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Everyone wants to start their own business and there are many books telling you how to go about it. The only trouble is that many of them are simply wrong. The Rebel Entrepreneur by Financial Times journalist Jonathan explains why, in many cases, the received wisdom on entrepreneurship just isn’t the best way of doing things.
Full of examples of successful entrepreneurs who’ve made the grade by doing things differently, this book will show you:
• Why you don’t need to stick to a business plan
• That there’s nothing wrong with learning from the ideas of others
• Why, if things get tough, you should put your prices up
• How cutting costs can kill your business
The Rebel Entrepreneurship is the alternative guide to starting your own business and succeeding, that no entrepreneur can afford to be without.
Contents: Prologue: The importance of being a rebel
1. Funding is for fools
The case for bootstrapping • Small is beautiful, at least to begin with • The value of having no money • Have you tried the alternatives to the bank? • Pull yourself up by your bootstraps • If you can’t get a loan, get a grant • Timing can be everything • We are all dotcoms now, thank goodness • No man is an island when it comes to funding • The conclusion
2. Don’t innovate, imitate
An imitator in action • The original • Every action has a legal reaction • You can’t keep a good idea down • First movers do not necessarily have the advantage • Copying is as old as the hills • It is all about execution • Attack of the clones • Imitation can be the salvation of a company • Timing is everything • You do not have to settle for second best • The conclusion
3. Don’t be a hero
The problem of letting go • Most people find good leadership hard • Size is everything • Take a tip from the good parenting guide • Confessions of a meddler • An exception to the rule • When do you step back? • External factors are important too • The conclusion
4. The high price of success
Less can be more • Do the mathematics • What your prices say about the value of your offering • Why you need to keep prices up • The difficult relationship between price and value • In a recession, the need to raise prices only increases • The art of maintaining a high price • How do you get people to pay more? • Price is a matter of economics • To cut, or not to cut • Cutting your costs is not the same as raising your prices • What about cross-border trade? • How do you maintain high prices? • Warning: you can raise prices too much • Being low cost does not mean you cannot raise your prices • Being the best is always better than being cheapest • The conclusion
5. Don’t get hung up on the business plan
The only constant in (business) life is change • Ryanair as an example of a company that changes • Imitate, don’t innovate (reprised) • There is no shame in starting all over again • Testing, testing • Once the business plan works, write it down • The concept of the pivot • Pivoting once is never enough • Pivoting and foreign markets • The conclusion
6. You cannot cut your way to success
How do you react to the bad times? • Do you really need to make those cuts? • Sell on the savings your company can provide • Spend some money on yourself • Be confident • Do not rush to cut jobs • Find the opportunities to grow • Remember to pivot as well as invest • The conclusion
7. Do not waste your time selling
Tips for accelerating the sales process • Teamwork is key to sales • Good customer service can be a sales strategy • A few sales tips • Beware of overtrading • Squeezing the lemon • Opportunity is never far away • The conclusion
8. Failure is not failure if you learn
Why the fear of failure can be so damaging • Failure can be your own stupid fault • Common mistake : treating the bank like a cashpoint • Common mistake: putting your eggs in one basket • Life can be cruel so you have to deal with it • The random nature of entrepreneurial success • Remember, it may be second time unlucky • Remember, the darkest moment is before the dawn • Insolvency is often not the end • The conclusion • Index
ISBN - 9780749464820
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Pages : 240
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