Business Ventures

Books are great. And it’s always wonderful to be able to sit and read and learn from the actions and exploits of others. It is even a good way to save a little. They say that failure is the price of learning. If you can read a book and learn from someone else, you’re actually receiving free knowledge, although secondhand, as based on someone else’s success or failure.

You never really know until you put your own ideas to the test. If all you do is read books, and reading is essential, then you know what the writer has told you. You do not see the rest of the story, parts the author left out. And in those details, the ones you do not learn in books, lay the aspects of success and failure. To truly succeed you have to go forth and try.

I am not saying you need to fail to succeed. Failure is often overrated. You do have to go forth to see what works and what does not. And, you must know when to go straight forward, and when to pivot into a new direction. You pivot when you see you are up against insurmountable odds which would bury you should you continue to go towards them.

What else can you do to mitigate failure? You can watch others. Find mentors and ask questions. Study what happens to businesses and plan for success. Will this guarantee you freedom from failure? No. It will, though, give you a fighting chance.

If you’re looking for absolute guarantees, business is not the best place to be. Business faces too many variables which range from government regulation to manufacturing, to labor and, most fickle of all, to the customer.

I am not suggesting you avoid business ventures. Read books, find mentors, ask questions, study what’s going on, and do your best. When it’s your business, just know that there is no backup. Your business is you, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health. Work to make your ventures prosperous.

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society. View all posts by Mike Balof