Six tips for starting a new business

I've been away for a little while, and for a very good reason: We're going to have a baby!

Babies change your life, even before they arrive -- as I've found. That means being flexible and being open to a lot of new ideas.

Preparing for a baby is a bit like preparing for a business -- in overdrive. And preparing for a business, I've done. A baby, well, that's new.

But if you're launching a new business in today's economy -- maybe as a result of the economy -- a few tips that work for getting ready for a baby will also work for getting ready for a business. These tips can help you think ahead, relieve stress and enjoy this new phase in life when you start a new business!

Tips for birthing a business

1. Plan, plan, plan. It can be tempting to wing it, but winging it isn't your friend when it comes to getting ready for your new business. Consider your goals, finances and interests. Take the time to draw up a business plan -- even if it's brief. You can add to it later. Get your concept right -- know what your business is and focus on that.

2. Get your money right. Like preparing for a baby, preparing for a business means thinking about the financial impact of your decision. Whether you'll fund the business on your own or with the help of investors or others, you'll need to look at your money pretty closely. You'll find a host of new expenses come along with your new business. The adage that it takes money to make money really is true. But even if you don't have a lot of money, that's OK -- most folks don't. Manage what you have.

3. Name it right. Take some time to come up with a good name for your business. You wouldn't name your baby just any ol' thing, now would you? So why would you name your business any ol' thing? Choose a name that gives a clue to what the business is and sounds good. Look for a name your business can grow with -- you don't want to have to change it six months from now.

4. Be open to help. When it comes to a new baby, you don't mind taking the help of Grandma, Mama, friends who have had children. So why would your new business be different? Of course, you may not want to take the advice of folks who know nothing about business, but be open to help (advice and suggestions) from those who have experience. Read books, attend events, ask questions. Folks who have been there and done that can save you a lot of headache.

5. It's not about perfection. Just as raising a child isn't about perfection, neither is running a business. Remember the first tip? To plan, plan, plan? Well, not everything will go according to plan. That's OK. Be open to adjust. Be cool when things don't go the way you want. Learn from them and then go on. Don't dwell on mistakes or beat yourself up. Do your best and keep it moving.

6. You'll lose a lot of sleep. One thing new babies and new businesses have in common: those who bring them to life lose sleep. Maybe you'll be running your new business on the side while working a full-time gig elsewhere. Maybe you'll run your business full-time right away. Whatever the case, expect to spend long hours nurturing that business to growth and health.

I'll post helpful Knowledge Wealth Series articles as we get ready for the baby, though my schedule will be a bit unpredictable. I look forward to picking back up with a better schedule after the little one arrives (am I being really hopeful here?). And I hope you enjoy your own journey as you prepare for your new business. Let me know how it goes!

Use your experiences to build a business, help others

I work with lots of people who want to tell their stories. In many cases, these people feel their lives are so interesting that they must write books and share their experiences with others. The only problem is that most people's personal stories are interesting only to their friends and family. So I help these people turn their stories into books that can be of interest to a wider audience. I do this by looking beyond simply the person's story and seeing the needs of the reader.

Many people have experiences that teach them something, provide insight or give them a different perspective. In such an instance, sharing the story can be helpful to others. The key is to share the story in such a way that it engages the reader and helps the reader, and doesn't just drone on and on about the author's life or experiences. Unless you're a celebrity, the public most likely won't care enough about the mundane details of your life to read a whole book about it. No matter how interesting you think it is.

But this doesn't mean your story shouldn't be told. Just do what I just said: Tell it in a way that helps your reader, and doesn't just pump up your ego. Memoirs or personal stories must have the right elements.

Most people need help telling their stories in this way. So don't be afraid to reach out to a ghostwriter who can help you properly craft the story. When I am working on a ghostwriting project, I try to maintain the client's voice, tell his or her story AND make it a book that is actually marketable by tapping into universal themes and information to help the audience, the reader. It's not always an easy process, but so far, I've been able to turn every ghostwriting project, no matter how mundane the client's story, into something others would actually pay to read.

Our lives provide many opportunities for us to help others. Whether you are a professional, business owner, teacher, clergy member, activist or someone else with information and a passion, you can turn what you know into a new revenue stream for yourself and a tool to help others. Maybe this will be the start of a new business. Maybe it will be a timely addition to a business you already have. Or maybe it'll simply be a way for you to help others in the way you see fit.

Consider your own life. What you may have initially seen as a bunch of heartache and drama that you had to go through, may actually be the basis for helping others.

Did you go through a rough divorce and somehow managed to hold onto your sanity and now, you can actually have a decent conversation with your ex about the children? Maybe you have unique insight to help others navigate divorce and have an amicable relationship with the ex afterward.

Did you find yourself downsized, broke and bankrupt but now you've recovered financially? Maybe your experience gave you some practical tips that you can share with others to help them get through one of the most devastating times of their lives.

Maybe you had cancer and now you're in remission and living a whole different life. Perhaps your experience gave you a new perspective.

Any life-changing -- and quite frankly, painful -- life experience can get you thinking about writing a book. But the key to turning that experience and that book into something more people than just your friends will read is to relate it to others.

From there, you can build a business, organization or other idea around that experience or book. You may find that what you thought was the biggest mess of your life turns out to be the biggest blessing. If you do it right.

Jackson's career shows power of hard work

Cover of Thriller

Like the rest of the world, I find it hard to believe Michael Jackson is gone. It's always difficult to see people pass away seemingly before their time. I remember when Princess Diana died, I was as glued to the news stations as I've been with Michael.

As I think about Michael Jackson, for this blog post, I will focus on the impact of his work and not the controversies or scandals. The thing that made Michael Jackson a larger-than-life figure who is known the world over was his talent and his body of work.

From the time he started performing with his brothers as the child lead of The Jackson Five to the worldwide success of Thriller and other projects, Jackson was a man whose performances could rivet those who watched.

Even as he prepared for his comeback tour to start next month, reports said he rehearsed for six hours a day, all with a mind toward rocking his fans' world. He wasn't afraid of hard work, and that showed in the career he built.

What can we take from that? For one, we can take note of the fact that no matter how talented a person is, hard work is still necessary to produce extraordinary results. If the ever-talented Michael Jackson saw the need to put in countless hours of hard work to produce a certain result, then surely we can see a need to do the same.

This also is an encouraging point. It's encouraging because it lets us know that, even if we are not as talented as Michael, with a bit of hard work, we can produce some pretty good results of our own. When we look to start a new venture -- career, business or other pursuit -- we must know it takes more than just interest. We must be willing to follow that interest with some actual doing. Think about that the next time you're ready to start a new thing.

You probably know of some really talented people who didn't nearly live up to the hype -- or to your own estimation of what they could do. That's because talent alone is simply not enough. A person can be talented but lazy. Or talented but not very smart. On the other hand, you probably know of people who didn't seem to have much innate talent, but they were able to achieve a lot because they didn't mind working hard. Hard work can compensate for a lack of talent.

So as we reflect on the loss of a man who had great talent and worked hard to showcase it, let's take from his experience the knowledge that we too can excel in our chosen areas -- if we're willing to work.

So "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'?"

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