The failure
by many
businesses
to keep up
with their
customers’
needs
created an
unprecedented
opportunity
for
entrepreneurs.
When we look
closer at what happened in 2008, with the
benefit of 20/20 hindsight, we see the
decline in consumer purchasing and the
resultant unemployment were not caused by a
traditional economic slowdown. They were
both caused by the inability of many
businesses from 1999 to 2008 to keep up with
their customers in an expanding economy by
providing new or improved products and
services. This caused consumers from 1999 to
2008 to spend money on the same products and
services, bidding up the prices among
themselves beyond their true value, rather
than spending money on things like wellness,
better cars or better housing that would
improve their lives.
More
significantly, this failure by many
businesses to keep up with their customers’
needs created an unprecedented opportunity
today for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs
(those who use entrepreneurial skills within
an existing organization) to start new
businesses that provide real value-added
products and services to consumers and
businesses. There was already a backlog of
what I term Ready-to-be-Implemented
Technological advances (RITs) before the
great crash of 2008, and the need to
implement them and retool our economy is now
greater than ever.
What
Happened from 1999 to 2008
Between 1999 and 2008, U.S. economic output,
as measured by gross domestic product,
increased by a whopping 65 percent, from
$8.7 trillion to $14.3 trillion. Meanwhile,
the U.S. population during this same period
increased by only 10 percent, from 273
million to 303 million. This resulted in an
enormous increase in consumer disposable
income from wages and increasing investment
income.
Traditionally, when economic output
increases faster than population, consumer
lifestyle improves. Consumers purchase more
and better automobiles, new electronics like
cell phones and personal computers, and
larger and better homes. But with the
exception of a few bright spots, such as the
more than $500 billion wellness industry,
consumer lifestyle did not improve much in
the decade before the great crash of 2008.
The average
and median price of a single-family home
rose from $180,000 in 1999 to $300,000 in
2008—for essentially the same house except
it was nine years older with an outdated
kitchen. The average home size increased
steadily from 1,200 square feet in 1960 to
2,300 square feet in 2001. Each year, houses
included more useful features, such as
built-in air conditioning or better
insulation, but size and quality stagnated
from 2001 to 2008 when only the price
increased.
The average
price of a new automobile in the United
States rose 40 percent, from about $20,000
in 1999 to $28,000 in 2008, without any
significant increase in quality, performance
or features. In the all-important area of
fuel efficiency, performance actually
declined from 17 to 16 miles per gallon in
these years, after having increased
consistently every year before 1998 from 12
mpg in 1975 to 17 mpg in 1997.
I vividly
remember each new automobile my father
bought in the 1960s and why it was superior
to the car it replaced. Air conditioning,
automatic transmission, power windows, seat
belts—the list goes on and on for the
compelling new features that came out with
each model year. Or, if you didn’t purchase
a new car for a new feature, you purchased a
new car because it cost less—it actually
saved you money over the cost of maintaining
your existing vehicle.
Today, there
hasn’t been a new feature introduced in
years that makes a compelling reason to
purchase a new car. Detroit killed its own
business by failing to make cars that
consumers wanted for either utility or
economic reasons. For example, if Detroit
had offered a 100-mpg car in the summer of
2008 when gas hit $5 a gallon, there may
never have been a crash, due to tens of
millions of consumers trading in their cars
for more environmentally friendly and
fuel-efficient models.
As we
assimilate the events that led to the great
crash of 2008, as well as where we are now,
it’s clear there is no better time to step
up and be the entrepreneur or intrapreneur
who has enough vision and courage to give
consumers what they really want: innovation.
How do you do this? Consider these
strategies:
Master
your industry.
Learn as much as
you can about
your industry.
As you learn
more, your
functional
skills will
improve and you
will build a
network, adding
value to your
new idea.
Fix the
world.
Notice the
problems your
customers have
and fix them in
a new way or in
a less expensive
way than your
competitors.
Focus on
the solution.
Instead of
focusing on the
struggling
economy, focus
on ingenuity.
How can you
separate
yourself from
the crowd?
Hold on
to your dream.
Don’t let past
failures or dire
economic
forecasts make
you a pessimist.
Keep your
youthful dreams
alive and create
your own
opportunities.
Paul Zane
Pilzer (www.paulzanepilzer.
com) has
served as an
economic advisor
to two
presidents and
is the
best-selling
author of many
books, including
Unlimited
Wealth, The
Wellness
Revolution
and The
Next
Millionaires.
Pilzer has
started several
entrepreneurial
companies,
becoming a
millionaire
before age 26.
His new audio
program,
The
Entrepreneurial
Challenge,
offers a
template to find
your
entrepreneurial
destiny and 10
business plans
to help you
succeed in
today’s market.
http://www.successmagazine.com/entrepreneurs-start-your-engines/PARAMS/article/781
Dare to
Dream Again
Written
by
Chris Widener
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” —Teddy Roosevelt
Do you remember when you were a child and no dream seemed too big? Some of us thought we would walk on the moon; some dreamed of riding with Roy Rogers; others imagined stepping to the plate in a big-league game. Every one of us, when we were young, had a common trait—we were dreamers. The world hadn’t gotten to us yet to show us that we couldn’t possibly achieve what our hearts longed for. And we were still years from realizing that, in some cases, we weren’t built for achieving our dream.
Eventually, we started to let our dreams die. People began to tell us that we couldn’t do the things we wanted. It was impossible. Responsible people don’t pursue their dreams. Settle down, get a job, be dependable. Take care of business, live the mundane, be content.
Do you know what I say to that? Hooey!
It is time to dream again!
Why? Here are just a few reasons:
-
Avoiding regret. The facts are in, and someday we will all lie on our deathbed, looking back through our lives. We will undoubtedly think about what we wished we had done or accomplished. I for one don’t want to regret what could have been, what should have been. So I am deciding today to pursue my dreams.
-
Making the world a better place. All of the great accomplishments that have ever happened began with a person who had a dream. Somebody rebuffed the naysayers and said to himself or herself, “This can be done, and I am the one who will do it.” And in many instances they changed the world for the better.
-
Personal and family fulfillment. Stepping up and pursuing your dream rekindles that passion and zeal that everyone has the capacity for and lets us experience fulfillment. Having a purpose puts the zip in our step and the zing in our emotions!
- Leaving a legacy. How will your children remember you? As one who sought all that life had to offer, using your gifts and talents to their fullest extent, leading the family with a zest for life, or as an overweight couch potato who could have been? Our children need to see that we dream; that we search for something better. They in turn will do the same!
So where do we start? Here are some ideas:
- Reconnect with your dream. Set aside some time to let yourself dream. What have you placed on the backburner in order to live the status quo?
- Decide that you will do it. This may seem elementary, but many people never decide and commit fully to their dream. They simply keep “thinking” about it.
- Tell others that you are going to do it. This puts you on record as to what you are dreaming about. It makes you accountable.
- Develop a step-by-step plan. This is absolutely essential. You must sit down and write out a few things:
- A timeline. How long will it take to the end?
- Action steps. Point-by-point what you will do and when you will do them.
- Resources you will need to draw from. What will it take? Who will need to be involved for help or advice?
- An evaluation tool. You need to evaluate from time to time whether you are progressing or not.
- A celebration. Yep, when you are done you should already have planned what you will do to celebrate. Make it big!
I have found that there is no better time than now. So, set aside some time today to get started on your dream. Follow the action plan and set your sights for the top of the mountain! You will be glad you did!
Your Personal
Best: Montel
Williams
The Power of
Choice
At 3 a.m., most people,
even most highly
successful people, are
deep in sleep, resting
for the next challenging
day. Not Montel
Williams. The Daytime
Emmy-winning talk show
host stays awake and
alert late into the
night, averaging only
four hours of sleep. For
him, maximizing every
hour of every day is a
necessity. He oversees
five businesses, a
charitable foundation
and a new syndicated
radio talk show, with
plans for new ventures
in the works. All of
this while battling
multiple sclerosis, a
disease that keeps him
in almost constant pain.
Williams admits he keeps
busy to distract himself
from health issues, but
says the rush he gets
from multitasking is
what drives him. “I hate
to say it like this, but
I’m like a crack addict
with [my companies],” he
says. “I’m an
information junkie.”
Williams’ new radio
show, Montel Across
America, debuted on
Air America Media in
April. Stations have
been adding his show
ever since, helping
thrust Williams back
into the American
consciousness, a fact
that is essential to the
viability of his other
ventures.
Read more:
http://www.successmagazine.com/your-personal-best-montel-williams/PARAMS/article/762
Shoot for the Moon – Les
Brown
Because even if you
miss, you’ll land among
the stars.
Speaker and author Les
Brown says that: “In
order to do something
you’ve never done,
you’ve got to become
someone you’ve never
been. I think that all
of us have great
potential within us, but
greatness is a choice;
it’s not our destiny.
And in the pursuit of
our dreams we are
introduced to trials,
failures and
disappointments, which
take us to the door of
discovery and
greatness.” Brown says
most people fail in life
not because they aim too
high and miss. “Most
people fail because they
aim too low and hit. And
many don’t aim at all.”
Life sometimes throws us
curveballs, but Brown
says these occasions
provide opportunities.
“Had I not lost my job
in broadcasting as a
disc jockey, I would
have never run for the
Ohio Legislature. I
would have never pursued
that goal and dream of
becoming a talk show
host. I would have never
seen myself as an
individual who could
make a difference in the
community. My advice to
all is to shoot for the
moon, because even if
you miss, you’ll land
among the stars.”
Read more:
http://www.successmagazine.com/shoot-for-the-moon/PARAMS/article/750
A Wonderful Life –
Michael J. Fox
Michael
J.
Fox,
the
incurable
optimist
See
Your
Glass
Half
Full
Michael
J.
Fox
says
he
an
incurable
optimist,
even
though
he
has
faced
a
daily
battle
with
Parkinson’s
disease
since
1991.
How
does
he
maintain
such
infectious
enthusiasm?
Smile
and
look
up.
Every
morning,
Michael
J.
Fox
passes
a
full-length
mirror
as
he
makes
his
way
to
greet
his
family.
“This
reflected
version
of
myself,
wet,
shaking,
rumpled,
pinched,
and
slightly
stooped,
would
be
alarming
were
it
not
for
the
self-satisfied
expression
pasted
across
my
face,”
he
writes
in
Always
Looking
Up:
The
Adventures
of
an
Incurable
Optimist.
“I
would
ask
the
obvious
question,
‘What
are
you
smiling
about?’
but
I
already
know
the
answer:
It
just
gets
better
from
here.”
Take
control.
“The
only
unavailable
choice
was
whether
or
not
to
have
Parkinson’s.
Everything
else
was
up
to
me.”
Find
opportunity
in
adversity.
The
latest
book
title,
Always
Looking
Up,
is
on
one
level
“a
short
joke,”
writes
Fox,
who
stands
a
fraction
of
an
inch
shorter
than
5-feet-5.
His
height
never
bothered
him
much,
though,
and
probably
contributed
to a
“certain
mental
toughness,”
he
says.
“I’ve
made
the
most
of
the
head
start
one
gains
from
being
underestimated.”
Live
in
the
moment.
In
the
spring
of
1994,
as
he
began
to
accept
Parkinson’s
disease,
Fox
began
to
live
in
and
enjoy
the
moment.
“Yesterday’s
losses
and
tomorrow’s
trials
were
no
longer
the
only
poles
of
my
existence,”
he
writes
in
Lucky
Man.
Be
open
to
possibilities.
“People
say,
‘How
do
you
achieve
this?’
And
you
hear,
‘Just
keep
your
head
down,’
”
Fox
says
in a
Good
Housekeeping
interview.
“But
I
find
the
opposite
is
true:
Keep
your
head
up.”
Read
more:
http://www.successmagazine.com/a-wonderful-life/PARAMS/article/745
As A Man Thinketh
Read
One
of
the
Top
Ten
Books
of
All
Time
for
FREE
and
Find
Out
the
Real
Meaning
of -
You
Become
What
You
Think
About.
As
A
Man
Thinketh
is
partly
responsible
for
the
creation
of
the
entire
personal
development
industry.
Most
contemporary
PD
authors
and
teachers
credit
this
little
book
for
providing
foundation
to
their
principles.
It
is a
set
of
philosophical
musings
on
the
power
of
our
thoughts.
Earl
Nightingale,
widely
regarded
as
the
father
of
modern
day
personal
development,
in
his
best-selling
recording,
called
the
ideas
in
this
book,
“The
Strangest
Secret”.
The
secret,
he
said,
is
“we
become
what
we
think
about”.
What others say about - As A Man Thinketh
“I have personally read As a Man Thinketh over 25 times. Timeless material.” - Mark Victor Hansen, co-author, the Chicken Soup books“I read As a Man Thinketh once a year for over 15 years when I was in my 20s and 30s.” – Paul J. Meyer, recognized as one of the leading self-improvement authors of all time
“Some books are so good and meaningful that you read them again and again. Primarily because you know the substance and content is so important that you need to be reminded of what it has to say. As A Man Thinketh, by James Allen is just such a book.” – Book Review, Michigan Chronicle
“Beyond the New Testament, the Old Testament and other books documenting the beliefs of the greatest religions of the world, there is one little book that impacted my life dramatically during my formative teenage years. The book is As A Man Thinketh, the most widely acclaimed…book written by James Allen, who might be likened to the Norman Vincent Peale or Earl Nightingale of the late 1800’s.” – Denis Waitley, author of The Psychology of Winning, the best selling audio program in the world |
Get
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Click
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