entrepreneurial business
The Entrepreneurial Mind
- We've Moved
The Entrepreneurial Mind has moved. Nothing has changed other than our address. After almost five years of blogging we had started to outfgrow our old digs. So decided it was time to make a move. It is the same blog... - VCs Have Regional Flavors
When first entering into the world of VC funding entrepreneurs often overlook in the importance of understand the local "flavor" of VCs. VCs tend to be more geographic in their investing -- they tend to favor deals closer to home.... - Entrepreneurship as Tool to End World Poverty
The Social Equity Venture Fund (SEVEN), just launched a competition to develop new indicators and models for investment in emerging market small and medium-sized enterprises. The competition is open to everyone, and is offering $50,000 in funds awarded for the... - So Why the Long Face, Professor?
For many years I have been the optimist. The enthusiasm that I experienced in my daily interactions with entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs was contagious. The data that was showing a shift to an entrepreneurial economy gave me so much hope... - Small Business Owners Are Hunkering Down
I have been writing my advice to entrepreneurs on what they need to do to weather the current and near future economic storms. But just what are they all actually doing? A new poll from NFIB offers some insight. Here... - Venture Capital Going to Shore Up Later Stage Businesses
One of the best barometers of the economy is the behavior of venture capitalists and angel investors. The stage of investment is one key to follow. When they shift to later stage deals as they have the past few years,... - Your Business Should Match Your Lifestyle
My column in this week's Tennessean: When people use the term "lifestyle business," they usually are referring to something small and even part time. I would argue that every business should be viewed as a lifestyle business. If you choose... - The Two V's of the Good Entrepreneur
Many of you know about the Four P's that make up a marketing strategy -- product, price, promotion, and place. Those of you who read this blog regularly or have had me in class also know about the Three M's... - Leadership and Failure
Over the years I have become more comfortable using my missteps and failures as lessons and examples for my students. Of course, they seem to love to hear the success stories. But they need to learn that hardship, challenge and... - Inflation Heats Up
The inflation news released today is not good news. We had a 1.1% increase in the CPI in just the past month, according to a report released today by the US Department of Labor. This is the kind of double... - So Many Good Blogs, So Little Time
Ben Cunningham sent along a link to a great blog called Church of the Customer that focuses on building customer relationships. Nothing could be more important in these uncertain economic times. The blog authors offer a variety of helpful inform... - Pay Attention to Changing Preferences
Once again Walmart has its finger on the pulse of American consumers. Just when inflation is kicking in and the economy softens they are seeing strong growth. How? They are listening to the customer. They are marketing aggressively and focusing... - Seller's Remorse
When we were in the process of selling our business our attorney did a wonderful job of preparing us for much of what was ahead of us. One of the things he mentioned more than once was that we should... - Entrepreneurial Principles for Principals
I am winding up a short trip to Baton Rouge, LA. Yesterday I conducted a workshop on how entrepreneurial practices and principles can be applied to educational organizations to a group of aspiring school principals. It is a pilot program... - What, Me Worry? Inflation and Debt
My post yesterday got a comment questioning why business owners are so worried about inflation and its affect on debt. During periods of high inflation, many small business cannot keep pace with higher costs. Their profit margins will shrink as...