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From Neil Patel to Ben Franklin: Do You Learn from History?

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Guest Post
by Riley Kissel

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Old Word Wisdom Ensuring New World Success

Upon sitting back and listening to Neil Patel ( @neilpatel )discuss some of his greatest achievements and losses he didn’t skip a beat when asked what his biggest professional failure was. In fact, in Patel’s eyes, failure isn’t quite the correct word. Patel referenced a time when he lost million dollars on a web hosting business in Rockwall Texas. From that loss came something he prizes most in his profession; learning a valuable lesson. This is part of the dogma that has made Patel so successful. It’s not out of a revolutionary idea or approach but it’s his good business sense coupled with old world wisdom that’s allowed him to become a top 100 blogger and consultant for numerous Fortune 500 on SEO, and all before the age of 21.

As the co-founder of KISSmetrics and a founder of Online Poker Lowdown , a poker tip site, Patel has always valued the strength and endurance of wisdom and lessons over the fickleness of ideas. He values each triumph and failure in equal measure and upon loosing those million dollars he states that, “I learned that you don’t invest in ideas. You invest in people. Ideas can change over time, but good people will always stick it out until they can figure out how to make a business succeed.” This is just a part of the tapestry of Patel’s approach and has enabled him to climb to such great heights.

Patel attributes much of his success to the lessons that he learned as a child. In various situations he references bits of wisdom handed down to him from two of his most valued mentors: his parents. It’s been through leaning from mistakes and applying those lessons that has enabled him to be such a success. Patel states that his parents, “didn’t groom me into being a businessman, but instead they just taught me what their parents taught them”. These lessons ranged anywhere from getting the most from your money to using the resources that are available to you instead of buying something you don’t necessarily need. These lessons were basic but their efficacy has been substantial at ensuring Patel’s success in the online world.

One can’t help but notice a strong resemblance in Patel’s approach to the wisdom of Benjamin Franklin.

Where does your approach fit with what has historically built success?
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Riley Kissel is a freelance writer who covers many industries with style. You can find out more about him at RileyKissel.com

Thanks, Riley, for simply showing how great thinking has built great success.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

What George S. Patton Said That’s Crucial to Your Business

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A Historically Relevant Guest Post
by Terry Crenshaw

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Historically Relevant

Generally speaking, it’s probably fair to say that the principles of success possess a kind of across-the-board relevance, an applicability to most any endeavor you could mention; while the particular precepts of success may vary from one enterprise to the next, the universal concepts are basically the same. Maybe it’s for this reason the business world is one so pregnant with analogies. Sports metaphors come into play in the business world all the time, but even more prevalent might be military analogies – metaphors suggesting that the very traits that make for a successful general might also yield an effective business owner.

Loyalty

In that spirit, there’s a familiar quotation from General George S. Patton that’s worth mentioning in the context of business success. The war hero once famously said,

“There’s a great deal of talk about loyalty from the bottom to the top. Loyalty from the top down is even more necessary and is much less prevalent. One of the most frequently noted characteristics of great men who have remained great is loyalty to their subordinates.”

Loyalty – not from an employee to the company, but from the company itself to the employees. What a novel concept.

I can’t help but think of this principle as I consider the examples of businesses such as Whole Foods – a company that is consistently voted one of the Top 100 best places to work, and a company that performs well against its many competitors. There’s something to be said for Patton’s philosophy, and it seems like no big stretch to say that it’s applicable to companies like this; could the fact that it’s both a highly profitable business and a business that treats its employees well truly be a coincidence?

I doubt it. At any rate, the factors that could be at play here are numerous, and while they’re not particularly obscure or hard to deduce with the simple tools of common sense, they might warrant a brief repetition. For starters, there are some obvious financial considerations to be made here. We know that happy employees are more likely to stick it out with their jobs rather than go looking for employment elsewhere; less turnover means less time wasted on the recruiting and training of new employees. It means a more streamlined and efficient business in general, even.

And if you think that loyalty is the only military virtue that translates into a business setting, just consider these further examples – historically relevant business strategies that resonate even today.

Adaptability

For one, we could champion the virtue of adaptability. This is obviously a crucial military trait; a strategy must be altered to fit the nature of the enemy forces, and even the terrain on which the battle is being fought. In much the same way, a business has to adapt to the times, and to its competitors. We have seen airlines adapt to the changing demands of air travel – in particular, we’ve seen Southwest abandon the hub-and-spoke model, and they should at least be given credit for trying to change with the times. On the flipside, we’ve seen McDonald’s adapt to the changing needs of consumers, and to new economic realities; they’ve cashed in on the premium coffee and smoothie trends furthered by companies like Panera, but also ensured that these products are priced to meet the budgets of recession-affected diners.

Strategizing

We could go on. What about strategizing – the importance of long-term thinking about the future? Barnes and Noble did it with the introduction of their E-Reader, the Nook. They saw where technology and reading were headed and jumped on the bandwagon – leaving companies like Borders to flounder

Expansion

And what about expansion? The history of military conquest is one of empires gradually expanding their domain, in much the same way that Amazon steadily grew from a bookseller into a merchant of just about anything you could name.

These are all companies that have learned from the military – and more broadly, from history in general. And what they have to show us is that changing with the times – strategizing, planning, adapting – is important, but there’s also something to be said for time-honored principles. This fine line is tough to walk, but of course, we can always look to the past for sterling examples of how it is done.

What have you learned from history?

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Terry Crenshaw covers economic trends in the United States and writes for www.peterorszagsite.com. Terry is especially interested in tracking the ideas of Peter Orszag and other economic experts as the economy attempts to recover from the recent recession.

Thanks, Terry, for the reminder that great thinking has always been what wins the day.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Beach Notes: The Magic of a Rainbow

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by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh

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We were greeted at the beach yesterday with a rainbow
Such a magical way to start the day
We reflected on the abundance we are surrounded with
And it reminded us how how essential it is
To spend time in nature at least once a day
Away from the computer.

What magic will you find today?

Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

4 Steps to Discovering How to Live on Purpose

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A Guest Post by Veronica Drake

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I am Veronica Drake…. mother, ex-wife, wife, victim, friend, arch enemy and survivor. I will show you how I came to realize there are really only four steps to finding your purpose. It only took me 18 plus years to figure it out. Most likely it will take you all of three minutes to decide if it means anything to you.

One cold November morning in 1996 I screamed at God and tried to give Him back His faulty product. I even had the balls to challenged Him to a standoff: “If you have any use for me, show up now or I’m outta here.”

I was sick and tired of living the life I was given. I was blaming the Creator. I had no idea if there even was a God. I figured what did I have to lose. As I was careening my car toward the abutment I came face to face with the details of the life I had created: friends I’d made, loves I’d lost, bridges I’d burned, battles I’d created, and mistakes I’d lived to regret. I realized all this in a split second. And, yes, like in the movies, something happened. It was as if something literally was taking my foot off the gas and applying it to the break. I truly had no control over what was happening. I remember feeling very warm and safe. Something very familiar had me.

t wasn’t long after that experience I got all Holy Rollerish. It didn’t take me long to realize that Holy Roller stuff wasn’t me. But, it did make me question WHO I WAS and WHY I WAS SPARED that day?

I decided to dive in and explore what was really going on with me. What I know about me is I have charisma, I’m very out-of-the-box, I am quick witted and people are drawn to me. Ummm, what was it the Creator wanted me to do with all of that; what Purpose could I possibly fill. There it was right in front of my face the entire time. I would be who I was naturally created to be. Still struggling to identify Purpose, I simply continued to live my life, a life I could be proud of, a life that served others no matter what title I wore.

Ironically, just as I settled into living, it became crystal clear to me. I am a teacher of Purpose. I was given the gift of connecting people to Purpose. Wow, that was powerful. Lil’ ole me using the gifts I was given to be naturally who I am.

It was an 18-year journey for me but luckily for you I condensed it all down to 4 easy steps!

My Four Steps for Finding a Purposeful Existence:

  1. Clarity. Be clear about who you are. Take an honest inventory of what you are bringing to life. List your successes and your natural abilities. Take the time to write it out and revisit it daily. Begin knowing that we are all inherently good and we were all created with natural gifts. If you are struggling to get started, remember our Creator put default settings in us and all we have to do is simply return to what we know; the Golden Rule, do unto others.
  2. Passion. Passion IS energy. It shows up mentally, physically, and spirituality. Embracing the passion and learning to focus it is really the core of finding Purpose. Passion pushes us to look for ways to continually improve what we do and how we do it. Be passionate about who you naturally are. Marrying passion with Purpose is the ultimate fulfillment in life.
  3. Acceptance. A big part of living on Purpose is acceptance. To live a simplified Purposeful life all you need to do is surrender to what is. When you have expectations you will always find yourself in chaos. Bring acceptance into your life and you will find how easy life really is. Acceptance isn’t about living with what is forever it merely means you allow it to be until it no longer is.
  4. Deciding. Nothing happens until YOU DECIDE. The law of inertia states that “A body in motion tends to remain in motion, a body at rest tends to remain at rest.” Will you stay stagnate or will you move? I have DECIDED to be a Spiritual Life Coach who empowers people to live life on Purpose. You?

Living life on purpose is living up to the reason that we’re here, making the most of our gifts.

Have you discovered how to live life on purpose yet?

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Veronica Drake js an International Spiritual Life Coach who inspires clients to explore their spiritual self. Her site is Spiritual Coach Veronica Drake and she writes for people heeding the call of their inner guidance systems and who look to reconnect to their heart on her blog. Her Twitter name is RonnieDrake.

Thank you, Ronnie, for sharing the story of your passion, your purpose, and your life!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Inside out vs. Outside In: Choosing the Right Approach for Your Online Business

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A Guest Post by
Rahil Muzafar

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Which Is Best for Your Business?

When you are looking to setting up an online business (or any other business for that matter), there are two, totally different approaches that you can choose from, commonly known as “Inside Out” and “Outside In” approach.

Going Inside-Out:

You should know that you are taking the “Inside Out” route when you are trying to build on a business plan that you ‘think’ is profitable. Normally, it’s not a plan that you have laid out after careful research and assessment, but merely an imitation of what other successful businesses are doing. In other words, you try to get hold of a plan, which has worked for someone else, and then try to replicate the exact same model while hoping for the similar success (or should we say, hoping against the hope).

Choosing Outside In:

On the other hand, an online entrepreneur with “Outside In” approach will start from the market, or customers to be more precise. They will start from trying to decipher what exactly the customers want, and then finding a way to bring exactly that product or service on table. Therefore, it wouldn’t be wide off the mark if we say that a business with “Inside out” approach is basically a follower, whilst a successful “Outside in” approach will make you a trendsetter, which is an accomplishment in itself.

However, when we look at all of those new businesses popping up in the cyber world, we will see that more businesses are taking the Inside out approach, whilst very few are daring to opt for the Outside In. But before we disapprove of those businesses, let’s have a well-rounded discussion about the pros and cons of both these approaches.

Finance and Budgeting:

As you can make out from the aforementioned descriptions, Inside out approach is more feasible when it comes to finances and budgeting, for the reason that you can easily go through different “success stories” and choose the one that suits your budget.

On the other hand, Outside In will require a more flexible budget, because your main objective is to fulfill the customers’ need and come up with a product or service that doesn’t fall short of their expectation. In an Inside Out approach, you will be more concerned about your own resources and restricted while taking business decisions, whereas Outside In approach wouldn’t even allow you to start until you have arranged for enough resources that will let you deliver a good enough product.

Risk:

Outside In might come across as the more risky one, but then high profits are always a product of risky ventures. Besides, you are not really shooting in the dark. This approach merely requires you to try and comply with the customers’ demands, so it is far from being a gamble but a well calculated risk, which will eventually pay off.

Convenience:

Inside out approach is clearly the easier route, especially on internet, where replicating a business is fairly simple and doesn’t require much thinking. Lured by this handiness (that later turns out to be a trap), many people invest their time and resources in copying some successful business, which is precisely the reason why we see so many failures in the cyber space. In contrast, outside in requires research, lots of thinking, creativity, and problem solving skills to set the wheels in motion … quite difficult but then long term success is never an easy feat.

Long Term vs. Short Term:

Inside out doesn’t always end as a failure, but even when you’ve achieved something, that is going to be a relatively short term success. You might seize some profits but you will hardly make it big, and as Dale Carneigi once wrote “The surefire boat never gets far from the shore”. Outside In is the approach that promises long term success, mainly because you are required to continuously get back to the customers and adjust your business according to their demands and requirements.

Security:

Inside out businesses are the most vulnerable in the wake of some adversities like recession, or maybe in case of Internet businesses, an update in Google’s algorithm. Outside in businesses are less susceptible because they always have their eyes on the external factors and they are ready to fine tune well in advance of some inevitable change.

Which approach have you seen used most often?

Rahil Muzafar

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This post was contributed by Rahil, who is currently working for sell a Marriott timeshare and cancel wyndham timeshare .

Thanks! Rahil!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

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