http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html Management Metaphores - Starting a Business Sat, 13 Mar 2010 14:49:17 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html/comment-page-1#comment-148 Entrepreneurship Blog : BootstrapBusiness.org » Blog Archive » Act Big, Behave Small Tue, 07 Aug 2007 15:33:27 +0000 http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html#comment-148 [...] I read a post last week from the Young Entrepreneur that went along perfectly with a chapter we just finished up!  The chapter is called, “Act Big, Behave Small.”  When you’re just starting your business, it’s absolutely essential to conserve your resources and do what you can to cut costs (behaving small).   However, just as important as it is to keep expenses to a minimum, it is just as vital to show clients that you are stable, competent, professional and reliable (acting big!).  There are plenty of ways to Act Big.  Make sure that you have a professional sounding phone system.  So what if you only have two employees, or NO employees!  Record a menu with options.  When people call your number, they should reach a recording that makes you look like you have an office building full of people somewhere.  Build an awesome website.  Anyone can do this these days.  It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to create something professional and SEO friendly.  Never, never, beg for contracts.  Even when you’re taking phone calls in your basement and working on the weekends to try and keep yourself afloat, learn to play hard to get.  Don’t be overly confident, but be honest, and trust in the quality of your services. [...] [...] I read a post last week from the Young Entrepreneur that went along perfectly with a chapter we just finished up!  The chapter is called, “Act Big, Behave Small.”  When you’re just starting your business, it’s absolutely essential to conserve your resources and do what you can to cut costs (behaving small).   However, just as important as it is to keep expenses to a minimum, it is just as vital to show clients that you are stable, competent, professional and reliable (acting big!).  There are plenty of ways to Act Big.  Make sure that you have a professional sounding phone system.  So what if you only have two employees, or NO employees!  Record a menu with options.  When people call your number, they should reach a recording that makes you look like you have an office building full of people somewhere.  Build an awesome website.  Anyone can do this these days.  It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to create something professional and SEO friendly.  Never, never, beg for contracts.  Even when you’re taking phone calls in your basement and working on the weekends to try and keep yourself afloat, learn to play hard to get.  Don’t be overly confident, but be honest, and trust in the quality of your services. [...]

]]> http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html/comment-page-1#comment-139 My Own Little Mountain Metaphor | BootstrapBusiness.org Thu, 05 Jul 2007 17:20:15 +0000 http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html#comment-139 [...] In a chapter entitled, Climb High, Sleep Low, Rich talks about his time hiking in Nepal with his family.  He learned that in climbing the worlds highest peaks, you can’t gain over a thousand feet of altitude a day.  If you sleep more than a thousand feet higher than you did the night before, you risk some serious damage to your brain and body.  Although the big goal of the expedition is to get to the top, the most important aspect of any climb is the pacing. [...] [...] In a chapter entitled, Climb High, Sleep Low, Rich talks about his time hiking in Nepal with his family.  He learned that in climbing the worlds highest peaks, you can’t gain over a thousand feet of altitude a day.  If you sleep more than a thousand feet higher than you did the night before, you risk some serious damage to your brain and body.  Although the big goal of the expedition is to get to the top, the most important aspect of any climb is the pacing. [...]

]]> http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html/comment-page-1#comment-138 Entrepreneurship » Entrepreneurship July 3, 2007 9:16 pm Wed, 04 Jul 2007 01:21:02 +0000 http://www.richchristiansen.com/2007_07_03_entrepreneurial-patience-and-fishing-for-brook-trout.html#comment-138 [...] Entrepreneurial Patience and Fishing for Brook Trout I would then later wake up to find the score: Seasoned Businessman $1MM Rich=$0MM. In business and in entrepreneurship there are times exercise patience, learn to count to 10 and become ?Fishermen? not ?Catchermen?. [...] [...] Entrepreneurial Patience and Fishing for Brook Trout I would then later wake up to find the score: Seasoned Businessman $1MM Rich=$0MM. In business and in entrepreneurship there are times exercise patience, learn to count to 10 and become ?Fishermen? not ?Catchermen?. [...]

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