith of your business. Hence emphasis must be given to the their needs & desire When it comes to conceptual definition of need and desire, the concept of Need refers to those that are necessary for survival. On the other hand, Desire refers to those that people want in life although there is not threat to survival if the individual fails to accomplish them. Exchange is one of the way people/ consumer can obtain a product. It happens when one individuals strives to exchange something of value to another individual So far as marketing is concern the definition of products must be extended to include intangible objects as well, because they can be offered to a market as well. Therefore, the broad definition of product includes services, events, persons, places, organisations or even ideas 29 Chapter 4: DIVERSIFICATION Diversification can be understood as the corporate strategy that a company implements to increase the market share and sales volume by introducing new products in new markets or industry, which is distinct from its core business. Simply put, diversification refers to the expansion of business by entering into a completely new segment or investing in a business which is external to the scope of the company‘s existing product line. Businesses use this strategy for managing risk by potential threats during the economic slowdown. The Expansion through Diversification is followed when an organization aims at changing the business definition, i.e. either developing a new product or expanding into a new market, either individually or jointly. A firm adopts the expansion through diversification strategy, to prepare itself to overcome the economic downturns. The Expansion Strategy is adopted by an organization when it attempts to achieve a high growth as compared to its past achievements. In other words, when a firm aims to grow considerably by broadening the scope of one of its business operations in the perspective of customer groups, customer functions and technology alternatives, either individually or jointly, then it follows the Expansion Strategy. The reasons for the expansion could be survival, higher profits, increased prestige, economies of scale, larger market share, social benefits, etc. Go through the examples below to further comprehend the understanding of the expansion strategy. These are in the context of customer groups, customer functions and technology alternatives. 30 1. The baby diaper company expands its customer groups by offering the diaper to old aged persons along with the babies. 2. The stockbroking company offers the personalized services to the small investors apart from its normal dealings in shares and debentures with a view to having more business and a diversified risk. 3. The banks upgraded their data management system by recording the information on computers and reduced huge paperwork. This was done to improve the efficiency of the banks. In all the examples above, companies have made significant changes to their customer groups, products, and the technology, so as to have a high growth. 31 Chapter 5: HOW TO SALE? THINGS TO REMEMBER How to sale? Is currently one of the major question that bring to our minds, people often ask the same question, they ask it goggle, in person, to their mentors and literally every other person. The purpose is everybody & each one of us wants to understand how to sale, how to prepare that perfect pitch which can get them results. Things to remember: Sale is not a Power Point Presentation which you can prepare in person then pitch it somebody and expect magical results to happen! Surprisingly sale is just a three way process, it just involve Three Questions. Question which you need to ask your client: 1. Where they are today? / What is their current standard? 2. Where do they want to reach? / What is their goal? 3. What is that one thing which is stopping them to reach that goal? / this means why they are not able to reach to that point today? If you can understand that problem and then provide the solution which you have which can either make them achieve their goals faster or in a easier way or in a better way, then magically the sales will happen. These are the core question which sums up the logical aim of selling, you will not be needing any fancy presentation or fancy sales person. Thing to remember: 32 Find the pain point of your client and the sales is done Chapter 6: LESSONS TO LEARN FROM THE EXAMPLES OF STRATEGIES APPLIED BY SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES 1. Tesla, Inc. (www.tesla.com) Tesla, Inc. (formerly Tesla Motors, Inc.) is an American electric vehicle and clean energy company based in Palo Alto, California. Tesla's current products include electric cars, battery energy storage from home to grid scale, solar panels and solar roof tiles, and related products and services. The CEO of Tesla Mr. Elon Musk is currently the world's second richest person, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, after overtaking Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates. Tesla being the biggest automobile company in the world and interestingly their marketing budget for paid media is 0. 1) Exclusive premium buying process: There are only limited number of cars of a particular model which can only be order through online process, no salesmanship & no dealership 2) CEO‘s personal branding: Elon Musk is one of the most followed personalities on twitter that‘s every time when the new model is in market only one tweet about the new model is enough for marketing 3) The winning vision statement of Tesla: We want to create the most compelling car company in the world 33 2. Amazon: It is an American multinational technology company based in Seattle, Washington, which focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It is considered one of the Big Five companies in the U.S. information technology industry, along with Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook. CEO of Amazon Mr. Jeff Bezos is currently the World‘s no. 1 riche person with the net worth on $187.0 B Introduced “cash on delivery” Amazon‘s entire strategy was to take money first and then deliver the product however Indians don‘t trust online websites so easily that‘s why Amazon started the concept of ―Cash on Delivery‖ for the first time in the world 3. Mc Donald ( www.mcdonalds.com / www.corporate.mcdonalds.com): McDonald's Corporation is an American fast food company, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. CEO: Christopher John Kempczinski is an American business executive, and the president and chief executive officer of McDonald's Corporation Introduced “Aloo Tikki burger in India” For the first time in the world Mc Donald started/ introduced ―Aloo Tikki burger‖ in India because Indians love potatoes and Indian spices. Mc Donald didn‘t have any Veg Burger before that 4. Dunking donuts (www.dunkingdonuts.com): 34 The Dunking Donuts is an American multinational coffee and doughnut company. It was founded by William Rosenberg in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1950. CEO: David Hoffmann Introduced “Maska and Chai” They realised that Indians are not going to enter their shops just to eat donuts that is why they launch ―Muska and Chai‖ for the first time in the world 35 Chapter 7: OPPORTUNITIES / DOORS OF MARKETING Have you ever stopped and think in how many different ways you can market your products and consequently increase you sale. 1. Above the Line Marketing (ATL Marketing): Above the line marketing is using mass media to market to a wide audience. The strength of above the line marketing is potential reach; the downside is often relevancy. This kind of marketing is the kind of marketing that has a very broad reach and is largely untargeted. Think about a national TV campaign, where viewers across the nation see the same advert aired across the various networks. This kind of marketing is mostly used for building brand awareness and goodwill. Subheads of ATL Marketing: I. Newspapers: Newspapers are one of the traditional mediums used by businesses, both big and small alike, to advertise their businesses. Advantages • Allows you to reach a huge number of people in a given geographic area • You have the flexibility in deciding the ad size and placement within the newspaper • Your ad can be as large as necessary to communicate as much of a story as you care to tell 36 • Exposure to your ad is not limited; readers can go back to your message again and again if so desired. • Free help in creating and producing ad copy is usually available • Quick turn-around helps your ad reflect the changing market conditions. The ad you decide to run today can be in your customers' hands in one to two days. Disadvantages • Ad space can be expensive • Your ad has to compete against the clutter of other advertisers, including the giant‘s ads run by supermarkets and department stores as well as the ads of your competitors • Poor photo reproduction limits creativity • Newspapers are a price-oriented medium; most ads are for sales • Expect your ad to have a short shelf life, as newspapers are usually read once and then discarded. • You may be paying to send your message to a lot of people who will probably never be in the market to buy from you. • Newspapers are a highly visible medium, so your competitors can quickly react to your prices • With the increasing popularity of the Internet, newspapers face declining readership and market penetration. A growing number of readers now skip the print version of the newspaper (and hence the print ads) and instead read the online version of the publication. 37 II. Magazines: Magazines are a more focused, albeit more expensive, alternative to newspaper advertising. This medium allows you to reach highly targeted audiences. Advantages • Allows for better targeting of audience, as you can choose magazine publications that cater to your specific audience or whose editorial content specializes in topics of interest to your audience. • High reader involvement means that more attention will be paid to your advertisement • Better quality paper permits better colour reproduction and full-colour ads • The smaller page (generally 8 ½ by 11 inches) permits even small ads to stand out Disadvantages • Long lead times mean that you have to make plans weeks or months in advance • The slower lead time heightens the risk of your ad getting overtaken by events • There is limited flexibility in terms of ad placement and format. • Space and ad layout costs are higher III. Radio Advantages • Radio is a universal medium enjoyed by people at one time or another during the day, at home, at work, and even in the car. 38 • The vast array of radio program formats offers to efficiently target your advertising dollars to narrowly defined segments of consumers most likely to respond to your offer. • Gives your business personality through the creation of campaigns using sounds and voices • Free creative help is often available • Rates can generally be negotiated • During the past ten years, radio rates have seen less inflation than those for other media Disadvantages • Because radio listeners are spread over many stations, you may have to advertise simultaneously on several stations to reach your target audience • Listeners cannot go back to your ads to go over important points • Ads are an interruption in the entertainment. Because of this, a radio ad may require multiple exposures to break through the listener's "tune-out" factor and ensure message retention • Radio is a background medium. Most listeners are doing something else while listening, which means that your ad has to work hard to get their attention IV. Television Advantages • Television permits you to reach large numbers of people on a national or regional level in a short period of time • Independent stations and cable offer new opportunities to pinpoint local audiences 39 • Television being an image-building and visual medium, it offers the ability to convey your message with sight, sound and motion Disadvantages • Message is temporary, and may require multiple exposures for the ad to rise above the clutter • Ads on network affiliates are concentrated in local news broadcasts and station breaks • Preferred ad times are often sold out far in advance • Limited length of exposure, as most ads are only thirty seconds long or less, which limits the amount of information you can communicate • Relatively expensive in terms of creative, production and airtime costs 2. Below the Line Marketing (BTL Marketing): This kind of marketing is the kind of marketing that targets specific groups of people with focus. For example, a leaflet drop in a specific area, a Google Ad words campaign targeting a certain group or a direct telemarketing campaign targeting specific businesses. This kind of marketing is best for conversions and direct response. Sub Heads of BTL Marketing: I. Price promotions Price promotions are also commonly known as" price discounting". These can be done in two ways: (1) A discount to the normal selling price of a product, or (2) More of the product at the normal price. Price promotions however can also have a negative effect by spoiling the brand reputation or just a temporary sales 40