5 Lessons from a Failing Business

In a way, I’m using this forum as catharsis. What I mean is one of the big lessons in failing at something is trying to find the lesson and since I’ve learned the lesson there is no reason for you not to learn it from me. Specifically I’m talking about the damn franchise I bought and how it flamed out in a year taking a good chunk of my money.

It is taking a while to recover (still working on it) but I know I will.I also know that there will be no recovery if I don’t pull the business lessons out of the failed business, so here goes. This is painful and not pretty but I gotta get it out and you may learn something.

1. Go with your gut - this was the first lesson. You see, my gut told me NOT to BUY the damn thing. My gut told me that the franchise was too new, didn’t have a great USP (Universal Selling Proposition, we will tak about the USP in the newsletter) and the model was flawed. But I still went. The lesson is at least listen to the gut, list all of the concerns and then have then answered BEFORE you spend money. Lesson 1 - Got with your gut.
2. Don’t lose control of the marketing - here is the flaw in franchising. You don’t control the marketing and I’ve since learned that the marketing is the most important aspect of the business. How do you get prospect? Marketing. How do you get customers? Marketing. How do you make a profit? Marketing. You see all the other sh&t you do in a business is busy work compared to finding prospects, customers and profits. Any business owner that’s still stocking shelves, cleaning windows, or any busy work is avoiding the most important job of a business owner and that is to find customers and profits.
3. Know the numbers - this is a pet peeve of mine that I actually didn’t follow. It is a lesson in stupidity because I know better and tell others to know the numbers but I didn’t. Needs no further explanation. Know all the numbers, that are important, certainly the cash flow numbers, p&l, etc but also the more important numbers like marketing conversion ratio, customer retention ratio, current and future bank numbers. Lesson 3 - KNOW THE NUMBERS
4. Hire Slow, Fire Fast - another I knew it for me but desparation set in. Here’s what I mean. The reason I bought a franchise is becasue I had just finished reading a book by Robert Kiyosaki called the CASHFLOW QUADRANT. Great Book, all about the B/I Triangle. All about how businesses should be measured by how long the owner could go away from his business and have the business still provide profits. Read the entire book and aspired to achieve the goal of being a business owner and eventually an investor. Well, my challenge was NOT the BOOK. The book explained the process well, but I didn’t have enough of a financial education to pull the damn thing off. My failure in this regard was not understanding the process to getting from being a S to an I. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about read the book, it is well worth it)
5. No Damned Team - well this one I didn’t know at the time and is directly related to lesson 4. You see, I was doing everything except the actual work instead of focusing on the right thing. I did some bookkeeping because I knew how, I was doing hiring because I knew how, I was doing taxes, payroll, everything except the lesson I learned in number 2. If you’ve read this blog or my other (www.cash-flow-investor.com) you know I harp on building a team and I recently thanked my team for helping get the newsletter out. Business and investing are team sports, no team, no business. We will talk about who should be on the team soon but being an entrepreneur is hard alone. BUILD A TEAM

Thats it. Some hard lessons to learn but I hope you can see that other lessons. I didn’t stop trying and I’ve analyzed the lessons and learning from them. I hope you do as well.

Until next time we are always

Dedicated to your success

P.S. I often feel like more people should be reading this blog even if they don’t subscribe and even if I forget to add the subscribe button. If you feel the same, pass the address on to friends and family. Thanks

Why we ALL need to develop cash producing assets..

I live in a suburb of Philadelphia (I have the suburbs) and as many people around the country know Philadelphia has had like many cities a tremendous spike in murders. At last count according to the Philadelphia Inquirer there where 406 murders last year and this year already more than 250.

Here’s a quote from the Inquirer “Philadelphians were more likely to be murdered than residents of other cities whose populations exceed one million people. Philadelphia had a murder rate of 27.8 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2006, compared with 18.9 in 2002. Houston, the second-most-murder-prone city in the top 10, had 18.2 murders per 100,000 last year.”

The unsaid tragedy is the demographic of the murders. The overwhelming majority of murders are black young men killing other black young men. Often for what seems like absurd reasons.

The question is why an according to many studies the answer comes down to a lack of jobs and while I believe thats part of the problem.

You see, I think a lack of jobs is part of the reason but a bigger reason is lack of businesses that create jobs in local communities owned by people that live in the community. In fact, I believe that depending on someone else to provide jobs is irresponsible and futile.

Now many disagree with my thinking, but think about this fact. The United States is a capitalist economy and in order to take advantage of all this country has to offer, we have to take advantage of the country’s economic structure.

We have to learn to create businesses that create jobs, that create income and create wealth and it is our responsibility to understand capitalism and adapt it to our needs and it is our responsibility to do that NOW..

Dedicated to your success

I’m Back, Yes it’s the Bubble Guy

I can’t apologize anymore about the delay but we are done. Some minor editing and this first issue is a go. I do want to explain why there haven’t been any post because there is a valuable business lesson in the delay and the lesson is build and rely on your team.
For those that don’t know me I am Dwight Miller, the bubble guy. and I have been an entrepreneur for the last 20 years and in many ways all my life I’ve been about striving to be successful.

I have owned businesses in many fields including entertainment, computers,I have turned unprofitable businesses around and sold them. I’ve even taken a year off work. Everyones dream right.

Well, like everyone I’ve had some trouble and recently those trouble have included both financial and marriage troubles. The business lesson isn’t that you’ve had trouble, the lesson is keep going and while I spent some time wallowing in pity I knew I had to get back to the mission. So back we are.

I am an avid music fan and YES I do listen to hip hop and in the first issue of the Black Genius Newsletter I wrote an article about a song from T.I called “Big things poppin and little things stoppin. The article explains both business and life lessons about big things and little things but here is my point. Stay focused on the big things poppin and strive for success everyday.

Another important business lesson is to rely on your team. Yep, you see during these difficult times you need your team to hold you up (or down, as the young folks would say) and quite frankly to pick up your slack and my team has done just that.

So remember, business and investing are team sports so build a team and share the results with them generously and remember TI, Big things poppin and Little Things Stoppin.

Look for the newsletter posted here in a few days.

Dedicated to your success

Dwight Miller

P.S. You know we want to interview successful people so make some recommendations. Also this is a mission and you are part of the team, so share this blog and this information with your family and friends

P.S.S. I forgot the thank the team, Vic, Yvonne, Cindy, Candice all of you are valued members and I appreciate you all. Thanks for your support, help encouragement and love.

Also thanks to my friends there are too many to name because I’ve been blessed with great friends but here are some close ones, Said, Jeff Hill, Tony Carter, Derek, Derrick, Paxton, Jim Canale (check him out at http://www.livetherealestatelifestyle.com). I missed a few but I’ll get them next time.