K4D It's a Wonderful Life

[iwantittowork]

Does anyone know if the "Rich Dad Poor Dad" books are worthy of anything more than real estate investing? Are they good for getting other businesses started besides real estate? A friend of mine recommended them to me and she runs a business in the CNC machines industry.

Hey Kev, I'll offer my insights, as I have read many of them now.

IMHO, just like DB/DR, they are not specifically about a particular investment or financial issues, but about your relationship with finances/investing in general.

Call it GAL, financial style. But, just like any advice, there are some truths, and some things that will not apply to you, and there will be some things that many people disagree with.

For me, just like DB/DR, I had many 'epiphany' moments when reading them. We think we know and understand finances and investing, but we generally do not.

How many people here know exactly how our, or the global, monetary system actually works, or what 'money' is at all? I would say 90% of people have little to no understanding of it, or finances, yet try to 'win' at the game of money with no knowledge of how it even works to even pony up to the table.

Me included! I have only recently been working on this, and been on hiatus a bit to work on myself now, and plan on going back to it after I can get through this transition.

Interestingly, RK has made a fortune now off of these books, and many people think he is a bit of a 'charlatan' for doing so. I like to think of it differently, but also think people need to come to there own conclusions on there worth..

[CityGirl]

If your desire is to have your own business and you want it to be profitable right off the bat then you will need to buy an existing business. STARTING your own business is a ton of work, time and money.

You have to think about marketing, accounting, obtaining market share, taxes, insurance, client contact and a million other things. It is wise to create a business plan to see if your idea is even viable. Study other entities that are doing what you wish to do. Conduct market share studies.

Look up SCORE online and find your local chapter.

[K4D]

iwantittowork,

Thanks for the information. I appreciate it.

CG,

Ya, I know we are looking at 2 to 3 years easily and we have all agreed to do it for no pay until and if it starts to turn a profit down the road. The idea came from an industry we all worked together in. We are basically taking the same idea and changing it to fit a different industry.

I will take a look at SCORE. I had never heard of that one before.

Kevin

[CityGirl]

It is essential that you begin to educate yourself with resources pertaining to small business. SCORE is a good first step. I am surprised you never heard of it if you have owning a business on the brain.

What formula did you use to reach the time frame of 2-3 years to turn a profit? What research and market share do you have to back that up? Are you comfortable with a group of people that are willing to work for no pay in the hopes that a profit will be turned "down the road"?

What research have you done to see if your idea is even viable? Do you have any stats that offer you a piece of mind that in 2-3 years the app you want to create will even still be technologically current and useful? Do you and your group have clearly defined roles for all aspects of running a business?

No more free advice

[K4D]

It is essential that you begin to educate yourself with resources pertaining to small business. SCORE is a good first step. I am surprised you never heard of it if you have owning a business on the brain.

It is no secret that I am not most knowledgable on resources out there.

What formula did you use to reach the time frame of 2-3 years to turn a profit? What research and market share do you have to back that up?

Just guessing. It will take probably a year to develop the app and fit it to what we are looking for. I have seen enough apps developed in corporations to know this is a safe bet. Then it will take time to market it to different companies and tweak it to fit their specific needs. I also know a business developer who sells solutions in the IT industry that can help us out to. I already talked to him about it.

Are you comfortable with a group of people that are willing to work for no pay in the hopes that a profit will be turned "down the road"?

We all have jobs. We have known each other for almost 2 years. They are all good guys. We all worked together for the same company which is how we met.

What research have you done to see if your idea is even viable? Do you have any stats that offer you a piece of mind that in 2-3 years the app you want to create will even still be technologically current and useful?

From working where we did, we did get to see the nitch being filled for one type of industry and we decided it can be filled for others. We worked on it first hand at the company we were at. It will most definitely have to be tweaked and upgraded as things change.

Do you and your group have clearly defined roles for all aspects of running a business?

We have already started laying out our goals and ground work. We are in the beginning stages of it now. There is still more to come with that as we get more into it.

Kevin

[K4D]

Also my friend that runs the CNC repair/maintenance business said she will offer any kind of help and advice to further get us going. She is very knowledgable in the business field.

Kevin

[K4D]

So I am lining up resources to help out with it.

Kevin

[iwantittowork]

Kev,

CG has some great insights, check out SCORE, I started to look into them as well.

Ya, I know we are looking at 2 to 3 years easily and we have all agreed to do it for no pay until and if it starts to turn a profit down the road. The idea came from an industry we all worked together in. We are basically taking the same idea and changing it to fit a different industry.

One of the key things you'll find when researching, is a lot of new startups start and then fail exactly like you have quoted above. The root cause of this is, people with a 'skill' or great idea start a business without understanding that a business does not equal a good idea or skill, and that a good idea or skill does not equal success!

CG already told you some keys, so I'll requote, these are areas where new startups fail to spend enough time, or cut corners on, and can directly be attributed to there failure.

You have to think about marketing, accounting, obtaining market share, taxes, insurance, client contact and a million other things. It is wise to create a business plan to see if your idea is even viable. Study other entities that are doing what you wish to do. Conduct market share studies.

[CityGirl]

You can't guess when it comes to business, you need to have a plan that is adaptable based on many factors (the economy, tech developments and a host of other things).

Before you even think of starting any business you must learn to find and use resources. Without that skill set you will fail.

I wasn't asking if you were comfortable with the people you are thinking of starting a business with. I was asking if you think vague phrases and time frames without viable research and stats to back it up sound like a good foundation to put your idea on.

My point was before you start "getting in to it" you need to have a plan that is not made on guesses and what other people tell you. You need to have a solid plan based on facts, figures, research and defined roles.

[K4D]

We are just in the beginning stages of formulating everything. Things will be more defined the further we get into it. As you pointed out iwantittowork and CG, there are many aspects to consider and make sure we have nailed down. This will all be addressed the more we start formulating our plans.

Kevin