Relationships are key in business and life

I recently presented "The Entrepreneurial Mind" at the University of Pennsylvania to members of the Wharton entrepreneurship, marketing and technology clubs. I discussed how I started my business, ProLine Communications, with a database of 2500 contacts from all the editors, colleagues, vendors, clients that I had been involved with over the years. Your most important asset is your relationships. Everthing else can be purchased. You can view the video at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuhaCatVWCQ

Have fun and dream big

Don't stress about not being the smartest or having the best grades. People who are entrepreneurs have a weird blend of creativity mixed with ambition and a dash of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). We're a lot like an artist in many ways -- very passionate individuals who need to keep their egos in check, but at the same time be fearless. -- Nick Veneris, founder of Xomba

Plan B Revisited

I teach at two universities and require my students to do a Plan B paper. When I announce the assigment, I say to the class "Suppose, for example, you majored in public relations. There are no public relations jobs when you graduate or every PR agency went under. What are you going to do?". Well, you have developed skills ie writing, pitching (calling journalists and trying place your client in a particular story or article). Are those skills transferable. You bet. You could write for a blog, publication or write ad copy for an ad agency. With the pitching skills you started to develop in a college PR program or internship, you could sell almost anything for any company.

Until you get a job, you could have a few hundred announcement cards made up regarding your new public relations practice and try to get freelance work. OR You could work for a franchise and organize jewelry (or any product) parties.

Keeping your skills strong and making sure your name is always out there is critical. When the economy recovers (and it will), you want people to remember your name and what a hard working, creative individual you are. After all, you were always out there, plugging away.

A Successful College Entrepreneur

"The progress of the world depends on the persistence of the unreasonable man"
--- George Bernard Shaw

Matt Ackerson, a Cornell University senior, was bit by the entrepreneurial bug. His story is inspiring.

For more on Matt's story, listen to my new radio program, The Entrepreneurial Mind, Smallbiz America Radio Network.

For New College Grads, Have a Plan B

You are about to graduate college and you majored in a field that was most interesting to you, but the job market is tough in your area. Just because things look bad now, it doesn’t mean that your field won’t open up in a couple of years. However, you need to pay your bills, including your educational loans, right now. Start thinking about what else you can do and develop a detailed alternative plan that you can fall back on should things not work out. Your alternative should preferably be in an area considered “recession-proof.” This is a required assignment in the management and entrepreneurship courses I teach.

Is Starting a Business in a Down Economy a Good Idea?

The U.S Department of Labor recently announced an unemployment rate of 10.2%. Starting a business may seem frighteningly difficult, but so is finding a job in the current economic climate. Instead of trying to definitively decide which route to go, put some feelers out.

Continue your job search but make some business cards announcing a new business.
It can be a professional consultancy using the skills from your previous job or it can be something you are good at, for example painting or even writing greeting cards. Keep your options open.

You may be an “entrepreneur by necessity” right now but who knows what the future holds.

Communicating with college seniors and recent grads

Conventional wisdom suggests that it is a good idea, after college graduation, to get some experience working for a company before trying to start your own business, but we hardly live in unconventional economic times. Starting a business can be very difficult but, in this current economic climate, so is finding a job.

The Small Business Professor blog is dedicated to discussing new ideas concerning, arguably, the hardest part of one’s job, "getting going." Whether it is the best way to find a job or ways to get a small business started, The Small Business Professor (Bruce Freeman) will consult a host of experts regarding marketing, public relations, funding sources, business plan development or the creation of new ideas in order to find the keys to success.

I am eager to hear from recent college graduates.