The Five Biggest Myths About Saving Money, According to a Millennial

Ethan Bloch.

Source: Digit

Ethan Bloch has some financial advice for his millennial peers: “Just have your f------ latte!”

The 30-year-old founder of Digit, an online financial company, can get heated about espresso drinks when discussing the clichéd financial advice given to his generation. In this case he is peeved about the “Latte Factor,” a term popularized by the author David Bach to signify how people can save by cutting back on little things. Bloch doesn’t buy it. “Just having that conversation in your head and using self-control over $3 is time and energy misspent,” he says.

Bloch isn't against saving. He just believes that technology—specifically, his—is better suited to help people get the job done. An algorithm developed by Digit tracks a user’s checking account to analyze income and spending patterns; when the software judges there’s “extra money” on hand, an automatic transfer whisks the surplus into a savings account. The average age of Digit users is 27.

Bloch's life seems lived in startup hyperdrive. He was fiddling with QBasic programming language at 9, sold software on EBay at 11, tripled and then lost $7,000 in bar mitzvah money day trading in the tech boom, started bingeing on Buffett and Munger at 20, and co-founded a startup called Flowtown at 23. He started working on Digit three years ago.

I asked Bloch, who has a lot of strong opinions about life and money, what common financial advice to millennials he considers off the mark. A warning for financial planners: The content of this article may be disturbing.

"It's important to get a job and start saving for retirement the minute you're out of college."

Actually, argues Bloch, it’s more important to spend time thinking about what you want to do and improving your earning potential:

It’s this kind of thinking where people should be spending their anxiety. Think about much you care about money, and what that means about a job for you. If your goal is, I just want to relax and surf and I’ll work my ass off so I can do that one day, well, it doesn’t cost that much to surf in South America. You could do that easily.

Even if you have a ton of student of loans, I’d still say figure out what you want to do even before you think about paying them back. If you’re 21, 22, spending the next few years deciding what you want to do will be more important long-term than making payments for three years. When you get out of school, it’s like you have to pay your student loan or you’ll go to hell. My point is to get out of that fear zone a bit.

"Getting a credit card right out of school is dangerous."

Not necessarily, says Bloch, who got his first credit card when he was 11 years old, from Chase Manhattan:

If you can, get a credit card. It comes down to you not using it to finance short-term experiences. Getting one that maybe has a $500 limit and using it to capacity will be really good for the long run. Set it up on autopay. If the limit is $500, you can’t destroy your life with that. It’s like training wheels.

"The American dream involves buying a house."

Bloch gets a little exercised on the issue of home ownership.

Don’t buy a f------ house. It depends on where you live, but nowadays it often makes a lot more sense to rent than buy. It goes back to values: Are you at a stage in your life when you’re really going to enjoy being a homeowner vs. having that idea implanted as something you want by an older generation or the U.S. government?

People in their twenties don’t have a lot of responsibilities, and that should be leveraged. Even though you don’t have a lot of money, you are rich in unattached time. You can be a bit riskier now than you can be as you age, possibly, and things become more determinate.

"Once you graduate, immediately try to build up a cash emergency fund."

Bloch goes off the personal finance reservation on this point.

People spend too much time thinking about or having anxiety about emergency funds. If you have a 401(k) through your job and start putting money into it, if something crazy happens, that money will be there, even if you have to pay a penalty. That is, by default, an emergency fund. Finance people hate it when you say that, but it’s the truth. It’s pretty pragmatic.

When you’re young, a lot of decisions that you come across are short-term risky, like using a 401(k) as an emergency fund, but the long-term benefit outweighs that.

"Investing is difficult, and stocks are sexy." 

It's actually really simple to manage your money, but a lot of people have agendas and have to sell products. There is a lot of noise and very little signal. So people in my generation check out.

For long-term investing, just put money in an index fund on a recurring basis and go back to living your life and you’re done. You don't need a financial helper to do that. If productivity increases, the economy does well. Then, barring nuclear war or an asteroid destroying the planet, you will compound your money at a reasonable rate for the rest of your life.

Source: Bloomberg 

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10 Great Autobiographies From the Brightest Minds in Business

The best way to learn about business is to listen to those who have achieved the same types of goals you’ve set for yourself. But you don’t have to have a direct connection to Bill Gates, Warren Buffett or any other mogul to get this insider insight. Autobiographies give a personal look at these successful people's motivations, successes, failures and lessons learned.

Here are 10 of the best autobiographies from the brightest minds in business:

1. Miracles Happen


 

In her autobiography, Mary Kay Ash describes the principles that helped her build one of the largest cosmetics retailers operating today. Her book covers everything from the importance of expecting great things to dreaming big to paying close attention to her target market.

Related: 3 Short Books to Read to Maximize Your Productivity and Marketing

A champion of women, a savvy business executive and a first-rate marketer, Mary Kay Ash’s company is a legacy of her life and vision.

2. Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman


 

Not every highly successful entrepreneur set out to conquer the business world. Yvon Chouinard, for example, began his business career as a highly skilled outdoorsman whose passions included mountain climbing and environmental causes.

Let My People Go Surfing is the incredible story of how he leveraged these passions to design innovative sports equipment and found one of the most environmentally-responsible companies in the world.

3. Iacocca: An Autobiography


 

Named the 18th greatest CEO of all time, Lee Iacocca was a man who changed the automobile industry for the better and brought Chrysler back from the brink of destruction. Born to Italian immigrants, his career started at Ford -- until he clashed with Henry Ford II and was fired in 1978. Despite this conflict, he was quickly courted by Chrysler, which he rebuilt from the ground up.

Iacocca is his story in his own words -- from his childhood in Pennsylvania to his celebrity status as a business icon.

4. Direct from Dell: Strategies that Revolutionized an Industry


 

Dell founder Michael Dell started his PC company in the same way that many other technology companies begin -- in his dorm room at college. With less than $1,000, he built his fledgling company into a powerhouse that transformed the way PCs were manufactured, purchased and delivered.

In Direct from Dell, he tells both the story of the company’s growth and his own management strategies.

5. The HP Way: How Bill Hewlett and I Built Our Company


 

The HP Way describes how Hewlett and Packard met at college and decided after graduation to found a company together in the one-car garage workshop that’s now known as the birthplace of Silicon Valley. From tossing a coin to determine the company name to defining their own management strategies, this autobiography is an inside look at a company that chose to do things its own way.

Related: Rather Than Trying to Reinvent the Wheel, Be Inspired by These 5 Books

6. Pour Your Heart into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time


 

Starbucks is known for its ubiquity, but its “shop on every street corner” success didn’t come out of the blue. In Pour Your Heart Into It, CEO Howard Schultz discusses the customer-service principles that made Starbucks a household name. In addition, he shares the wisdom he’s learned and the techniques he’s used to keep Starbucks focused on customer and employee satisfaction, despite its staggering growth.

7. Sam Walton: Made In America


 

Love it or hate it, Walmart is one of the most successful retail businesses in American history. In Made in America, the chain’s founder details his company’s growth from a single dime store in Arkansas to the retail giant it is today, describing his successes and mistakes in an approachable, down-home writing style.

8. Jack: Straight from the Gut


 

Jack Welch is the man responsible for building General Electric into a multinational conglomerate that touches everything from lightbulbs to commercial lending and leasing. Straight from the Gut is Welch’s engaging first-hand story, starting with his childhood and moving through his meteoric rise through GE’s ranks. His autobiography discusses his career, business mistakes and successes, all in his trademark, no-nonsense style.

9. Losing My Virginity: How I Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way


 

The playfully naughty title of this autobiography perfectly captures the personality of its author, billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson.Losing My Virginity continues in the same vein, a unique and sometimes outrageous look inside the life and business of Branson and his cofounders. A perfect example of how an ambitious company can disrupt established but complacent industries, Branson’s autobiography is both entertaining and inspirational.

10. Built from Scratch: How a Couple of Regular Guys Grew the Home Depot from Nothing to $30 Billion


 

From being fired to building a multi-billion dollar business, Built From Scratch gives a first-hand look at the story of Home Depot founders, Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank. An excellent example of grit and determination, the story of Home Depot is one that will inspire all entrepreneurs to keep going -- no matter what.

Source: Entrepreneur.com

Have another autobiography that should be added to this list? Share your recommendations in the comments section below!

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6 Tips To Learn From Billionaire Jack Ma When Starting A Business

The idea of building a business is exciting and the outcome can be extremely rewarding. Take Jack Ma for example, before he founded Alibaba Group, he was an English teacher making around USD12 a month at a local university. Today he is one of the wealthiest men in the world, with an estimated net worth of USD22.5 billion.

As cliché as it is, most successful businessmen have their humble beginnings; the same goes to Ma. Here is a collection of some valuable lessons from him that aspiring entrepreneurs should take note of.

1. Before starting a business, know what you are doing

Image Credit: http://www.freshdialogues.com/

The purpose of being your own boss should not be solely because you are not interested to work for other people, it is also about spotting a business opportunity that will fill gaps in the market.

In 1995, when Ma went to the U.S. to become a translator, his friend showed him how the Internet works. Following that, he searched for the word ‘beer’. He found American beer, German beer, but there was no Chinese beer. “So I was curious, I searched ‘China’, and all search engines said no China,” Ma said in a documentary. As a result, this led him to starting a web company called China Pages, a yellow pages site which was Ma’s first ever Internet company.

2. Employ smart people, not popular people

As a boss you should look for suitable candidates to join your company in contributing and expanding the company. For instance, during a sharing session in Next Up Asia, Ma shared that when it comes to hiring, an employee should find the right people according to your level and needs.

“When your company is small like a tractor, and you hire the master who has Boeing 747’s engine, your tractor (company) will break when the engine start. Therefore, please do not ask for gorgeous (popular) one when getting people to join your team. Small company should hire smart people with the right mentality.”

3. Learn from the failures of others

Image Credit: http://nguyenhuudong.com/

Often times we only focus on the glamorous side of successful people, and we subconsciously forget through they been through failures and setbacks too. Besides learning successful tips and lessons from successful businesses, Ma remarked that it is the mistakes that business owners should really learn from. He said, “A lot of people fail for the same reason. If you know why people fail and you learn [from] that, you can make a correction.”

4. Always think about innovation, not just blind acquisition

People often compare Steve Jobs and Jack Ma. Both are dropouts, and they both are the inventors of two most game-changing technologies that they had eyes on way before their peers. For Steve Jobs, it would be the personal laptop and touchscreen smartphone; while for Jack Ma, it is the potential of the Internet.

Image Credit: www.haravan.com

During an interview with CNBC, Ma had this to share when he was asked about acquiring Ebay. “First, I don’t know if they would sell; and the second, we have to think about one thing—doing business is not as simple as only buying, you have to create something. You have to create something that has never existed, for the future.”

5. Take every risk—that’s actually worth taking.

Ma started his first Internet business called China Pages. However, it was his failed venture. The business lasted for about a year. Eventually Ma lost control of China Pages and the company was pressured into doing a joint venture with China Telecom. Although some may consider this as a ‘failure’, it was one that was undertaken by Ma as a calculated risk. In the end, it was still an experience worth learning. This, however, cannot be said about all failures and risks—some are just not worth taking and might even lead to bankruptcy.

Image Credit: Lifehack

Aspiring individuals would know that great entrepreneurs can identify ‘foolish’ risks and will reduce them to the absolute minimal value. There are many ways to do this, such as carry out thorough research about the market and available opportunities; practice patience and avoid rash impulsiveness; trust your gut-feeling; and have a back-up plan by insuring your business. The truth is, people are usually reluctant to endorse the last one. In spite of that, it happens to be one of the ways to suppress a great deal of ‘foolish’ risks.

Business insurances that are provided by certain parties such as AXA SME Smart Businessinsurance are specially designed to cater the protection needs of the SMEs (especially those with brick-and-mortar stores) who are vulnerable to unexpected events such as fire, flood, burglary, theft, armed robbery, loss of goods, third party bodily injury or property damage, your employees’ dishonesty or if your business is subjected to fraud.

So if something unfortunate happens, you immediately have the money you need to pick up the pieces and start over. This way, you can focus on the other risks you can afford and are worth taking.

6. The key to success lies in the younger generation

In any business, it’s crucial to plan ahead and one important factor to consider when planning for the future is your customer’s needs and desires. And since most modern businesses now cater to the younger generation, who better than to understand how to shape the company?

Jack Ma, as a visionary, knows that the Internet-savvy generation would be the key to leading a company towards success and thinks that businesses should leverage on this. “The younger generation is always better than (the) last generation,” he said, admitting that although he is objectively better than his own father, his children are now better than he is. “If you want to keep this company innovative, if you want the company to catch the future, keep the vision, rely on the young people.

Source: Vulcan Post

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INTERVIEW: ipay88's Executive Director says "Success is a Decision"

Mr Chan Kok Long, the Executive Director of ipay88 was one of the Nurture Growth Conference 2015 speakers. Here he shares his story with us.

1. You have a history of both failures and successes. Most people know only about the successes. If you could share one piece of advice to someone who just failed in a business, what would it be?

Look back on the failed business model and find out what had gone wrong then ask yourself whether the business venture has a potential or not. 

This is where all successful people will tell you that you must believe in yourself and the business but they usually fail to tell us that if the business model is a bad idea, continuing to believe in your business will bring you more losses than before. If the original idea is bad there is no harm to explore a new or adapted idea. 

2. What is a typical work day for you?

Wake up late like 8 am, newspaper and all social medias to get updates on what is happening in the business and the world that we live in! 

Of course, doing all these with my favourite freshly squeezed fruit juices and all my vitamins and supplements. Do my prayers. Then head to office and during the journey, I do my thinking and planning for my top two things to do for that day. 

You can do this when you have the luxury of having a driver. I usually reached the office at 10 am. I'll then have a quick 25 minute meeting with the sales team and say hello to all my staff. 

My first important task for the day is to be completed in morning and then later after lunch the second most important task should be done. 

I should be free by 3pm to 330pm to spend some time with my staff if I am still in the office. 

At 5pm, I'll have my networking session at bars or restaurants. I always reach home by 830pm and then have my light dinner and then have my shower.

I then spend some time with my children to monitor their studies and and spend time with my wife. 

After 11am, I reflect seriously on what I have done and what mistakes I have made during the day. Also what achievements I accomplished for the day. 

I then end the night with a big hug and good night kiss to my wife. 

In principle, we work 24 hours. 

3. Our economy is facing a bit of a slowdown right now. How do you ensure that your companies continue to strive?

To me, this is my biggest moment in my life. I have planned and anticipated this economic slowdown. Every crisis, there will be an opportunity as well. 

As I always mentioned in my sharing or speaking engagements, our business always go through a 10 year cycle. Never believe that you are the exception. So if you have been enjoying good business years for the last 7 years then you know you are at the peak of your business and this is the time you must start planning for the downturn and sustainability of your company. 

The problem is most of business entrepreneurs always believe that their business will continue to strive and make money. I personally experienced having a great business and being number one. We lost the business overnight and lost a lot of money.

4. When you’ve been in a business for so long, it can be challenging to change how things are done because of a set culture. How do you adapt to change and how do you make sure your staff understand that change is necessary?

First you must accept the change. Example, we travel and visit many world class companies all over the world including the Silicon Valley. We see that we must change in order for our company to stay relevant and not to just change for the sake of changing. 

Then we educate and share our findings from top down. Start with all department heads and go all the way down the lowest level in the organization including our dispatch boys and drivers. The key is education and sharing the reason why we need the change.

5. Who is your number one role model and what have you learnt from him/her?

OG Mandino. The great successful entrepreneur that built the most successful magazine in the states and motivational speaker. He almost committed suicide at the age of 15. He had learned that life was never fair to him. Never is and never will be. The second number one is my mother. How she single-handedly brought up a family of six with determination and hard work. She can work from morning 7.00am till the next day 1.00 am just to put food in our mouths. She failed sometimes but we became tougher and more determined to succeed because of it.

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Meet Chan Kok Long of ipay88, Kumaran Singaram of Connectloud, Adnan Lee of MBG Fruits and more at the Nurture Growth Conference

"What is this Nurture Growth Conference about?", you ask. There are so many seminars about Getting Wealthy by the age of 30, or about how to Start a Start Up or How to Start Selling Online to make thousands of Ringgit a month.

The Nurture Growth Conference is NOT about getting rich quick, or about how to sell online. It is the first part of a series of events that guides its participants stage by stage, how to be successful in life and business. It is about getting back to the basics by learning from community leaders and sharing knowledge with peers. 

It is not everyday that business owners and business students are able to meet with business leaders such as Chan Kok Long of ipay88, Kumaran Singaram of Connectloud, and Adnan Lee of MBG Fruits in ONE day.

The first Nurture Growth Conference is the place to be next Thursday (19th November at Damansara Uptown) if you would like to learn how set clear goals in your business and life. Chan Kok Long, the Executive Director of ipay88 will be sharing how he overcame hardship and business challenges (over and over again) to be where he is today. 

A company with no clear systems and structure is headed for disaster and this is no exaggeration. Learn how business planning and systems can help you push your company towards achieving the end goal. This is relevant to both sole proprietors and MNCs. Fred Wu of GE Consult will be teaching you the right steps to take.

If you find yourself wondering why your staff turnover is high, Adnan Lee of MBG Fruits is the man to listen to. By making sure he himself knows what values are important to his company, he makes sure that new hires live by these values too. Learn about staff engagement and staff retention in his session.

Time. There does not seem to have enough time in a day for an entrepreneur. You're busy meeting suppliers, prospects, clients, staff every day. Naseer Bhatti of Abee Rugs and Lavinie Thiruchelvam of Babydash share how they spend their time efficiently to keep their businesses running smoothly.

IT. No, not the clown. IT, short for internet technology. We all know the importance of social media marketing and getting businesses online. But what about the hardware? Companies with loads of documents and are stock heavy tend to have in-house servers and we know what a high investment they are. But are they really? Kumaran Singaram of Connectloud speaks about how technology does not have to be expensive and how to use it to get your company operating, globally.

Entrepreneurship. That's the "in" word  of the century. Everyone wants to be an entrepreneur. There are plenty of seminars about start ups and incubation and acceleration programs. We won't even go there. We won't even touch the funding subject.

Vincent Chew of Eduvo will teach you how to win at the Game of Entrepreneurship. How to change your mindset from being an ordinary businessman to be a REAL Entrepreneur. It's really not about the money. "What?!" you scream but yet it is true. It is about filling the gap or solving a problem.

GET YOUR TICKETS TO THIS NOT TO BE MISSED EVENT AT www.nurturegrowthconference.com. 

If you still haven't registered for Nurture Growth Conference 2015, which takes place on 19 November 2015 at The Penthouse Damansara Uptown 1, then you have less than six days to sign-up.

For your easy reference, please click HERE for the full event agenda and to maximise your attendance, we would be glad to give you a RM20 DISCOUNT!

Looking to register a group?  Normal rate is RM199 per delegate but you can save $$$ through our 2+1 deal – pay for two at RM199 each and your third is complimentary

Students are eligible to purchase tickets at RM150 each.

This offer ends very soon, 16 November (Monday- you have the weekend to think about this offer). 

Don't miss this chance to learn from the experts, sign up at Nurture Growth Conference and reply to my email at info@bestevents-asia.com and ask for a discount code now.

Are you dying to attend this event but are financially tight? Drop us a line NOW and we will help you.

Find it hard to skip a day at work? A suggestion would be to ask your boss to attend so you can come too :)

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How Lavinie Thiruchelvam Spends Her Time as an ECommerce Entrepreneur

In 2011, Lavinie Thiruchelvam (a law graduate who worked at ABN Amro and founded Dance Space) started Babydash with her friend from secondary school Tay Shan Li, a qualified chartered accountant and investment banker who formerly worked at CIMB. 

No doubt, the life of an entrepreneur in a competitive ECommerce market can be very hectic. How does Lavinie get things done efficiently? She shares her thoughts with us.

Q1: What makes a good business leader?

Visionary

A business leader starts off with a dream and then sets out to achieve it. They are visionary and full of conviction which then translates to action.

Integrity & Honesty - Honest leaders inspire through words and actions. This then sets the tone for a principled and ethical company where the business fundamentals are based on these core values.

Decisive & Positive – The ability to make choices and decisions as they continuously arise. To be able to weigh out consequences and decide what works best for the company and to be confident about every step taken. To also have a strong self-belief and positive outlook to grow and push boundaries and achieve the goals of the company.

Staff empowerment

Empower your staff so they have a sense of ownership and they will then flourish with achievement in their respective roles. Continuously share goals with whole team so they track the progress of the company and feel their importance in each milestone achieved.

Q2: What is your typical day like?

As a leader of a startup moving into a growth stage company, the ability to multitask remains tops. A typical day involves negotiating & talking to supplier partners, responding to emails throughout the day, communicating with the operations team on daily work, keeping a check on our social media platforms, strategizing new monthly marketing plans & tie-ups. 

On a weekly basis, we also have meetings with potential investors as we plan ahead for our next round of financing. Also attend courses & talks to learn from other business owners and experts. Overall, a typical day as an entrepreneur is continuous working and thinking about building & scaling the business.

Q3: How does your company ensure a work-life balance?

For our team, we start our working hours later than usual so that our staff don’t get stuck and waste time in peak hour traffic. Hence, their daily time becomes as efficient as it gets.

Q4: How has technology helped you manage your time better?

My whole business is about technology. E-commerce facilitates automatic sales which makes operations a straight-forward process thereby efficient use of time. Technology also allows me to work on the go. There is no such thing as wasting time when you can access your email and work files on the go and work anywhere. Technology is also the basis of my daily time & task management tool.

Q5: When opening a business, what's the first thing the owner should do, in terms of managing their time? 

First thing is to map out a structure of what needs to be done to start the business. Categorise all the different facets that are imperative to build the business and then start to prioritize them. Where possible, delegate & outsource to be more efficient. It is common to have a few key items that need to run concurrently so the ability to multitask and manage time to give equal priority to achieve these goals are crucial.

Join Lavinie Thiruchelvam at the Nurture Growth Conference on November 19th in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia as she shares how important it is to plan your time to ensure that things get done efficiently.

 Make sure you get your tickets HERE.

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Organizational redesigning to cope with Companies' Competitive Realities

Many companies are reorganizing to cope with new competitive realities, but few CEOs have approached the process of organizational redesign systematically and methodically. Fred Wu of GE Consult shares his thoughts.

Q1. Companies across the economy have been decentralizing, downsizing, and flattening. What makes a successful company's reorganization different from what other companies are doing?

A company’s reorganization often might turn out a tricky undertaking with pitfalls on the way. Whether one is able to navigate its enterprise’s reorganizational process successfully depends on a number of factors. 

What some managers, in my opinion, overlook while embarking on it is that they perceive reorganization as a simple structural reshuffle on an organization chart. But that is a superficial understanding of its main objectives which is not merely improvement of financial metrics and outcomes but a holistic process of enhancing decision making system on all levels, employees’ performance and collaboration between departments and divisions. 

For instance, a flat organization structure may not have effective decision making process if authority is too MD-centred. Whether you like it or not, it’s a complex process which involves all stakeholders and requires continuous monitoring and adjustments along with effective resource utilization. 

In summary, a successful company is the one that has proper reorganization structure based on internal and external assessment made through in-depth consideration of scare resource: employee, cash, products, making the company energy-efficient.

Q2: What can happen in a business that makes fundamental changes so necessary?

Such changes are crucial for any company that aims to unlock better performance by shaking up the entire system. Bringing fundamental structural changes can help you speed up product development and decrease costs as it smoothens the decision making process and enhance tasks execution. 

And this is what GE CONSULT does by dragging companies out of a pit of bankruptcy by accelerating their turnover based on available resources and reorganized structure efficiently. But one must keep in mind that it can also destroy the company’s existing value whereof restoration would take a huge amount of time or even lead to another reorganization. So be smart.

Q3: How has technology helped in creating more effective business systems?

A well functioning information technology system opens up opportunities to handle and boost the company’s efficiency without which it would have vanished from the market. First of all, it facilitates the enterprise to enhance rapport with all stakeholders of the company including employees, investors, business partners etc. 

It is crucial in establishment of a great image of the company. Secondly, it facilitates monitoring of the overall workflow, smoothens the decision making process and keeps an effective and collaborative interaction between employees, suppliers and partners – a self-sustained eco-system – which certainly contributes in fostering your business. 

It can also increase customers’ satisfaction providing adequate information of a product line and maintaining a continuous interactive link between customers and customer relation management. Not to mention, it can significantly reduce the operational cost of the company as the tasks execution and monitoring becomes much convenient. This is just a quick glance at the IT potentials in boosting the company’s effectiveness.

Q4: What is your advice for startup entrepreneurs?

Developing a comprehensive concept with a clear vision of what they are going to do is of primary importance before they embark on their future enterprises. Therefore, it is a main point of their program to design a product and service range based on that concept. 

How can it be achieved? Of course, through a well written business plan which would eventually shape their entrepreneurial activities and show them a right direction at a right resource allocation. 

What’s more, developing a comprehensive and cohesive concept of your business will also help to find the right investors as conveying your ideas and passion will be much easier.

Q5: When opening a business, what's the first thing the owner should do, in terms of business structure and organization?

It is crucial for every startup entrepreneur to provide a clear vision on how decision making process and role authorities must work within their enterprises. Therefore, what they actually need to do is to clearly define responsibilities of each position in the company, establish a transparent workflow and a suitable structure which would be based on the available resources of people, products and budget (cash).

An effective handling of those internal and external resources will bring the sufficient energy for the startup by which the company will be able to save up a tremendous amount of money. Therefore, keeping the architecture lightweight with roles and responsibilities being clarified and resources effectively employed is what must be achieved from the very start. Otherwise, the overall process might slow down to the level which would adversely affect not only the company’s competitive edge but the business momentum which is of the primary importance.

Join Fred Wu at the Nurture Growth Conference on November 19th in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia as he shares how important it is to build systems and structure in a business.

 Make sure you get your tickets HERE.

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