Throughout his entire life he felt he fooled the world into thinking he was special.  In fact he was dumbfounded that people actually cared anything about his personal life.

Even after he had received the Nobel Prize, was considered the second most popular and trustworthy man on the planet in the ‘30’s, a key creator of the State of Israel, facilitated the end of World War II, an inventor with many patents, and of course, was declared a genius, the father of modern physics, and labeled the most important scientist in history.

All this meant little to Albert Einstein.

(Read more…)

Monday evening I was getting increasingly nervous as I saw the 21 entrepreneurs’ faces turn from excitement to dread.  The guest speaker was on stage telling my students why being an entrepreneur really sucks!

And Gary meant it.

Gary Whitehill, a good friend, is one of the top entrepreneur advocates in New York.  His rapid growth has now gotten his Entrepreneur Week events to a global scale, where he just completed his first event in Santiago and next week in Athens.  In the near future they will be in a different city every two weeks.

I asked Gary to join us to share his experiences on what it is like out there today and how he’s managed to build his company and brand so quickly and successfully, regardless of the economy and what the naysayers are selling the public.

And while Gary started off by warning the class he would tell them the real skinny and curse his way through it, by the end of the hour, the students were bouncing off the walls with knowing they needed to make a serious shift in their business practices.

As we start 2012, many entrepreneurs look to do the same thing.  Here are some to consider taking with your business:

(Read more…)

I wrote this article a few years ago.  Thought I’d update it a bit and resend.  Very timely message.

My wife came home last night all misty-eyed.  She had quite an amazing thing happen at the office, where she works for one of the top acupuncturists-chiropractors in New York City.

A very humble woman had come in to pay cash for a previous visit she had with the doctor.  Evidently there was a problem with her insurance not covering her visit and she scraped up the money to pay the doctor herself.

The woman explained to my wife that she has had back pain for five years and her regular doctor was recommending surgery.

My wife knew the woman was a recent immigrant from Africa and gently explained to her that not all doctors are honest or have her best interest at heart.  She recommended the woman get at least two more professional opinions before making a decision.

The woman said, “OK” and thanked her for the doctor’s time as she felt much better for the first time in a long time.  And unfortunately she would not be coming back since her insurance didn’t cover it.

My wife said she understood and told the woman if anything changed to please call back and make an appointment.

After the woman left, a man who was waiting in the sitting area, walked up to my wife and as he pulled out his wallet said, “I heard that discussion and I would like to pay for that woman’s next five visits.”

Amazed, my wife thanked him and called the woman.  The woman soon returned to learn what had just happened.  As she was thanking the man, he humbly waived her off by saying it was nothing for him to do it.

The woman’s beautiful smile showed her immense gratitude as she sat down to wait for the doctor to see her, while trying to hide her tears. (Read more…)

Today I read an article written by a woman who spent her professional career taking care of the elderly just before they died. Helping them prepare for death.

In these last weeks of life they would go through any combination of these emotional experiences: denial, fear, anger, remorse, more denial and eventually acceptance.

She found people mature very quickly when confronted with death!

The author identified the top regrets these seniors came to terms with in their last days on earth. Regrets like:

• not having the courage to say what they really felt
• losing touch with their close friends and family members
• not staying true to themselves, instead living a life others expected of them
• not allowing themselves to be happier

But the most significant for me that she identified was their regret for working too hard.

Their working life was mostly about making money to pay bills for things they thought they needed and sometimes struggled to afford. So they would buckle down and worked harder.

Usually though, the more one earns, the more one spends. Hence the rat race.

The average entrepreneur is no different. Especially when it comes to finances.

They get sucked into needing more money to grow, to expand, to build. And to become profitable.

Really?

Many times entrepreneurs of this type measure their success on how they think others view them:

• How profitable are they
• How quickly are their sales growing
• How much money have they raised in investment capital
• How many new locations can they open in a year
• How many “friends” do they have on Facebook
• How current are their electronic gadgets

The list goes on.

And what these entrepreneurs don’t do is take the time to contemplate what success really means to them. What does “growth” mean to them.

I know, because I used to be one of them. When I was younger I took my company into bankruptcy and lost millions of my investors and other stakeholders money in the process.

The key to being a truly successful entrepreneur is about stopping long enough to check in.

Check in about what you are doing. Why you are doing it. What your definition of success is. What has to happen to know you’ve achieved it. How large you want your company to get. How much time and energy you want to invest.

Smart Capital is all about this. It isn’t about how quickly or how much capital you can raise to finance your business. It isn’t about how quickly you can grow the company.

It IS about creating a kick ass strategy. It is about thinking through these questions for yourself and defining what they truly mean for you and your business.

After all, most of us became entrepreneurs to get away from working for the man. On his ideas. And under his terms, conditions and timelines.

We became entrepreneurs because we believe in our own ideas and ways of doing things.

Remember this. Always.

Remember that to get smart about capital takes thinking, doing and certainly Being UnReasonable.

UnReasonable about how you will create your success. The positive impact your business and life will have on the planet and community.

And the positive impact it will have on you.

This is what Smart Capital really means.

So when the time comes for you to look back on the life you’ve lived, you will be at peace with the road you chose.

Action Steps for the Week:

When was the last time you took a hard look at why you are doing what you are doing?

If more than 12 months, answer the following:

• What is my definition of success in my company?
• How big do I want to grow this baby?
• How will I know when I’ve gotten there?
• What does Smart Capital mean to me?

Understand your answers will most likely change as you move ahead. That’s part of the game of life.

Just remember to have a blast growing your business. After all, that is point of being an entrepreneur, isn’t it?

Hope you’re about to have an UnReasonable Thanksgiving!

In case you were not able to make our call earlier this month, we’re doing it again.  We had almost 300 signups, so we figured it was important for some entrepreneurs.

Next Friday, December 2^nd, at 12noon PST, 3PM EST, we’re holding a teleseminar Smart Funding– Entrepreneurs Don’t Need Wall Street!

Marissa Feinberg* from Green Spaces will interview me on:

• Why Wall Street and banks are not equipped to fund small businesses
• What are the five crucial components that do into a smart capital raise
• How entrepreneurs can take matters into their own hands for getting funded
• What are the key stumbling blocks to raising capital and how to avoid them
• What goes into an action plan for raising smart capital
• Tips to keep focused and held accountable to raising capital while running your business

Interested in learning more and signing onto the call: Smart Funding Teleclass:  Why Entrepreneurs Don’t Need Wall Street!

Hope you can make it.  And until then, always be UnReasonable!

Stefan

PS:  Know others who may want to join us to learn about smart capital, feel free to:

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*– Marissa Feinberg– if you are not familiar with her, is a major player here in NYC for green small business owners.

Ever since I was a small child I remember my grandmother being there for me during many of my most challenging moments.  From typical childhood stuff like not doing well in school or a girl I had a crush on rejecting me to more intense things later in life like when I took company #2 into bankruptcy or divorcing of my first wife.

The message was always the same, “Stefan, never give up!”

She should know.

Oma (German for grandma) was born and raised in Munich just before WWI.  And by her early 30’s she watched her life tear apart, piece-by-piece.

During the early part of WWII, Oma and Opa (my grandfather) helped hide and get their Jewish friends out of Nazi Germany.   In 1942, during the second bombing they had endured since the beginning of the war, Opa was killed.  It was also the second time she had lost virtually everything they owned.  Oma told me she is glad Opa died that way because she was sure he would have ended up in a concentration camp for refusing the Nazis’ request for using his thriving business to supply German troops on the eastern front. (Read more…)

We’ve been overwhelmed with responses and thanks for your patience as we put together the details for the Smart Capital Mastermind Group program starting January 10^th, 2012.

As we mentioned last week on the teleclass, we can only take 24 kick-butt entrepreneurs that are really ready to build their capital infrastructure… smartly.

Remember, smart capital is way beyond just raising money.  As we discussed on the packed call last week, it is about thinking way outside the box!

The Smart Capital program might be a good fit for you if:

You don’t just want capital.

You want the right amount.

From the right sources.

Under the right terms.

… and you want it ASAP!

To see if the program is a fit, just check out the Smart Capital Mastermind Group program page.

Then to see if you’re eligible after reviewing the details, just fill out the application by clicking the “apply now” button at the bottom of the page.

We’ll get back to you within 24 hours with next steps as soon as we get your application.

That’s it!

For now, just click here to check out the program details and determine if you’d like to apply.

And remember, always Be UnReasonable!

Stefan Doering
Founder/CEO
BEST coaches, Inc.

PS:  Remember, we’re only taking 24 like-minded entrepreneurs in the program. Just click here to see if it is a fit.

Last week we had a great call with close to 300 signups!

Smart Funding-Entrepreneurs Don’t Need Wall Street

During the interview, we covered:

• Why Wall Street and banks are not equipped to fund small businesses
• What are the five crucial components that go into a smart capital raise
• How entrepreneurs can take matters into their own hands for getting funded
• What are the key stumbling blocks to raising capital and how to avoid them
• What goes into an action plan for raising smart capital
• Tips to keep focused and held accountable to raising capital while running your business

Click Here to listen to the 75 minute recording

Learn exactly what to do to take matters into your own hands to capitalize your company… smartly!

Stefan Doering
Founder
BEST coaches, Inc.