Ryan Ho's Entrepreneurship Blog

I believe majority of the successful individuals out there are always looking for the checklist and formula but over the years, i realize from over the years of searching for the answer, it is actually very simple, yet most people would avoid it at all cost. There are just some times when you give it your best but still fail to meet the grade.

To succeed, is to first learn to fail, not only faster, but numerous more times than what the majority have not gone.

By doing so, it is actually doing ourselves a service, to take a shortcut and fast-forward towards success, and avoid banging into the same walls and repeat the mistakes which new business owners, and start-ups will face.

Failures is the success package that is only being wrapped up with newspapers instead of beautiful gift wrapping paper.

Success with failures alone is not sufficient, the individual must be able to learn, reflect, and ensure there’s no repeat of the same mistakes, thus increasing the probability of success.

You’ll need to have quality gift being as the main ingredient that will guarantee your success, that is experience, and an eagle’s eye for details. The ability to identify potential trouble makers even before they show any signs by simply testing them, and making observations.

There are a few list of factors that which I’ve realized that success really does require third party or external help in order to process the gift to be of value to be appreciated by the recipient.

The help is not physical help, but rather in a form of experience, exposure, being placed in a difficult situation, and building a portfolio leveraging on a stronger brand initially until the personal branding and reputation is recognized by the related industry players before coming out on your own.

As i gradually am being tasked to help the company filter and identify quality service providers to increase the efficiency of the business, I realized something that I never once know nor even read in any books, but did watch and picked up in movies.

“It is not who you are that matters, it is who you represents that matters!”

By representing the business, the trust, creditability and financial ability are than being placed on the business representative, thus a nobody can instantly become a somebody due to a company employed individual, than when the company’s name is mentioned, the trust is immediately shifted to me, the representative, than a person becomes of value.

That is something that will never happen in a hardcore one-man-show type of entrepreneur example, and they will take a longer time to succeed, as they build on the trust, reputation from nothing.

It takes at least three to five years to build and grow reputation for a already successful business to be even successful, whereas it takes close to ten years for a individual to be successful, as a person build everything up from nothing.

Learning to leverage on a strong company with proper branding, credentials is an important skill, you don’t need to work for the business to leverage as joint venture or having them as your client works equally well if not better. So if you have nothing, start finding a company whom will offer you that positive leverage.

Exposure to more competitive market, under pressure to deliver results, combined with limited resources will really stretch an individual in a positive way towards success. Something that I currently am being placed in such a situation, or risk losing the job confirmation, at least that’s the way i am reading the danger signs from the instructions given to me to carry out the work.

Being exposed to competition is similar to the process of creating a gem, that requires high pressure in confined space to create a raw gem stone, following which, requires precise polishing that requires a skilled and trained individual to do so.

Limited resources forces a person to put on their thinking cap, thinking out of the box, and use any closest possible solution to address the problem first. During this process, it is a gradual appreciation and change in the way individuals do things, in terms of principles and perspective change towards the better and gets a person to see things from another perspective and get their brain run faster than ever.

With exposure to different landscape and business practices to meet expectations and delivery dates, it forces a person to level up and change gear to move faster or risk elimination. This is something that being a self-employed one-man-show entrepreneur, can never experience due to no competition except for themselves and against the naysayers hoping that they will fail faster so all their friends can celebrate failure together.

Being thrown in different situations will really help shape a person, their experience to be a better person and an informed decision maker. It is required to create the gift to be of value in order to be appreciated. This gift is what most if not all people will admit without any disagreements and that is experience, as it helps provide them from harm’s way.

There are both positive and negative experience, to be successful, it means to learn how to convert every single negative experience and failure in a positive learning experience to face the same problems at attempt to fix the issues at it’s root cause instead of running and avoiding it. That’s the ultimate difference in the successful and the failures.

Failure is not a option. it is a necessity before you can succeed.

Exposure, experience with the proper leverage under pressure with no alternative choice will help propel oneself or a business towards success.

When you feel helpless, than will you grow faster at the next opportunity to grow, thus learning to real truth to make full use of any opportunity that comes to us, thus the success succeed because they understand this perfectly and capitalize on it better then their competitors.

Cherish what you have and milk every single drop out of it.

In a nut-shell: The only competitive advantage a successful business have over their competitors is to be one-step faster than their competitors.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Answer in dictionary terms has different meanings and it can be a reply to a question; a solution to a problem, a response to something or retaliation when faced with opposition or in defense of oneself.

Over the past few weeks of absence with full use of notebooks, time and thoughts set in with more rooms to think.

As I look back, I’m thankful for the natural life cycle of items, objects and even living beings inclusive of animals of all kinds.

During the absence of a own fully operational notebook, there are times whereby I wanted to continue to write out my thoughts via blogging, but is limited to my situation which I’m in with depleting resources inclusive of money, time and health.

Without money, time and health will not be possible. Without money, my path towards entrepreneurship will cease to exist and so I will remain just like another average joe on the streets.

Having ample time off from the notebook (electronic gadgets) has given me another answer which I would otherwise never will come to realize without the aging notebook due to the shelf life of items.

As I read books, thoughts started flying through my mind, at times floating  and even crawling pass my mind. While the ideas and thoughts are constantly changing, the one thing in particular which I was constantly thinking was how to get rich, and being both rich and right at the same time without compromising on my principles needed for my own personal branding..

As days passed..weeks…months..even while I’m working, being employed (though I once said the last time I wanted was to be employed) but I still got to face reality.

The harsh cruel truth of society, money is essential for almost everything. Without it, nothing is possible, but on the hind sight, money still has its limitations.

Searching for answers and the path (formula) required for success, with the advice and comments from my current boss, I learn quite a few helpful tips essential for success and getting rich.

Face the music is what I could sum it up of.

Face the truth, reality, and never ever live in my own desired world or some say fantasy. The right answer is that there is no model answer.

Here’s a food for thought for readers: How to get rich?

You might think there are numerous ways and different scales to doing it. That’s right, there’s no one definite answer to a question or problem.

What works for you might not necessary work for me so the key to success is to ask yourself what kind of parameters and environment do you want to be in and be ready to compromise on certain things which you might not like.

Flexibility is what makes all millionaires and billionaires rich. With the same goal and destination, you just need to search for a terrain suitable for you depending on your working style, preference and personality, work with supportive people and be in a team.

No matter how rich and successful a individual is, the wealth he/she now holds are a collective effort of all the other individuals who are helping those in the limelight contented with what they have

Ask yourself and find the different answers. The truth of the adulthood is that there is no such thing as good or bad, whatever brings in results is considered good. (A far cry from what’s taught in schools, but that’s a cruel fact of life)

Start asking yourself questions and try out different answers. Even if it’s wrong, it is also an answer which you have tried, you just need to identify those suitable answers and assemble them accordingly to make it function and together with a framework, it will than become a formula of your own.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Package is a bundle of something usually in small or medium size packed or wrapped in a parcel for delivery. It can also stands for a completed product or fully operational system that is ready to be sold to the clients from the manufacturers to the retail outlets before landing onto the end users.

There are numerous packages bundled up with various business products and services. Package is no longer the same old parcel sent among people via postage. It has now evolved into a whole new package for business, offering a full package by definition is to provide a head to toe one stop solution to the users with any related services that the end user or client will require in attempt to capture and gain the trust and loyalty of a valuable customer encouraging them to return back for their services.

Bundle of services, products of various mediums can be found anywhere and everywhere, big or small there are lots of examples.

Small businesses offer a package in the form of a convenience store also known as “mama shop” in the past which has since largely replaced by convenience stores such as Cheers and 7Eleven franchise outlets offering a one stop retail outlet for general products which we need on daily basis.

Big businesses will provide similar bundle packed services like in a hotel, there are housekeeping, business conference room, social hall, meeting, training room, restaurants, accommodation, swimming and other related facilities to ensure that the customer is satisfied with the range of products and services offered for maximal customer satisfaction.

However, it is not always this way, at times, there will be instances whereby due to some minor error or miscommunication which cause the break in delivering a complete package of services and products due to short of manpower or ill-trained service providers/employees thus resulting in a complaint or silent dissatisfaction causing the client to be a one time client only.

Examples such as in-complete service are as follows: Failure to fulfill services it promised as per advertised (Goldman in the fraud case), trying to cut corners by reducing business expenses with inferior quality product replacements (Toyota acceleration problem)  or in worse case situation, totally omitting a crucial section of the package only to have the client finding out when he/she opens the package up once it is delivered to the end-user (spa business sudden closure without refund/providing services as promised).

Whatever we do, in personal, among friends or with business, it is all about packaging, a package that you offer and sell yourself to your friends, and business partners which are tied up with your creditability, reputation or past track record, branding, efficiency and productivity along with other factors involved. It comes in a package..

Failure to provide a full package will result in loses of reputation and your own brand will be killed in a instant. It is hard to build a brand, but it is extremely simple to tarnish or ruin a brand over night.

Proceed with extreme caution. It determines your success or failure, rich or poor and it depends on what we do in business not only for ourselves but also for the business.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Principles are collectives of an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct. It is according to personal rules for right conduct. It can be moral principle, or a rule which a person fixed himself or herself to do something.

It is the ethical standards, judgment, rule of a good behavior. Everybody needs to define and refine their own principles and follow strictly to their principles and their own beliefs.

I have my own principles in doing anything and everything. Always refining my principles in details and improving on them to build creditability trust and brand myself with my principles. This way, you will position yourself on a different value worth of your intangible assets of good will that you are offering.

Different people have different perspectives leading them to their own principles based on previous experiences which they face and it is completely different among individuals. It is built on the basis on the family, friends, teaching, education, and how individuals view things, events and happenings around them. If you have absolutely no clue to what I am writing in this blog entry, ask yourself how and what do you want others to look and treat you like?

Is it to treat you like a friend, or like a pest avoiding you, or even treat you like a machine, overloading you with their own job increasing your burden without helping you in anyway in return for the help offered on your side?

How and what life do you want to live like? How do you want to be treated as? Helpful, useful or friendly person, you decide what kind of life you want to live and if you want to be an employee, or an employer.

Do you want to take control or be controlled by others at their mercy?
Start to define and refine your principles right now at this moment!!

Popularity: 1% [?]

Marketing is a form of selling without selling. It is the advance selling strategy which businesses and super salesmen/women use in business.

It involves not only the product, but included as well in the sales pitch is the benefits, value, efficiency, productivity and how much unnecessary expenses a product can help the business or a client save in the process with just a single purchase of a product. From a single marketing sales pitch, it not only is selling the product, also together is the brand, value of the actual worth, building brand royalty, relationship and opening another option to allow customers to get updates of the latest products launch if there is a system put in place.

Marketing is a deep advanced selling strategy which only a minority of the sales people uses. People who use marketing instead of selling are people who do their own businesses, and thus employees most often will not be bothered to sell the brand with the exception if they are working for a premier brand.

It involves branding, positioning, customer service, relationship building, value creation, royalty relationship building and most importantly, looking at the clients interest at heart. All these are needed to be shared during a short sales pitch.

Marketing tactics can be learned but it is not a simple task to begin with. It starts with education with the right intention. All these can be learn from work but without proper guidance, and spotting the mistake during the sales pitching/presentation, it makes a whole lot difference between selling and marketing.

Are you marketing or are your selling yourself?

Popularity: 2% [?]

Help is the act of either giving or provide what is necessary to accomplish a task or a need, to render assistance to people who need it.

It also make life less difficult and reliving them off their illness, pain and sufferings.

Help is everywhere and anywhere. Are you the person who likes to help and advise people or are you one who only likes to receive help and assistance from others and never give back any?

Help is a two way thing. The more people you help, the more people will help you succeed. The more reluctance you show in refusing to help others, the same others will show to you.

Look at businessmen. They are setting up businesses, helping many people in different areas. By employing employees, they are helping the majority of the people to get paid if they are willing to work hard for the company, and in return they get money to bring bread and butter back home to the family.

By doing business, providing service and solutions to help solve business partners’ problems, they are helping others again, and in return they get money (profits) back in return.

By lending a hand in charity with money, they help people in extreme poverty get fed with food and basic supplies, they didn’t expect anything in return, but than others see it, than again they are helping themselves.

The return favor of helping comes back to the business in the form of recognition, branding and position which is goodwill, building a reputable brand for the country, individual or business, the more low-profile you are, the more happiness you will get and more rewards will come back to you.

Not everything comes back from helping in the form of money, but the values and reward to helpful people and businesses will end up with much more than what they offered.

When individuals and business do charity, they can reduce their tax for that year too from the government and more support from the leaders governing the countries with more benefits in future. There’s nothing to lose in helping but a lot more to gain.

Exercise caution when you offer and extend a helping hand. Never ever help any individual that refuse to accept your help and stretching out their hand. If they reject you, so be it, there are others who will gladly accept and appreciate your help.

Practice selectively helping, else you will be abused too. Example: You don’t go around helping people in the brink of bankruptcy when they didn’t learn their mistakes or lessons. The more you offer help, the more you’re digging your own grave to perish together with the people facing bankruptcy at the expense of your financial help.

You will not help people who don’ t share the same vision, goals as you (only applicable to businesses only). If you’re into philanthropy, than just do it as long as it is within your means and financial ability allows. Spending and spreading wealth wisely to those deserving of a chance to succeed and grow.

Do not help people who will turn their backs on you, a real life betrayal of unconditional help will be USA. They who believe in their religion believe in helping anyone and everyone, and the help they offered get abused in this case example.

USA trained Osama Bin Laden, who in turn became a real ring leader in terrorist who betrayed USA’s kind intentions, war breaking out among Iran, Iraq, and neighbouring countries suffer in some ways.

So select carefully and help, don’t help people who act like they need help but with hidden agenda that go against your vision, principles and directions which again leads me to entrepreneurship.

Choosing the right business partners, help people who accept your help and not people who only want to make use of your help, be selective and test their intentions if needed.  Choose the right business partner and your life plus wealth will be made much easier, choose and make the wrong choice or decision, and you have hell of a time like USA still trying to capture Osama Bin Laden who may still be hiding inside the mountains underground and in the caves etc.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Benchmarking is a comparison of products in the market to allow a fellow competitor to have an in-depth understanding and awareness of the market information

Products and services are bench-marked accordingly to the different market segments which they are targeting as well. It also allows the company to identify the competitive advantages and disadvantages which they have.

It is a excellent strategy, but not necessarily a strategy that all businesses would consider to adopt in their own business model. Example, the top luxury brands do not use benchmarking, instead, they massively increase the price for the same product found available in the market.

The only difference this top luxury brands can commend the huge gap of price tag attracting a lot of green eyes are simply because they are the best in what they are doing.

Example: A diamond industry business specializing in diamond auctions where huge price tags are attached as compared to a diamond retailer.

Decide your company position, branding before you decide if you want to adopt this bench marking into your business.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Reputation is the key consideration factor when doing anything be it business, going into a relationship or investing on an individual or a company.

As simple as it sounds, it doesn’t looks easy to carry out. Reputation is an intangible asset which is in the balance sheet of profit and account statement which we treat it as branding. How much does the brand cost, and what is the difference between products which is branded versus a product which is new on the market.

A new product will take time to build a base of customers by offering services for value creation and giving customers more reasons and small gifts here and there to convince and persuade customers to change direction from a brand to another. Whoever is able to command a higher perceived value in the eyes of the customers wins until the next contender surface.

Business is all about reputation, creditability, and how much he/she can influence and make customers or even strangers take his/her word with complete trust and assurance without even an doubt in the individuals’ character or personality. That to me is build on mutual trust, and a unprecedented high level of trust will be build when quality is not compromised even in big companies and franchise models. This is the true value of trust which goes a long way.

It takes from months to years to build the trust in both the brand (business) and in the leader leading the company risking his/her reputation on the line with each and every step. One wrong move will result in overnight tumble just like when a professional explosive specialist has being given the go-ahead to push the button to detonate the explosives in a vacant building to give way to new property developments.

With reputation being placed on the line, every step we take with ourselves or with our business partners, colleagues and friends should be taken into consideration first and their credentials first before signing any agreement.

If in the event, there’s no trust and credentials yet, a guarantor and disclaimer policy can be put in place before you carry out any business campaigns. By first drawing a clear line between what’s yours and what’s not, you can be sure of what and how to react in times of problems should they try to push the blame to you? Always have a mutual black and white agreement with people whom you work with so once they commit, they will have to obliged by the terms and conditions set and follow throwing away any grey to black hat strategies which they have if you are not a push-over.

Devise your own terms and conditions before hand, get to know what potential problems you may encounter if you have a lot to lose considering you’re a influential successful person. If you’re a nobody, just go right in, learn whatever you can build your trust, reputation and credentials from the first project you do.

Popularity: 1% [?]