Last June I went on a yearly fishing trip with five college buddies. We drove four hours from the Seattle area to a beautiful lake in the middle of Canada. There were no electrical devices or phones within 10 miles of the lake. In fact if anyone brought an electrical device it would have seen the bottom of the lake.
For five days we fished, ate, fished, ate, fished, played some poker, fished and slept. On occasion we would even have a conversation about what's happening in each others lives. Again it was five guys and me. During one of those conversations I asked each of these very successful businessman (I was told I had to say that in order use this information) what they thought were the most important attributes, skills etc. a person needed to have in order to be a successful entrepreneur. Of course ambition, passion, desire all were mentioned, but one that stuck with me was a response I didn't expect to hear. That was the ability to obtain capital or raise money for the business.
The ability to obtain capital for some businesses will be the one determining factor as to whether they will survive or become another of the 80% to fail. When one of my friends mentioned this, it reminded me how important it is to be able to sell your business, and I mean sell the vision, the potential of that business to someone. If you don't have the passion for your business, the ability to communicate the vision you have for the business, you will likely never get others to invest in your business.
If you need other people's money to get your business off the ground, then you need the ability to raise capital. You also need sales skills. Part of being an entrepreneur is studying all aspects of business. Take the time to learn from expert sales professionals. Read books, attend conferences and listen to tapes of the best professionals you can find. Use the skills you learn not just in selling your products and services, but also in the promotion of your company.
About The Author:
David Gass is President of Business Credit Services, Inc. His company publishes a weekly e-newsletter on
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