90 OUT OF 400

WORK HARDER THAN YOU EVER IMAGINED!

This morning I participated as a “judge” for the Venture Devils. At the beginning of the semester we had approximately 400 entrepreneurs that wanted to start or grow a business. The four hundred consisted of members of our community, doctors, teachers, graduate and undergraduate students. All of them either had a business which they wanted to grow or had an idea for a new venture. They were each assigned a mentor to meet with them and to work on their business. The goal was to have a 5 minute presentation to give today with a chance of going to the “money” round in April.

Unfortunately ¾ of them thought it was too much work and decided not to move forward. Of the 90 that were present today, perhaps 40 of them worked hard enough to participate in the funding round. The rest of them will be invited back next semester; they will be assigned a mentor who will help them get ready for the fall “funding” round.

These statistics mirror what I have found to hold true for all small businesses. Those that want to work hard will succeed as long as they follow a plan and do all the work that they don’t want to do.

Our group reviewed 10 of the participants. I will share that all ten are on the right track to bringing innovation, in their respective industries, to the market place.

Each and every small business owner must have a passion for their business and a willingness to work harder than they ever imagined. I get excited and my motivation to do better in my business is greatly increased as I hear and see the effort and the results that so many small business owners have achieved.