The Donald May Run for President

As per today's radio broadcast on The Sean Hannity Show, apparently Donald Trump may run for President! He has some great ideas - such as making Iraq pay us back the 1.5 trillion Dollar cost of the war - plus paying every injured soldier a million dollars, and a million dollars to the families of the soldiers killed in the war.

Expert Skills Which Will Keep You Ahead of the Competition

If you like what you are doing, this will come naturally. This is what everyone thinks you are doing by running the business. This is why they come to you. You are an expert in your field. You will have to let people know, and give speeches, hold workshops, teach a class, etc. The by now famous E-Myth refers to the fact that everyone sees the small business owner in a sea of bliss doing what he loves. You will need to have this skill, if not immediately, then develop it along the way. Don't buy the business in the first place on this alone, however, unless there are people out there besides your mother who agree you are an expert.
If being an expert in your field is your only business qualification, if you don't meet the other criteria - you could be in for trouble.

Power Balance Band is a Scam - Admitted by Company

Those of you wearing them can take them off now!!!
See article.

Take over (purchase with borrowed money)

One of the best situations to purchase a business occurs when you have been running the business you wish to buy. You have earned a position of trust, you have taken the reigns, you've been the responsible party. In this situation no one is going to just give you the business, but if you have run it for 3 years and increased the profits, they will often give you a good deal on financing. Expect to pay the normal price, but you should know best what has been taken out of it, and you will get your own chance to improve it. You should expect to take a pay cut of a sort to build up equity.
Here is an example. Say you are running a small restaurant without property, but a reasonable rent that will stay close to the same. Let us say it does about 600,000/year in sales, with about 90,000/year going to the owner while you really do the work, and get about 60,000/year. It might sell for around 450,000 on the high side, depending on numerous factors, such as equipment quality and age, last update of the interior, etc. (consult a business broker for more exact figures of actual sales) At 5% interest on a 5 year note, your payment would be 8500 per month, or 102000 per year. Cut your own pay by 12000 per year, and after 5 hard years you will have paid off your loan, and built up equity. Then, you could hire an assistant and still make up for the loss of pay. Further, you now own it!

Industriousness and Enthusiam

This is straight from Coach John Wooden's books, articles, thoughts, etc. for coaching a successful basketball team and it also applies to any organization. If you are going to start a business and be successful at it for the long term, these two concepts are the building block for success, and the foundation for the pyramid of success he is famous for and lets others freely copy and use. Merely reading what he has written will drastically improve the way you conduct your life. Moreover, I believe so strongly in what he is saying that I promote his ideas as a foundation for business success.
Do not even think about going into a business you are not enthusiastic about and can't wait to improve and work hard and long on everyday of the week. I don't believe you can force yourself to work hard at something you hate without a severe emotional cost. I won't name names here but someone who worked for me repeatedly told me how he hated the job he was doing, but had to do it for the support of his family. I told him I thought it was admirable and proper to perservere but that he should at least plan for a way to get out and do something enjoyable and meaningful to him.
Think about the admired and well run businesses out there that you enjoy patronizing. Consider The Container Store, which could be just another place to get "containers", staffed by unmotivated clock punchers. It instead has people eager to please and committed to doing a good job, and is a place you feel welcome. You don't wish to drastically overpay, but you aren't buying there on price alone. Think about a craftsman who enjoys his work, devotes long hours to do excellent work above and beyond his contract, develops a reputation over many years and eventually has all the work he can do, and enjoys doing it. Don't you think he is happy and successful. Isn't that the position you envision for your own business? It comes from doing what you enjoy and work hard at willingly.

Adequate Risk Capital

I've got news for you. Every time I've bought a new business, I've had a few suprises on how much money I would need. Whatever the projections were, I needed more. Whether it is from opportunities which I believe the previous owner wasn't interested in, or the performance of the previous owner wasn't as easy as it looked, I've found at least a few situations that cried out for more spending. My justification was that by spending early on, I would reap benefits later. It is really only obvious once you start actually taking control.
I believe the exact amount is relative to the revenues and it has to be money you can afford to not touch for a long time. To begin with, the first month may be worse than you expected, because all the receivables stayed with the old owner. You have to plan for that. You also need working capital to make payroll, pay for supplies, rent, wait for people to pay you, etc. Your bills will come due, believe me. I think you need about two months revenue minus profit. That is the only way to prepare for the contigencies.
If you agree with me that you will need that much, I'm sad to say that it has to be subtracted from the purchase price you can pay, thereby reducing then size of business you can acquire. So, if you have an amount (x) available to buy a place (presumably in the form of a down payment, don't buy anything that someone, preferably a bank but if no one else at least the seller, won't finance a decent portion of) ( how do I say that without ending the sentence with a preposition?)
For the entire purchase price, including the working capital, make sure you can live without it if you fail! Many a (now) famous business owner has gone bust in a business proposition before the success he became famous for later.
You must leave your families living expenses, at a minimum, out of the business no matter what!!!

Adequate Personal Capital

I define adequate personal capital as 6 months worth of after tax expenses in easily accessible liquid form, plus 10% of your yearly income saved (each year of your working life, start at 20) and  invested. So, if you are fifty and have averaged 100 thousand bucks a year, you should have at least 300,000 in net worth plus a reasonable rate of interest to have compounded that obviously higher. This is what you must have at a minimum in my opinion. If you don’t have that, then stop. I haven’t seen too many successful businessmen or women who overspend and do not save. If you can’t save – work for someone else!
If you are still reading and have saved your money, the next hurdle is this: You probably need to go the first year without taking anything out of the business, and still maintaining your cushion of 6 months. I don’t care if you spend your whole bankroll on the business if you are the risky type (I’m not and I don’t recommend this but it is your money to risk) but leave that last year and a half worth of capital out of the business. Trust me, you will probably need it. By the time you start making a little money after that first year, you will be down to 6 months cash cushion. If you can’t see that you will be making money at that point – well – you are in an emergency situation and need to prepare for trouble.
OK, so you know people who started with nothing and are rich. Good for them – but most businesses fail for lack of capital so you have been warned.