Garage Entrepreneurs

A little while ago we posted an article called Listen To Your Critics. Seth Godin challenged this notion in his recent article, Ignore Your Critics. What we found interesting was that Seth not only wants us to ignore our critics, but also our fans because, given the choice, they will just demand more and more from us. He also says that the people you should listen to are the people who tell a lot of other people about you and your […] Continue Reading Critics, Fans and Cheerleaders: What Do You Think?

While doing research and reading blogs by some of my favorite entrepreneurs/business people, I realized that I’d often make a small note on a post-it and stick it on my desk.  The note more often than not moved around the desk a bit, blew to the floor a few times, before eventually being cleared off and either making its way to the garbage or into a bigger pile of old post-its.  I find that when reading non-fiction books I also tend […] Continue Reading The Entrepreneurs Notebook

I always had a problem answering the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” It plagued me. The problem was that my answer was never just one thing. One teacher asked me the dreaded question and my answer went something like this: “I want to have my own company, teach people, be an author, help people, etc etc.” I remember her telling me I should pick one thing on that list that I like more than the […] Continue Reading What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

Occasionally we watch videos on TED Talks: Ideas Worth Spreading.  They’re amazing, inspiring, hilarious, though-provoking, different, and free!  We love these videos because they’re 10-20 minute video clips of some of the world’s greatest thinkers, and do’ers.  These speakers come together and are challenged to give the best speech of their life.  The speeches are compiled on TED.com, a global community welcoming people from every discipline and culture with just two things in common: they seek a deeper understanding of the world […] Continue Reading TED Talks

Kaizen: A Japanese word meaning constant, and never-ending improvement.  Kaizen is the personal trademark of every man and woman who is living a fully awakened existence. This is a great concept and something that entrepreneurs should apply to their lives.  Never-ending improvement is the definition of growth – both personally and professionally.  Try to improve yourself year over year, month over month, and each and every day.  What are you doing now that will make you better than who you were […] Continue Reading Kaizen

I met with a very successful entrepreneur to ask her some questions. We talked about what it takes to run a business and she shared with me what she considered to be the biggest lesson she has learned from one of her mentors. That lesson is that everything is always your fault. She told me about a situation from when she was working for her mentor’s company and she was responsible for leading a team. One member of that team was […] Continue Reading It’s All Your Fault

Here at Garage Entrepreneurs we want everything done yesterday. Our patience has really been tested while developing Garage Entrepreneurs because the process has taken a lot longer than we anticipated in the beginning. This has been a three year journey with many ups and downs. For a long time we wanted to get to this point -where Garage Entrepreneurs is live (although still in beta). Now that we’re here we realize that this is in no way a destination. This is […] Continue Reading Journey Versus Destination

I just grabbed a quick coffee from Starbucks while running some errands when I caught a great thought on my cup:

Failure’s hard, but success is far more dangerous.  If you’re successful at the wrong thing, the mix of praise and money and opportunity can lock you in forever.

Great coffee.  Great quote.  Great lesson.  Great marketing.

Continue Reading The Way I See It

Entrepreneurs (especially in early-stage start-ups) can take their companies in a number of directions. Many of these directions would lead to positive results, but inevitably some won’t. In any given week, you won’t know the long-term results of the actions that you take, but don’t guess. Don’t go blindly into the decision-making process jumping on any opportunity that comes your way. For my own business, I see so many opportunities and I can’t help but think that I occasionally suffer from […] Continue Reading Move It Forward

I’ve had it easier than a lot of other entrepreneurs. I started my first business when I was very young; I was just a kid. Other entrepreneurs start their first business when they have bills to pay, a mortgage, and a family. These factors stop many other would-be entrepreneurs from starting a business at all. Regardless of the situation you are in, being an entrepreneur means taking that first step and getting that idea off the ground. Recently, I spoke with […] Continue Reading Take the Plunge