Billy Crystal

My wife and I were both effectively eliminated from the traditional corporate work force in the early 1990’s. It was traumatic. We were college graduates. We had climbed the corporate ladder, rapidly, inexorably. We enjoyed six figure incomes, a second home, club memberships, prosperous investment accounts, wonderful benefit packages, a College investment plan for our three kids, sports cars and extensive travel. We were devastated! But, it became the best thing that ever happened to us, children included.

We went from regularity, a false sense of security and believing that we enjoyed a bit of that “Master of the Universe” complex, to really considering things we had taken for granted. Yeah, we were down for a few weeks. The house was glum. What was next? However, fairly quickly, we realized that we had to make things happen. Things weren’t going to be falling into our laps. We needed to start thinking like entrepreneurs.

It can be difficult re-learning to think like an entrepreneur. Why do I use the word “re-learning”? Simply because, we are all entrepreneurs at some point during our lives. A kid cutting grass, or working a paper route is a budding entrepreneur. The ritual of seeking a job requires a certain amount of entrepreneurial dash. Selling one-self to the opposite sex requires self-marketing and packaging. Presenting a thesis and selling arguments to professors is an entrepreneurial act.

Until we enter the corporate world almost all of our efforts share elements of entrepreneurial activity. Then the Mr. Big Corporation enters our lives and things seem to change. Report at this time, to this address, to Mr. Smith, your boss, for an agreed pay packet and a certain benefit package. Do this consistently, and fairly well, and we will move you along at our pace, the classic “Career Path”. Our actions become focused on job performance, judged by the Corporations standards. We adapt professionally. We also adapt our family and social life to the corporate ethos.

And then, that ethos was gone. We had to adjust and rapidly. Here are a few recommendations we found of great value in successfully making the change from a corporate to entrepreneurial lifestyle. First we broke our lives into manageable components, a bit of introspection here.
Put Family First

Nothing earth shattering here, we had been good parents. The children were a joy. And yet, we knew we could have attended more recitals, games and parties. We immediately began to be more active as a family group. We enjoyed activities together more and began to appreciate how quickly time slips away. When children grow up, they move on. That opportunity to be involved in a daily basis is gone. Don’t waste a minute of this precious time.

As much as possible, we kept the children generally in the knowledge loop on current business affairs. All of a sudden we weren’t going to work. How do you hide that? Also, we made every effort to place a positive, forward- looking face on our reality.

Family Budget Priorities

We sat down and seriously analyzed current assets and liabilities. What did we spend that was not really a necessity? Starbucks? Dinners out? Movie Rentals? Underused automobiles? Pool Service? We discovered that our lifestyle could be well maintained by simply being more aware of our spending patterns and considering each purchase. Was it a need, or a want?

We also involved the children in spending decisions particular to them. Was a club necessary? What about that two week summer camp? A new formal might not be in the budget. They were remarkably mature and agreeable to the idea of relative shared sacrifice.

The Social Network
Be direct with friends and family. You have been outsourced, downsized or, God forbid, terminated (a better word than Fired!) No sense hiding the truth. Lying is such hard work. You have enough on your plate.

Where to Go for Income?

If there is one recommendation every corporate ex-employee should recognize it is this: Time is not your friend! After the shock of your release, a few tears, maybe a beer or two, immediately start assembling a Personal Business Plan. Honestly consider every detail in your current life situation. Including:
* Your Age * Short Term Needs

* Relocation Options * Window of Time
* Savings * Expenses
* Interests * Family Flexibility
* Severance * Health * Corporate options * Networks

Ben Franklin, our great Founding Father, used to settle difficult questions in his typically logical way. He took a piece of paper and drew a line right down the middle. On one side he marked a +, on the other column he marked a -. Then he considered each element of his problem and honestly placed that issue in the appropriate column. When he had exhausted his list, he counted the items assigned to each column. The side with the most entries indicated the proper decision for old Ben to take.

Do this, as honestly as possible. More often than not, there is an interest, a skill or hobby that you have always dreamt of utilizing as your source of income. It worked for us. We love sales and marketing. That became our avenue of financial resurrection, and more importantly, it has lead to a freedom and lifestyle more exciting and varied than we would have considered possible. Making a living doing something you love is a blessing and many more people can achieve this today than ever before in history.

A cell phone, a computer, inter-net access and a web-site can be the basis of a business. Over 700,000 people alone make a living in full, or part, on eBay. Think like an entrepreneur. What did you do for Mr. Big Corp.? Approach similar clients and customers with a customized, targeted list of services. Put your years of experience to use. Research the market for opportunities. Write a realistic business plan for your new enterprise. There are more start-ups in the United States every year than every place in the world; combined. It pays off to be an entrepreneur in the USA!

Work from home. Attend trade shows. Consider being a re-seller from shopping mall kiosks. Contract out services to call centers. Be a consultant in your area of expertise. Send out Press releases on your project. Your network of past work associates and clients is your best future customer base. Partner with a Company already in your field, come aboard as an independent contractor. Work part-time for several firms until something opens in one. Wow them with effort, positive attitude, results, and creativity.

The Mr. Big Corp’s of the world do not owe you a career. They make decisions based on market realities. That shouldn’t mean that your continued success potential is limited or damaged. Your opportunities are open ended.

Geoff Ficke is President of Duquesa Marketing, Inc. An international consulting firm with over 35 years experience in creating customized strategies and business plans, product development and funding opportunities for entrepreneurs, inventors and small business expansion. Mr. Ficke is also a Senior Fellow at the Page Center for Entrepreneurial Study at the Business School, Miami University, Oxford Ohio. He can be reached at 859-442-5834 or through the company website, http://www.duquesamarketing.com.

Tags: business opportunities, company downsizing, consulting, entrepreneur, marketing strategies, startupsbusiness opportunities, company downsizing, consulting, entrepreneur, marketing strategies, startups

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Viral marketing is a term that has been floating around for nearly a decade. It is a form of marketing that relies on creating a message or a product that is so captivating and so compelling that it is almost impossible for recipients not to pass it along to their networking contacts, who in turn, will pass it along to their networking contacts, etc., etc., etc. until there is a huge surge in brand awareness and demand for your product or service.

The classic example of viral marketing is Hotmail, which, as you
know, offers a f.r.e.e e-mail service to people on the Internet.
Unfortunately, when Hotmail started out, not too many people knew
about it.

To remedy that, the powers that be at Hotmail added a little caption promoting their service at the bottom at of each of their
e-mails. Within a year and a half, they had over 12 million
subscribers. That’s when Microsoft stepped in and purchased it for $400 million. Not bad for a free service, huh?

Fast forward a few years and we’ve got people in many, many fields creating marketing messages that enlist the recipients as a voluntary sales force; people who receive the message, spread the message like wildfire throughout their various business and social networks. Just think of all the e-mail jokes you receive and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

We can accomplish on the Internet in seconds what it would take us months or even years to accomplish offline. With just the click of a mouse a message can be sent to hundreds or even thousands of people. The result is that our networking efforts can produce monumental results.

Look at Scott Stratten. He’s a guy who created a short video that was seen by more than a million people on the Internet and brought him over 70,000 new subscribers to his newsletter. (Are you starting to see the power of all this?)

Ah, but what if you don’t have the money to make short movies or if you haven’t got a creative bone in your body? Then you must do
whatever you can do to have your marketing message seen by as many people as possible that, in turn, will pass that message on to others. Here are just a few things you can try:

• Create a simple mailing list (perhaps something like a quote
  of the day) - with inspirational, educational or funny content that will be passed from one person to another. At the bottom of each issue put a small message about yourself and your offerings.
• If you send a newsletter, be sure to ask readers to pass
  copies along in every issue.
• Put a tell-a-friend form on your Web site.
• Use autoresponders to stay in touch with your prospects and
  customers. Give tem unexpected bonuses that they can pass on to
  others.
• Get as much media coverage as possible by sending press
  releases regularly.
• Enter into joint ventures with people who share your target
  market and cross-pollinate your mailing lists while you each
  endorse the other.
• Submit articles to article banks and your name will be seen
  over and over again when the articles are used in newsletters and
  placed on different Web sites.
• Create affiliate programs for your products and services. Let
  others promote you to their networks.
• Write an e-book that you give away and allow others to give
  away or sell, if they wish, as long as they do not alter it.
  Naturally, your marketing message will be front and center.

Bottom Line: If you want your success to be outrageous, make sure your message is contagious.

Leni Chauvin, The Client Attraction Coach,

Tags: business, market, Marketing, network, networking, tips, viral marketingbusiness, market, Marketing, network, networking, tips, viral marketing

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