Author : Tayo Solagbade
WARNING! In order to get maximum value from this article, the reader must keep an OPEN mind free from the influence of whatever societal myths s/he is familiar with about doing more than one thing at a time. If you cannot do that, then you are NOT ready to use the information provided here."The mind is like a parachute. It only works best when it is open" - AnonymousAn Important Point To Keep In Mind For When You Meet A Multipreneur!The fact that YOU find it difficult to switch from doing one thing to another, at will or within a short space of time DOES NOT mean every other person will experience similar difficulty. You simply cannot impose your limitations on others in that manner. If you think it's not possible, no matter who you are or what you think you've achieved, that does NOT mean it's not possible.Someone else, a child even, with the appropriate skills set, desire and self-belief(as Napoleon Hill would say) could bring that same thing to reality. Examples abound as to how this has happened in the past. So, when a person chooses to market not one but a number of potentially income generating skills to different markets, do not be quick to cast aspersion on the person. He might be just as good as he says he is in all of them to justify wanting to earn a living by offering services or products using those skills."The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man." -- George Bernard ShawEssential Qualities A Startup Entrepreneur Needs1. Mental Stamina. If you have been doing any reading about what it takes to startup a business, you may have read that you need to be able to deal with (and recover quickly) from setbacks; work long hours etc. You need to have mental stamina or the ability to persevere. I mention this particular attribute because I believe it is the most crucial for ANY entrepreneur to have. Without it, no matter how well "schooled" or "educated"(there's a difference between those two), gifted, talented, or skillful a person is, s/he may just not be able to carry on long enough to achieve the success s/he desires.2. Other Attributes. Various authors, and books have described the many qualities that make a good or successful entrepreneur. There are even quizzes designed to help the aspiring entrepreneur discover how suited s/he is to successfully functioning as an entrepreneur. Googling the search string "What attributes does a person need to succeed as an entrepreneur", should turn up a few useful links that you can follow to learn more about this subject.3. Ability To Juggle Many Tasks Or "Multipreneur". During the startup phase of your business, you may discover that you need to be able to do many different things at the same time. As some experienced writers on this subject have admitted, you will, during this period, have to do most of the work by yourself.That includes preparing the business plan, keeping your business data/records, planning for marketing/advertising, sales and so on. Many of these activities you will probably be able to leave to paid employees in the future(if your business is the type that requires them), but at the beginning, you will need to acquire reasonable mastery of these tasks to move your business forward.Robert Kiyosaki recommends to persons in paid employment planning for a future in business or self-employment, that they first become "generalists" by planning to work in as many different departments of their companies as possible with the main intention of learning how those they are not familiar with, function. That way, when they eventually startup their businesses they would be able to get up and running in less time and with less effort.Do You Really Lack Capital? Really??Let's face it, if you are anything close to a true entrepreneur, you never really lack capital at startup. This is because you will have one or more assets that your belief in your business ideas will convince you to sell to raise needed capital. What you are more likely to encounter is INADEQUATE capital. The money you raise may not be enough to meet your needs.Sometimes individuals who wish to startup their own business ventures complain of a lack of capital. But history is replete with examples of people who had little or no capital and still managed to get their businesses off the ground and up to a point where they found willing investors.Dan Kennedy once wrote that he had become convinced that all the noise being made about lack of capital was nonsense. I particularly found quite instructive Dan's advice to prospective investors in this regard. He told them their money would be likely well spent if they sought out and invested in the business run by a business person who had demonstrated that she could survive on her own without capital.How Do You Survive Without Adequate Capital?1. Develop ways to keep more of your revenue in your pockets or coffers as tangible profits – negotiate better; get concessions when you make purchases, maintain low overheads/running expenses.2. Find a way to get the things you want done, without having to spend money e.g. product or service barter exchange.Using Multipreneuring To Get Around The Problem Of INADEQUATE CapitalI believe that if more people can learn to acquire - as the need becomes apparent - multiple self-taught competencies (relevant to their chosen business interests), they will not only increase their chances of succeeding in business, but also "immunise" themselves against potentially devastating setbacks, since they would be able to fall back on their multiple skills set to either prevent, avoid or recover from such setbacks.You can - up to a point - save significant amounts of money when your skills are self-taught. Therefore learning HOW TO LEARN should be the first priority you have. Buy a book, tape, CD tutorial etc that teaches how to do something you need to learn. Diligently apply yourself for as long as necessary, and until you have the desired proficiency. Then put your new skill to use in a way that benefits your business.As I said elsewhere, sometimes having multiple marketable skills can help you attract "bread and butter" jobs to tide you over the periods of slow patronage you may encounter in starting or running your business. Being able to earn income through a variety of channels, based on multiple skills, certainly increases your chances of sourcing needed capital to push your business forward and/or win the confidence of prospective investors.There Is Nothing Wrong With Being Frugal Or Having A Humble BeginningEven if you have what you consider adequate capital, that should not be reason to spend carelessly. You can still adopt the prudent approach. And if you do NOT have enough capital, you may need to ask yourself these questions:1. Can I get this done myself?2. If I can't, can I learn how to do so in enough time to get the business off the ground on schedule?3. Or can I get someone to do it for me without my paying cash(maybe you offer a service using a special skill you offer, equivalent in value - see next point below).If a startup entrepreneur can acquire the skills to function intelligently as a multipreneur, her chances of success will increase, because she would accumulate less avoidable overheads/operating expenses, and therefore retain more of her earnings as profits. In addition she would be able to turn potential setbacks into profitable outcomes. A Multipreneur's Multiple Skills Can Be Powerful Negotiating ToolsOne example. As a multipreneur, apart from speaking/coaching on Self-Development, I offer custom excel VB spreadsheet automation, web design, and freelance writing services. Two years ago, while working on two different projects(a webdesign job, and an excel workbook automation job), I lost access to the laptop I was using due to a fall out with my partner.In order for me to complete the projects for my clients, I negotiated with one of them, who runs an IT/Telecom company, to have a computer system built for me as part payment for the web design job I was doing for him. He agreed - for the obvious reason that it meant he got to pay me less cash. In addition, he had many of the needed components for building the computer system left over from previous projects. So, just over a week later I had a new computer system, AND I was able to finish off both projects!SummaryWhile starting up, I chose to function as a multipreneur in order to make myself more capable of giving value to my identified target audience who have varying needs due to the different areas of endeavour they are in. This ability later became even more valuable when I discovered I could get many other resources I needed, but lacked cash to purchase, by simply offering to use one of my many skills in exchange for them.As a multipreneur, I have had many instances in which I got things done without spending half as much as otherentrepreneurs simply because I took out time to learn how to do it myself. No matter how you look at it, an entrepreneur who can function as a multipreneur, is likely to have more choices open to him/her when it concerns raising capital or securing alternative means of getting access to needed resources.By putting yourself in a position where you have more options to choose from, you increase your chances of succeeding. When one door closes, your other skill(s) might just open your eyes to another possible route to achieving your intended purpose!Still not convinced? Or worried about what others will say? Read my detailed articles titled How To Be A Jack Of Many Trades™ And Why It Can Make You Succeed More Often! and More Real-Life Proof that Being an Intelligent Jack of Many Trades™, Can Make You Succeed More Often.Self-Development/Performance Enhancement Specialist – Tayo Solagbade - works as a Multipreneur, helping individuals/businesses develop and implement strategies to achieve their goals, faster and more profitably. Download your copy of his 25 Articles Ebook from http://www.lulu.com/content/268555. You get full reprint rights for each article.Visit Tayo's Creative Business Solutions(CB Solutions) mini-site - http://www.cbsolutions.v27.net - to learn how you can get affordable Freelance Writing, Rapid Website Design/CGI Automation, Website Marketing Strategy Development and Custom MS Excel VB Spreadsheet Automation Services.
Keyword : capital,multipreneuring,jack of all trades,business,startup,entrepreuring
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