As you go about your routine, have you built in time for ongoing personal development? For me, I take at least 20 minutes a day to get a feel for what other people are doing— people I respect. I call this “continuing education” and the way it works for me is I check in from time to time on people who I know are more successful, more effective, and have a bigger following than me.

For example: Oprah – businesswoman extraordinaire
His Holiness the Dalai Lama – religious figure
Marshall Goldsmith – thought leader
Michio Kaku – physicist and futurist
TED.org — a great introduction to what smart people are doing worldwide

What are you doing to think better? As an A+ student in high school, I considered myself at the head of the class, but when I entered an Ivy Leage for college, I realized that there were plenty of people brighter than me — so I started to focus on my core attributes and develop a success mindset that goes beyond any kind of limitation for my own abilities and instead builds up the abilities of my community and clients, as a whole. All of us working together achieve more.

What are your core attributes? What are the unique skills and talents that you have in your life? Entrepreneurship, for many of us, means showing up, being focused, finding the right people to help, and identifying and sharing a clear vision.

Who do you “follow” who is just a little bit more than you — maybe they’re more senior, or they’re more networked, or they’re more green, or they’re more sustainable.

Find someone who is performing at a higher level, and find out how they do it and what makes them “tick.”

In my Facebook account, I’ve grouped these people into my “Influentials” list and I review it when I check my news feed. Let’s face it — not everyone has a stimulating status update, but when you get a sense of how these A+ people operate and what moves them during their regular day, you can learn how to achieve on their level.

To learn more about Monica S. Flores, web developer at 10K Webdesign, click here or follow her @monicadear.

So many times at the prospect of meeting someone new, having a job interview, or just pure curiosity, we will Google that individual to learn as much as we possibly can. While there may be many hits that come up, Google has just introduced a new service to help you enhance your presence and provide an accurate web-based profile.

The new service is called Google Profiles. As evident by the name, you can create your personal profile, including a picture, links to your website, LinkedIN, a Twitter Feed, even to your podcast, and a direct (hidden) link to your email. An added bonus to your profile, once your profile is verified, it may even be displayed at the bottom of the search page.

Be found and get started today with YOUR Google Profile.

Author: Tracy Gardner

Grand Island, NE
TracyGardner.com
The Small Business Coach
Duct Tape Marketing Coach

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Many people dream of having their own small business but are often afraid of the risks involved or are unsure of how to go about starting this kind of endeavor. There are many unknown variables that go with starting your own small business and if you do not know what steps to take or where to look for advice it can be very overwhelming.

The best way to find out how to start your own small business is to look it up on the Internet. The Internet is a great source of information on how to set up your business, what you need to do, how to get started setting up a website and even what you need to know about taxes.

There are no guarantees when you start this type of thing that it will succeed but it has been shown that careful planning has helped to make many small businesses very successful.

Having a clear objective will also increase your chances at being successful. One of the most important items every small business should have is a business plan. This will be a road map to how your will run your business and how you will handle different situations that may come up. It also goes without saying that having adequate financial backing will help make or break your your plan. Every small business owner who is starting out should understand they may not make enough money in the first 5 years.

If you do not have enough financing to help carry you through the start up and cover your expenses you may find you will not last very long.

Many small businesses also fail to realize how important it is to use marketing properly so that you can get maximum exposure at the least amount of cost. Your plan should also have a section about your marketing strategy. Many new owners fail to market their new business because they are caught up in the mechanics of starting it and all the other details. But if you do not market your business then no one will know you are around and they will not know to go to you. There are many different ways to use marketing to your advantage, especially on the Internet. The Internet is a great way to pass the word around about your small business thru blogs and forums.

Dustin Heath recommends that you visit http://www.AnneGWilson.com to learn how you can start your own home-based business earning multiple streams of income with a Plug-In Profit Site – Complete Money Making Site Setup FREE!

Technorati Tags: What You Need to Start Your Small Business, Dustin Heath, small business, starting a small business, start a small business