First and foremost you need to understand and recog
nize what success means to you. How do you meas
ure success? Can you quantify where you want to
go? Will you recognize your own personal success
when you achieve it? Will your current view of where
you want to go be enough to satisfy your desires?

You must prepare your mind for both the demands
and rewards of success. There are sacrifices that
must be made. Surely you believe that your success
is inevitable if you work hard and persist? That is how
you achieve your desires. Nobody hands it to you on
a silver platter (and who would want that anyway?).
Though somewhat of a cliche, you must earn your
success. The old fashioned way. Pay your dues. Work
hard.

Your state of mind and personality are factors you
must carefully consider. Solid determination and an
interminable will to succeed are two crucial character-
istics you must cultivate. The other necessary quali
ties include being:

* Decisive on all issues you confront.
* Able to adapt well to changing situations.
* Prepared in all business areas.
* Patient and recognize that success comes slowly
through a precise, carefully planned, and executed
program.
* Aware of yourself, your skills and limitations, and
especially your wants, needs, and desires.
* Hopeful and possess faith in your abilities.

If you are lazy or looking for an easy way out: Stop
right now. Put this book in the mail and return it to me
for your money back. This isn't for you. This book is
for people who want success and are willing to put
the time, energy, money, effort, patience, skill, and tal
ent to the task. That's you, right? Well to begin you
must buckle down and prepare your mind to that
tasks at hand. This is intense study . . . and it's not to
be learned or mastered overnight. Get ready. Get
your mind ready. Success is up ahead
You're not technically proficient

Are your skills, image, presence, and other factors
showcasing your best work? If not you need to con
centrate on improving your technical skills in these
four areas:

* Writing skills
* Oral presentation skills
* Business skills
* And, of course, your products and services

You must be able to communicate effectively, both in
writing and orally. Writing promotional material and
delivering sales presentations are crucial to your sur-
vival. You will be meeting with clients by telephone
and in person. You must learn to explain your busi
ness in ways they'll understand. And you will sell
yourself, your ideas, and your products and services.
If you can't communicate effectively you are doomed
to fail. You must understand the intricacies of these
skills, practice using them, and ultimately master
them. Go back to school, take some adult education
courses at the local college, or use the techniques
mentioned in these pages.

What about business skills? You'll get a rudimentary
background in what you need to know right here. But
don't let it stop after you finish reading. Running your
own business requires a specific skill set. It's up to
you to discover what works for your particular situ-
ation and then exploit every possibility.

You can't afford to take these important points for
granted. Yes your vocational skills matter, but your
people and business skills are also vital to your even-
tual success. Making it today is a demanding job. You
will use every single ounce of your talent, knowledge,
stamina, and skills to come through this adventure
alive . . . and thriving.
You don't understand the real problem

It's unfortunate but there are quite a few people out
there who just don't get it. They focus on mundane
matters, things completely beyond their control, and
other intangibles. Most are far too concerned with
production not selling. If you are more concerned with
creating a new product or service than getting your
creation into buyer's hands, you'd better listen up.

While process is often fun. And studying the intrica-
cies of your favorite passion a total rush. It's all a
masquerade for what is really happening. I heard
Arnold Schwarzenegger once describe his true voca-
tion: "I'm a marketing guy first," he explained. What
that means is that acting, directing, filming, editing,
and such are all just tools. Arnold is in the entertain-
ment business. And the key to succeeding in any
business is promotion: Getting your music products
and services into the hands of those who need and
want what you sell and who have the means to pay
for it.

Promotion is the key. Just because you hang your
shingle out for the world to see doesn't bring a flood
of customers to your door. Or put money in your
pocket either. You must work hard to develop your
business. Target your promotions and spend your
time, effort, imagination, and creativity toward building
it. Performing the service or making the product is the
easy part. You will put more time, energy, and money
into marketing than any other task you face. Don't
make the mistake made by most who fail. Promoting
effectively is crucial to your success.
You don't have the necessary promotional material

No matter what business you choose to pursue, there
is one constant. You need your packaging, biography,
picture, sales letters, brochure, news releases, con
tracts, and other collateral material designed to pro
mote you and your work. No business can succeed
without this necessary material. You need to develop
this material yourself or find other professionals to
help you put together the sales material you need to
sell your products and services. If most people would
put the time and attention they put into their vocation
into promoting and selling their talents, there would
be many more successes in the world.
You can't exist with a stack of sticky notes. You need
several different marketing and promotional weapons
in your arsenal:

* Telephone sales scripts
* Sales letters
* Brochures and other promotional materials
* Classified and small ads
* Free product and service samples
* Free consultations and estimates
* Prospect and client meeting scripts
* News releases, articles, and booklets
* Free client newsletter

You'll use all these methods at some point. Let me
clarify an important promotional factor. Your business
prospects are not interested in you. They are only
interested in themselves. Begin thinking about your
clients. What do they want? How do your products
and services benefit them? If you follow this advice,
you will save tons of money that you would otherwise
waste on promotional gambits and materials that don't
work, that won't sell.
You're not committed to success or willing to do
what is necessary for success

I believe you can have anything in the world, just not
everything. To be the success you envision you need
to sacrifice something, give something up. You can't
have a full social calendar, and a full-time job, and a
family, and a business . . . and devote your full energy
to each. Something's gotta give and you must decide
what that is going to be.

That may seem cold-hearted. Surely this is America.
And the American dream is to "have it all!"
Unfortunately, many people with admirable intentions
have failed miserably or even gone to an early grave
while chanting that anthem. You must first decide
what it is you want and then concentrate on getting
what you want. There is no middle ground. I believe
author Holbrook Jackson described it best when he
said sacrifice is a form of bargaining. Time to start
exchanging this for that.

It's kill or be killed. Or in a more politically correct,
kinder, gentler sense, it's be a success or be a failure.
That's a tough paradox. Catch-22. As the Chinese I
Ching advises: "It furthers one to have someplace to
go." Suffice to say that YOU must determine where it
is you wish to head and must commit, indeed pledge,
that you will do what is necessary
You haven't planned how and what you are
going to do

Have you scrutinized your competition, considered
some promotional ideas, studied the many options
available to you, and determined a plan of action?
You've set your goal. And committed your resources
of time and talent to attaining your success. Now you
need a specific plan of action. A battle plan, if you
will. This doesn't need to be some fancy doctoral the-
sis. Start with this simple format: Here's where I am.
Here's where I wish to go. And here's how I plan to
get there. The action plan you must follow to be suc
cessful in business is deceptively easy:

Pay close attention to this next piece of advice:
Diversity is the secret to making big money in busi -
ness. You will be more successful if you exploit all
your skills and talents and package your experience
in many different forms. Beginning your business
doesn't take unreasonable action. Or vast amounts of
money. You won't need to give up your job or any
other foolish practices. The purpose here is to show
you what you need to know and do and to start on
your way toward your dream. It takes hard work, per
severance, and skill. And it takes confidence, faith,
and a sincere desire to succeed.

Nothing can happen, or will happen, until you apply
these ideas to your life. Take them, shape them,
make them your own. Use them, learn, and success
will come. You can be your only teacher. Others can
guide, can push, but only you can teach yourself the
ultimate knowledge. It comes from within and it
comes from without. Learn, grow, succeed. Whatever
your background, means, skills, and talents you can
make it in business.

You haven't determined how to measure your success

What does "making it" mean to you? There is a local
band called the Newsboys who kept pursuing a
record contract. For years they played all around
town, at bars, festivals, parties, and even toured
regionally. Unfortunately they missed the success
right in front of their noses. They had a loyal follow-
ing, many paid gigs, and sold merchandise, including
their own tapes and CD's for profit. Still they spent
energy trying to get the elusive record contract and
ignored the success they had already achieved.
Eventually it all caught up to them. Members left and
life went on. While I think the record deal was a noble
goal, they spent too much energy on it and ignored
the tidy little business that was waiting outside their
door. Though they had a plan, they never adapted to
changing circumstances.

You need a one year plan, a five year plan, and a life
plan. Just remember that your life is a work in
progress never to be completed. Use the plan as a
road map, but be flexible. When you set your goals,
and how you plan to achieve them, make sure you
also include a measuring device. Getting the record
contract is great, but what if nobody buys your music?
Did you succeed? Scoring the next David Lynch film a
dream? What if you get a documentary for PBS? Did
you succeed? These are hard questions. Almost
philosophical in nature.

Set yourself some general goals but include the
specific outcomes you desire. For example, you might
be inclined to say you want to make money. Hold it.
That's all too vague. How about this instead: I will
earn my living entirely from my own business ven-
tures within two years. That's easy to measure. If you
are still holding down a part-time job to pay the bills
25 months from now, you know you didn't reach the
goal you set for yourself. Take a few minutes to think
about how you would measure your success. Write it
down. Keep it with your plans. And then take some
action!

You haven't put in place a means of reviewing these
steps.

Don't make the mistake of thinking about this once
and then filing it away. You need to periodically review
these steps and determine what is working . . . so you
can keep on doing it. And what is failing . . . so you
can fix it FAST. Take time out from your endless pur
suit to reflect on what you did, are doing, and should
do. It can sometimes be a sobering experience or a
wake up call. Often it's a good feeling with a sense of
focus and accomplishment. Pride. Good for you. Now
don't let that stop you from reviewing your past,
learning from it, and applying what you learn to either
changing or staying on course. Don't dwell in the past
or only on the negatives. Celebrate the good times
and always put a positive spin on the bad.

Though I've been a little tough with you, I hope you
appreciate my candor. I don't look on business lightly.
Think of this as a long letter from one friend to
another. And friends can be tough on you. But they
also understand, are compassionate, and truly care.
This is opinionated advice designed to help you suc-
ceed. That's what you want. That's what I want you to
have. You deserve this information. All you need to do
is apply this knowledge to your own particular situa
tion.

Sage advice for beginner and pro

* Be prepared for a few months of slow progress
before you get your first important client. Your promo-
tions need time to take effect.
* Educate yourself about all the technology avail
able to you. And educate yourself about every aspect
of your business craft, your specific products and
services.
* Understand the marketplace by following trends in
business, advertising, TV, films, and music.
* Be persistent and obsessive about success. All
business is highly competitive. Work hard and de -
monstrate your skills effectively.
* Try to reach prospects cheaply and motivate them
to hire you. Hit them repeatedly with your message
that gets them to buy right away.
* Make sure you keep sight of your personal goals
when planning, starting, and running your business.
Write down your goals for this year, next year, and
five years from now. Put them on a piece of paper
and keep them where you work. Every day you'll see
your goals
* Running your own business requires creativity. So
be creative, experiment, stand above the crowd, proj-
ect a successful image, and you will succeed.
* Stress your service. Show your clients how you
will help them and put your commitment to them in a
letter or in your contract.
* Make sure you meet any promises you make. If
you get in too deep, get help. There is nothing wrong
with subcontracting some of your work. It's better to
make a little less money than to miss a deadline, or
worse, hand in shoddy work.
* If a client complains, go out of your way to solve
the problem. A person tells almost twenty other peo-
ple about their bad experiences. You can't afford to
have your reputation smeared unknowingly. Go one
step further and make sure your clients are very
happy. And if there is a problem, do what ever it takes
to fix it.
* Enjoy your work. There is a saying that if you do
what you love, the money will follow. Make sure your
joy and exuberance shine through all your work and
all your client contacts. Your enthusiasm gives clients
confidence and reassures them that you can and will
do the job right. It is the easiest and cheapest mar -
keting tool you can use.
* Give your clients what they want all the time.
* Business is a race that never ends. Many people
have trouble coming to terms with that notion. Nothing
is ever done. "If only this happened, then I'd be fin
ished." It never comes. And if it does, something else
pops up requiring your attention. And if it's not some
thing else, it's another thing or this or that. Inertia.
And the second law of thermodynamics: entropy
increases. If you recognize that your work is never
done, just constantly changing, metamorphosing, you
stand a better chance. You can't rest on your laurels.
There's always . . . always . . . more to do.