Book Summary: Before You Quit Your Job – by Robert Kiyosaki
Website design By BotEap.comThis book can be seen as a roadmap of skill sets you need to learn to go from employee to entrepreneur. Several of these classic skills are outlined in the BI triangle which we will discuss in more detail.
Website design By BotEap.comWhy is this important to me? This really comes down to whether you’re happy where you are. Most people do NOT want the responsibility of running their own business. I can understand that because it is a real concern. If you’ve seen any of my other video highlights, then you know I’m a huge fan of Inversion. Basically, this means that you have to look at both sides of the coin. For people who have never been in business for themselves, there is an optimistic picture that you get unlimited freedom, you can choose your own hours, you don’t have to answer to anyone. I can tell you this is all bullshit. Now let’s get to the point. Why do most people not want to have their own business? IMHO it all comes down to the myth of security in your current job. This is a myth because your job could be cut off tomorrow and then you would have no security. If this is the only reason you stay at your job, then you are trading hours for money. Worse than that, if you hate what you do, you’re building up a reservoir of angst that will only get worse over time and spill over into your personal life. Another reason people don’t get into the business is because it’s too risky. I’m not sure what this really means. I believe that keeping the job you hate for money is riskier than starting a business and bringing real value to the market. Regardless, this is a real factor, so in your business planning you need to mitigate this risk. One way to do this is to educate yourself on each end of triangle BI.
Website design By BotEap.comThe BI triangle is an excellent graphical start to success in business. Let’s talk about this now:
Website design By BotEap.com1. Mission – This is at the base because it is the most important thing. This is your passion for the business. What are you passionate about? You need to have a real mission that solves a serious problem in a unique way. The mission is critical to true business success. Without a mission, you can still have a profitable business, but then you are in the S side of the Cash Flow Quadrant. This means that you basically bought yourself a job.
Website design By BotEap.com2. Leadership: For great insights into true leadership, you can study any of John C. Maxwell’s books. He is the authority in true leadership. Simply put, with the right mission and a strong leader, he will be able to attract the right stakeholders. These include employees, customers, partners, vendors, and financing. Jim Collins on Good to Great talked about Level 5 leadership. That’s the holy grail. You can refer to that summary for more details. Here are two examples of Level 5 Leaders: Nucor Steel’s Ken Iverson (Plain Talk – another summary) Kimberly Clark’s Darwin Smith.
Website design By BotEap.com3. Team: Team members are critical to the success of the company. You must have the right people in the right seats on your bus. Without this, you are doomed to mediocrity.
Website design By BotEap.com4. Cash Flow: This is based on the inside because without blood, the body dies, so it is with business: without cash flow, it dies.
Website design By BotEap.com5. Communications – This is paramount because if you can’t describe and articulate your value, then you’re doomed. You need to know how to sell. You sell to customers, employees, bankers and other interested parties. You need to refine this if you are going to go into business.
Website design By BotEap.com6. Systems: This has to do with infrastructure. You can sell to customers all day, but if you can’t deliver, install, train, bill, and collect money, the whole process falls apart. Good systems are better than hard assets. This is where you can gain a lasting competitive advantage over your competitors. Focus here for continuous improvement and your business will grow.
Website design By BotEap.com7. Legal – I can write tons of dry pages on legal topics that even the best insurance salesmen will HATE. The bottom line is that your company should be the right entity for tax and protection purposes. It must be protected from theft of trade secrets and non-competition of employees. You have to understand HR issues. Therefore, your legal advisors must be good and educated.
Website design By BotEap.com8. Product: See how the product lasts. It is an important goal for your business to have some staying power that the product will change. IBM is big business, but if they put product first, they’d be out of business because punch card computers disappeared in the ’60s.
Website design By BotEap.comLet’s move on to 10 tips before you quit your job. The top three are listed on the slide, but I’ll go through all 10.
Website design By BotEap.com1. Check your attitude
2. Get as much experience as you can in the BI triangle
3. Always remember that Sales = Revenue
4. Be optimistic and brutally honest with yourself.
5. How are you spending your money?
6. Start a business to practice
7. Be willing to ask for help
8. Find a mentor
9. Join a network of entrepreneurs 10. Be faithful to the process Website design By BotEap.comThe power of associations is powerful. It is said that you can average the income of the top 5 people you associate with and you will fall into that category. To that end, find a mentor and take advantage of PEO: other people’s experience. Website design By BotEap.comRemember that you can do all of these things while you are still working. The key is to educate yourself and adopt the right habits so you understand what you’re getting into. Website design By BotEap.comI hope you have found this brief summary useful. The key to any new idea is to work it into your daily routine until it becomes a habit. Habits are formed in as little as 21 days. Website design By BotEap.comOne thing you can take away from this book is ATTITUDE. Please open your eyes and take a few minutes a day to program your attitude. I know it sounds esoteric, but it has to be done. Most people will try to dissuade you from entering the business. Brief history: My father worked for GM in the 60’s. He found out that he was offered several different jobs/promotions that his boss never told him about. Needless to say, he came out. (I still have the letter of resignation typed!). Anyway, my grandfather went crazy because back then GM was security, he must have the job of the century. My father was a businessman ever since. That was absolutely the bravest move because he had two children and one more on the way when he did it.
2. Get as much experience as you can in the BI triangle
3. Always remember that Sales = Revenue
4. Be optimistic and brutally honest with yourself.
5. How are you spending your money?
6. Start a business to practice
7. Be willing to ask for help
8. Find a mentor
9. Join a network of entrepreneurs 10. Be faithful to the process Website design By BotEap.comThe power of associations is powerful. It is said that you can average the income of the top 5 people you associate with and you will fall into that category. To that end, find a mentor and take advantage of PEO: other people’s experience. Website design By BotEap.comRemember that you can do all of these things while you are still working. The key is to educate yourself and adopt the right habits so you understand what you’re getting into. Website design By BotEap.comI hope you have found this brief summary useful. The key to any new idea is to work it into your daily routine until it becomes a habit. Habits are formed in as little as 21 days. Website design By BotEap.comOne thing you can take away from this book is ATTITUDE. Please open your eyes and take a few minutes a day to program your attitude. I know it sounds esoteric, but it has to be done. Most people will try to dissuade you from entering the business. Brief history: My father worked for GM in the 60’s. He found out that he was offered several different jobs/promotions that his boss never told him about. Needless to say, he came out. (I still have the letter of resignation typed!). Anyway, my grandfather went crazy because back then GM was security, he must have the job of the century. My father was a businessman ever since. That was absolutely the bravest move because he had two children and one more on the way when he did it.