Tell me how come?

Re: [spiers] Tell me how come?

John,
Sounds like you live in a pretty swell neighborhood, not sure when you
have an opportunity to mix with the masses :) Maybe I'll bump into you
in my kayak, sometime.


Your comments about lifestyle resonate with me. As you may remember, I
am following your lead and am working towards building a business. My
original motivation was to switch career and/or build a new income
stream, and try something new, and follow a long-time passion that I
previously had no "tools" with which to realize it. All good
motivation, but I did not have the tools until I met you.

Since working towards these goals, though, I'm finding another
attraction. The colloquial term I believe is being "a player". It is
an ineffable quality of spirit, being part of something both new (cause
I am creating new products) and bigger than myself (cause I am
harnessing the efforts of designers, vendors, and salespeople). It hit
me when I met my designer face to face for the first time after
conversing for months by phone/email. Everyone does it because they are
willing, no money has changed hands, and yet we still strive together,
towards my own personal vision. It's a heady feeling. I hope to make
the money change hands, soon, but that will be up to the customers. If
they decide they don't want my products, then I can honestly say that
it's at least been a fun ride so far.

The leverage opportunities you discuss, resulting from exposure to other
entrepreneurs, is another dimension that I haven't really experienced.
Perhaps it's because I'm still working all this part time. Need to
widen my circle of biz acquaintances, and it's difficult when I spend
most of my day working in someone elses business.

Anyway, I am curious why people start businesses, rather than why not.
I'm sure there are all the obvious reasons (hate job, need money). Am I
the only wacky one that derives the above kind of satisfaction from the
activity? Since you are in a polling mood, perhaps you could find this
out, as well.

Regards, Paul

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 14:01, John Spiers wrote:
> Folks,
>
> I received one special request for reply to my "survey," and the
> questyions were good so I
> saved it for a time when I could do the questions justice... here
> goes...
>
>> Hello John,
>> I'm one of your quiet folks who is reading the threads now and
>> again. I took your course
> at San Francisco State University about 2-3 years ago. ...
>>
>> The reason why I took your course to begin with was because I
>> wasn't certain what type of
> business I should get into. I was exploring for ideas. I was at a
> point in my life where I
> wanted change....I didn't want to work for anyone else but myself. I
> wanted to earn income
> without relying and depending on an employer. I didn't want to feel
> vulnerable when layoffs
> were announced. I wanted to take charge of my financial future.
>
> ***First comment: we take a job to pay for a lifestyle. We show up
> for work, support the
> owner's lifestyle, take a paycheck, and then go home and buy with that
> money as much of our
> desired lifestyle as possible. We seem to run out of money before we
> run out of month, we
> work the credit cards, get trapped.
>
> On the other hand, being self-employed, the work IS the lifestyle. The
> calls we make, the
> people we meet, the creative work product all serves us and our
> lifestyle. We keep what net
> profit is natural in whatever industry we enter, the net profit
> remaining after we pay for the
> goods (landed cost) and pay for business overhead, is ours. Part of
> that overhead is even
> paychecks to ourselve. But that business overhead,
> under the advice of a Certified Public Accountant (who defends your
> interests against the
> people in the government who want your money to pursue their private
> interests) that
> business overhead is spent pursuing your lifestyle. Indirectly what
> was paid for through your
> paycheck, part of your house, part of your car, part of you telephone,
> now becomes business
> expense. Those dinners with retailers, suppliers, designers, etc, are
> new expenses, but they
> are your lifestyle.
>
> AS they say in the rag trade, sell to the swells, live with the
> masses. Sell to the masses, live
> with the swells. There is something to this, but in unexpected ways.
> People who serve the
> swells (with new upscale products, our category) tend to live with the
> masses because we are
> busy doing what we do. WE don't really notice where we live. Next,
> there is something in
> being self-employed which slightly changes your outlook, and gives a
> somewhat better
> perspective. You see more, and rubbing shoulders with other
> self-employed people, you are
> having the better parts pointed out all the time.
>
> You might not get rich in the business, but who cares since you are
> living what you would do
> if you were rich. But there is more. They tell me my house is worth
> over $2 million (I know,
> today, big deal, so is yours...) No way I would ever pay that much for
> a house, but I did want
> to live in a particular area of greater Seattle. I moved into that
> district, rented, heard the
> smart people say liquidate the stocks in March 2000, and then sat on
> the money. I watched
> the housing market, low-balled here and there, spotted a house I
> wanted, and waited. The
> housing market reacted in a delayed time frame after the dot.com bust,
> and I picked up the
> house for nothing, before it hit the MLS. After my offer was in, so
> many people got in line
> that realtors stopped taking offers. When the seller, who built the
> house, learned we were
> not going to tear it down, he took our offer, with all of our
> deductions and conditions. And
> since then the prices have gone nuts, more than tripling what we paid.
> No matter to me
> though, I am here to stay. The next time I move there will be a tag on
> my toe.
>
> So here we go again, I am the poorest person in the neighborhood. I
> have a kayak on the
> dock, my neighbors all have yachts, except one, whom they all envy for
> he has a seaplane on
> his dock. On the other hand, I probably have the lowest loan to value
> ratio in the
> neighborhood, in any event, the payments are less than renting, and I
> can handle them no
> matter what. I've always done well in port cities.
>
> But none of this has to do with any particular cleverness on my part.
> The money to do so
> comes from the work, what to do comes from all the others in the field
> you are working with,
> you are working at a better level with people who are working at a
> better level. There is
> leverage there, exponential.
>
>>
>> The reasons why I didn't start a business are the following:
>>
>> 1. I am still trying to discover what my passion is. To tell you
>> the truth, I haven't given
> much thought and time into it because of the demands of my career. I
> enjoy what I do
> (scientist) and love the idea that I am contributing to society by
> developing medicine for
> illnesses, but something is missing...I couldn't quite pinpoint it.
>
> *** Medicine is probably one of the top three fields that is distorted
> by malinvestment theu
> subsidies and
> regulation. The theory is, without a third party payer medicine will
> become too expensive
> and limited. Now that some 80% of medicine is paid for by third
> parties, it is getting too
> expensive and limited. In those medical procedures where there is
> nearly no third party
> payer, such as cosmetic surgery and lasik eye care, the prices are
> falling fast, the quality is
> improving, and options widening. As usual. For the government to get
> out of all medicine
> would be the genesis of a renaissance in medicine in USA. That will
> not happen. In the
> meantime, the distortions create openings you can drive a truck
> through.***
>
>> 2. I am feeling comfortable. I don't want to lose my steady
>> stream of income.
>
> *** Naturement, because it pays for your lifestyle, such as it is.***
>
>> 3. I don't want to "start over" like a newbee in the job market
>> when I have a mortgage to
> pay. I would like to continue to earn higher income each year.
>
> ***Yes, I anticipated this with my earlier comments, but at our level,
> we rather start at the top
> in esteem, if not pay.***
>
>> 4. I am not business savvy. I am a quiet person who continues to
>> strive in improving my
> communication skills.
>> 5. I don't believe I can be aggressive to survive in business. I
>> am a very mellow person
> who is usually passive/assertive.
>> 6. I do not believe I have the personality to involve myself in a
>> cut-throat business
> environment.
>
> ***4, 5 and 6 are facets of the same thing. You cannot know these
> concerns to be true
> before you have started a business. Jane Goodall has NEVER studied
> Chimpanzees in the
> wild. She has studied Chimpanzees who hang out with Jane Goodall. She
> finds them kind,
> creative, generous near-people. Give me a week with those chimpanzees,
> and they'll be
> leaving banana peels all over the place, getting drunk and fighting
> over the clicker. You have
> no idea how you will behave self-employed.
>
> Self-employed is not about sharp dealing, it is about new product.
> Bacteriophages to eat
> anthrax like acidophilus eats dysentery (I am guessing here, you take
> my point) is a
> discussion, not a confrontation. You are talking about
> bacteriophages,and no one cares
> about you. When some small thing is yours, your baby so to speak, you
> may be surprised
> how easy it is to say "no, it will be this way instead." In a very
> mellow, but unshakable way.
>
> Your bacteriophages are something they want to know more about, and
> will work with you,
> just like someone with a new hat, to see where it goes. It's your
> idea, they need new,
> everyone works together.
>
> I think it is a mistake to anticipate what the world will look like
> self-employed, especially if
> you anticipate it is a unwelcoming, mean place.
>
> It all starts with, what needs to be fixed in a field you love.
>
> John
>
>
>>
>> If possible, I would like to receive your thoughts/comments
>> regarding my reasons.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Anne
>>
>> John Spiers wrote:
>> Folks,
>>
>> As an avocation I work on why people start businesses, how that
>> works...
>>
>> I assume most people are on a continuum from "still thinking about
>> it" to "it is working very
>> well" and somewhere in between. Everyone on this list, some 800
>> people, either read the
>> book or took the class, or both.
>>
>> Something I've never asked is why people do NOT start businesses...
>> what I'd like to know
> is
>> "if not, why not..." and if you tried, what was the problem that
>> stymied your efforts...?
>>
>> What replies I receive will be used as material for a reply from me
>> on the topic.
>>
>> I'd like as many answers as possible, so even you quiet people on the
>> list would be very
>> welcome by me... don't worry, I won't put your replies on the list...
>> visions of 800 emails
>> coming in may terrify you... I won't allow the replies to post...
>> I'll just read them myself...
> and
>> then reply once with a summary and thoughts.
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> John
>>
>>
>> Compete on Design!
>>
>> www.johnspiers.com

Bookmark this post --- Email this post