All Articles Tagged "starting your own business"
Starting a Business but Keeping a Job
(Daily Finance) — When Dan Nainan was a senior engineer with Intel Corporation(INTC),he traveled the world with CEO Andy Grove doing technical demonstrations on stage at events. But he was nervous about speaking in front of crowds, so he took a comedy class to help himself get over his fears. Then, the comedy thing took off. Today, he’s a professional comedian who has performed at three presidential inaugural events and recently at the Kennedy Center. But in this economy, his corporate bookings have fallen off, and he’s had to turn back to technology. “I had to do something else to maintain my level of income,” says Nainan who says he charges $75 an hour for computer consulting, which brings in about $1,500 a month. ”Fortunately, my comedy shows require me to fly places, mostly on weekends, and perform for no more than one hour, so I have a fair amount of free time during the week to pursue this second job, says Nainan.
Entrepreneurship Doesn’t Have to Be Risky Business
(Black Enterprise) — It is a commonly accepted premise that entrepreneurship is risky. This idea is based on an old approach to entrepreneurship. The kind where people risked their savings, health insurance and nearly everything they had to become a successful business owner, and for most people it simply didn’t work out. Things have changed.
What You Should Consider Before Starting Your Own Business
You’re tired of your boss and suddenly realize that you don’t want to work for ‘the man’ the remainder of your life. You wish your side hustles could serve as a primary source of income and prefer not to let your talents go to waste. Well, you’re not alone. Millions of Americans are starting their own businesses in spite of a less than ideal economy. Some fail while others succeed.
So what’s the difference in those that fail and succeed? Well, actually there is no guaranteed formula for success when it comes to launching your own business; but there are a few things you can do to put you on the right track. I consider them the three P’s: patience, planning, and perseverance. Even still, before you decide to give your boss the deuces, make sure you’ve considered these six things.
How Four Jewelry Designers Cultivated Their Home Based Businesses
by Demetria Irwin
Making a living from selling handmade items crafted at home conjures up images of early 20th century women sewing dresses, slacks, aprons and other goods for their fellow working class neighbors. In today’s world of dollar stores and outsourced labor that allows for rock bottom prices at nationwide retailers, there doesn’t seem to be a space for those who seek to earn a living making items that can be found anywhere and at lower prices.
However, the women behind these four handmade jewelry businesses show how to make a home-based business model work. They have a couple things in common. They all rely on the internet for free marketing and they all have three digit numbers for the amount of items sold per month. Beyond that, they each offer something unique and that is the key to having a successful home-based business. Sure, you can get earrings from anywhere, but do they look like this?
Business Name: Sarenzo Beads
Founder: Sarah Elliot
Day Job: Cosmetology Student
Wares: Earrings, Bracelets, Hair Accessories
Price Range: $10-$30
Business Fact: Sarenzo Beads sold 500 items at an arts and crafts show in Baltimore.
Advice to Aspiring Entrepreneurs:
“Start small. Have a $5 or $10 per paycheck habit. Put that money towards buying supplies every week and stick to your budget. You’ll start to build your business on those $10 trips. You’re not breaking the bank and it gives you the opportunity to see if it’s for you.”
The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention. Sometimes, boredom can be that motherly figure too. While living in a semi-rural Virginia community nine years ago, Elliot and her husband would make frequent trips to the area’s only sign of life, a Walmart, to buy boredom busting products like puzzles and games. One day she picked up a beading kit and, not too long after that, Sarenzo Beads was born.
It started out small and simple. Elliot and her husband (the name Sarenzo is a mash-up of Sarah and Lorenzo) would make beaded earrings and their friends and co-workers would buy them. As demand grew and they started getting orders from people they didn’t know personally, they expanded the line, which now includes bracelets and most recently hair accessories. “Wood is my signature. I sell a lot of wood pieces. My hair ties are probably my most popular item. They are small, durable and easy to use,” said Elliot.
In 2009, Elliot was able to get a website designed for her in exchange for a few custom pieces. Since then, her website, along with her Twitter account and arts & crafts shows are her main channels for marketing and selling. “Shows have been great for us, but they do take a lot of preparation,” she said. “If I sell five of something online, I might sell a couple hundred of that same thing at a show. I have to do my research, know what kind of buyers will likely be there and make things they’ll like,” Elliot said of her recent decision to begin selling her work at special fairs and events.
Though Elliot is a cosmetology student and her husband is in culinary school and their son and daughter ages seven and six are both high-functioning autistic children, Sarenzo Beads still manages to produce between 150 to 200 pieces per month on average. Everything is done by hand out of the Elliots’ home in Virginia. Already a third Elliot is helping out. Their daughter designed the autism earrings on the site, which are silver circles with a puzzle piece in the middle. A portion of the proceeds from those sales as well as the sales from an upcoming line from her “Baby Girl” (as her mother affectionately calls her) are donated to the classroom that handles autistic children in her area to help them with supplies.
Elliot says she is able to offer her handmade work for such low prices because she buys in bulk whenever possible and she recycles. If an item doesn’t sell after a couple months, she takes it apart and uses the parts to make a new piece.
Jewelry is not the final stop for the now 31-year-old. Elliot–who was accepted to the prestigious Fashion Institute of Technology in New York years ago, but didn’t go because her parents forbade it—has been working on a line of pocketbooks and she just bought a sewing machine.
So You Want to Be Your Own Boss…
(Entrepreneurs) — If you want to start a business but don’t know where to start, don’t worry–you are not alone. In fact, given the new economic reality of our time, more people than ever before have found the “job” they thought was waiting for them doesn’t exist. Others have come to the conclusion that they would rather create work they love, constructed to fit with their own life goals. No matter what the motivation is to be your own boss, you can start today.
African-American Business: Resources To Help You Grow
There are a variety of small business resources available that have been developed specifically to help African-Americans start and operate small businesses. African-American is defined here as persons living in the United States who are of African ancestry. Following are some resources available for African-Americans who run or want to run a small business.
Starting Your Own Business: African-American Business
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| The most common serious mistake made in business is not picking the right one to begin with. This session will provide you with important evaluation techniques. | |
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Women in Business
PRESS RELEASE – June 30, 2010): In an effort to give women business owners and women working in the field of business the publicity they deserve, WomenOnBusiness.com has launched a new Business Women News Press Release Submission feature.
The new Business Women News Press Release Submission feature allows any woman working in the business world to submit a press release publicizing their own news or news about their businesses. This is a free feature and registration is not required to submit a press release at http://www.womenonbusiness.com/submit-a-press-release/.
Press releases submitted to WomenOnBusiness.com are published in the new Business Women News section of the site: http://www.womenonbusiness.com/category/press-releases/.
“The new Business Women News Press Release Submission feature on WomenOnBusiness.com enables women to share the amazing work that they’re doing across the social Web,” explains WomenOnBusiness.com owner Susan Gunelius. “It’s a free feature that is offered for the sole purpose of helping women establish their roles as thought leaders and contributing members of the business world.”
About WomenOnBusiness.com
WomenOnBusiness.com is one of the leading blogs for women working in the field of business. The site has been named a finalist in the 2009 Stevie Awards for Women in Business in the category of Best Blog, and it has been named one of the top 100 websites for women by Forbes.com and one of the top 20 social media websites by women by Forbes.com. WomenOnBusiness.com was launched in 2007 by author and marketing professional Susan Gunelius who owns KeySplash Creative, Inc., a full-service marketing communications provider.
Starting Your Own Business
Barbara Kerbel, who runs a corporate communications business based in Great Neck, N,Y., has been a solopreneur for more than a decade. She started her business after a successful career as a vice president of corporate communications for a publicly-held company, a columnist for Newsday, and a weekly newspaper journalist. In this installment of our interview with Barbara on how to grow and manage a successful freelance marketing business, she address how to work with clients.
African-American Female: Staring Their Own Businesses
(CBS) At age 40, Dawn Fitch is part of a fast growing movement in America – black women who are launching their own businesses.
“There is another choice beside corporate America,” said Fitch, president of Pooka Pure & Simple. “You can start your own business from something that you may love or a passion that you have.”
Between 2002 and 2008, the number of firms owned by African American women increased by 19 percent – twice as fast as all other firms, according to the Center for Women’s Business Research. And they generated $29 billion in sales nationwide.
