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Better Your Business by Bettering Yourself

Do you know everything there is to know about your product and its market? Those under that impression may want to consider the following questions:

  • What are competitors doing differently that is working?
  • How are customers actually using your product?
  • What is the future application of your product(s)?
  • Will customers’ needs evolve with time?
  • What is the future market for this product?
  • If there is no future market, what product would bemost appropriate to take its place?

Founders of start-up companies often have to work long hours and wear many different hats, such as CEO, manager, accountant and social media expert. Although a substantial amount of research usually goes on during the early phases of a new business, it can taper off at a significant pace once success hits. Understandably, it can sometimes feel as though the time for research simply is not there.

Research does not have to be a daily or even weekly event. Try setting aside time once or twice a month to review the most up-to-date information on certain topics. If you do not know where to start, try revisiting some of the questions above.

The world is far from stagnant, and changing business practices and customer needs and wants can evolve at a surprising rate in an online arena. Those who are under the impression that they already know everything that is necessary to keep a business up and running could most likely benefit from following the lead of other individuals who acknowledge that there is almost always something new to be learned in order to truly thrive in a competitive, online world.

Paths to Finding a Purpose Can Be as Unique as Fingerprints

It is one thing to discuss what role a person’s purpose should play in a successful business, but it is another to actually witness a successful entrepreneur put those words into action.

The Next Web’s founder, Boriz Veldhuijzen van Zanten, was, unfortunately, mislabeled as a stupid or lazy student when he was young. In reality, he was simply suffering from dyslexia. Even after he was diagnosed, he struggled in school and felt as though he never truly belonged. With his parent’s blessing to drop out of high school, van Zanten decided to follow his passion for juggling to circus school. Instead of floundering behind the material as he had in traditional school, he excelled. His bravery to follow his passion led to a college degree cum laude and a thriving Internet business.

For another man, being an entrepreneur was his purpose. Even as a small child, Edward Wimmer understood how to make money from doing what he loved — creating new business ventures. Eventually,his love of running and of entrepreneurship met face-to-face, and he and his father co-founded RoadID. Both father and son found a much deeper purpose through the creation of this company. They discovered a passion to help save lives.

Each individual on this Earth is wonderfully unique in his or her own way, and the path to discovering a true purpose will be different for everyone. For some, a passion in life might set them on an exciting road to a successful business. Others might think that they already understand their purpose, but time spent behind the helm of a business could reveal that they were meant for something even greater.

Yes, You CAN Be Productive on Facebook

Just because social media use is widespread does not mean that most users are proficient at using it to their advantage. Of course, the vast majority of Facebook and Twitter users are not setting out to build a platform or promote a product, so this is not exactly a skill that most people pick up by sharing vacation plans or liking a picture of a friend’s baby.

What business owners should strive to do is get those same users engaging with the content of their business’s page, and not just the highly addictive Facebook games. Those who have already attempted to establish a successful business social media page know that reaching new and existing customers takes much more work than posting a few links back to the company website. Before throwing in the towel, try some of these tips to help grow your social media presence.

  • Give customers a platform to communicate by postingcontent that encourages them to reply or share information of their own. Engaging with those who actually use your product or service will provide further insight into the needs and wants of your customers.
  • Use that information to stay relevant. Tie your product, blog post, website or business’s purpose into more of the posts that your social media fans actually want to see. Remember, there is no conversation without content. Be sure to post regularly!
  • Try not to let social media take over your life. Entrepreneurs do not need hours on end to be productive but rather allotted periods of time devoted to certain tasks.

In the online world, social media is practically a way of life. In order to grow your business to its full potential, a bit of social media savvy can be precisely what you need.

Just Enough Motivation To Get Through The Day

Do you ever have a hard time finishing tasks? Do you find yourself checking Twitter, scrolling through the Facebook newsfeed or shopping online instead of completing your work in a timely manner? We live in a world of distraction and constant connectivity. A thousand voices clamor for our attention at all times, making it quite difficult to shut down the extra noise and simply focus on the task at hand.

Why is it so difficult to find the motivation to buckle down and finish work? A lack of motivation can be related to many things–exhaustion, stress, personal issues unrelated to work or a lack of self discipline. In fact, a healthy dose of self discipline can be the perfect solution for those who cannot focus. But, where does it come from? Fortunately, cultivating self discipline is an art form of sorts, and is one that can be developed and perfected with practice. If you need to develop better habits for your work day, consider some of the following practices:

  • Set a specific time every day to check email and browse social media
  • Set a timer for each task that needs to completed, challenge yourself to “beat the clock”
  • Exit out of your Internet browser and only open for work-related needs
  • Schedule a half-hour in the middle of the day to make phone calls, browse the internet and mentally regroup
  • Stop making excuses for wasting time

With a little practice, it is possible to dig deep and muster up the motivation needed to finish that project, that blog or whatever it is that requires your attention–or maybe even find just enough motivation to make it through the day.