National Black Guide - All Up In Your Business

All Up In Your Business

Bonnie Ross Coleman is currently the Director of a Women’s Business Center in a major metropolitan area. She is also the owner of a successful company, providing business development and consulting services since 2001. Ms. Coleman left the corporate sector as Vice President of sales, marketing, public relations and customer service for a major insurance company in order to start her own business assisting nascent and emerging businesses develop and grow into successful entities. As a freelance writer, Ms. Coleman writes bankable business plans, is a successful grant writer, and freelances writing for individuals and organizations. An accomplished life-inspiring speaker, Ms. Coleman also hosts workshops and seminars that empower individuals to be their best!

Entrepreneur = Risk Taker

Everyone wants to be an entrepreneur…but let’s face it, most people who own businesses are just that—business owners. Look it up in a dictionary, and you will find that the word “entrepreneur” means: a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk. Another definition states that an entrepreneur is: one who starts a business or other venture that promises economic gain but that also entails risks. The operative word here being “risk”.

The average business owner is risk-aversive, which is why most businesses just limp along and never rise to greatness. The business owner has many excuses why they can’t seem to attain economic success. Most often, it’s that “the man” keeps holding them back by not giving them access to contracts, opportunities, or chances to prove how successful they can be. Yet, according to most corporate procurement officers, small businesses simply fail to do what it takes to be successful: price competitively, expand services, and collaborate with other small business owners so they can successfully bid on proposals.

Many business owners prefer the “misery of certainty to the uncertainty of misery”. They know how to be mediocre, and the prospect of being highly successful scares them because they have no frame of reference for that success. According to Rebecca Smith of A.D. Morgan Corporation… “if the fear and uncertainty of risk are perceived as ‘the enemy,’ then entrepreneurs - if they are to build businesses -- must counter the enemy with a set of weapons called optimism and rationalization.”

Business owners must creatively figure out how to position their small businesses to expand capabilities. Network with other small business owners. Collaborative go after large contracts. Trying to knock down those large corporate doors like David against Goliath will only give you knuckle-bruise. Gather your army. Be optimistic and rationally determine how to position your small business to look like you provide full-service. Or subcontract with larger companies. Many a millionaire has been made through subcontracting. Take the risk to greatness. And if you fall flat you your face, well, you are still moving forward—learn the lesson, and consider yourself an entrepreneur!


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	All Up In Your Business Bonnie Ross Coleman is currently the Director of a Women’s Business Center in a major metropolitan area. She is also the owner of a successful company, providing business development and consulting services since 2001. Ms. Coleman left the corporate sector as Vice President of sales, marketing, public relations and customer service for a major insurance company in order to start her own business assisting nascent and emerging businesses develop and grow into successful entities. As a freelance writer, Ms. Coleman writes bankable business plans, is a successful grant writer, and freelances writing for individuals and organizations. An accomplished life-inspiring speaker, Ms. Coleman also hosts workshops and seminars that empower individuals to be their best! Entrepreneur = Risk Taker Everyone wants to be an entrepreneur…but let’s face it, most people who own businesses are just that—business owners. Look it up in a dictionary, and you will find that the word “entrepreneur” means: a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk. Another definition states that an entrepreneur is: one who starts a business or other venture that promises economic gain but that also entails risks. The operative word here being “risk”. The average business owner is risk-aversive, which is why most businesses just limp along and never rise to greatness. The business owner has many excuses why they can’t seem to attain economic success. Most often, it’s that “the man” keeps holding them back by not giving them access to contracts, opportunities, or chances to prove how successful they can be. Yet, according to most corporate procurement officers, small businesses simply fail to do what it takes to be successful: price competitively, expand services, and collaborate with other small business owners so they can successfully bid on proposals. Many business owners prefer the “misery of certainty to the uncertainty of misery”. They know how to be mediocre, and the prospect of being highly successful scares them because they have no frame of reference for that success. According to Rebecca Smith of A.D. Morgan Corporation… “if the fear and uncertainty of risk are perceived as ‘the enemy,’ then entrepreneurs - if they are to build businesses -- must counter the enemy with a set of weapons called optimism and rationalization.” Business owners must creatively figure out how to position their small businesses to expand capabilities. Network with other small business owners. Collaborative go after large contracts. Trying to knock down those large corporate doors like David against Goliath will only give you knuckle-bruise. Gather your army. Be optimistic and rationally determine how to position your small business to look like you provide full-service. Or subcontract with larger companies. Many a millionaire has been made through subcontracting. Take the risk to greatness. And if you fall flat you your face, well, you are still moving forward—learn the lesson, and consider yourself an entrepreneur!
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