How important is the truth in business? You probably just answered in your mind that the truth is very important in business. Did you know that there are two types of truth in the business world?

The first type of truth is the one that we are all familiar with; it could probably be termed courtroom truth; the kind of truth that is nothing more than fact and defines our character.

You can argue that the truth is exaggerated, but that puts us in the realm of another type of truth, a truth that is trait of entrepreneurs. It could be termed vision truth. The reason it could be called vision truth is because it is a natural extension of being an entrepreneur.

Man will someday fly. Man will walk on the moon. Oceans will be crossed in hours, not days. These statements may seem trite to you, but at one time they were viewed as ridiculous, exaggerated, or far from the truth.

At this time, they are taken for granted and discarded. In more recent times, we’ve witnessed the weaving of the computer age into our lives. The phrase, a computer on every desk, seemed far-fetched. Computers which talk seemed very far off.

These were truths spoken by entrepreneurs who could clearly see the future, perhaps hard to believe at the time of their mention, but truths yet to be realized.

This is the other type of truth. Not just the truth that shapes the future of the day, decade, or century, but truths which shapes the direction of mankind. True entrepreneurs have such a clear vision of the truth (future) that snide comments are pushed aside while the visionary entrepreneur moves ahead to embed his truth into society.

Richard Branson and Bill Gates speak a truth that is heard by billions of people. Walt Disney had a vision so strong that the truth about Mickey Mouse is undeniable, especially to a child.

It was this child-like dreaming that matured into vision and became truth to be unveiled to the rest of the world.

The truth should be spoken and the truth of your entrepreneurial vision must be defined in order for the rest of us to embrace it as t.r.u.t.h.

Taking Risks Utilizing Tactful Harmony
 

Lazz Laszlo is a former Investment Executive and Radio & Television Financial Reporter with many entrepreneurial endeavors to his credit. He invests his time, energy, and money in businesses of various types. He's written eBooks about Creative Thinking, Trends, and Travel. Please visit Lazz's website; http://www.eBizEinstein.com and if you are serious about better health and nutrition; visit; http://www.FitnessGladiator  

Have you ever wondered how some people can be so creative, while others are a pile of boredom awaiting a shovel to heap them into a pile with the other brain-numbies?

Creativity may not be part of your natural DNA, but it can be learned and cultivated without a lot of sweat and toil.

Your creativity just needs a trigger, a pin prick if you will, to get it to flow. What will trigger your creativity?

Necessity may be the mother of invention, but desire is truly the mother of creativity. You have to want to be creative; you have to work at it, just like a sports player works at being better.

In simple terms; if you consistently do the same things on the same days, year after year, don’t expect different results.

A key element to being creative is travel. Now, if you just said to yourself that you can’t afford to travel; you’re wrong. You can’t afford not to travel if you want to be creative.

Don’t stop reading. Travel can translate to just taking a different route to your office, or walking rather than driving. Walk to your office one morning, or perhaps easier, walk home from the office.

This is something that I do on a regular basis; usually 2 to 3 times per week. It’s a 2 mile trek, but all the things that I discover and see on the way home makes it refreshing, interesting, and invigorating.

Being chauffeured back and forth to my office is nice, but I have never enjoyed reading the morning paper in a moving vehicle; so it’s usually cell phone chat and follow-up calls.

Walking rather than driving or riding is probably the easiest way to awaken your creative genius. If you are in a position to spend a little money, you can hop on a big jet liner and go somewhere exotic; even it’s only an hour plane flight. It will be exotic to you, because it is out of your daily realm.

My favorite way to stimulate my creative thinking is to go to places that I’ve never been before and take in the culture, architecture, cuisine, entertainment, fashion, and immerse myself in conversation with as many people as I can.

Asking people for directions, where to eat, where to stay, which sites shouldn’t be missed, which areas to avoid, and asking what they do for a living can all activate your creative juices.

One different color combination on a painted building, business card, or in fashion can really get the grey-matter throbbing. 

A new taste, beverage, or fruit can have you saying, “Where have I been, this is great?”

So, whether it’s traveling a new route to your office or job, taking a bus to a distant city, or boarding a jumbo to explore a different continent, travel is a key to creativity.

The more you travel the more stimulation your brain will get and the more creative you will become (and the more interesting you will be to talk to and be around).

Traveling via television isn’t traveling; it’s mind candy and will rot your brain. One new experience, sight, or sound can have a lifelong effect on who you are, how you think, and what you create in your lifetime.

 Get with it and build a better website with help from; http://www.eBizEinstein.com and take a serious look at your current health picture; Are you the person you want to be?
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1.      Employees aren’t fond of long hours, giving up their weekends, or sacrificing their personal social calendars.

2.      They’re employees and most are just with an organization to get experience, get a paycheck, get ahead, or use it as a launching pad for a better position with a bigger company.

• You don’t need to be motivated. Your pure hunger for being the captain of your own ship is motivation enough and provides plenty of energy to keep going.

1. Organizations hire motivational speakers, psychologists, and consultants to improve productivity, when the real problem is that the employees really don’t care, don’t want to care, and would rather be doing something else.

2. It’s difficult to be motivated when there’s nothing at stake. Employees just put in the hours and if they or the company they work for fails, they’ll just move on.

• You decide who you work with or bring on board to help you, so you know it will be a good fit.

1. Organizations try to match skills, not personalities. Essentially an employee is assigned to a task, group, or work group and they have no control over what happens next.

2. Motivation, rivalry, and personal agendas have a way of weakening organizations.

So, going it alone can have a load of advantages attached to it. You’ll be more flexible and not be weighed down by paperwork.

The decision-making process is totally in your hands and you can turn on a dime if need be. Organizations are turtle-like in response and the bigger the organization, the slower the decision-making process. Everybody has to put their two cents in. 

No one is going to work as hard as you are, because it’s your baby. You came up with the idea, developed the strategy, and willing to do what ever it takes to take your idea as far and as big as it can go. Employees just wait for five o’clock to roll around and move at a “get-by’ pace in the meantime.

Your dream of success and all that comes with it serves as a constant elixir to nurture your energy cells. For organizational employees, the pay raise only gives a temporary boost, and the larger cubicle with the plant and window lose their motivational power quickly. Learn the lesson; you can not motivate someone, it must come from within.

One of the greatest benefits of working for yourself is being able to select who you work with, deal with, communicate with, eat with, and spend your time with. If you’re smart, you’ll surround yourself with people that share the vision of what you want to build or simply are just nice people that give you no anxiety about calling, contacting, meeting with, buying from, or selling to.

Going it alone is sometimes lonely and frustrating, but the feeling you get from calling all the shots is addictive and that feeling is what keeps you from falling into someone else’s organization and pushing ahead to build your own. 

Make your website the best it can be; http://www.eBizEinstein.com 

and treat your body like a temple, not a woodshed; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com  
 

 You really should take advantage of your advantages when you develop an Internet website. What I mean by that is;

·        You have the advantage of flexibility when you work as an entrepreneur. You can make a decision on the fly.

In an organization, rapid change is harmful and here’s why;

1. Making spur of the moment changes in an organization will scare some of the employees and perhaps push them to leave.

2. It’s a slow process and the quick thinkers may leave because they feel that the organization isn’t up to speed with the competition and let’s face it, no one wants to go down with the ship.

3. Rapid changes fuel distrust.

·        If you make a decision and it doesn’t work out, you can abandon it in a heartbeat.

1.      Organizations move slowly toward change and many stay with a loser; using the mindset that it just takes time.

2.      Waiting for a strategy to take hold can drain a lot of cash and more money will be thrown into trying to fix a problem which may not be fixable.

3.      An organization has a hierarchy and reports, answers, and discussions can eat a lot of time.

·        You have the power of commitment. You’ll stay up past midnight working out a problem, developing an idea, or researching a hunch.

1.      Organizations have employees; they watch the clock, even when they say that they don’t.

Part Two tomorrow, in the meantime, build a better website; http://www.eBizEinstein.com 

 and get a healthier lifestyle; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com  

The oil which is extracted and refined from the agarwood is witnessing a growing demand, especially in the Middle East. Prices are reflected by demand and demand is high as the oil is used for making perfumes and the fragrances used in cosmetics and is considered one of the best by many. 

Thailand is expanding its production of Aquilaria trees, because they see the rising demand for what the locals refer to as oud (agar).

If you’ve traveled extensively, you have probably run across agar, but were unaware of it at the time.

The pharmaceutical industry in Japan uses agarwood and in Europe it is common in cosmetics. In fact, agarwood is a very common raw material component in joss sticks.

A litre of premium agar can fetch as much as $20,000 or more.

You ask; why all of sudden is there going to be a trend involving agarwood?

Here’s the meat of the trend story. Commercial production of agar was strictly prohibited by the Thai government for hundreds of years, but just a few years ago, the trees that produce the desirable agar resin were taken off the protected plant list in the Kingdom of Thailand. This was done after the government realized the money that could be pumped into the Thai economy if they allowed the production of oud commercially.

It’s been seven years since the ban was lifted, but it’s taken those years to grow the trees and more are being planted regularly, but plantations which grow the trees require large capital investment.

To put this in perspective; it takes anywhere from ten to forty years for a tree to mature in order to produce the premium oud, but artificially cultivated oil can be extracted from a tree in as little as three years from the tree’s planting.

It’s in the same realm of thinking as pearls. There are pearls which are produced over time and then there are cultured pearls which were first  created by an industrious Japanese man.

The premium resin would come from trees that took those ten to forty years to mature, while the lower priced and still desirable oud came from essentially infecting the younger trees with the fungus.

True, you may not consider this to be a trend that you’re going to jump on by growing your own trees, but your thinking should follow the following steps;

1. Who uses agar oil?

2. Can it be purchased in bulk and resold in smaller portions?

3. Is there a duty on this item? If so, how much and how is it determined?

4. Is there money in just being a middleman (distributor)?

5. Can I create a mystique about the item by writing a tale of its heritage and usage?

6. Which ceremonies call for the use of the oil?

7. Should I try a line of my own oils and fragrances which feature this oil and its properties?

8. Who can I partner with to put this together?

9. Perhaps I could just make or import decanters or scent bottles for this oil and never deal in the oil itself.

10.  Who near me has the oil, so that I can smell it and learn more about it?

11.  Is there a similar product that I should be investigating?

12. Do I watch this trend develop or do I get involved somehow?

13. If I ran an ad in an industry publication (cosmetic/fragrance) what sort of response would I get? Of course, it depends on what your ad promises, asks for, or offers.

I like to keep my eyes open for trends that are developing, but hidden in plain sight. Honestly, before you read this article, did you ever hear of oud, agar, or agarwood?

Stay tuned, I’m always looking for trends and ways to spot them.

Make your website more powerful; http://www.eBizEinstein.com

and get in shape, drop bad habits, and pick up some good habits; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com
 

What’s the next big thing? Well, it’s time to dust off your rolodex, get on the horn and start talking about “agar.”

What do your contacts know about agar and do they know what it is used for? Which are perfect distributors for you? How do you get the word out that you’re a source for agar?

Trends that last are developed slowly through a network of businesses and talking heads.

What is agar?

We’ll start with the Aquilaria trees. These are a type of evergreen tree that grows to a great height and are indigenous to Southeast Asia.

It’s not the tree that you will be directly interested in, but what happens to the tree when it is infected with mold. Nature’s chemical factory goes to work and produces a resin, which is very aromatic.

The trees don’t have to wait for a fungal infection to come along, tree growers purposely cut the trees and make conditions just right for the fungal infection to flourish and the resin to be produced.

Another name for the common term agar is the more proper “agarwood.” The resin has many names besides agarwood; they include jinko, gaharu, aloeswood and oud.

Part Two will be posted tomorrow; in the meantime; http://www.eBizEinstein.com

and to find ways to better health; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com

• Risk attracts smart capital.

• Risk and gain are kissin’ cousins.

• If it weren’t for risk, the world would be a crazy place and the business world would be doomed.

Let’s put the risk picture together and you’ll see the benefits.

As I mentioned, just hearing the word risk or having risk associated with something, chases the weak-minded away, which gives you fewer competitors and an edge.

Now that you’ve limited the field of competitors, you have to be smart enough to know that risk is part of our daily lives and is contained in everything. Getting up in the morning, you run the risk of getting struck down by a passing car. The reality of this example is that the likelihood of such an event happening is remote.

To be more specific, if risk was such a bad thing, why would anyone ever form an insurance company? Some of the reasons are; there’s money to be made with risk, not all risks are equal, and you can limit your exposure to risk.

In other words, you can mold your risk tolerance. Using insurance companies as an example; there are some drivers, smokers, specific types of workers that many insurance companies will not insure, because even for them the risk is too great. That’s not to say there is no insurance available, but with higher risk comes higher insurance premiums.

To speak more generally; a risk perhaps is worth taking if the rewards from taking such a risk pay off in a big way. You don’t have to be stupid about risk or practice total risk aversion, but make sure there is compensation from taking a risk. 

Insurance companies make money, because they carefully weigh the risks of their policies and when the risk is too high they generally go one of two ways; they refuse the applicant or bring in a partner or two to help reduce their exposure. You have to do the same. If a business venture seems too risky, but it offers great rewards if you can pull it off, you might be wise to take on a partner, investor, or decide to walk away if you can’t find a suitable partner.

It’s true that risk and gain are kissin’ cousins; the bigger the risk, the bigger the gain in business. It’s managing the risk that makes the difference.

All of this leads us to how you should deal with risk.

1)      Don’t be afraid of risk.

2)      Shy away from people who are risk averse.

3)      If you risk life and limb, don’t’ go near it.

4)      If the risk involves money, don’t be afraid of it, because you can make more money.

5)      When a risk seems too large to take on by yourself, seek partners.

6)      Before entering a risky situation, know clearly what the rewards will be if you are successful.

7)      If you can clearly define the risks of a situation in relationship to the rewards and they make sense, it will be easier to attract a partner to enter a venture with you.

8)      Anticipate loss, in other words, play devil’s advocate and imagine the worst-case scenario and think about what you would do if the worst did come to pass.

If you make a blanket statement that you don’t like any type of risk, you’re being foolish. Risk is everywhere and you have to build your tolerance, understanding, and knowledge of potential benefits to risk

One of the reasons that many businesses fail is that they do not fully weigh the risks.

Before going into a business, the creator of the business has to run the possible outcomes of making the venture happen. If it doesn’t work on paper first, chances are great that it won’t work with a bricks and mortar or a cyberspace location.

Accept risk as part of any business venture, but with some light research, possible partnering, and a clear vision of what it is you want to accomplish, you’ll have the upper hand on risk. Embrace risk, but remain in control of your senses.

The risk factor is only dangerous if you ignore the fact that it exists.  

visit; http://www.eBizEinstein.com and get healthier with; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com

Risk is a four-letter word that deserves your attention and the sooner you pay attention to it, the better-off you’ll be.

Risk is a scary word to most people, especially as the world economies continue to slow and in some cases crumble. Risk is played by the media to grab your attention and it’s given a spin by investment firms and banks, by offering products and services which are low-risk, limited-risk, or no-risk.

You have to address risk with respect, because you would be foolish not to.

There’s a good side to risk and here are some of the factors that make it a great word;

• The mention of risk takes many of the weaker players out of the game. These players are so afraid of a possible loss that they’ll run and hide as soon as the risk factor is brought up. Little do they know that all investment and business situations contain risk.

• It’s important that you know that all risk is not created equally. There’s the risk of losing everything and there’s risk that is little more than stubbing your toe.

• Risk can be molded to fit your constitution.

·        Delegate; when you don’t delegate, because you think that you can do it all, you’ll burn yourself out very quickly. The tasks that you just feel an anxiety about performing should be delegated to someone who enjoys doing them. Yes, it will cost a little money, but if you’re in the Internet world for the long-haul, the money you invest by farming out some of the work will be well worth your health, attitude, and productivity. All great leaders delegate and the leaders who delegate intelligently remain great leaders. Leadership is still a position that is determined by decision and results.

·        Penny pinching. Some things just cost money and if you are starting an online business I agree that you have to watch your expenditures, especially in the frills area, but some things cost money and you have to pay for them. I’m not big on discount brain surgery and neither should you be. You don’t necessarily have to get the item or service with the most bells and whistles, but choose the one that will get the job done, over-deliver on what they promise, and free you up to direct your energy into the parts of the business that keep you excited and energetic.

·        As a bonus, here’s another; Negative talk. Get out of the habit of talking down the competition’s website. You probably don’t know the real story behind the website, how much it’s making or losing, or how long and how many efforts ago the website creator started. Save your brain power for building up the quality of your website. Anyone can talk down about something or someone to make themselves look better or bigger, but don’t let that be you.

These are just a few of the traits that can bury your business six feet under even before you take a fair shot at making it as a successful Internet Marketer. Here are a few things that you should write down on a card and practice in your efforts to be a website master.

·        Focus your attention on what needs to be done and avoid comparing yourself to how far ahead others are.

·        Give yourself a schedule to follow so that you know your direction and what has to be done.

·        Make time in your schedule that is uninterrupted so that you can daydream (this is where you really think about what you are doing on the www) and envision where your website will be in 3 months, 6 months and years down the road.

·        Be willing to change your path, if it isn’t working; be open to change. No matter how you try, you can’t put 18 ounces of fluid in a 10 ounce container successfully; some things just don’t fit.

The Internet is still a fresh frontier and the fuel it uses is brain power, it’s something that you will never run out of, but something that you have to train yourself to use.

Like most things in life that are rewarding, the Internet often looks much simpler than it is. The secret is; the more knowledge you have about the Internet, the easier it is to understand, explore, and reap the benefits from.

Get the tools you need to build a better Internet website, check out; http://www.eBizEinstein.com and to be fit for the harsh winter ahead, go to; http://www.FitnessGladiator.com  

Business is Business and an Internet business is just an intangible website instead of a bricks and mortar location. The behind the scenes may be similar; namely an office or work area that creates the Internet Cyber World.

Sometimes making the wrong moves can accelerate the learning curve. For example when you fall off your bicycle in your first few attempts to ride without the training wheels, you may get a skinned knee, but in business you may bruise your self-esteem when you make the wrong decision.

Here are 5 Traits that you should shed to better help you succeed at building a successful online business and website.

·        Cute and Clever, I’ll group these together, because they are often mentioned and discussed as one entity. You can have a cute and clever website, but get an opinion on the cuteness and cleverness. If your website is a bit too cutesy, you may be turning off a large portion of your audience. If you are too clever it may raise suspicion about your credibility and sincerity. Too many inside double meaning words can be a turn-off.

·        Attention; if you need attention go into politics not business. If you’re building a website you should keep the focus on the product or service that you offer. If you are building a brand, “Brand You” than keep it professional and do not use it as a platform to massage your ego. You can display humor, or highlight a quirk about yourself, but when you get too cutesy and clever, you take away rather than add to your image and ultimately your bottom-line suffers. All bets are off if you’re in the comedy or clown business.

·        Mr. Perfect is something to work toward, but not an excuse not to proceed. In journalism class I was taught to get the facts down and then work on building them up to a great story. When you’re building your website, its o.k. not to be perfect with every little detail, just don’t abandon your discipline. Go back to the site and tweak it as much as you can. The phrases, colors, options, and styles can all be experimented with and should be. Too many people put a website up and never make any changes to it; they act as if the task is finished and move on to something else. Your website is never finished and if you think it is, you’re wrong.


Part Two will be posted tomorrow, but in the meantime you should take a look at
these websites; http://www.eBizEinstein.com  and http://www.FitnessGladiator.com