On Jul 9, 2014, at 2:09 PM, R C wrote:
Hello John,
My name is R and I live abroad in Mexico City.
***Thanks for your email. Are you an American, I take it your are fluent in Spanish...***
I discovered your page by searching how to become an importer and the steps I should consider to tackle my idea(s). Your course sounds perfect for me, I’m an... entrepreneur (or an unemployed guy with nothing to lose and no intentions of incorporating again in the undesirable and underpaid corporate world). I have a B.A. in Business Administration and a Master in Quantitative Finance ...
***they might become exceptionally valuable to you...***
I had some international business courses which covered a few topics in logistics, import/export, international finance, and financial methods to fund and negotiate orders between two parties but didn’t covered the specifics of how to evaluate a good opportunity and the due diligence required in order to import or export a good or service as you cover in your seminar/course.
***So such a course would be exceptionally valuable?***
Is there any way I can enroll in your actual course (even if it’s already started) or in the next available?, I wish Mexico had tailor made courses such as the one you cover, it definitely lacks academic level and postgrad courses to specialize in certain topics.
***What if you were to provide what is missing?***
My future relies big time in my ability to achieve a successful importing business and though have quite a few good ideas to cover some market product that are not still available or some market segments that need a better variety of products I’m struggling to find how to start right away and easily evaluate if the product in sight is really profitable in terms of revenues, return on investment, rotation, etc…
***That is the first thing I do in my courses, discover if there are enough customers to make the start-up worth while...***
I’ll be really grateful if you could give any chance to enroll in your class or at least give me some suggestions of where to find a course that I could effectively enroll.
***I have some ideas... also, have you thought about exporting food?
Anyway, assuming you are fluent in Spanish, what if you were to start-up a business and teach others to do so as well? you can use your degrees as your bona fides, but use my content to teach...
As you say, Spanish speaking countries need this info too.... may we discuss this idea?***
John
On Jul 9, 2014, at 6:16 PM, R C wrote:
Now, retaking your questions and suggestions, I haven’t discarded export opportunities, and food is definitely a plus for Mexican exporters since we have a lot of the so-called Super Foods such as amaranth, spirulina, organic honey, etc., which are very valuable for organic food chains such as WholeFoods and the like, but my first intention is in the importing business to cover a market segment in Mexico that hasn’t been fully attended or that has room for growth.
***VEry good...***
Anyhow, I’m not sure I understood completely your last comments but I take it as some sort of social responsibility to give back what I had the opportunity to learn. I’d certainly start helping my girlfriend who is in the pursuit of representing nordic companies in the field of design and import products from the same origin as well.
*** ungghhhh! "give back"?! noooooo.... make money.***
I’ve never given classes in a school or university and I’m not sure if your suggestion is in that sense or if you’re just giving me an idea of an opportunity beside my intention of becoming an importer,
***exactly...***
but I’m all ears and open to any proposal you have in mind and still would like to know if there’s any way I can join your course. As a last resource I know I can order your book via Amazon and study from there but I think I would benefit from an oriented import/export course such as yours.
***the idea is you join my course to learn, but also start translating everyting into spanish to teach others, and get paid for it...***
Please let me know what thoughts and suggestions are.
***what if you made a spanish language website and began blogging and talking about small business international trade, with a view to building up a community of Spanish speaking entrepreneurs, worldwide?***
John
On Jul 10, 2014, at 3:03 PM, R C wrote:
I'm definitely convinced that your course would be greatly beneficial for my next decisions in life which spin around a good and sound product or basket of products,
***yes...***
I have big plans for what I want to do ahead and though I don’t want to fool myself with daydreaming,
***If they are plans, then they can be tested... if they are daydreams they go "poof" when tested... which are they?***
I know that the only way to grow big is to think big
***Who said that?***
and take the right choices (measured by and adequate risk analysis)
***Right, no entrepreneur ever takes risks....***
plus a great deal of work and sweat which I’m comfortable with since I’ll be working in my own company.
*** Assuming it is work you want to do....***
Now, I don’t live in the U.S. and that means I’m not able to assist to a school or university where I can take your curse online,
***the idea is you would teach in mexico, not USA, and not associated with any school...***
so the big question is how can I be part of your course?
*** I have one starting in 2 weeks...
http://seattleteacherscollege.net/exfoassmbu.html
http://www.johnspiers.com/Export_Agriculture/Welcome.html ***
I started reading your book in google yesterday and I’m eager to order it via Amazon, ...
***VEry good...***
I’m really happy I found your teachings and thank you so much for being such a nice person with me, there’s no doubt about all the good comments in the web about you.
***de nada...**
On Jul 15, 2014, at 11:43 AM, R wrote:
Thanks John, your link was very helpful, I'm considering your food export course. To be honest I'm not sure it is the path I want right now, I'm not too much into the food import/export business and since you're teaching from the U.S. export point of view, it'd certainly be of great interest but may not be translated easily to a Mexican/Latin American perspective.
***I've got people in Chile and Canada and Colombia and so on who have taken the course.. it is a tool, tactic and attitude that works anywhere in the world...***
Anyway, I appreciate your attention and to answer who says you have to think big to get there (as a way to say you have to dream big and plan your business in that direction with the right strategy) Gary Keller, founder of Keller Williams realty, is one of those who think that way.
*** What I teach is "how to" not "be like"...***
One can argue there many ways to do a business or that getting big is not synonym of being the most profitable and functional business,
*** I argue exactly that...***
but what I get from it is that even if my business is "small" I can grow towards a super profitable business and get farther than the rest if I have a well planned and structured way of doing business.
*** If. Super profitable invites competition. Profits are just another business expense... why is super profitable a goal? Why do you need to get farther than the rest? What does that get you? The "if" means you must discover some unknown "well planned and structured" and you will achieve some vague "better than others." Do you see how you are setting yourself up for no progress? ***
It sounds straightforward and perhaps stupid for someone well lectured and savvy in its craft or business, such as yourself, but it is one of the mistakes I have detected from most of my entrepreneurial friends, they seldom know how big they can get in their market with their product or service, they have a narrow perspective and try to figure it out on day by day basis and don't have a defined vision of what it takes to get to a certain point (sales, profits, # of employees, equipment investment, lead generation, etc.).
***Well, it may be something that causes the failure. Success comes only from customers. The customers are the most important thing and getting the product or service right is the hardest thing. All that "well planned and structured" can be farmed out to others cheap. if your theory does not work out, I have an alternative to offer.
John
On Jul 16, 2014, at 10:40 AM, R C wrote:
Thanks John,
I must be talking bananas in here and I won’t dispute your comments since you’re an accomplished and well known import / export entrepreneur, probably, since before I was born and I guess I don’t have excuses for not taking your course other than not being able to pay for it (which is not the case), or not being convinced at all to compete in the import / export business which could still be a possibility.
I’ll take a deep meditation to asses if I’m really up to this course and convince myself that something new may come out from this.
Best regards,
R C
On Jul 16, 2014, at 12:45 PM, John Spiers <john@johnspiers.com> wrote:
Meditate on this:
Do you want to work for money or lifestyle?
John
On Jul 16, 2014, at 12:35 PM, R C wrote:
I left my last job not entirely for the money, I was getting paid better than most of my friends or above average for someone in my position at the time, my future in there was some sort of certain and straightforward but I was extremely unhappy and my quality of life was at stake if I remained longer that I already had suffered.
I suppose this answers your question if I’m behind the money or a lifestyle (quality of life). i know that as long as I’m doing the right thing for me (call it importing/exporting, retailing, trading, selling, etc.) I’ll be ok and the money will be a consequence of that, but I’m not a hippie nor a liar, I do want to make big bucks and get stuff that I can’t afford right now, so am I a fake for wanting to be super profitable? I don’t think so, is just a way of saying I’m not playing nor fooling myself into a failed intent of doing something, I don’t mind if I fail the first time I try whatever I propose myself to do, I’ll have to learn from that and keep on going for the next round.
My last degree was in quantitative finance so I suppose a lot of my communication or way of understanding business spins around that knowledge, so whenever I hear someone saying that he/she is not for the money either he/she is already doing what he/she loves in life and making money out of it or is lying in some sort of way for whatever reason you want to mention. Even if someone is doing what he loves to do if he’s not for the money, then in some way is destroying value by not maximising the profits reducing costs (by minimising waste for example), hiring the right employees, investing in the right equipment, etc., those are the strategies to get a better outcome which is then measured by many variables (quantitative and qualitative) but in the end as the song goes “no money no honey no love”.
How big to grow a business is a matter of lifestyle as well, ... believe me when I say that you have clarified my horizon in a very interesting and insightful way.
Best regards,
R
P.D. I found a product that I think has a lot of potential in a luxury niche for Mexico, I already contacted a few suppliers abroad that match the desired characteristics for that segment and had one answer so far from one of them. I’m not sure if this will continue because they are asking me to fill a questionnaire to evaluate me but that pretty much disqualifies me since I don’t cover any of what they ask. I haven’t given up on this though and perhaps they will try to venture with me as a partner (distributor), otherwise it served me as a very interesting and insightful first try out. I was greatly encouraged by our communication and to at least have a previous experience for your upcoming course, if I convince myself to do so.
On Jul 16, 2014, at 2:59 PM, John Spiers <john@johnspiers.com> wrote:
Do you believe passion is necessary for success?
Absolutely, that’s what I am looking for. I know that I’ll find it either building up a business that gives me great enjoyment for the challenge that it represents (as a kid gets great joy from building a LEGO or a puzzle) or from commercialising (in the import/export scenario) goods related to activities that I enjoy or that I am simply attracted to and know there’s a market for them.
R
On Jul 16, 2014, at 5:44 PM, John Spiers <john@johnspiers.com> wrote:
It seems you equate passion with enjoyment... but passion means "to suffer" (from the Greek) and for the last 5000 years or so when people say you must have passion they mean you must suffer in what you do. It seems you have conflated suffering and joy. have you thought this through?
On Jul 16, 2014, at 3:54 PM, R C wrote:
In that respect I have to say I’m aware that the entrepreneurial life is not joy at all when starting up a venture
***Yes it is a joy when starting up... are suffering and joy mutually exclusive?******
so I guess that’s the passion you are referring to,
***No it is not what I am referring to...***
and if so the answer is yes, I believe passion is necessary for success, otherwise I don’t think it’s necessary to suffer doing something
***suffering points to what you necessarily ought to be doing... no suffering, no awareness... ***
but rather be passionate about it, that’s what I wanted to say.
***Passion is to suffer, over a problem... all products and services are solutions to problems... if you find joy working on the solution to the problem (to the customers satisfaction), you have found the winning combination.... everything else can be farmed out.... then you are not only the best at what you do, you are the only one.***
John
On Jul 16, 2014, at 10:11 PM, R C wrote:
Very interesting John, thank you for sharing those thoughts as a reflection of what you’ve been through in your personal and professional career and the hurdles you probably had to overcome in order to get where you are today. I can only agree with what you say below, sounds right on its own!.
Kudos to you!
***Actually it comes from a Congolese priest... it struck me as right too...
So now I use it as the starting point in my classes, to orient people in the right direction, to get them away from any other premise from which they may be proceeding..
John***
Feel Free to forward to three friends.
Feel Free to forward to three friends.
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