A summary of things you should know about Free Agent according to Katy Tynan: Introduction In this episode Katy Tynan takes a deep dive into her book, Free Agent, whereRead More
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]]>In this episode Katy Tynan takes a deep dive into her book, Free Agent, where she reveals what it takes to be successful in the business of independent contacting and freelance work.
In her book Tynan provides actionable steps, case studies, and tools you will need to help you transition from a full-time employee to your own independent freelance practice. The goal of the book is to teach you how to become an in-demand resource, understand the business of freelancing, how to get your independent business off the ground, and how to avoid the common pitfalls of freelancing.
This book is perfect for aspiring entrepreneurs who have a special set of skills and are interested in leaving their full-time job in order to start monetizing their skillsets independently.
When I approach writing my feeling is that my reader is somebody that wants to be able to get right to the point and find the information they are looking for. And so when I wrote this book I wanted to make sure it was very practical, that it was actionable, and that somebody could pick it up and get exactly what they need out of it. The second thing that I feel is different about this book is it’s directed at people who are looking to get into this as a career path.
If you are an independent professional and you have a problem you can flip right to the chapter you need.
What I want for people when they read this book is to be able to say I can do this. If you have a passion, skill, and desire to work this way you can.
I divided the book into three sections and the reason for that is because I feel like from a logical perspective there are three reasons why someone would pick up a book like this. So the very first section is where we talk about the emerging trend of this free agent labor force. Who are the people that are doing this? Why are we talking about the free agent force and where did it come from? It’s fascinating to me how these trends arise and one of the things I talk about is the transition from pension plans. In the first two chapters I dove into that backdrop which I think is important for a lot of people who are wondering how and why this freelancing free agent trend came to be and why we are working the way we are working. And also to talk about the fact that this is a long-term thing. I expect that people are going to continue to work independently for the long term and that it’s a career path that a lot of people can follow.
Section two is very practical for people who want to get started and transition from being an employee to being self-employed. This section includes everything that you can possibly think of for how to set up your business, what you need from a professional team perspective, what you need for a corporate structure, and how you are going to pay your taxes. I think what holds people back from pursuing this as a career path is that feeling that they don’t know what questions to ask, who to call, or what structures and mechanics they need in place. So this section is all about the practical aspects of getting setup as an independent professional. It includes inks, resources, practical information, and case studies and stories of people who have made this transition themselves.
The third section of the book is about strategies for long-term success as an independent professional. Another chapter in this section is probably the most important and it’s about balancing independent work and life.
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 08:17
“It’s so hard when you are the one who is responsible for everything and yet it’s so rewarding when you are the one who is responsible for everything.” –Chris Brogan
I’m an author, speaker, and entrepreneur. I started my career in tech and helping people understand how technology could work for them. But really what I found was that I love people, I love working with people, and I love helping people solve problems and figure things out. So that’s how I got started working independently as I just love going around and meeting people and finding ways that we can work together and solve problems.
The inspiration for me to pursue the path of becoming an independent professional came about six years ago and then what I found is it’s tough to do. We don’t teach people in school how to pursue this career path and so I felt like there needed to be more resources, more conversation, and more opportunity for people to understand what this path looks like.
Drive by Daniel Pink
Buy Free Agent by Katy Tynan on Amazon today
Visit IndieWorking.com to learn more about Katy and her business
Follow Katy Tynan on LinkedIn and Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
The Entrepreneur Mind by Kevin Johnson
Everyday Entrepreneurs by Ken Horn
The Freaks Shall Inherit the Earth by Chris Brogan
Relevant advice and tips:
7 Reasons Why You Should Quit Your Job
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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]]>Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Realizing the answer to this question is often a difficult task. And often, it takes a series of hurdles forRead More
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]]>Realizing the answer to this question is often a difficult task. And often, it takes a series of hurdles for you to identify this trait in your personality. But how do you know whether it is right for you to quit your day job and start on a venture of your own? Well, there is no easy answer to this.
The good thing is that most entrepreneurs share certain characteristics. If you can identify with these, chances are high that you may have that entrepreneurial spirit in you. But don’t despair if you don’t fit them all.
Let’s take a look at some ways to tell if you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur:
You have a passion to do something. Passion for what they do is what drives the successful entrepreneurs. Edison tried and failed 10,000 times before he could design the light bulb. We may have had to do with candles still if he had given up. But he had the passion that drove him to success. Do you have the same?
You have a seriously poor employment history. Have you quit more jobs than you can remember? Not because you were not good but because you felt you were stuck – maybe even at the top when even success gets stale. If so, the next best thing is to start on an endeavor of your own where you can effectively and efficiently manage yourself.
You have the nerve to take risks. Fred Smith nearly failed his business management course when he developed a business model that focused on express delivery service. But this did not deter him from putting his thoughts into action. And FedEx was born. All entrepreneurs aren’t overnight successes. But they have the courage to follow their dreams.
You think outside the box. When the worst financial crisis hits the world, many entrepreneurs cowered in front of it. But Sarah Lavely saw an opportunity. She offered people the opportunity to vent out their frustration and relieve stress in an amazing way – throwing stuff at a wall after you buy it.
You have a broader perspective of security. For some, a secured job is a good enough thing. For others, there is no security at a job that depends on others. You never know when a silly or spiteful decision of a boss or a mess-up of the board of directors will screw it. For such souls, security is only in a job where you yourself are responsible for everything.
You have the determination to get back on your feet even after a bad fall. If you mope after every little failure, it’s best to avoid entrepreneurship. Successful entrepreneurs get back on their feet immediately after they face failure. Take Bill Gates for example – his initial Traf-O-Data was a super failure. But he moved on and became a success.
You have the support of people close to you. No entrepreneur is a success on his/her own. They need the support of their family and friends to make it through the tough times – and there sure are enough of those! Also, successful entrepreneurs never surround themselves with “yes-men”; instead, they depend on truthful advisors who can tell all at their face.
It doesn’t take a superhuman to succeed in business. But it does require the right traits to be happy and successful at it.
If you fit all these seven signs, then you have the most of what it takes to be an entrepreneur. If you don’t, no worries! There are no sure formulas to success and you may turn out to be an amazing entrepreneur even if you had a successful career as an employee. In the end passion and motivation are the key aggregators of a true entrepreneur.
Lifestyle Entrepreneur by Jesse Krieger | Check out Jesse’s exclusive deep dive here
The Freaks Shall Inherit The Earth by Chris Brogan | Check out Chris’s exclusive deep dive here
The Financially Savvy Entrepreneur by Emily Chase Smith | Check out Emily’s exclusive deep dive here
The Suitcase Entrepreneur by Natalie Sisson | Check out Natalie’s exclusive deep dive here
The Entrepreneur Mind by Kevin Johnson | Check out Kevin’s exclusive deep dive here
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]]>7 Steps To Improve Networking Skills For Entrepreneurs Underestimating the power of networking is sure to be disadvantageous for an entrepreneur. But why do many entrepreneurs care less about this?Read More
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]]>7 Steps To Improve Networking Skills For Entrepreneurs
Underestimating the power of networking is sure to be disadvantageous for an entrepreneur. But why do many entrepreneurs care less about this? It is their idea of networking that adds to the trouble. If you think that it is simply about meeting new people and collecting business cards, you are mistaken.
Business networking skills are something every entrepreneur needs to acquire and improve on. And it doesn’t imply collecting business cards only – it requires much more than that. It is about building and nurturing meaningful relationships in the entrepreneurial world that will aid your success as an entrepreneur.
How can an entrepreneur improve networking skills? Let’s outline the steps to become successful at it:
Step 1: Identify opportunities. Which events do you attend? Well, every industry event is a big opportunity to make new relationships. Be it a trade show, a conference or a workshop, if it is a relevant place with the relevant people, attend it. Also, check the calendar of events at your local chamber of commerce; their events present good opportunities to network with other business-minded people.
Step 2: Plan ahead. Who do you want to meet? How do you approach them when you meet? What do you want to come up as a result of a meeting? Determine the answers to these questions before you take a step. Set smaller attainable goals – such as ‘I will meet 3 new individuals at this week’s events’ instead of ‘I will sign three deals with my contacts.’
Step 3: Pay attention to appearance and manners. Just as you prepare your pitch before a meeting, focus on what to wear and how to behave too. A first impression of an entrepreneur matters. So, dress appropriately for the do. And don’t make your pitch all about hard-selling – it won’t work for your first attempt at networking.
Step 4: Step out of your comfort zone. It is easy to keep talking to the people you know at an event where you don’t know the majority. But if you did this, you fail the purpose. The focus needs to be on how to create new contacts. And while you are at it, don’t waste your time on forming a hundred casual contacts; instead, focus on a few solid ones.
Step 5: Make it a two-way thing. A meeting is essentially a conversation. And it won’t be so if you monopolize it. Talk, but listen too. Ask questions, understand answers and keep a note. Make it about how you can be of help to the other; not the other way around. Don’t let one monopolize your time; and don’t do it to others either.
Step 6: Get the right mix. Exchanging business cards is alright; just don’t put them somewhere and forget all about them. Feed the details into your mobile device. Initiate conversations with the right contacts – both in the real world (you can meet them for a coffee) and on social media (you can email them a helpful resource).
Step 7: Most importantly, stay in touch. The basic idea of networking is simple – you create and nurture relationships with the right people to boost your business. And you need to maintain this to serve its purpose. This doesn’t mean you have to pester them with emails every day, just keep it meaningful – so they know you haven’t forgotten them.
Networking skills can help an entrepreneur land new business. It can also help you avoid a tunnel vision of meeting and keeping in touch with the people in your industry alone. Just don’t treat it like work. You don’t do it when you converse with your personal contacts; don’t do it for your business contacts either.
The real person behind the business is what matters most when it comes to networking.
The Entrepreneur Mind by Kevin D Johnson | Listen to Kevin give a deep dive here
What’s Next by Michael Price | Listen to Michael give a deep dive here
The Seven Levels of Communication by Michael J Maher | Listen to Michael give a deep dive here
Body Of Work by Pamela Slim | Listen to Pamela give a deep dive here
Lean Branding by Laura Busche | Listen to Laura give a deep dive here
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]]>A summary of things you should know about The Entrepreneur Mind according to Kevin D Johnson Introduction In this episode Kevin D Johnson shares his book The Entrepreneur Mind. ThisRead More
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]]>In this episode Kevin D Johnson shares his book The Entrepreneur Mind. This book is perfect for the entrepreneur who needs tips on business strategy, finance, marketing, and sales. The Entrepreneur Mind is written in the format compared to a blog and can be read in an easy, non-technical way by using creative stories that entertain and teach at the same time.
The readers told me what they liked and through them I learned that it was my writing style that set it apart from others. My writing style for business books has two major goals; to be very accessible and appealing to even the reader who may not be interested in business and the second goal is to not be so technical so as to turn off the reader. I do this by using creative stories that entertain and teach at the same time.
It really depends on how busy you are. I always encourage people to look at a book to see what’s most valuable if you are really busy and the book is written in a format that allows you to jump in and jump out. The segments are anywhere between 500-700 words so that you can read very quickly something that peaks your interest. If you have some time you can certainly read the book straight through.
The most valuable part of the book is the part that encourages entrepreneurs to create new markets that will be well worth your time and much more profitable.
The book is divided in to seven different sections; strategy, education, people, finance, marketing and sales, leadership and the final section is motivation. I divided the book in to these seven sections to make it a little bit easier to follow along. A lot of the content was originally in the format of that of a blog and so the book is just a little more structured.
Strategy by far is the largest and most important chapter of the book and it starts off with motivation to think big. If you are going to be an entrepreneur you might as well go after the big ideas because you are going to be doing a lot of work and spending a lot of time investing a lot of resources in to your company and ideas. Another popular section in the strategy chapter is to create new markets. I talk about that often because those entrepreneurs that are able to identify new markets are ultimately the most profitable and most successful. The business plan is overrated. A lot of people really appreciate my perspective on that in telling entrepreneurs that you have got to get out there and test the market and make sure that the idea will actually sell.
Chapter two talks about education and gets a lot of feedback. I talk about how school is not necessarily education. It’s not necessarily what you learn in class but the opportunity that you take advantage of while you’re there on a college campus. One of the great examples is that of Mark Zuckerberg. I talk a little bit more about education in terms of not rushing to get an MBA. So often I think a lot of entrepreneurs think that getting an MBA will really help them and of course it helps but I think what really helps a true entrepreneur is actually getting out there and trying to make a business work. There is no better experience than getting out there, starting your own business, and doing it yourself.
Chapter three talks about people, you’re going to need very supportive and helpful people to make you be successful. There are very few solo entrepreneurs that reach the heights of those that have a strong team around them. I talk about how and why it’s very important to spend the majority of your time with people smarter than you. A lot of people tend to find people or organizations that they are comfortable with and in order for you to grow you have to step out of your comfort zone and spend more time with others that are smarter than you. I also talk about how it’s so important to get the right mentor. Another important idea in this chapter is regarding how you manage people by managing expectations. A lot of people will say that you can’t manage people and I agree with that. So the best way to do that is to manage expectations. And finally for chapter three, I talk about firing unproductive people. I tell you how to do that and how to improve your firing process.
Chapter four is about finance and one of the biggest misconceptions about entrepreneurship is this idea that you need money to make money. I think the younger generation has done a good job at proving that that is not the case. This part of the chapter talks about finding all the resources that you can use to get your business off the ground for very little money. I also talk about some banking opportunities and managing debt well.
Chapter five is about marketing and sales. It is one of my favorites and very important. I start off this chapter by talking about you’re in sales whether you want to be or not. It talks about how you need to find your way of selling; everyone doesn’t sell the same way. Another part of the marketing and sales chapter is making sure you’re asking the clients the right questions. Once piece that has really helped our business is we focus on asking open ended questions and that way we learn a lot about our customers that otherwise they may not tell us if we ask them a close ended question. I talk about building your network creatively. We talk a lot about networking but you’ve really got to know how to network creatively to be most effective.
Chapter six is about leadership and it talks about a lot of the characteristics and habits that great leaders have. This is a really important chapter that talks about fear for example and how to overcome the fear in leadership.
Chapter seven is about motivation and talks about how being successful is not the goal. A lot of the most successful entrepreneurs are trying to solve a problem or bring value to the market. We talk about what your proper motivations should be in pursuing a business.
“To be an entrepreneur is to think differently. While most people seek refuge, entrepreneurs take risks” – Kevin D. Johnson
I am the CEO of Johnson Media Inc. a marketing and communication firm that has been around for about 14 years now. We serve primarily organizations and fortune 500 companies in the financial services space. We are based in Atlanta and a rather small team with big clients.
In March of 2012 I started a business blog that discussed various ways that successful entrepreneurs think and the blog became pretty popular to readers all around the world. Before long I was really encouraged by some of my readers to write this book because it quickly, because of the response before, became a bestseller. I wanted to provide a comprehensive body of work and advice for the many people that I mentor and ultimately publishing the book and extending the entrepreneur mind brand in other areas seemed like a great way to teach entrepreneurial concepts.
Netscape Time by Jim Clark
Buy The Entrepreneur Mind by Kevin Johnson on Amazon today
Visit TheEntrepreneurMind.com to learn more about the book
Visit JohnsonMedia.com to learn more about Kevin’s company
Follow Kevin Johnson on Twitter and Facebook
Download the full transcript here
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books: Everyday Entrepreneurs by Ken Horn | The New Entrepreneurz by Simcha Gluck | What’s Next by Michael Price
Relevant advice and tips: 5 Important Things That Every Entrepreneur Needs To Know About Starting a New Business | 7 Steps To Improve Networking Skills For Entrepreneurs
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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