Friday, September 02, 2005
Business skills = Life skills (Understanding others)
People who want to start a business online often look to learn specialized business skills they feel they need in order to succeed. And certainly, there are some special skills. But some of the most important ones are simply the same skills you need to get through life, just applied to a business setting.
First off is the ability to empathize with others, to see things the way that they do. This is every bit as essential in business as it is in the rest of life. Now for a business on the Internet, this might not seem so critical. The Internet offers both site owners and searchers a great deal of anonymity. As a matter of fact, many people find starting a business on the Internet more appealing than starting a brick-and-mortar business specifically BECAUSE the anonymity of the Internet gives them the feeling that they'll be freed from the need to deal with other people.
But let me tell you... that simply isn't so! The absolute first things you need to do in starting a business online is to discover what needs people have and then to find a way to offer them a solution to those needs, in a way that pays you in accordance with the value of what you offer them.
That means getting into their heads and understanding their wants and needs. And the need to understand them doesn't stop there. Once you have determined what solutions your business will provide them, it's again essential to get into their heads and figure out what obstacles lie hidden between them and completing the sale.
In other words, an Internet business is no place for someone who wants to build a wall between themselves and the rest of the world and get paid for doing that. Those who can't train their minds to see their needs from the same perspective that their potential customers see them are doomed to failure.
But those who learn to tune into others will always come out ahead—just like in the rest of life.
Jeff
People who want to start a business online often look to learn specialized business skills they feel they need in order to succeed. And certainly, there are some special skills. But some of the most important ones are simply the same skills you need to get through life, just applied to a business setting.
First off is the ability to empathize with others, to see things the way that they do. This is every bit as essential in business as it is in the rest of life. Now for a business on the Internet, this might not seem so critical. The Internet offers both site owners and searchers a great deal of anonymity. As a matter of fact, many people find starting a business on the Internet more appealing than starting a brick-and-mortar business specifically BECAUSE the anonymity of the Internet gives them the feeling that they'll be freed from the need to deal with other people.
But let me tell you... that simply isn't so! The absolute first things you need to do in starting a business online is to discover what needs people have and then to find a way to offer them a solution to those needs, in a way that pays you in accordance with the value of what you offer them.
That means getting into their heads and understanding their wants and needs. And the need to understand them doesn't stop there. Once you have determined what solutions your business will provide them, it's again essential to get into their heads and figure out what obstacles lie hidden between them and completing the sale.
In other words, an Internet business is no place for someone who wants to build a wall between themselves and the rest of the world and get paid for doing that. Those who can't train their minds to see their needs from the same perspective that their potential customers see them are doomed to failure.
But those who learn to tune into others will always come out ahead—just like in the rest of life.
Jeff
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