The opposing forces of the economy tanking and technological advances soaring have created a prime environment for first-time entrepreneurs. That said, “entrepreneur” has become a buzz word associated with the few startup founders we’ve watched become millionaires, and even billionaires, overnight.  As the media catapults these successful entrepreneurs to celebrity status, the separation between “us” aspiring entrepreneurs and “them” — the Mark Zuckerbergs of the world — grows. This growing separation can cloud your entrepreneurial pathway with unnecessary mystery.

From my experience as founder of the kids’ yoga company, My First Yoga, I have found that as different as each startup may be, the path to success always involves making smart decisions.

For those of you toying with the idea of becoming an entrepreneur, here are three common mistakes to avoid:

1. Hiring too many, too soon. For most startups, hiring employees before there is an absolute need can lead to disaster. Yes, delegation is an important part of being a leader, but before jumping into delegating, I encourage you to allow time for the startup dust to settle. Running lean early on requires you, as a founder, to wear many hats. While this may seem overwhelming, look at it this way: in addition to saving funds, you are spending valuable time becoming intimately familiar with the ins and outs of your business. Wait to hire until there is an absolute need; this will give you the hands-on experience necessary to build true domain expertise and therefore, the know-how to make important, informed decisions down the line.
   
2. Starting with an unidentified target market. While we would all like to build a product that suits everybody’s needs, doing so is next to impossible. It is crucial to identify your startup’s target market early on in the planning stages. Who will your customers be? If you put off determining your target market until after your launch, you risk being pulled in opposing directions by a wide range consumers groups who only like your product a little bit. To avoid this, spend time thinking about specifically who your product is built for — remembering to think beyond your own demographic. What gender? Age group? Profession? This thought process will help to focus your launch more narrowly on a group of consumers who you believe will be most enthusiastic about your product, and hopefully be willing to give you constructive feedback. Your true target market can only be dialed in overtime, but it helps to start somewhere.
   
3. People-pleasing. It is also important to have a firm understanding of your overall vision for your startup. You will receive invaluable feedback from consumers about what they like, what they dislike, and even suggestions for ways you can change and grow. Making changes to meet customer’s needs are crucial, but it is important to set a precedent for evaluating each change against your long-term vision. Will this change bring you closer to your end goal? Or will it drive temporary sales and lead you in the wrong direction? It can be tempting to make changes to ring in immediate sales, especially when budgets are tight, but I encourage you to evaluate the long-term impact.

The opposing forces of the economy tanking and technological advances soaring have created a prime environment for first-time entrepreneurs. That said, “entrepreneur” has become a buzz word associated with the few startup founders we’ve watched become millionaires, and even billionaires, overnight.  As the media catapults these successful entrepreneurs to celebrity status, the separation between “us” aspiring entrepreneurs and “them” — the Mark Zuckerbergs of the world — grows. This growing separation can cloud your entrepreneurial pathway with unnecessary mystery.

From my experience as founder of the kids’ yoga company, My First Yoga, I have found that as different as each startup may be, the path to success always involves making smart decisions. For those of you toying with the idea of becoming an entrepreneur, here are three common mistakes to avoid:

1. Hiring too many, too soon. For most startups, hiring employees before there is an absolute need can lead to disaster. Yes, delegation is an important part of being a leader, but before jumping into delegating, I encourage you to allow time for the startup dust to settle. Running lean early on requires you, as a founder, to wear many hats. While this may seem overwhelming, look at it this way: in addition to saving funds, you are spending valuable time becoming intimately familiar with the ins and outs of your business. Wait to hire until there is an absolute need; this will give you the hands-on experience necessary to build true domain expertise and therefore, the know-how to make important, informed decisions down the line.
   
2. Starting with an unidentified target market. While we would all like to build a product that suits everybody’s needs, doing so is next to impossible. It is crucial to identify your startup’s target market early on in the planning stages. Who will your customers be? If you put off determining your target market until after your launch, you risk being pulled in opposing directions by a wide range consumers groups who only like your product a little bit. To avoid this, spend time thinking about specifically who your product is built for — remembering to think beyond your own demographic. What gender? Age group? Profession? This thought process will help to focus your launch more narrowly on a group of consumers who you believe will be most enthusiastic about your product, and hopefully be willing to give you constructive feedback. Your true target market can only be dialed in overtime, but it helps to start somewhere.
   
3. People-pleasing. It is also important to have a firm understanding of your overall vision for your startup. You will receive invaluable feedback from consumers about what they like, what they dislike, and even suggestions for ways you can change and grow. Making changes to meet customer’s needs are crucial, but it is important to set a precedent for evaluating each change against your long-term vision. Will this change bring you closer to your end goal? Or will it drive temporary sales and lead you in the wrong direction? It can be tempting to make changes to ring in immediate sales, especially when budgets are tight, but I encourage you to evaluate the long-term impact.

Abbie Steinbacher is CEO and founder of the kids wellness company, My First Yoga. My First Yoga provides kids yoga outreach to schools and has a growing line of kids yoga products. Abbie and MyFirstYoga have been recognized in outlets such as The New York Times, BusinessWeek, Parenting Magazine, Parents Magazine, Yoga Journal and The Boston Globe. Abbie has a degree in Psychology from Harvard, and is a certified adult and children’s yoga instructor.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC recently published #FixYoungAmerica: How to Rebuild Our Economy and Put Young Americans Back to Work (for Good), a book of 30+ proven solutions to help end youth unemployment.

*Note from Sarah -Raising CEO Kids is primarily focused on entrepreneurs between the ages of 5 and 17, but we felt like the information Andrew shared was so valuable, that we just had to share it with you!

Most college students are worried about what party to attend next, but I was busy thinking of innovative ways to make my first million. I built Tatto Media from my dorm room, sold it a few years later for $60 million, and continued forward with big plans for my future.

It’s a daunting task for a startup business to try and get off the ground amidst the social media boom. Here are the three best pieces of advice I ever received that helped make me a successful entrepreneur:

1. Self-assess honestly and find supplemental teammates. Be honest with yourself when evaluating your strengths and weaknesses, and look for team members who will balance you out. While studying at Babson College, I had a lot of major ideas, but not necessarily all of the architectural knowledge behind it to turn these ideas into a lucrative plan. I took the advice of Professor Leonard Green, CEO of Green Group, in asking for help where I needed it. I was realistic that I had holes to fill in my business plan and needed other people to help me work through these areas. I teamed up with fellow classmate Lin Miao, who balanced out my weaknesses and helped me with the company finances.
2. Don’t underestimate information flow; value every relationship. Being kind and respecting everyone is a must. I was at a board meeting when Baupost Group’s David Drubner told me to look around the table and point to the most important person there. He then pointed to his secretary, who had worked for him for 30 years, and said that she while may not hold the highest status in the room, she knows the right people and everything that is going on. Understanding how the information flow works when building yourself is crucial; you never know which relationships you will need in order to make it, so being respectful to everyone you come into contact with is crucial.
3. 100 percent of nothing is still nothing. Don’t let greed stand in the way of your ultimate dream. I’ve seen countless numbers of people who have great ideas, but too much aggression too early on. You don’t need to be a one-man show to be successful. An entrepreneur’s career may include 30 or 40 ventures; each one should be a stepping stone and learning experience, so there’s no need to get greedy over one deal. Too many people walk away from great things because they expected too much.

While most think of an entrepreneur as a self-made one-man operation, I credit the help of others for being as important as any one person’s idea creation. With these tips in mind, you can make your vision a reality.

Andrew Bachman is the nationally recognized President of Scambook.com, the web’s leading consumers complaint platform in Los Angeles. He blogs about philanthropy, health, business, and life @ andrewbachman.tv. @andrewbachman

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC recently published #FixYoungAmerica: How to Rebuild Our Economy and Put Young Americans Back to Work (for Good), a book of 30+ proven solutions to help end youth unemployment.

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Do you want to get good at sales? Because if you do, there is a lot of money to be made. But I need to first teach you what not to do. If you want to make money through selling, you don’t have to be a great salesperson, you just need to avoid these common mistakes:

Don’t forget to qualify

Before you can sell, you have to find someone to sell to. Whether it’s someone coming to you or finding someone to sell to, you have qualify your potential customer. If you forget to do the qualifying step, a large percentage of your time will be wasted on potential customers who don’t really need  or can’t afford your offering.

Every opportunity isn’t equal. Through qualifying, you’ll get a better understanding of what each customer wants, when they want it by, what their budget is, and if you’re talking to the person who can actually make the decision. If you aren’t sure how to qualify people, ask them simple questions: What are you looking for specifically? What’s your budget? When are you looking to start?

Don’t be a “yes” man

When a potential customer makes a request, you’re naturally going to want to say “yes.” And once you say “yes” a few times, you’ll realize you’re walking on a slippery slope — the customer will keep making requests, and each one will not only cost you money, but it will let the customer know that they can be demanding and walk all over you.

If you can do what a customer wants and it is profitable for you, say yes. If the request is unreasonable, say no. By setting this precedent early on, you’ll have more happy customers.

Don’t offer too much information

Learn to get your message out in a quick and concise way, as it will be easier to understand. Trying to look smart by using sophisticated language or talking in technical jargon is just dumb!

When pitching customers, make sure you only tell them what they need and want to know. I’ve found that when you tell them more than they want to know by trying to throw in something that’s mind blowing, you’ll only sometimes increase the likelihood of closing the deal. But in most cases, you’ll just bore them to death. People have short attention spans, so be careful about dragging things on.

Don’t over sell

Think of sales like dating — if you reek of desperation, no one will be attracted to you. Be casual with your sales techniques and act like you don’t care. At the end of the day, if your product or service is that good, the person you are selling to should be privileged to use it!

However, creating a sense of urgency can help close the deal without it seeming like you’re overselling. For example, when I had a consulting company, I would always give potential prospects tight deadlines to decide. When using this tactic, my close ratio went up by over 50 percent. But at the same time, don’t use this unless it’s true, as lying to potential customers is a bad way to start a working relationship.

Don’t lose sight of the goal

You’re in sales meetings to make sales, right? So why would you waste your time chatting about random topics with a potential customer? You don’t have people’s undivided attention forever, so make sure you are keeping track of time and you get your message across as quick as possible. If you have spare time after that, you can chat about common interests to help build a stronger connection, but you shouldn’t do that until you get all of your major points across and have the person on the hook.

Don’t delay your sales

If your product or service isn’t ready, you’ll have a tendency to not sell until it’s ready. You can’t predict when things are going to be ready and, chances are, there will be delays.

Why not start selling now? You don’t have to deliver your product or service right now; you can give them access in the future. And by having them sign up now, offer a discount to entice them. What I like doing is to close the sale ahead of time and tell companies how there is a 30 to 60-day implementation time frame, as this buys me time. This works really well in a service-oriented business.

Don’t talk past the sell

After you close a deal, stop talking. I’ve seen people lose deals because they keep talking after the potential customer is ready to convert. They say something stupid, making that person think twice. Learn to keep your mouth shut after someone tells you they want to be a customer. If you can’t, chat about random, neutral subjects.

Neil Patel is the co-founder of two Internet companies: Crazy Egg and KISSmetrics. Through his entrepreneurial career, he has helped companies such as Amazon, eBay, Expedia, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, and Walmart make more money from the web.

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You’re mystified as you watch her in action and want to scream, “Stop behaving like that.”

Sounds, like I’m talking about a child, right?

I’m not; I’m talking about an over-involved parent.

Over-involved parents tend to micromanage everything in their child’s world. They’re the parents who think it’s better to fix, rather than teach their child about the injustices of life.

I’ve seen and heard stories from other moms about parents who do everything for their child. They hang up their child’s coat, take her by the hand to her desk and sit beside her, correcting her, as she begins the 1^st assignment of the day.

In my professional opinion, the over-involved parent is an extreme version, a more intense version of a helicopter parent. The over-involved parent misunderstands what her parental job description really is.

Hear me out before you rush to the comment box. I totally understand wanting the best for your child. Everyone wants that for his or her child, including me.

The parent I’m describing isn’t looking at what their child needs; they’re focused on what they want for their child.

What Does a Child Truly Need?

A child truly needs parents who are guided by the “big picture.” Big picture parents understand that what’s said and done today affects how your child thinks about things tomorrow. Big picture parents understand there’s a huge gap between how a fully-grown adult brain interprets things and how an immature child’s brain sees things.

When my kids were little there was a mom who was over-involved and controlled every drop of play and interaction her daughter had with other kids. She’d steer the kids in the direction she thought they should go. She would never wait to see what happened so the kids could learn, she would jump in and prevent it from happening.

We knew this mom was coming from a place of love. However, her child began interpreting her attempts in a completely different way.

Depending on a child’s temperament the interpretation of an over-involved mom will most likely be translated in one of two ways.

One child’s immature thinking may cause him to think he’s special, “When others don’t share with me, my mom jumps in and makes them.” If mom continues to do that for her child he may grow up thinking others should always give him his way. As a tween and teen he may surround himself with kids who bow to his every whim. He may even grow into an adult who has an air of entitlement about him that few will enjoy.

Another child, one with a different temperament, may begin shying away from playing with others, or stop risking new experiences so mom doesn’t step in and embarrass him. As a grown-up he may find he’s uncomfortable taking risks of any kind.

Both types of children will have missed out on learning how to handle themselves in different situations so they’re prepared to handle life’s bumps and bruises when they’re older.

Over-involved Parenting vs. Teaching Parenting

Having the big picture as your guide means knowing that what you want for your child may not always be what he needs due to the way he perceives things.

The conversation below wasn’t created to show parents how to handle the situation. It’s meant to show the difference between being over-involved and teaching.

The Over-involved Parent

Mom: “Don’t worry princess I’ll make sure you get a cupcake even if there isn’t enough for everyone.”

Child: (yelling) “Get it now! Make sure it’s pink—I only eat pink!”

The Teaching Parent

Mom: “Sweetie, looks like there aren’t enough pink cupcakes for everyone. What’s your back-up plan, blue or purple?”

Child: (beginning to cry) “I want pink.”

Mom: “I know and sometimes you have to change what you want, that’s why we have second choices?”

Child: “Okay, I’ll have one with sprinkles.”

I, like every parent, wanted to give my precious kids everything. When I felt tempted I’d silently replay the lyrics to the Rolling Stones song, “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, well you might find, you get what you need.”

Description: Over-involved parents mean well, but are seeing the big-picture. What’s the big-picture? How a child interprets the parent’s actions.

 Photo Credit

Christian Pavelka

starfishsoap.webs.com

Christian Pavelka, age fourteen, is a thinking entrepreneur who only invests time and money after evaluating risks carefully. He has thoughtfully owned businesses since the age of six, starting with family puppet shows and various lemonade stands on the corner and in the local park. He started Starfish Soap Co. in 2007, and is currently building Christian’s Guitar Studio, where he offers group guitar lessons in a playing-based method.