We all know there is no one right way to start your business — certainly no failsafe blueprint to success. However, there are several common pitfalls that unnecessarily trip up many entrepreneurs on their road to success, a few of which I fell victim to myself while founding Educents.

Now, there is value in learning from your mistakes but here are some rookie mistakes that don’t need to be made. Trust me, we all make plenty of completely original mistakes on our own that we can learn from.

1. Know when to stop bootstrapping.

In the beginning it’s fun and exciting to do everything yourself but there will come a point when cutting corners and sleeping under your desk (yes, I did sleep under my desk at times) is counterproductive. Decide which tasks you’re going to outsource, find reliable people for the handoff and get a little sleep.

At first, we tried cutting corners with our programming and got a subpar product. When we eventually invested in a more quality service, we saw huge returns. Consider hiring a graphic designer, a bookkeeper or an office manager. Think hard about where your time is best spent.

2. Don’t go it alone.

Grab a co-founder, a like-minded friend or find a group of fellow entrepreneurs that meet regularly. It is almost impossible to maintain clear focus and an intelligible vision after too many late nights at the office. You’ll need someone to bounce ideas around ideas with, someone to give you a different perspective and someone who will give support when you feel like you’ve hit the end of the road.

There have been countless times when my co-founder has stepped in when my brain is fried, and vice-versa. You’ll need to identify the people who will support you early on if you want to succeed.

3. Don’t let expectations snow you under.

Let people know what you need from them and what they can expect from you. Your spouse, your family, your mentor — everyone expects something from you. Make sure you’re managing those expectations. I once told my Mom, “I’ll be at the family reunion in June, but I might not leave my office until then.” It was April. Make sure to manage expectations concerning your availability.

Related: Learn to Survive Setbacks

This is particularly important for women in leadership. There are strong opinions out there about how women should conduct themselves at work and in their personal lives. Make sure you’re crafting your own narrative and have it on repeat — expectations are set and then met. Be clear about who you are, what you’re standing for and why you’re standing for it (and if you’re going to make that family reunion).

4. Don’t assume your team “gets it.”

As a founder, you have to be the cheerleader, the HR lead, the bad guy and sometimes the janitor. Having a team that is talented and understands the bigger picture will help push your goals and objectives into motion.

Make sure you’re playing your part in helping them “get it.” It’s important to convey your passion for what you’re doing. My co-founder and I spend a lot of time talking about the educators who benefit from Educents, even sharing love mail on a regular basis so the team can celebrate our impact. That kind of transparency inspires and aligns the team to our vision.

We also prep our teams when a hard week is coming. If they know we’re going to be out of the office or particularly stressed, they step up in really extraordinary ways.

5. Don’t underestimate how long the road can be.

Every time I think, “six months from now” I am gravely mistaken. Companies are not born overnight. It takes months, maybe years, of hard work to get off the ground. When you think the long nights are over, something else will come along that’s worth staying up for.

This also applies to your salary (sadly). I had some pretty grand ideas about how fast I was going to get a return on the investment I made in my education when I got my MBA. Educents became successful quickly but when we began making money, we invested it back into the company. Hopefully, we’ll have the fancy cars in retirement.

You may end up stepping on one of these entrepreneurial landmines. When you recognize that “thing” just isn’t working, find a way to recover. You are going to make mistakes, lots of them, but find a way to make them work for you instead of against you. Then write your own list of rookie mistakes.

Source: Entrepreneur

O conteúdo Rookie Mistakes Most Entrepreneurs Make aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Carlos Slim said current retirement ages come from a time of lower life expectancies, and should rise to 70 or 75.

Mexican billionaire tycoon, Carlos Slim, has called for the introduction of a three-day working week, offset by longer hours and a later retirement, as a way to improve people’s quality of life and create a more productive labour force.

Slim made the comments when speaking to a business conference in Paraguay, suggesting that the workforce could be spread over a full week, with employees working up to 10 or 11 hours a day.

“With three work days a week, we would have more time to relax; for quality of life,” the Financial Times reports Slim saying.

The business conference, Growing Together – States and Enterprises, was held in Asuncion and was attended by business and political leaders from across Latin America.

“Having four days [off] would be very important to generate new entertainment activities and other ways of being occupied,” Slim said. He said current retirement ages come from a time of lower life expectancies, and should rise to 70 or 75.

Slim – routinely identified as one of the two richest people in the world – is the CEO of Telmex, a fixed phone line communications company which recently offered its employees a new form of contract.

Telmex employees who joined in their teens can access early retirement, and anyone who wants to work beyond retirement can do so at full pay but a reduced load of four days a week.

Slim, who is also the head of mining company Minera Frisco, is estimated to have a personal net worth of $80bn – around the same as Bill Gates.

Some small companies in Australia have instigated a four-day week flexible workplace policy, and advocates cite improvements in employee health and environmental impact as possible benefits.

Source: The Guardian

O conteúdo Three-day Working Week to Improve Quality of Life aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Standard interview questions are generally boring and don’t always reveal very much about the person you’re interviewing. When you’re talking to a candidate, you want to ask great questions–they’re more likely to engage and you’re more likely to learn important information.

So, we asked entrepreneurs in the community for the best questions that they thought were not only interesting and creative but also revealing. It’s hard to give canned answers to questions like these:

1. What business would you love to start?

Working at a startup requires entrepreneurial energy, so asking candidates about their own projects and ideas is a good way to see how enthusiastic they are about entrepreneurship.
Dharmesh Shah, Cofounder/CTO @Hubspot

2. Put them in a hackathon. What happens?

So this is not really a question, but it’s a great way to judge a candidate’s work habits and skills, as well as how they work with your team.
Jimmy Jacobson, Cofounder @Wedgies

3. What’s your proudest moment and why?

Find out where their head is and what they’re most passionate about.
Sammy Shreibati, Cofounder/CTO @SaveUp

4. Explain how the Internet works.

Having a candidate explain something like the Internet (something that nobody really thinks about), will give you insight into their on-the-spot thought process.
Borrowed from Akamai.

5. If I asked the closest person to you to describe you in one word, what would it be and why?

Forcing someone to think of just one word reveals what they think their best attribute is and shows you what they can contribute to the team.
Micah Baldwin, Cofounder @graphicly and VP of Product @Blurb

6. Ask about their life experiences.

For example, in Israel, questions revolve around a candidate’s military experience with the IDF in order to gauge how someone works on a team.
Eyal Gura, Cofounder @Zebra Medical Vision

7. What’s the worst sales experience you’ve ever had?

Shows a candidate’s ability to articulate a narrative and show intellectual honesty.
Pete Kazanjy, Cofounder @TalentBin

8. Describe one of the best/worst professional situations you’ve ever had. What made it great?

A lot of people don’t like open ended questions because they let the candidate deliver pre-scripted answers. But for me it’s all about the follow-up and drill down.
Frank Barbieri, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development @YuMeVideo, Cofounder @transpera

9. Look at what kind of phone they have. Why did you choose that phone over another one? (e.g. android vs. iOS)

Get a sense of how someone looks at products, as well as what they like and dislike about certain products.
Derek Dukes, Project Manager @Twitter and Cofounder @jetpac

10. What side projects or personal projects are you working on (doesn’t have to be for commercial purposes, but can be just for fun)?

This will give you a sense of how curious they are and how likely they are to take initiative – solve a problem they have or see. All extremely important in the startup environment.
Jessica Alter, Cofounder/CEO @FounderDating

Source : Entrepreneur.com

O conteúdo Questions to Ask a Potential Hire aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Everyone knows that leading a company is one of the toughest gigs around. Whether running a small business or a multi-national corporation, CEOs have to manage time, resources, and multiple demands while finding the time and head space to make decisions and plot strategiesthat will determine the course of their business.

Which means that they’ve developed some master systems and tricks to maximize their productivity.
So, why can’t we steal a few moves from their playbooks? Whether you aspire to run your own business or want to be more productive at your current job, check out this list of CEO-proven tips that you can apply to any facet of your life.

1. Take breaks every 90 minutes

Tony Schwartz, president of the Energy Project, suggests taking breaks every 90 minutes to maximize your productivity. The reason? Human bodies have an energy cycle that operates at 90-minute intervals throughout the day. When we’ve been working on something for an hour and a half or longer, it’s natural that our alertness levels will go down and our attention will wander or we’ll feel drowsy (or start checking Twitter or Facebook).

The counterintuitive secret to sustainable great performance is to live like a sprinter. In practice, that means working at your highest intensity in the mornings, for no more than 90 minutes at a time, and then taking a break.

So, the next time your eyes are glazing over, instead of reaching for another cup of coffee, step away from your work for a few minutes instead. You might be surprised how much you’ll get done in the long run.

2. Make yourself uninterruptable sometimes

There’s nothing more frustrating than finally getting into the zone working on a big project — and then being interrupted by a co-worker or boss who drops by your desk. Worse, research shows it can take up to 25 minutes to get back on track after an interruption.

And that’s exactly why Andrew Marsh, CEO of Fifth Column Games, has developed a system to make sure that everyone in his office can work without being interrupted. By placing a “cone of silence” on their desks, employees have a tangible symbol that conveys that they should not be disturbed unless it’s an emergency.

I use the cone of silence when I’m working on a complex project that I need to concentrate on. Being able to focus intensely without interruption is a valuable productivity tool for everyone at Fifth Column Games.

Whether you need to stay focused on intense tasks for a couple of hours a day or you’re working on a big project, using a system that informs people of this will get them into the habit of sending you an email for non-urgent tasks instead of dropping by your desk.

3. Manage your energy, not just your time

You know it’s important to budget your time wisely — but it can actually be more effective to also manage your energy. Our own CEO, The Muse co-founder Kathryn Minshew, is a fan of optimizing her workday by doing her most concentration-intensive tasks during her peak hours, those golden hours when her energy levels are at their highest. Meetings, on the other hand, are something she avoids during these hours and saves for other times in the day.

I find it’s been immensely helpful for me to pay attention to when in the day I’m most productive (what hours, under what conditions) and aggressively guard that time for focused work.

If you’re a morning person, do your most important tasks first thing and save the tedious, mindless tasks for later in the day when your energy is waning. Not sure what your peak hours are? Try energy mapping to find out and make the most of your workday.

4. Don’t be a slave to email

Gina Trapani, founder of ThinkUp, is a fan of checking email only at specific times of the day. Why? Instead of feeling that you have to respond to emails the minute they hit your inbox, you can save time and stay focused by setting a schedule for checking and responding to email (for example, once in the morning and once at the end of the day).

Shut down Outlook, turn off new email notifications on your BlackBerry, do whatever you have to do to muffle the interruption of email.

Depending on your position, this may not feel like an option — especially if your boss or colleagues rely on you for quick responses. But you may be surprised at how supportive people will be about your new productivity strategy when you explain it to them. Tim Ferriss, author ofThe Four Hour Work Week, suggests emailing colleagues to alert them to your new email schedule, explaining that the reason behind it is to increase your productivity, and asking that they call you for urgent matters. You can also set up an autoresponder with a message explaining when you’ll be checking email again and how people can get in touch with you if it’s important in the meantime.

5. Keep your emails short and sweet

CEOs don’t have time for reading novel-length emails — or writing them, either. Andrew Torba, co-founder of Kuhcoon, even goes so far as to sometimes write one word emails and suggests treating your emails as if they have the same 140-character limit of Twitter.

Challenge yourself to think critically and efficiently when connecting via email or any other form of communication.

By keeping emails short and to the point, you’ll not only save a lot of writing time, you’ll also save your co-workers a lot of reading time. If your issue is too complex for a short email, scheduling a brief (5-10 minute) phone call can be much more efficient than a lengthy back-and-forth email exchange.

6. Delegate, delegate, delegate

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by feeling that you have to do everything yourself. Delegating, however, is one of the best ways to manage your time. Passing projects off to other members of the team lightens your load and lets you focus on the projects that you do best. Entrepreneur Daniel Tan Kh takes this one step further, and advises not only delegating the tasks, but really trusting that the new owner will take full responsibility for getting them done.

Delegation is the most important fuel for productivity.

Delegating doesn’t mean trying to get out of doing your work — but if you have too much on your plate, delegating one of your tasks to another member of your team can help devote more attention to your more pressing projects. Don’t have a co-worker who can take on your task? Matt DeCelles, serial entrepreneur, suggests outsourcing your dreaded tasks to a freelancer on Fiverr.com.

Tackling your to-do list may sometimes seem impossible, but if you try making these small changes from the masters, you’ll be amazed at how much you can accomplish during your workday.

Source : Tthemuse.com

O conteúdo CEO Productivity Tips to Steal for Yourself aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Most entrepreneurs are familiar with the ridiculously high percentage of small businesses that will fail in the first couple years. The business owners who survived the odds will tell you that they didn’t achieve success on sheer passion alone. It took hard work, and in most situations, it didn’t happen over night.

After spending the last decade running my own business consulting for companies and corporations, I have witnessed it all. Here’s seven of the most common mistakes I’ve seen newbie entrepreneurs make with alarming consistency.

1. Not setting aside enough cash reserves to support yourself.

I believe that one of the reasons why so many small businesses fail within the first few years is NOT because the business model isn’t viable or the entrepreneur isn’t “good enough” to make the business work, but it’s the fact the financial ramp up time is a firm reality. Most entrepreneurs simply run out of money to support the business and/or themselves before the business is profitable enough to sustain itself.

Tip: Proactively set up a special fund intended to support yourself during the business startup phase. Be conscious of what you put into this fund as you may want to strive for an amount that can fully support you for a year or two to relieve pressure as you ramp up.

2. Using assumptions that are overly optimistic during planning.

I see so many newbie entrepreneurs fall into this trap. They have a great idea and convinced their friends and family that it’s a no brainer. They jump into the fray only to realize there were a few not-so-little details that they failed to consider or a few areas where their assumptions were overly optimistic and before they know it, that “no-brainer” business is hanging by a thread.

Be honest with yourself. Are you underestimating the time required to get the first client? Are you overestimating the demand for the product? Are you assuming zero risk by not allowing for what could go wrong?

Tip: Find three to five completely objective people (not friends or family) and specifically ask them to play devil’s advocate to you to help identify vulnerabilities and then take steps to mitigate those.

3. Not properly evaluating your business model.

Not everyone incorporates a business model into their planning. It’s so easy to get really lathered up around the concept of your business, but it’s quite another thing to put pen to paper to help you objectively evaluate your overall business model and its profit potential. The simple truth is that having a great idea is just a start – it doesn’t necessarily translate into a profitable model.

Tip: Consider SCORE or a small-business development center to evaluate the business model and offer expert advice. Their perspective could identify a more viable structure that makes better business sense than what you’ve already established.

4. Trying to do everything yourself to save money.

If you try to do EVERYTHING yourself, you’ll not only run yourself into the ground, your business will suffer, because you don’t bring sufficient expertise in every area. Your time is money. Think about where you must personally invest your energies. Should you be developing and refining your content, products and services, cultivating relationships with key clients and stakeholders, developing credibility within your industry? No one can do this for you.

That said, others can develop your website, handle your public relations, develop templates for your newsletters, make trips to printers and copiers and perform random administrative functions. Utilize them.

Tip: The key is identifying what to outsource and what to keep. A good rule of thumb is if it’s not part of the core competency of your specific business, you have little expertise in the area, it’s time consuming and there are many suppliers who can provide the service at a reasonable cost, consider outsourcing.

5. Not being willing to work like a dog during the early days.

I’m amazed how often I run into people who’ve recently launched their businesses, but they seem shocked that they’re not making six figures while working a 25-hour work week. They seem to have this glamorous view of entrepreneurship where they get to start at the top and skip all the hard work. The simple truth is if you want to make it, most startup businesses have to hustle early on. This might mean working another job while you’re starting your business, volunteering or doing some work for free to gain experience and exposure. It also may mean working nights and weekends.

Tip: Before jumping into the startup world, really evaluate your current lifestyle and realize you will most likely being given up a huge chunk, if not all, your free time.

6. Pricing your product or services too low or high.

In my business I often respond to request for proposals. Years ago, I’d been submitting proposal responses annually to a large governmental agency. After about four years of consistent rejections, I got a tip from a colleague that my pricing was too low to be considered seriously. That year I doubled my pricing on the same classes and was selected for the first time.

On the other end of the spectrum, you don’t want to charge $20,000 a day and expect to get the job.

Tip: Do your research to see what others are charging. It’s much smarter to offer value pricing initially, prove your value and then raise prices over time. In many cases asking clients for their budget will not only give you an idea of what to charge, but it could minimize the risk of severely underpricing or over pricing your product or services. You may also consider providing different pricing options to increase the likelihood that you’re offering something within your client’s price range.

7. Not having a growth strategy.

We all know of a restaurant that was great when it first opened but after expanding the food or service went downhill. They then developed a bad reputation and eventually closed. Don’t be that business.

While most small businesses think the goal is to win as much business as they can, this isn’t necessarily true. Sometimes, you can attract too much business and then have a completely different challenge that could threaten the longer term viability of the business completely.

Tip: Think about how you want to grow and develop a high-level growth strategy fairly early on (even if it changes as time progresses).

Source: Entrepreneur

O conteúdo Sins of Newbie Entrepreneurs aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Have you ever come across someone who just seemed to get so much done and was by far the most productive person you knew? Why can’t you be that person?

Here are some ways to become the most productive person you know.

1. Eat to win.

We really are what we eat. The “eat to win” mentality is fully understanding that what we put into our bodies greatly effects our focus, energy and well-being throughout the course of the day. A junk food diet will lead to a junk performance. When we start our day by consuming foods that increase our energy, focus and well-being, we instantly set ourselves up for a productive day.

2. Start your day with a green smoothie.

There is no better way to feed our mind and bodies than consuming an alkalizing drink such as a green smoothie first thing in the morning. One of my favorite recipes is as follows: 8 ounces of water, 2 handfuls of organic spinach, 1 apple, 2 stalks of celery and a juiced lemon. This drink is high in fiber, which will help rid the body of toxins and provide us with the vitamins and minerals needed for world-class energy levels.

3. Plan your day the night before.

Take 10 to 15 minutes to plan your day the night before. Adopting this habit yields phenomenal benefits. Lack of sleep mostly comes from thinking about all you have to do the next day. This makes the mind restless, and it becomes much more difficult to get a good night’s rest. Planning your day the night before should crush this problem right away. When we plan our day the night before, we wake up ready to hit the ground running knowing exactly what has to get done.

4. Write a productivity creed.

This has been an absolute game changer for me. For example, my creed is written on a note card that reads, “I, Matt Mayberry, am the most productive person I know. I dominate my day and move quickly from task to task, accomplishing things that matter most.” This simple creed has worked wonders and I carry it around with me everywhere I go. When I catch myself in a funk, I glance down at my creed and get right back to work. I look at this creed at least 10 times throughout my day.

5. Jumpstart your day with a workout.

I say it all the time. Fitness is the best productivity tool you can ever invest in. Find a routine that works best for you and work that routine into the ground every morning. By starting our day with a workout, we get the blood flowing and rid ourselves of the morning blues with the release of endorphins. Not only does a good workout release stress and increase energy, but you will feel super charged and ready to conquer the day.

6. Drink up!

Instead of rushing to grab a cup of coffee every time you feel sluggish or tired, drink some water. Our bodies need proper hydration to perform at our absolute best. It’s a natural tendency to look for an instant “pick me up.” These methods of energy are very short lived. The human body is made up of over 70 percent water. More times than not, when you are feeling sluggish or tired, you are dehydrated. Water is a fundamental aspect of high performance.

7. Do not disturb.

How many times throughout your day has someone come into your office and interrupted you just to talk about nonsense? Chances are you are getting interrupted via text, phone or email throughout your day. If you work in an office, set up a “Do Not Disturb” sign when it’s time to get important work done. If you work from home or outside of an office, set a policy so people know not to call or interrupt you during certain time blocks. If you are able, completely silence and stow your phone away so there is no distraction or urge to stray from the task at hand.

8. Take a walk or eat lunch away from the office.

Instead of eating lunch at your office, find the nearest place where you can step away and enjoy yourself. A great way to rejuvenate and be prepared to attack the rest of the day is to take a lunchtime stroll. Eating lunch outside of your regular work place or going for a midday walk helps to clear your mind of clutter and distractions from earlier in the day. This should recharge you for an even more productive second half of the day.

9. Hour to greatness.

This is one whole hour first thing in the morning that is dedicated to preparing my mind, body and spirit for the day ahead. This routine consists of reading an uplifting book for 15 to 20 minutes, rewriting my goals while visualizing the achievement of each one, meditating on my productivity creed while looking over my to-do list for the day, and finally, flooding my mind with positive and motivational messages via audio. This alone can drastically skyrocket productivity levels. Instead of watching all the negativity that’s on the news or in the newspaper, indulge in preparing your mind for a phenomenal day.

10. Decide.

To actually become the most productive person around, you must first decide to do so. Don’t beat yourself up over how unproductive you’ve been or relish over how productive someone else is. This will never get you to where you need to go. Making the decision is half the battle. Once you’ve made up your mind, you will begin to challenge yourself to see just how much you can accomplish any given day.

Source: Entrepreneur

O conteúdo Ways to Become the Most Productive Person Around aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

I am a huge advocate of freelancing — it is the first thing I will recommend to anyone interested in making money online. The barriers of entry are low, there is little in the way of qualifications snobbery and you can literally start earning money tomorrow.

However, freelancing as a business model is far from perfect. In fact, if your aim is to make big bucks (say a comfortable salary well into six figures), you may find that freelancing has its limitations.

The money that you earn as a freelancer (in the traditional sense) is limited by two factors:

The number of billable hours you work
The rate you charge
In this post I want to focus on that second factor. More specifically, I want to focus on the most effective strategies you can employ to achieve the highest possible rate from each of your clients. These are the strategies that I have used to achieve an equivalent hourly rate of $150.

I understand that the concept of negotiating rates is an unwelcome one to many freelancers, but learning to negotiate effectively is absolutely vital to the success of your freelance business. Once you are done reading this article you should be in a position to make positives changes to your negotiating style which will lead to increased earnings.

Let’s get to it!

1. Determine Your Minimum Acceptable Rate (MAR)

Any freelancer should know where their bottom line is. You should never enter into negotiations without knowing the lowest equivalent hourly rate you are willing to work for. I call this your Minimum Acceptable Rate (or MAR).

The formula you use to calculate your MAR should look something like this:

( (personal outgoings + business outgoings) / hours worked ) + tax

Let’s consider a practical example. Say your personal outgoings (i.e. the total cost of living for you and your dependents) are $50,000 p.a. and your business outgoings are a projected $10,000 p.a. You plan to do client work for six hours per day for forty-eight weeks of the year (1,440 hours total). Your MAR calculation (gross of tax) is as follows:

( (50,000 + 10,000) / 1,440) = $41.67

Add say 30% for tax and your MAR (nett of tax) is $54.17.

The MAR is your bottom line, but it is not necessarily the rate that you put to the client. It represents a number that you will not go below in negotiations (unless compelling circumstances dicate otherwise).

When you’re just getting started in the world of freelancing your MAR will be calculated based upon of a quality of life that you consider necessary. However, as your business grows you may find that you adjust your MAR to reflect the quality of life that you want in the future, as opposed to what you have now. Let your proposed rate be driven by what you want to achieve as a freelancer and you may be surprised at the outcome.

2. Charge Per Project

For most freelancers, there are few things that limit your earning potential more than working by the hour. It creates an income ceiling that you cannot go beyond.

Say your hourly rate is $100 and you work six billable hours per day. Under those circumstances you can never make more than $600 per day. On the other hand, if you charge by the project, your earning potential is theoretically infinite. Similarly, working for an hourly rate gives the client far too much to think about in terms of their perception of value.

I’ll explain what I mean with an example. Say you are a freelancer writer and you are offered a blogging job by a prospective client. You think each post will take you an hour to complete and you want to charge $150 per post. The client thinks that each post will take three hours to complete and is happy to pay $150. You tell the client that your hourly rate is $150 and that it will take you one hour to complete the post. Many clients will baulk at this — even though their budget was $150, they feel like they’re getting ripped off because you are capable of completing the work so quickly.

All the client should have to worry about is the value of the service you provide. Don’t confuse them or change their perception of value with hourly rates. You should not be penalized for working more quickly and efficiently than the next guy, so charge per project and use your speed to your advantage.

3. Negotiate Based On Their Perception of Value

Too many freelancers work from the perspective of what they think their services are worth, when in reality they should be doing the exact opposite. Your opinion isn’t particularly important when it comes to negotiating rates — it is what the client thinks that makes all the difference.

So take the time to consider both your client and the nature of the project. The rate you can charge is affected more by the value of the project to the client than perhaps anything else. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. How will your work benefit the client?
2. How will it positive affect their bottom line?

The answer to those questions dictate in part what rate you can charge. For example, a blog post for a small business is likely to have a relatively limited impact. If on the other hand you’re writing sales page copy for a Fortune 500 Company’s next big online product, the benefit of your services could be enormous and you should price accordingly.

The above examples are deliberately disparate to make my point clear, but the same logic applies for every job that you negotiate. Consider what the job is worth to the client and adjust your sights accordingly.

4. Get Them to Name a Price

Nothing is more valuable in negotiating rates than getting the client to reveal their budget and/or the rate that they would be happy to pay. While most clients are a little more savvy than to do that upfront, you should always lead negotiations with the immortal question, “What kind of budget do you have in mind?”.

Although a client may not give you a number to work with, they may give something away in answering the question. Any extra information can be extremely helpful in enabling you to negotiate a better price than you might have otherwise.

5. Start High

Negotiating is a part of business life for many people. In fact, you will probably work with many clients who will haggle a price on principle alone (regardless of whether they feel it is reasonable).

As such, you should always propose a rate higher than you would if haggling were not on the cards. This may seem like a bold move, but in reality you are just getting ahead of the negotiating curve. If the client can haggle you down to a number you would have accepted anyway, they will feel like they have gained something out of the process and you will still be happy with the agreed rate.

Furthermore, you are unlikely to find that a client rejects your rate outright unless you are well out of the ball park. If you propose a rate that is 10% higher than an amount you would be happy with and the client rejects you outright, they probably would have rejected the lower price too.

You don’t want to be working with clients who feel like they have to squeeze their budget to the maximum to accomodate you — such scenarios do not lead to healthy long term relationships. Far better to go through the haggling process with the client and make them feel like they’ve got a good deal.

6. Give Yourself Wiggle Room

If you’ve been asked to name a price before you understand the full extent of the work to be done then make sure to give yourself room for manoeuvre.

For instance, I’ll often be contacted by prospective clients who give me a very rough outline of what they would like me to do and immediately ask what my rate is. Under such circumstances I’ll say something like the following:

My typical base rate is around 20 cents per word, but that can fluctuate based upon the nature and scope of the work. If you can give me more details on the project then I will be able to quote you a fixed fee.

Note that I say the fee can “fluctuate” — I don’t say that the price could go up or down. If the client is still interested after that initial exchange then I can be pretty certain that they’ll pay 20 cents and possibly even more.

7. Seek a Mutually Agreeable Outcome

You will not get far as a freelancer if you intend to rip off your clients. Good negotiation is about both parties walking away feeling like they got a good deal. If you think that squeezing every last penny out of a prospective client to the point where they reluctantly agree to your inflated prices is a good thing, think again — that relationship is not likely to last very long.

You want to work with clients who will happily recommend you to their colleagues. You want to work with clients who will come back for repeat business. You want to work with clients that will supply you with an effusive testimonial. You will not achieve these outcomes if you seek out a win/lose outcome during negotiations.

What Strategies Have You Used?

If you have some experience in negotiating freelance rates then I’d love to read your stories and perhaps even your own strategies for getting the best possible rate out of a client.

Source: Bidsketch.com.

O conteúdo Tips To Negotiate High Rates aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

By Ken Robinson at TED.com.

O conteúdo Schools Kill Creativity aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Some of the most successful entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates did not finish college.
They all started projects that later brought a level of recognition that probably would not have succeeded if they had finished college.
Does the fact that they dropped out college was essential so they could create giant corporations?

During graduation, we have no knowledge of what it takes to succeed in the labor market.
It happens mainly because we have not worked in the area yet.
Here we prefer to spare our free time going out and watching TV.
Compared with the most of all, these entrepreneurs created their own projects early,
projects that lead them to be more motivated to work than the degree that was not being helpful.
At some point they had to consider if they dropp out college.

SHOULD I QUIT COLLEGE TO START MY OWN BUSINESS?
The answer to the question should not be as simple as “yes” or “no”.
All situations must be analyzed point by point, there are many things you should consider.

Is college giving you new knowledge?
Are you excited with what you are learning?
Are just fulfilling an obligation?
Does your business give you more motivation than college?
It is a long term profitable project?
How long to complete college?
Does it compensate to make a last effort?
How is the market in you area?

Leave a degree and starting a business is a very important decision.
There are advantages and disadvantages, in either case we may be missing an opportunity.
In the current days, work is quite uncertain, mainly when trying to create our own business.
It is important to have a safeguard and the degree can help.
If things go wrong in the future and you have to choose another path, the degree will be an asset.
Either way, the important thing is feeling that you took the right decision, especially because it can set your future.

BE INSIGHTFUL
It is possible to combine the two.
Clearly it can be difficult, but possible.
The biggest drawback is the lack of time to devote to one of the parts, this can cause the other to get in background.
It’s a matter of priorities and doing a good planning of your time can help.

SET A ROUTINE
The student life usually does not have a restricted routine.
The habit of waking and bedtime to stringent hours can be lost as easily as you will go out to a bar with friends.
As an entrepreneur you will need to be able to do a serious time management.
Setting a routine is one of the best things you can do, this will help you increase your productivity.

LEARN WITH COLLEGE
If you think college gives you little time to deliver jobs, wait until you get your business.
When we have our own business, we have to be responsible, competent and meet all deadlines that we have with customers.
If you will be in college, better try to learn the maximum it has to teach.
Learn and get used to meet all deadlines or even to deliver before the agreed date.
This is a good training for your future life.

DO NOT COMPLAIN FOR LEAVING LATER
There is no real departure time when you own your own business.
You go home when the work is done, it often involves working through the night.
So, if you need to stay more five minutes on the class, do no complain, take advantage of that time.

DO NOT MISS
Do not miss classes just because you want to go home early or want to get to sleep because you have laziness.
In college, get into the habit of not missing classes.
When you create your own business, you cant just miss.
You may have the need to spend the weekend working.

BE PROACTIVE
When you are a student, they tell you what to do, you just have to study what they say.
Many times this leads you to lose a key feature for the business world, proactivity.
It is important to do more than just go to class or do the tests.
This attitude can be trained and will bring you benefits for the future.

LEARN OUTSIDE CLASSES
When they are leaving college, most students complain that know little about what they have to do.
Sometimes it is true.
Most universities focus too much on theory, leaving aside the practical side, that will make all the difference in time to get customers.
Buy books, take degrees, workshops or try to do some works as a freelancer.
Is a way to feel more prepared when entering the market.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOUR VACATIONS
Having three months of vacation per year only happens when you are a student.
When starting your business, there will be years that did not even have vacation!
As a student, you can use this time to learn our start your own business.

BE CONSTANT THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
During college, the thought is usually the same, apply only during the tests period.
Your routine will help you maintain the proactive actitude and work outside the classroom.
Helping your hold the year, mainly in the most stressful times.
When you create your business, you have to apply every day to achieve your objective, not just in a moment.
Creating a routine that keeps your day occupied, can give you a sense of what you will have in day-to-day work.

PRACTICE
Normally, in college, they give several books to read and works to do, but they forget one thing, practice.
If you feel that this part does not exist in your degree, you will have to look for it.
Start by focusing on what you want to be and do.
Then, start doing something for it, finding a part-time, a internship or start working in your projects.
You will see that your motivation will increase.

WORK HARD
Some people will tell you that the most important thing is to work, work, work non-stop.
We are not robots. We need to know our limitations and try to play with them.
Indeed, you will need to work hard but most important is to work intelligent.

NETWORKING
The fine art of networking.
One powerful weapon that can help you succeed.
Talking with people that already started their own business, people with the ability and willingness to teach and invest.
It can help you avoid many mistakes, and reach the right people to help your business grow.

BUILD YOUR FUTURE
Stop trying to make excuses.
Stop doing things just because others also do not do so.
The success or failure of others is independent of yours.
The successful entrepreneurs believed in their projects and went in front.
You must build your future, follow your own path.
If you believe in you project and think this has future, only you are capable to make it grow.

It’s hard to know what will be the best option.
Over time we will be able to understand if we made a mistake.

What would you change in your student days?
What mistakes do you think you made?
What have you done differently from your colleagues?
Dropping out or staying at college helped you suceed?

O conteúdo Things That An Enterpreteneur Would Like To Know During College aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.

Many of the world’s most successful business leaders were criticized — even laughed at –when they first introduced their ideas. Instead of believing the naysayers, they used that criticism as motivation to succeed.

When Richard Branson founded Virgin Atlantic in 1984, each of his competitors said he’d surely fail. Instead of backing down, Branson found creative ways to overcome each obstacle. Today, those critics are out of business and Branson is lauded as a visionary.

The best way to let criticism drive you is to be open to hearing it in the first place. Successful leaders know how to identify valid criticism and adapt accordingly. They use it to help them succeed.

When your ideas come under fire, here are four steps to help you and your company benefit:

1. Detach yourself emotionally.

When you’re passionate about an idea or you have a lot at stake, criticism causes a defensive gut reaction. “It’s so easy to just write it off,” says Thomas Plante, a Silicon Valley psychologist and professor at Santa Clara University. “But that’s not going to be productive at the end of the day.”

To take in criticism without letting it overwhelm you, look at the feedback as an outsider would. Rather than seeing it as a personal attack, see it as a piece of information that could help you strengthen your business.

2. Filter out unproductive feedback.

Some feedback simply isn’t worth your time. Look at the critic’s motivation. Are they trying to weed out competition? Are they jealous? Are they defending outdated ideas?

“We have to remind ourselves that nobody has magic answers, really,” Plante says. Ultimately, you know what’s best for your company. Trust your gut and stay focused on doing great work. Success is the best way to prove your critics wrong.

3. Consult with people you trust.

For criticism that does come from a productive or genuine place (even if it seems harsh), give it some consideration. Evaluate it like any other business problem and talk it through with trusted colleagues in other companies or industries.

“Consult with people who don’t always agree with you,” Plante says. “You want to get advice from neutral parties.” Without a personal investment in the company, they can offer diverse perspectives and help you decide how to respond.

4. See criticism as an opportunity to improve.

If you decide the critique has merit, find creative ways to solve the problem. Use the criticism as a springboard to help you adapt and grow as a company. If you go in with an open mind, your solution may lead to an unexpected innovation. “The most tenacious people come back with a new idea or a slightly different idea,” Plante says.

The better you know yourself, the easier this will be. “If you know who you are, you’re centered, so you’re more likely to listen to criticism”, Plante says. “You can take criticism and compliments thoughtfully, sometimes with a grain of salt.”

Source: Entrepreneur.com.

O conteúdo How to Make Criticism Drive You aparece primeiro em Joel Rocha.