Monthly Archives: October 2012

9 The Liebster Award

Today I’m taking a break from my regular posting to both acknowledge and pass along The Liebster Blogging Award that I received from Debbie Weber Hegeman of Life Giving Nook.

Thank you for this award Debbie, it means a lot to me.  There seems to be some confusion and a bit of mystery about the origins of this award.  Supposedly it started in Germany.  Liebster stems from the word lieb which translates as love.  So, to the lovely folks that I am passing this award along to, you have a lovely blog site and I’m happy to shine this light on it.

I’m using Debbie’s rules which I think she got from the person who gave the award to her.  Bloggers nominate other bloggers that have 200 or less followers.  It’s basically a “Hey, that’s a sweet little blog you’ve got there. Here’s an award!”  You can’t just accept the award.  You have to play by the (ever changing) rules and pay it forward. Then you can put the award on your blog for all to see.  Here are the rules: 1) Post 11 facts about yourself, 2) Answer the 11 questions from the blogger who nominated you, 3) come up with 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate, 4) you need to nominate 11 bloggers who have a following under 200 and notify them of their nomination and the rules by posting a comment on each of their blogs.

Now you can snag an award graphic.  I’m providing several options for the award graphic which I found via Google.  There are more if you prefer to find another.

Now without further ado here are 11 Facts about myself required by the rules:

1.   I was born in Brooklyn, New York.

2.   I attended UCLA.

3.   I lived in Germany for a year.

4.   I started out wanting to be a journalist.

5.   I was a caterer to pay my first year tuition at UCLA.

6.   I worked in a dog breeding kennel.

7.   I love animals and did volunteer work at a wildlife foundation.

8.   I love to fly.

9.   My favorite states to visit are New Mexico and Alaska.

10.  I have an organic garden.

11.  I love discussing politics and religion.

Next are the 11 Questions Debbie asked of her nominees:

These are the questions that Debbie has asked of her nominees:

1. Have you ever been in 4-H?  – No.  I was a girl scout though.

2.  Do you like being in the house or outside more? –  It changes with the seasons.  In summer I like to stay indoors, in winter I love to be outdoors.

3.  Do you feel it is important as to what foods you eat on a regular bases? – Yes, a healthy diet is essential.

4.  What is your favorite Thanksgiving activity? – Being with family and friends.

5.  What sport do you like better for you to play volley ball or baseball?  I’m not into sports anymore.  I used to play basketball.

6.  Tomatoes fresh or cooked? – fresh

7.   Do you like green smoothies? – Not so much.

8.   Do you enjoy dark chocolate? – Yes, I prefer it.

9.  Have you ever read The Diary of Anne Frank? – More than once.

10.  Water or Soda?  – Water

11.  Your favorite time of the day? – Twilight

Next are the 11 questions I have for you – my nominees:

My questions for my nominees:

1.   Are you a new entrepreneur or have you been in business for awhile?

2.   What is your biggest blogging challenge?

3.   What is one goal for your blog?

4.   If money were no object, what would you do all day long?

5.   Who is your ideal customer/client?

6.   What social media sites are you on aside from Facebook?

7.   What is stronger for you, your dream or your doubts?

8.   What services does your business offer?

9.     Do you have a business coach?

10.   What makes you happiest about your business?

11.  What is your biggest guilty pleasure?

And finally, here is my list of 11 Nominees:

1.   Laura Clark. Soul Wise Living at http://www.soul-wiseliving.com

2.   Peggy Lee Hanson Inspire, Encourage, Support  at      http://www.inspiration4encouragement2supportu.com

3.   Alexandria Barker, Living Light at http://alexandriabarker.com

4.   Colleen A. Kahler Humphries,   Feel Alive at http://colleenhumphries.com

5.   Sara Duggan, Mom With a Hook at http://networkedblogs.com/DELBN

6.   Amy Putkonen, Tao Te Ching Daily at http://taotechingdaily.com

7.   Janette Fuller, Books, Inspiration and Life at http://janettefuller.blogspot.com/

8.   Linda Ursin, Linda’s Realm at http://heksebua.com/linda/

9.   Kama J. Franklin, Gracefully Natural at http://www.gracefullynatural.com/

10. Roy Ackerman, Cerebrations: Ruminations from the Mind of Roy Ackerman at  http://networkedblogs.com/DFhF0

11. Minette Riordan, By Design at http://www.bydesignforwomen.com

Holy cow, now I have track you all down to notify you of the award.  Sorry for all the work you have to do if you accept this award :-).

 

 

5 What Products/Services Will My Business Provide?

This is the third question on the Junior Achievement’s list of 20 questions to answer before starting your business.  We are not going to talk about brick and mortar businesses in this article.  That is a very complicated topic and it is highly unlikely that those of you reading this book will either be considering that or be well served by any summary I could provide here.  We are focusing on service and online businesses.

The best way we can consider answers to this question is to look at a few examples.  We can start with the most obvious and quickest ways for a teenager to start a business, which is to have a service business within your community.

Yard Maintenance.  Will you just be mowing lawns or will you trim hedges and do weeding?  Will you water and spread grass seeds in season?  Will you plant and manage a garden and will that be just plants and flowers or include vegetables as well?  Will you sweep the driveway, rake the leaves, use a leaf blower?

A lot of this will depend on the equipment you have or that they have on hand to do the job with.  If you have money to purchase your own equipment in the beginning, you can offer more services.  As you begin to earn money, you can invest in more equipment and grow a very nice professional yard maintenance business.

Pet Sitting.  Will you be available to pet sit by staying overnight at your client’s home while they are out of town or will you take their pet to your home?  Will you just stop by at certain times of the day to feed, water and clean up?  If you take the pet home, you might need a puppy gate to contain the animal if the client doesn’t have one you can bring home with you.  Will you give the pet a bath before the owner returns home?  Or will you just be walking dogs for people while they are away for the day?

There are options that you need to consider and some of the services you offer, like taking the pet home or staying at the client’s house might depend on what your parents will allow.  If you have a car, you could take pets to the vet and the groomer for your clients.

So many decisions to make based on what is available to you and what your skills are.  There are other variables as well.  I live in a semi-rural area of ranches.  Our local journal has a classified section for teen workers.  The service businesses they provide include exercising horses, mucking stalls, grooming and feeding.  If a person has horses, they have all the equipment needed to do the job and you just have to show up and do the work.

In a future lesson we will take a look at more Service Based businesses that you can start and/or use to earn money to finance another business that requires more startup funds.

In Part II of this topic in tomorrow’s post we will look at the kinds of internet business models you can consider.

If you need help answering any of these questions, you should have the Get Stuff Done Tool.  It will help you get your thoughts organized.  Just leave your name and email in the sign in box on the upper right hand side of the page and get organized.

15 What Kind of Business Do I Want?

 

Once you have decided that you are willing to do whatever it takes to build a business, you need to decide what kind of business you want.  Here are more questions to consider:

•Will you offer training, mow lawns, have a pool service, sell a product, write books, manufacture something?  What about a making cupcakes or salad dressing?  Running errands for your neighbors, handling their recycling?

•Will you require a storefront, an office, a warehouse or will you work online and have an internet business?

•Will you work alone or have employees?

There are three main forms of business:

Internet:   This is a business where your office is literally in your computer.  There are many things you do as a business on the internet.  You can sell products on Ebay or Etsy, you can sell your art or things you produce from your hobby, you can earn money blogging if you can writer, you can build a coaching or training business, be a virtual assistant, be a graphic designer, sell your books or recipes or even food items that come from you kitchen.

The thing to remember is that this takes time.  The average business takes two years to build on the internet from start up to beginning to earn money.  It is very unusual for someone to hit it big and make a ton of money right away.  Most of those stories are not true.

Also, having an internet business is not easy.  You are working alone a lot of the time, you have to be a self-starter, motivate yourself and have a lot of patience.

The benefits are that you can work on your schedule, you are your own boss, you can be really creative.  However, even these benefits have a down side.  Working alone can make you feel isolated, you aren’t accountable to anyone and unless you seek them out and ask for assistance, there is no one to help you and you might have to pay for whatever help you need.  There is also a large learning curve where new systems, social media sites and other things are a part of your business.

This is a business option you need to give a lot of thought to and brainstorm some options for working around these downsides and moving forward.

Service:  A service business would include mowing lawns, pet or housesitting, running errands, home care provider, pool service, house/office cleaner and any kind of construction or contractor business, even a lunch business run from a catering truck.  You must be aware of the sort of knowledge and skills that you need, what kind of equipment/tools will you need, and whether or not you need a more formal education and a certificate of license.  This will require some research on your part.

Brick and Mortar:  Within this category are retail stores, restaurants, and manufacturing.  Brick and mortar literally describes a business at some physical location.

There will be some cross overs within the categories, for example, if you have a construction business, you will likely have a physical location where you park your truck, store your tools and have a showroom to engage with clients.

Another option for business is to own a franchise.  This can be expensive because you have to pay the parent company for the franchise license.  Some businesses that are franchises include fast food businesses and service businesses like Molly Maids.  You have to sign a contract with the parent company, they will provide some training about the business and you need to agree to operate within their guidelines and maintain the level of quality they demand.  Owning a franchise isn’t for everyone and there is no guarantee of success even though the parent is a well-known business.  And it can be very expensive and require a loan and lines of credit.  Do you have a relationship with a bank?

So, as you can see, there are many questions to consider each step of the way to building an entrepreneurial business.  Are you still committed to doing what it takes to build your business.

Still haven’t requested the Get Stuff Done Tool?  What are waiting for, it’s free.  Just enter your name and email in the sign in box on the top right side of the page and get started organizing your business today.

10 Are You Committed to Doing What it Takes to Build Your Business?

In today’s post I am going to briefly touch on the first question from the Junior Achievement’s list of 20 questions from the previous post about things to consider before starting your business.

 

 

Am I prepared to spend the time, money and resources needed to get my business started?

First, you should consider the time it takes to run a business, then ask yourself these three questions:

•Do I really want to give up baseball, hockey, soccer, basketball, football, dance, piano and voice, or hanging out with my friends to run this business?

•Will I have to work at running my business every day or just sometimes?

•Will my family help me out?

It is important to remember that building a new business even if it is based on something you already know how to do, takes time.  One of the lessons in my previous book, 31 Powerful Lessons: Empowering Teens and Young Adults to Develop an Entrepreneur Mindset, is about finding the time for your business.  Finding the time is one of the hurdles that you need to find a way over if you’re going to have your own business.

You have to conduct research to see if there are customers, find out what the competition is doing, how to price your product or service and so on.  If you are going to have an internet based business, even if you already know how to use a computer and are on Facebook and Twitter and other social media sites, you will have to learn how to use those sites for business and create a social media marketing plan.  There are many other steps involved here.

This is the point where you might want to find a mentor, someone who already knows these things and can help you make good decisions and move forward if that is what we decide to do.

Your main task before you can truly answer this question is to find out what will be involved in starting and running the business you decide on.  Once you have all the information, you can make an informed decision.

Are you prepared to put in the time to gather all the information you need to make an informed decision?  Are you willing to even put in the time it takes to do this?

The Getting Stuff Done Tool might help you organize the things you have to do to find your answer to these questions.  You can get that emailed to you by entering your name and email in the box with the red arrow at the top right side of the page.

12 20 Questions to Answer Before Starting a Business: Empowering Young Entrepreneurs

By this time in our series, you should have identified your passion.  If not, you’ll need to take time and go back through the exercises designed to help you do that.  If you still don’t find your answer, ask the people who are closest to you what they have observed makes you happy while you are doing it.  Keep at it until you figure out what you are passionate about and can create a business with.

The next step is to think about how you’re going to build a business around that passion so you can love what you do all the time.

There’s a lot to consider.  Are you going to sell products that you create, or products that someone else has manufactured?  Are you turning your hobby into a business?  Who will be your customers or clients?  How will you reach them?  Will your business be based on the internet or will you have a what is often called a brick and mortar business, meaning a physical location in an office, warehouse or storefront?  Do you have the skills to stay in business or do you need to learn some new things before you start?

You can see that there are a lot of questions you need answers to before you can move forward.  With that said, I’m a big believer  in just jumping in and going for it once you know what you want to do.  However, what you are jumping into will differ with different types of business.

The organization called Junior Achievement has provided a list of questions for you to consider while trying to decide how to build your business.  We will be discussing some of these questions as the series continues, however, there are some things that you will need to find the answers for yourself.  There will be a resource page at the end of the series with links to some organizations and blogs that can help you learn what you need to know to start a business.

Do you already have answers for any of these questions?

Am I prepared to spend the time, money and resources needed to get my business started? What kind of business do I want? What products/services will my business provide? Why am I starting a business? What is my target market? Who is my competition? What is unique about my business idea and the products/services I will provide? How long will it take to prepare my products/services for sale? How much money do I need to launch my business? How long do I need to finance the company until I start making a profit? Will I need to get a loan? How will I price my product compared to my competition? How will I market my business? How will I set up the legal structure of my business? How will I manage my business? Where will I house my business? How many employees will I need for startup? What types of suppliers do I need to contact? What kind of insurance do I need to invest in? What do I need to do to ensure I am paying my taxes correctly?

As I said, there’s a lot to think about.  If you aren’t willing to take the time to consider these questions and do the research to find answers, then you might want to reconsidering starting your own business.  In order to be successful in business you must be committed to doing whatever it takes to make it work.

The focus of the Empowering Teens and Young Adults to Develop an Entrepreneur Mindset series is going to be on developing an internet business.  Most of these questions apply to internet business, however, they may not all apply to the business you want to start.  Making it happen is on the internet is easier than building a brick and mortar business.

In each post for the rest of the series we will be considering information that you need to know to find answers to some of these questions.

Have you been able to answer any of these questions for yourself yet?

Don’t forget to leave your name and email in the box on the top right side of this page to receive the FREE entrepreneurial tool, Get Stuff Done.

 

10 “Attitudes Are Contagious. Is Yours Worth Catching?”

Since attitude is so important and has such an enormous impact on the level and quality of success, I am offering some inspirational quotes to consider.  I hope that you enjoy these quotes, find a few that have meaning for you or apply to your situation.  Change your thoughts and change your life.

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company… a church… a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past… we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you… we are in charge of our Attitudes.”  Charles R.  Swindol

“Our attitude toward life determines life’s attitude towards us.”  John  N. Mitchell

“Having a positive mental attitude is asking how something can be done rather than saying it can’t be done.”  Bo Bennett

“You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.”  Brian Tracy

“Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.”  Winston Churchill

“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”   Scott Hamilton

“Attitudes are nothing more than habits of thoughts, and habits can be acquired. An action repeated becomes an attitude realized.”  Paul Myer

“Take charge of your attitude. Don’t let someone else choose it for you.”  Unknown

“Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.”  Kahlil Gibran

“Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character.”  Albert Einstein

“It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult undertaking which, more than anything else, will determine its successful outcome.”  William James

“There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.”  William Clement Stone

“Pathetic attitudes are not in keeping with greatness.”   Friedrich Nietzsche

“Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what people do or say. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill.”  W. C. Fields

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”  Thomas Jefferson

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4 Your Attitude Determines Your Results

Today I’m posting an excerpt from Bob Proctor‘s book, You Were Born Rich.  Bob talks about attitude in this writing. He tells us how attitude is a decision that we make every day and reminds us that if we change our attitude we can change our lives.

Bob Proctor is widely regarded as one of the living masters and teachers of The Law of Attraction. Featured in the blockbuster hit, The Secret, Proctor has worked in the area of mind potential for over 40 years, is the best-selling author of You Were Born Rich, and has transformed the lives of millions through his books, seminars, courses and personal coaching.

By Bob Proctor

Victor Frankl once wrote, “Everything can be taken from a person but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitudes in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

Frankl was right. Attitude is a choice. You could be faced with a thousand problems, many or most over which you have absolutely no control.
However, there is always one thing you are in complete and absolute control of and that is your own attitude.

When you surrender control of your attitude to what appears to be a negative
situation, you will react to that situation. More often than not, reacting is inappropriate. On the other hand, if you were to remain objective, you would respond to the situation appropriately, thereby creating a winning situation.

If attitude is such an important word, why do so few people understand it? To be honest, it wasn’t until I was in my late 20s when I finally understood its full impact. All through my teens and into my early adult life, I can’t tell you the number of times that I heard, “Bob, if you’d just change your attitude, you would do a lot better.” In retrospect I can easily see the cause of my problem. I didn’t know what attitude was, let alone know how to change it!

Attitude is the composite of your thoughts, feelings and actions. Your conscious mind controls feeling and ultimately dictates whether your feelings will be positive or negative by your choice of thoughts, then your body displays those choices through action and behavior.

Attitude is actually a creative cycle that begins with your choice of thoughts. You do choose your thoughts and that choice is where your attitude originates. As you internalize ideas or become emotionally involved with your thoughts, you create the second stage in forming an attitude; you move your entire being – mind and body – into a new “vibration.” Your conscious awareness of this vibration is referred to as “feeling”.

Your feelings are then expressed in actions or behaviors that produce the various results in your life.

Positive results are always the effect of a positive attitude. Attitude and results
are inseparable. They follow one another like night follows day. What I mean by that is: one is the cause, the other, the result. There is a term we use to distinguish this “cause and effect” relationship, it is called The Law of Cause and Effect. Simply stated, if you think in negative terms, you will get negative results; if you think in positive terms you will achieve positive results.

Ralph Waldo Emerson reiterated that same point when he said, “A person is what they think about all day long.” The results you achieve in life are nothing more than an expression of your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Take a close
look at your life and evaluate the results you are achieving in various areas. See if you are able to relate your attitude to your results.

Winning and losing are opposite sides of the same coin – and that coin is attitude. There are many things wrong in this world; unfortunately that is all some people are able to see. Those who view the world in this light are often unhappy and somewhat cynical. Usually, their life is one of lack and limitation and it almost appears as if they move from one bad experience to another.

I know people who are like this and I’m certain you do as well. It would appear as if they were born with a streak of bad luck and it has followed them around their whole life. These individuals are quick to blame circumstances or other people for their problems, rather than accepting responsibility for their life and their attitude.

Conversely, there are others who are forever winning and living the good life.
They are the real movers and shakers who make things happen. They seem to go from one major accomplishment to another. They’re in control of their life; they know where they are going and know they will get there. They are the real winners in life and their wins are a matter of choice.

You can experience that kind of life as well, you only need to decide. Making that simple decision is the first step to a new life. Dorothea Brand once said, “Act as if it were impossible to fail,” and I challenge you to do so. By simply becoming aware that you can choose your thoughts each and every day, you will change your entire outlook. You have the power to choose an abundant life no matter your circumstances. That active choice will allow other positive people and opportunities to be attracted into your life.

Don’t wait to experience all the wonderful things the universe has in store for you. Start today by working on you attitude and welcome the abundant life that you were meant to lead.

© LifeSuccess Productions www.bobproctor.com  800-871-9715

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10 5 Easy Excuses to Failure

 

What really keeps people from achieving their dreams?  I can tell you what it isn’t – it isn’t lack of money, luck, talent or time.

Some people like to use these things as excuses, but they really aren’t the reasons people fail.

For a lot of young people, failure is a matter of attitude and mindset.  If you have a positive attitude and your belief in your dream is greater than your doubts and you are committed to making it happen and willing to do whatever it takes, then you can achieve your dreams.

If you have a negative attitude and give a lot of attention to your doubts, then you are likely stepping up to failure.

“It’s not my fault.”

It’s really easy and convenient to place blame on people or circumstances around you for your lack of success.  You can blame your parents, the economy, your lack of money, but none of that is at fault if you fail to achieve your dream.  The only way to succeed is to take responsibility for your results.  If you don’t achieve your dream, it’s because you gave up before it happened.

“It’s too hard.”

When you say “it’s too hard,” is that what you really mean?  Or are you really saying you just don’t want to put that much effort into what needs to be done?  When you give up will you use ridiculous excuses like, “It just didn’t work out.”

Starting a new business means you have to expand yourself.  It requires growing, learning and finding new strengths.  That kind of growth will give you a sense of fulfillment, confidence and increased self-esteem.   And sticking to it gives you the opportunity to achieve your dream.

“I need to think about it more.”

There is a natural rhythm to the lives of successful people that goes Think–Do …. Think–Do.  Unsuccessful people get caught in the trap of over thinking things and never taking action or they take action without consideration.  Either way the result is exhausting without achieving anything.

“I don’t think I can do it.”

At this stage in your life and experience, it isn’t likely that you are going to try to attempt something that has never been done before.  Therefore, whatever your dream is, it is possible to achieve it.  When you think that you can’t do it, I believe you are really asking if you’ll follow through, not if it’s possible or not.  You really need to stop worrying about whether it’s possible or not, whether you can do it not and just go for it.  Even if you do fail, you will still be closer to your dream than you are without going for it.                                                                                                                                                       “I’m not feeling It.”

Sometimes you start out on a path toward your dream or goal and you realize that you aren’t feeling it.  Do you give it up or keep going?  Sometimes it just isn’t worth it to keep going.  That’s okay, just let it go and start looking for something else.  The difference between giving up, which is a way to being a victim of your failure and changing your mind and looking for new options is a positive decision.  In this case, choosing something new that you feel passionate about is a good choice.

The choice is yours, are you going to give more power to your dreams or your doubts?  Will you take the steps to failure or take the path to success?

“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” – Jim Rohn

 

To help you stay on track, I’m offering the Get Stuff Done Tool.  Enter your name and email in the box with the red arrows on the upper right side of the page and receive it within minutes.

25 Tap Dance your Dream into Reality

Okay, I admit it, I watch Dancing With the Stars.  That’s where I got the idea for this blog post.

They featured a young man named Joshua Johnson, a 20-year old from Harlem, New York who is financing his future by tap dancing on the subway.  Joshua’s story is a real inspiration.  This is a young man who had a dream to be the first in his family to attend college.  He believed in his dream enough to put himself out there in the subways of New York using a skill he started to develop when he was 15 years old – tap dancing.

Joshua soon learned he could make money, enough money to pay his tuition.  He was determined, persistent, tenacious and committed to making this work.  He caught someone’s attention at the New York Times where he was featured in an article which caught the attention of someone at the Ellen Show who arranged for him to be a guest.  This guest spot on Ellen drew the attention of Dancing With the Stars which garnered Joshua a real performance on the dancing show supported by professional dances.

The following is an excerpt from the Huffington Post which reports this about Joshua:

The New York City native has been tap dancing on the subway to pay for his education at Penn State. And his talent has helped him raise the $6,000 he needs to pay for school each year.

On weekends, Johnson makes the trek from Pennsylvania to New York to perform in subway stations, where he says he can make about $200, The New York Times reports.

But in high school, a university education wasn’t always on the agenda.

“I didn’t really think college was an option for me; I was never really an ‘A’ student. But at the same time, I didn’t want to look back on life and say to myself, ‘I didn’t go, because I didn’t apply,'” Johnson said on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.”

However, even with grants, loans and scholarships, Johnson still came up short on tuition, and he had to figure out a way to pay the difference.

“I didn’t have money, and I didn’t have resources, but what I did have was talent,”the student said on “Ellen.”

Although Johnson is determined to be the first college graduate in his family, he admits the journey hasn’t been easy.

“When I got [into Penn State], it was a challenge — and a challenge I took head on. I am still sticking to it until I graduate,” he told Campus Progress.

In addition to studying and subway dancing, Johnson also holds a part-time job at a clothing store. And although times are rough, he’s keeping his eyes on the future.

“I’m in this situation for now, just now, but I know I’m not going to be here for long,” Johnson told The New York Times.

Inspired by his story, Ellen DeGeneres aimed to fix the situation.

She invited Johnson to appear on her show and presented him with new tap shoes and a $35,000 check on behalf of Chegg, a student network.

You can see clips of Joshua’s appearance on the Ellen Show on YouTube.

The takeaway from Joshua’s story is that if your belief is stronger than your doubts, if your commitment to your dream is strong, you can accomplish anything your heart desires.

Are you committed to your dream that strongly?  Do you believe with all your heart that you can accomplish your goals?

You’ll never know if you don’t go for it.

26 10 Reasons to Have a Mentor

Young people in particular benefit from the experience and knowledge of a mentor.  The purpose for having a mentor is learning.  You can learn more, faster from someone who has been where you are and has experience that you do not yet have.

Here are 10 reasons to have mentor:

1.    Perspective and experience.  A mentor can give you the benefit of his or her perspective and experience.  He or she can help you assimilate to a new position and give you an insider’s view on how to get things done.

2.   Think outside the box.  A mentor can help you look at situations in new ways.  He or she can ask hard questions and help you solve problems. They can help you gain a level of self-awareness that you can’t get on your own and develop emotional intelligence with regard to business.  A mentor can help you challenge your limiting beliefs in ways you can’t do on your own.

3.    Define and reach long-term goals.  A mentor can help you define your career path and ensure that you don’t lose focus and continue down that road even when you become distracted by day-to-day pressures.  You always have to look at where you are going and how you are trying to develop yourself.  Mentors can help you set smart, realistic, future-oriented goals.

4.    Accountability.  When you know you are meeting with your mentor, you ensure that all the tasks you discussed in your last meeting are completed. A mentor brings accountability which develops responsibility.  This can cause you to strive for achievements you previously thought were impossible.

5.   Trusted person to discuss ideas and issues with.  A mentor can be a great sounding board for all issues, whether you are having difficulty with a business decision, an ethical dilemma, or need advice on how to tackle a project.

6.   Champion and ally.  A mentor who knows you well can be a strong champion of your positive attributes and an ally during any bumpy spots when building your business.

7.   Expand your contacts and network.  A mentor can help expand your network of contacts and business acquaintances.

8.   Open doors.  A mentor can open doors for you and introduce you to people and organizations that you might not be able to access on your own.

9.    Inspire.  A mentor whose work you admire can be a strong inspiration .

10.  Work better.  With the help of a good mentor, you can work more efficiently with a clearer view of the future you are trying to achieve.  This helps you feel more confident which leads to better work performance and more success in your chosen business.

Do you remember in the lesson on Building Your Dream Team we discussed how to approach people to be on your dream team and how to ask for help?  When you find someone that you would like to be your mentor, be sure to communicate your vision with clarity and with the passion that you have for your mission and be specific with what you want from a mentor.

You can find mentors in many places.  Could there be someone in your family who is a business person that you trust and feel safe confiding in?  Is there a teacher in your school who teaches business or entrepreneurship?  Perhaps you could give a presentation at the local Chamber of Commerce or some other group like Kiwanis or Lions Club.

Use your imagination, tap into your courage and just go for it.  The worst that can happen is the person you ask may say no.  After asking why they can’t help you, find someone else to ask.

Good luck.