entrepreneur: six figure solopreneurs: the common link

What do 6-figure solopreneurs have in common? Is there a formula, a secret code for success? Probably not, but I’ll bet that they do have a number of things in common. To discover some of their common qualities, processes, and skill sets, I set out to interview a few solopreneurs whose businesses are bringing in $100,000 or more in annual PROFITS. This series entitled, Six-Figure Solopreneurs: The Common Link, will feature amazing men and women who single-handedly grew their businesses to profitable, meaningful ventures and are willing to share the how and why of it all!

This week’s guest is Sue Berk of Sue Berk Designs, which was founded in 2002 and is based in Dallas, TX. After hand-painting ceramic crosses for several years, the popularity of her products grew quickly, and Sue was overwhelmed with orders. After searching tirelessly for a factory offshore that could duplicate her delicate style, Sue was finally able to mass-produce, and soon was selling her products in over 1000 retail stores and on 20+ websites. New items were added to the collection, such as wood frames, and baby blankets. The collection features 57 ceramic crosses, 6 wooden frames, and 12 baby blankets. Sue Berk Designs products are sold in over 1000 retail stores across the United States, and on 20+ websites.

Q. Do you have a “top strategy” for success that you’d like to share?
A. Don’t ever expect anything to happen without a lot of hard work.

"they always tell me nobody’s workin’ as hard as you
and even though I laugh it off, man, it’s probably true
‘cause while my closest friends out there partying
i’m just here making all of the music that they party to." --drake 'light up.'

100 ppl doing the most.

the happy loser's first sale [the secrets of sales success]

at a party this past weekend i was afforded the opportunity to converse with some friends from high school. of course, inevitably, the subject of selling out came about. this makes perfect sense because most of us are two years removed from undergrad and out in the world or contemplating/finishing graduate school programs. debt and school loans hang leery. my younger brother talked about the choices he had for picking the right law school. another friend explained the $80k per annum pricetag for georgetown law. "suckers.." i thought to myself. im gonna hustle this insurance thing into this empire ive been bullshitting about.. first i've got to close my first deal. "lol."

ever wonder about the psychology of salespersons?? i definitely have. ive found some literature that gives pretty good insight as to the why sales is for me:

Explain the term happy loser.

Salespeople sometimes say to me, "I don't like that you call me a loser." But that's not what I mean. Happy losers are people who see rejection as a challenge. If 95 percent of the time you are rejected, you have to ask yourself, "Why did I choose this kind of life?" The happy loser likes it because 5 percent of the time, he wins. And all those times he loses, he sees as getting to the win.

How did you arrive at the happy-loser archetype?

We always go back to the first imprint: to the first experience in a person's life when he or she creates a mental reference. So we asked salesmen about their first experiences selling -- as children with a lemonade stand or trying to persuade their parents that they don't want to go to school. With the first experience, they feel strong emotion, and emotion is absolutely key to producing the neurotransmitters in the brain that create mental connections. The first time they are rejected is very powerful. What we find with good salespeople is that that first no stimulated them. It didn't make them want to give up. It made them want to find another way.

i knew that i had a bit of masochistic tendencies in my body. im a bit of a glutton for pain/rejection. ask the girl im courting who lives 5000 miles away. anyhow, ive got a few meetings this week. i should open some accounts and close some deals. i am excited.

Beatnik: “You’re in advertising… How do you sleep at night?”
Don Draper: “On a bed made of money.”

entrepreneur: john deal [the supersalesman]

ive completed the prerequisites and am officially starting as an independent insurance agent this week. the last couple of weeks ive been product training, prospecting + strategising. ive got my target market. ive qualified several leads + explored the business connections in my social network.. all that's left is face-to-face meetings + the sales pitch. my goal is $240k in annualised premiums at a commission of 37%. i look forward to working ten-hour days, getting paid same day direct deposit on advanced commissions, helping my family, having free time + finally being able to finance my investment ideas + other entrepreneurial pursuits. i came across this article on inc.com about john deal, the supersalesman..

"You can tell a lot about what you're up against in a sales pitch by the way they serve you coffee," John Deal mumbles to me, as the others in the room noisily take their seats around the conference table at a well-known British engineering and defense contracting company on a dreary day in central England. I take this to mean that Deal has his work cut out for him, given that his prospects have unceremoniously plunked down in front of him a jug of scalding coffee and a stack of plastic cups, with no cream or sugar in sight.

Deal begins making his case to six poker-faced executives, who proceed to blast him with an array of questions that cast doubt on his product, his business plan, his prospects for survival, and possibly his sanity. Every sentence seems to start with, "What I don't get is," or "The sticking point with me is," or "But how can you possibly...?"

Forty-five minutes later, however, the managers have changed their tune. Now they are asking about partnership opportunities and setting up more meetings. Someone has produced cream, sugar, and real coffee cups. It seems like a stunning turnaround to me, but on the train back to London, Deal is less sanguine. "On a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 means they're handing you a check on the spot, and 1 means they've thrown you out," he says, "that was a 5." Having already seen Deal in action several times, I get his point. Hard-nosed investors, wary customers, skeptical potential partners, distracted politicians -- Deal has an uncanny ability to convert them not merely to interested players but to enthusiastic supporters. And though not all of them are ready to hand over checks, some seem pretty close.

"i have a definite talent for convincing people to try something new. i am a good salesman. when im on form, I can sell anything to anyone." --anonymous traveling salesman.

"im a traveling man. moving thru space and. space + time. got a lotta things ive got to do. but god-willing im comin back to you. im leavinnn-in-in-in-innnn..." --mos def 'traveling man.'

entrepreneur: state of mind

entrepreneur: rob dyrdek

rob dyrdek straight does work, son. real talk, true story. professional skateboarder, actor, entrepreneur, producer, philanthropist, reality television star. bobby diesel. do work[!] son.

iced-out skull game..

big ups to juelz and the dips.. today, i was reading 'the solopreneur's million-dollar mindset' blog on inc.com. the post, entitled "its never too late for success: one man's story," resonated with me because it seems like a lot of my recent efforts have been met with failure but i keep my head up, dont worry.. here is an excerpt from the author's q+a:

My life has been blessed. I knew exactly what I wanted to do in life the day I walked into a dojo. I was fourteen at the time and I’ve been involved in Karate ever since. I’ve applied the lessons learned over the years to every aspect of my life – in both thick and thin times. I’ve found that what you think about, you bring about.

The first principle I live by is that you have to believe in yourself, because if you don’t, no one else will. The next step is commitment. You have to be completely dedicated to whatever it is you chose to do -- no matter what. In Karate you learn to visualize – see yourself connecting with a kick or punch before you throw it. In life, you have to see yourself being a success before you do it. And finally be passionate about what you do. Your passion will not only fuel you, but also others nearby.

My greatest external resource comes from the people surrounding me. My immediate family has always believed in me and been supportive of my pursuits. Additionally, I associate with people whose philosophies and direction mirror mine. There is no substitute for a positive and reaching outlook on life.

we all go through adversity. the test of life is our response to the challenge. persistence//repetition have been known to conquer much..

"get rich or die trying.." --curtis jackson.

entrepreneur: small biz start-ups[!]

..so thats whats really good for the first few weeks of two thousand 10. but we genY//millennial upstarts got another idear about all this nonsense. some stay on the grind and hustle hard-er like none other.. and some get that lifestyle money.

get it how you live it. this is life and there is no dress rehearsal..

entrepreneur: markus frind.

yes. it is a brand new day. in a brand new year [feels like the old one]. each new moment is an opportunity, an instance in time to either add to the wealth of knowledge and achievement in human history, or to simply survive [corny motivational speaker: "to thrive or just survive.."].

i always find inspiration in the pages of business magazines fastcompany and inc. they provide excellent insight into innovation and entrepreneurship in addition to chronicling struggling and successful business owners from around the world. i found an article from inc's jan 2009 issue about markus frind, the owner of plentyoffish [the largest online dating site in the world, by traffic] and how he single-handedly took over an industry from the comfort of his apartment and now only works 1 hour per day while banking $10 million gross revenue per annum.

It's a 21st-century fairy tale: A young man starts a website in his spare time. This person is unknown and undistinguished. He hasn't gone to MIT, Stanford, or any other four-year college for that matter, yet he is deceptively brilliant. He has been bouncing, aimlessly, from job to job, but he is secretly ambitious. He builds his company by himself and from his apartment. In most stories, this is where the hard work begins -- the long hours, sleepless nights, and near-death business experiences. But this one is way more mellow. Frind takes it easy, working no more than 20 hours a week during the busiest times and usually no more than 10. Five years later, he is running one of the largest websites on the planet and paying himself more than $5 million a year.

i found it particularly interesting that he lacks a post-secondary/graduate degree from an acclaimed educational institute. instead of reading case studies about what people are doing, he simply did it. he hired three customer service employees and moved into a proper office, but he still has the ability to vacation and enjoy a beautiful canadian life at 30. if that aint living the dream, then i dont know what is.

i live vicariously through the successes of the collective written-off underdog. 2010, i know exactly what is in store..

in the eternal words of lil wayne: "the, the money is the motive.."

im on the road to mogul-dom. im living a movie, not living by rules. and the script is called 'thug motivation 101: lets get it.' c. young jeezy.

entrepreneur: noah tepperberg.

one of my favourite past times is reading about people who've done and how they did it. my favourite entrepreneur of all time would have to be richard branson. i read his autobiography for the first time back when i was fourteen or fifteen. he was just a high school dropout with big dreams and delusions of grandeur. i plan to follow. i am sure i will have several posts featuring him in the future.

today, whilst reading about the reduction in the total number of world billionaires from 1,125 to 793 from 2008 into 2009, i stumbled upon an article about the russian paris hilton: anna anisimova. the daughter of russian metals magnate, vasily anisimov, found that her father was no longer a billionaire when the forbes list came out in march 2009. the new york city socialite had worked the social scene since aged 18 in 2004 as a student at new york university. she bought expensive real estate downtown, midtown and uptown and rented palatial properties in the posh hamptons. became friends with club owners and promoters. she is following the script left by this man: noah tepperberg. the man who made paris hilton. click the picture for the article at portfolio.com.

"the art of good business is being a good middle man." eddie temple, 2004 british film layer cake [starring daniel craig]. no matter what the product, whether the price is up or down.