Lesson #2: True Entrepreneurs Never Stop Thinking Outside the Box
Lesson #2: True Entrepreneurs Never Stop Thinking Outside the Box
He might have stepped down from AOL, but Case is a prime example of someone who cannot help but continue to think outside the box and seek out further opportunities. Today, one of Case’s top priorities is working with non-profit and charitable organizations. Has he lost the entrepreneurial bug? On the contrary, he is making these groups see how entrepreneurial thinking can benefit everyone, whether or not they are in the business of making money. “Trying to instill that sense of entrepreneurship in areas other than business is one of the areas I want to focus on in the years ahead,” says Case.
For Case, one of the number one challenges for more philanthropic organizations is that of sustainability. Because they tend not to think or act like entrepreneurs, many fall victim to lack of a constant revenue stream. Each year they try to come up with new ways of raising money, instead of building a sustainable model permanently into their organization from the get-go. “The Girl Scouts have that with their cookies program, where every year they unleash hundreds of thousands of girls to go door-to-door and sell cookies, but that's the exception and not the rule,” says Case. “We're trying to figure out how to build programs like that into philanthropic organizations so they have a steady source of income.”
In order for these non-profit groups to become more successful, Case suggests that they need to begin thinking like an entrepreneur. “The key area I'm focused on is how to move the concept of entrepreneurship into the mainstream in the not-for-profit world,” he says, and, “trying to identify the leaders that are emerging and help figure out a way to help them build their teams and get access to capital, so they can cross over that chasm and hit the big time.” You don’t need to be an entrepreneur in order to think like one, but according to Case, you do need to think like one if you’re going to achieve any level of success in any field. It is only by thinking creatively and embodying the sprit of a true entrepreneur, that you will be able to set yourself apart from the crowd.
Nevertheless, Case remains a businessman at heart. Reflecting on his career, he asks himself, “What if I had said 25 years ago that what I want to do is help level the playing field? To give people access to technology tools so you don't have to be a big company to get your ideas published and you don't have to own a printing press.” He could have created a charitable foundation that would work towards that goal, but instead he chose to create AOL. In the end, AOL “achieved that social purpose as well as achieving a great business success.”
Lesson 2 True Entrepreneurs Never Stop Thinking Outside the Box
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“The idea of an entrepreneur is really thinking out of the box and taking risks and stepping up to major challenges,” says Case. “You can be entrepreneurial even if you don't want to be in business.”
He might have stepped down from AOL, but Case is a prime example of someone who cannot help but continue to think outside the box and seek out further opportunities. Today, one of Case’s top priorities is working with non-profit and charitable organizations. Has he lost the entrepreneurial bug? On the contrary, he is making these groups see how entrepreneurial thinking can benefit everyone, whether or not they are in the business of making money. “Trying to instill that sense of entrepreneurship in areas other than business is one of the areas I want to focus on in the years ahead,” says Case.
For Case, one of the number one challenges for more philanthropic organizations is that of sustainability. Because they tend not to think or act like entrepreneurs, many fall victim to lack of a constant revenue stream. Each year they try to come up with new ways of raising money, instead of building a sustainable model permanently into their organization from the get-go. “The Girl Scouts have that with their cookies program, where every year they unleash hundreds of thousands of girls to go door-to-door and sell cookies, but that's the exception and not the rule,” says Case. “We're trying to figure out how to build programs like that into philanthropic organizations so they have a steady source of income.”
In order for these non-profit groups to become more successful, Case suggests that they need to begin thinking like an entrepreneur. “The key area I'm focused on is how to move the concept of entrepreneurship into the mainstream in the not-for-profit world,” he says, and, “trying to identify the leaders that are emerging and help figure out a way to help them build their teams and get access to capital, so they can cross over that chasm and hit the big time.” You don’t need to be an entrepreneur in order to think like one, but according to Case, you do need to think like one if you’re going to achieve any level of success in any field. It is only by thinking creatively and embodying the sprit of a true entrepreneur, that you will be able to set yourself apart from the crowd.
Nevertheless, Case remains a businessman at heart. Reflecting on his career, he asks himself, “What if I had said 25 years ago that what I want to do is help level the playing field? To give people access to technology tools so you don't have to be a big company to get your ideas published and you don't have to own a printing press.” He could have created a charitable foundation that would work towards that goal, but instead he chose to create AOL. In the end, AOL “achieved that social purpose as well as achieving a great business success.”
Lesson 2 True Entrepreneurs Never Stop Thinking Outside the Box
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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