I spent the entire morning at Billinghurst Middle School as one of their guests for career day. I had 5 sessions with about 30-40 teens in each session who interacted with me on choices, leading up to what matters now, and through high school, that could lead to a career path as an entrepreneur.

Billinghurst Middle School - Career Day with Amazing Teens

Today was absolutely an exchange of learning, as are most activities that involve people. My attitude going into this environment was positive, and I was excited at the idea of spending time with teenagers. There is something about young people that I find thrilling, fun and memorable. My highest respect goes out to the administrators and teachers at Billinghurst, but most of all, to the students.

Bighorn Stickers to all Guests, Gotta Love It!

These young people displayed an impressive level of mutual respect towards me and to each other. They were great listeners, and they enthusiastically contributed to the classroom discussion. They were creative in drawing their visions, answering questions and providing scenarios.

It is virtually impossible to present a complete understanding of what it takes to become an entrepreneur in 30 minutes, especially to teens who still have their high-school years ahead of them. So what we did focus on were “choices” as I passionately repeated in each class, “everything matters…every choice you make matters!”

I started each session asking the teens what position in life they see 20-year-olds in – not just people they know, but those in society. I led them to understand that 20-year-olds range from military positions, college students, workers, entrepreneurs, house-wives/husbands, homeless people, and even prisoners. The challenge was to make them understand that no one chooses to be homeless, nor do people choose to go to prison – people end up in these situations largely due to poor choices. So, every choice they make matters! Each teen has a baseline of “smart” – my loud message to them was that every day they need to make choices to get smarter…they heard me loud and clear, and without exception, they agreed it was important to be smarter each day…and that in itself is a choice!

It’s tough to love every day of school, and every subject. What helps the learning process for teens is getting them to understand the relevancy of school subjects to their future jobs, careers, life! We talked about math – I told them that in business, math = money, and money matters – it’s part of every business, and everything in life has an aspect of business.  Math = Money! Learn it, use it, and know that the better your math skills become, the smarter you can run a business.

Naturally writing and reading are big on this list as well. Many of the kids said they hated to read. My response to that was you will become a better reader the more you do it – find an author, a book series, a blog – the Internet has virtually millions of things to read – do it, and then you may find yourself wanting to write as well. No one can survive as an entrepreneur who doesn’t read and write daily.

I am just one person who wants to see teens care about learning. I want to see them believe that as individuals they have value, and believing in themselves allows them to make good choices in learning, living and growing. It doesn’t matter what is taught in a classroom if there are no listeners. Once teens choose to learn, and understand the value of education, they can grow closer to their potential. We as adults need to care, we need to get involved, and when we get a chance to hang out with these awesome teenagers, we need to choose YES, they are worth it. It was my honor to participate in career day at Billinghurst Middle School today. I hope they ask me back.

Just over a decade ago, Rod Jorgensen began teaching our 13-week NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs course by telling the business-owner attendees to carry a Yellow Pad wherever they went. He elaborated on the importance of capturing every idea onto paper. Writing down new ideas does several things:

1. It clears your head and makes room for more ideas
2. It captures a thought or idea that may very well become a starting or stepping stone to something great
3. It sparks action into play

I carry one of those bible-size Franklin planners wherever I go. My personal motto behind my madness, “if it’s written, it gets done.” People tease me, and I laugh with them, but I sleep better at night because the things I need to remember and some of my new ideas are written down.

Scott Armstrong, GOT DIBBS?

In Scott’s presentation, he bounced back and forth about the company, the new technology, social media, and his joys and pains of living his life as an entrepreneur. He is one of the most decent people I’ve ever listened to.  His advice was as real as he was. Among the expert advice Scott shared was his strong recommendation to write things down and to carry a pad of paper everywhere you go! He told us Dibbs began as an idea, and this new technology is a fine example of what could have been lost had it not been scribbled down with on-going thoughts, ideas, and brain-storms. Scott went on to tell us about the huge white-board in his living room, and seeing the progression of daily thoughts was essential to move his ideas, and those of his team, forward.

Scott and his team have developed a technology that has more than 8,000 users in a short couple of months. Scott IS an entrepreneur in every sense of the word. Dibbs grows exponentially, and I believe that Scott, his amazing team of innovators and entrepreneurs, and Dibbs will become household names in the near future. And Scott will continue to carry his notepad with him.

Do you know of people who talk and complain that a new product hit the market, and that he/she thought of it first? Well, I’ve learned to ignore these people, because that’s all they do is talk – they don’t write it down, and they don’t follow up.

After you’ve written an idea down, ponder it and see if it goes anywhere. What have you got to lose? Nothing, but you will lose your ideas if you DON’T write them down! Take Rod and Scott’s advice – carry a Yellow Pad wherever you go, and write down your ideas – daily. This is truly a valuable step in becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Do you have an insatiable lust to learn? I know I do! By surrounding ourselves by people smarter, more experienced, and willing to share a wealth of knowledge we add to the value of ourselves, and our business. Why wouldn’t anyone want to attend a conference that showcases powerful tools and people that can help us grow our business? And in northern Nevada, the landscape and recreation are breathtaking year-round.

We learn in numerous ways and environments, but the bottom line is that we learn from the ideas, experiences and innovations of others.  You will frequently hear me tell an audience member who claims to be self-taught, “You are only as smart as your teacher.”

I want to learn from the best whenever possible. I want to have many platforms in which to learn. The Internet is the most practical, but when I can go to see and hear powerful people live on stage, and be invited to engage in a live conversation, that’s where I want to be! I am open to influence from those who have proven themselves as experts. This will make me smarter, and maybe I can influence others to work smarter on their business. I am thrilled to be registered to see Gary Vaynerchuk live at the Tahoe Tech Talk 2010 on September 30th , and the SM@RT (Social Media @ Reno-Tahoe) conference coming to Reno, NV December 8-10 at John Ascuaga’s Nugget.

Social media has evolved into an industry so large and powerful that universities across the globe offer post and undergraduate degrees in this field of study and practice. If you look at some of the highly successful practitioners of social media, you will find high-end entrepreneurs. These people, who got on board years ago with social media, saw the Internet as an unprecedented tool to grow their business.  My favorite entrepreneur who breathes in social media like we do air, hands down, is Gary Vaynerchuk. His latest 2-minute video blog provides a potent statement, “It’s not the platform, it’s always the message.” Gary embraces social media as always, but reminds us we cannot ignore or dismiss other platforms such as radio, television and print in marketing our business. In another of his countless video blogs Gary talks about his company’s evolution referencing a single thought after seeing someone else attempting to gain a larger market in the wine industry. Gary said to himself, “I can do that. The wine world needs an advocate. They need me. They need someone who won’t be a jerk about it.” And what did he do? He became the wine advocate, he reeks of customer service, he appeals to all wine consumers, he pulls from his personal strengths, he identifies the tools, he masters the use of his tools and he implements a plan where he and his business become the epitome of success. And he continues to influence the way we do business. I LOVE this guy!

Though we don’t have Gary Vaynerchuk, the SM@RT conference gathers a solid list of smart people who are using social media as a strategic management and marketing tool for their business. Why would anyone attend a social media conference? To continue the journey of learning, to connect with one another, and to come together and collectively make our platforms work effectively and our messages purposeful. Hope to see you in northern Nevada at one or both of these remarkable Social Media gatherings!

College and school kids are starting back to school this week. What a great time for business owners to get back into a learning environment too. Can’t make it to a live NxLeveL class? Then let’s blog about it for the next 13 weeks – please join in the conversations!

NxLeveL Topic One: ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Our first session outlines the definition of entrepreneurship and in-class discussion is always enlightening when we ask the question, “What’s the difference between an entrepreneur and a business owner?” There are countless answers to this question, but what I feel is evident is the fact that a true entrepreneur spends significant time planning and learning something new, whether it is directly or indirectly related to his/her business. Entrepreneurs are self-directed learners. Our NxLeveL text goes into some details of self-assessment and some very good “food for thought” concepts. Listed as what makes a good entrepreneur includes: Passion, Persistence, Good Health, High Energy, Creativity, Independence, Self-Reliance, Open Mind, Intuition and Self-Confidence.

They don’t kid you about the reality of the “dream” of owning your own business. Hard-core questions that must be asked and answered are critical to the self-assessment. Working 80-100+ hours each week is a reality; making little or no money the first 1-2 years is a reality; getting your family or significant relations on board with you for support must be pre-planned; loss of money is inevitable to launch a business. “Successful entrepreneurs may take calculated risks, but they are not gamblers; they seldom act until they have assessed the situation and done everything in their power to minimize risk.”

In week one, you are asked to take several assessments that include:
Personal Assessment
Business Assessment
Lifestyle Assessment

The bottom line with anyone starting a new venture is, you don’t know what you don’t know. If you’re thinking of starting a new business, or want to work more on your existing business, talk to someone who is ahead of you – learn from others, from books, from classes and don’t do this alone!

For further assistance with business building please learn more about the Nevada Small Business Development Center, a department within the College of Business at the University of Nevada, Reno. It’s a great place to get some solid help that includes free and confidential one-on-one business advisement. Or contact me because I’ve worked 15 years at this amazing agency and pride myself in connecting people to resources.

Tune in next week for topic two – PLANNING & RESEARCH: Entrepreneurial Essentials

Want some more info on Nevada NxLeveL? Please read on.

NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs begins in five Nevada cities soon. The biggest challenge for people to get on board with this popular and successful business education is time. NxLeveL puts people into a classroom environment for 13 weeks, 3 hours at a time to cover 12 critical topics for small business success.

Most people want this education, but the timing may not be right. With respect to all of you my intention of writing weekly on NxLeveL is to outline the topics and provide some learning that may be useful in your business and in your assessment if this class is something you wish to pursue down the road. All quotes are taken directly from the fourth and fifth editions of NxLeveL® Guide for Entrepreneurs, copyright NxLeveL® Education Foundation, with permission.

Nevada has more than a dozen certified instructors, and those who commonly use social media in their business are on board to add to the content and conversations of our NxLeveL for Entrepreneur Training Network. This platform is also a tool for NxLeveL attendees who can learn from other business owners from all over Nevada. Join us today to learn, teach, share and inspire our incredible force of Nevada Entrepreneurs. There has never been a better time than now to collaborate and help our State’s economic recovery by supporting our small businesses through applied education, networking, and patronage.

Why Should You Consider Enrolling into a NxLeveL® for Entrepreneurs Course? Because…

It is the best training for business owners in the country.
It is a course that has been taken by more than 1,800 Nevadans.
It is completely applied learning and non-academic.
It is a course in which each Nevada entrepreneur who has graduated from says they wish they took it before they started their business.
It is hands-on learning that provides an environment for entrepreneurs to work on their business.
It is a program that provides a safe, confidential and passionate atmosphere for people who want to be smarter in their business.
It is a training curriculum used in more than forty states.
It is the cornerstone training program of the NV Small Business Development Center since 1999.
It is a course for existing business owners and new business owners.
It is a curriculum that provides an outstanding text written by 20 primary entrepreneur-authors from around the country with over 200 contributing entrepreneur-authors.
It is education for business owners who want to become more entrepreneurial.

NxLeveL is the world’s largest most effective entrepreneurial training network. Since 1996, over 80,000 students have participated in NxLeveL training nationally, and over 1,800 in Nevada since 2000. NxLeveL is a 13-session intensive training program designed to encourage small business expansion and promote economic development. It focuses on teaching the art of better business practices while producing a comprehensive business plan to guide business expansion, decisions and activities.

Topics taught include:

Failure to plan is a key reason 80% of small businesses close their doors! Join us for NxLeveL in Nevada!

Note: This class is fully funded by the Western Nevada Development District. There is a $95 registration fee that will be returned to each attendee who completes the class with 3 or less absenteeisms or submits a completed business plan if more than 3 absenteeisms. No refunds will be provided to attendees who drop the course. Fee includes all materials.

NxLeveL is the world’s largest most effective entrepreneurial training network. Since 1996, over 80,000 students have participated in NxLeveL training nationally, and over 1,800 in Nevada since 2000. NxLeveL is a 13-week intensive training program designed to encourage small business expansion and promote economic development. It focuses on teaching the art of better business practices while producing a comprehensive business plan to guide business expansion, decisions and activities.

Topics taught include:

Failure to plan is a key reason 80% of small businesses close their doors! Join us for NxLeveL in Nevada!

Note: This class is fully funded by the Western Nevada Development District. There is a $95 registration fee that will be returned to each attendee who completes the class with 3 or less absenteeisms or submits a completed business plan if more than 3 absenteeisms. No refunds will be provided to attendees who drop the course. Fee includes all materials.