A few things that will change your business forever

Do you  believe that you and your organization is doing as well as it should be doing today? Well, if you do, then congratulations and you need read no further. You have made it, you are at the summit and need waste no more of your time reading what I have to say.

However, as a small business owner, entrepreneur or investors of today  you feel there is void in your performance and expectations then I have a short list of things for you to do. Buckle up, the list is short but the ride is fast and full of curves.

Changes the rules that made you successful.

What worked for you yesterday probably no longer works today. Stop relying on behaviors that seemed to have worked for years. Your behavior that worked for years may well be the biggest obstacle you face. If you don’t continually look for new methods to solve old problems you will only be increasing your stress level. Don’t look for new tactics, implement them.

Stop being patient, do it now.

Spend some time thinking about what you want to do then do it. At the most, let an idea percolate no more than 24 hours before you implement otherwise you will be drinking day old coffee.

Don’t let industry standards get into your way.

Most business analysts would agree that a five per cent year over year growth pattern would be excellent. Don’t believe it. Plan for a doubling, tripling or even ten fold increase in your business this year. Don’t compete, lead the field.

Pray for failure.

Because if you don’t fail, you are not taking enough risk. Without sufficient risk, there is only mediocre success. Don’t be mediocre, there are plenty of those businesses today. If you don’t fail you are not at your personal precipice.

Be afraid, be very afraid.

Fear is  probably the best of all motivations. Don’t let it paralyze you, rather, let it energize you, propel you and get you over obstacles that you would otherwise “rationalize” to failure. Do not accept NOT achieving your goals. Keep your eyes open and your brain engaged.

Published Thursday, September 15, 2011

Two Very Important Events

Two very important events took place this week. One in Cairo, Egypt and the other in Washington, DC. The lesson of Egypt is simple. Democracy must arise from the people who are being governed (or suppressed, if you prefer) It cannot be imposed by an outside government no matter how much capital is expended. I heard it quoted over and over during the run up of Mubarak's departure, that the Egyptian Army received $1.3 billion dollars in aid from the U.S. annually. I looked up what the U.S. is currently spending supporting the invasions into  Iraq and Afghanistan. It is $2 billion a week, plus countless lives.  Additionally, and as a footnote, the insurrection in Cairo lasted approximately 18 days. Our military interventions in the Middle East are in their second decade.  Lesson learned? Probably not.

Secondly, and with more direct impact on the lives of middle Americans in the future, was the Obama administration's long anticipated announcement that they were recommending the curtailing and eventual elimination of governmental support for both Fannie  Mae and Freddie Mac. Since this is ostensibly a blog dedicated to progressive real estate matters, you would  think that this would  have been met with a howl from the left. To my ear, there is hardly even been a whine. This popular government support dates back to the (first) Great Depression and has helped, literally millions, of Americans to purchase homes. By working with private lenders, repurchasing 30 year mortgages and resupplying capital to the banks to lend again, these popular (until recently) programs allowed the government to backstop loans to private citizens by insuring or or guaranteeing the lender's investment. In their place, the administration is suggesting an influx of private capital and getting the government out of the business of financial lending to homeowners.

What does this mean, really? It means borrowing money for a home will become more expensive and hence will preclude those who have less than pristine FICO scores and or a questionable source of income will not receive loans...For two generations the U.S. government actively encouraged home ownership, it now looks as if that commitment is winding down and the policy will shift towards budget reduction and investment ownership. More on this to come.