This morning, I went to take a short walk outside. I've been feeling a little more flexible since this weekend, and I figured a stroll would help me keep that liquid feeling in my bones that I've missed so much.
I stopped when I came to a tree and had myself a sit-down.
Have you ever gazed at the glory of a tree? I'll spare you the poem (you know the one, "I think that I shall never see..."). But I must say that trees have been one of the chief inspirations of my life, number two behind natural bodies of water.
You can easily miss the marvel of oaks and pines in the midst of the daily bustle. They really are miracles when you think about it.
One day, years ago, the wind, or a happy world citizen like you or me, put a tiny seed in the ground, maybe smaller than a pea, or about as big as the tip of your thumb.
Each day water from heaven or from a heaven-sent caretaker would caress or massage the ground with moist blessings. Each day the sun would whisper from behind clouds at it, or scream in a blistering tone.
And for weeks, months even, it seemed as if nothing was happening.
But underground, far below where you or I could witness, molecules were bumping into each other, atoms were hopping around, electrons were spinning. Then after a time roots began to spiral out into the soil.
And long after anyone human was really giving it any daily, specific thoughts beyond routine tendering, a little sprout started pushing up through the earth.
A dozen or a few hundred years later, there I am, sitting under the tree, thinking about trees and business.
The lessons nature volunteers us are fascinating, if only we'd listen. Our businesses, big and small, are like these trees. We put $1000, $200, $3 million into the investments that form our ventures - saved, borrowed, earned from past sales.
Every day we do a little more. Sometimes we do a lot more. And we, in our human impatience, often watch the location where we buried our money, looking for signs of life the very next day, sometimes the next hour.
"I bought this computer three months ago. How come there isn't cash coming out of the DVD drive?"
Seems like a ridiculous question right now, doesn't it?
But we behave that way all the time. I'm guilty of it too. Many is the time that I've whined about how some new promotional idea I'm testing didn't return my deposit of time or money in 3 days.
Then all of a sudden, on that fourth day, I have more sales in 24 hours than I had the whole week before.
Sometimes it takes even longer. I used to look at people who would come on the Net, buy a couple of ebooks and fall bass ackwards into cash 90 days later. And I'd think "Why not me? What am I missing? What did they do that I didn't?"
And the lesson I learned from that seven year experience were two things.
(Seven years including the small time, inconsistent returns I used to have before I really started to learn to study and be patient. As I've said before, I started making advertising money about two years in, enough to feel like an extra paycheck a month)
I'll tell you my lessons learned in part two....
Tinu is a web site promotion specialist and the author of several books on search engines, blogging, and RSS. You can read more tips on branding your business with a blog at free traffic tips.
experienced cleaning professionals Northbrook ..Unfortunately for all buyers, each selling organization and their individual... Read More
My clients and many of my readers are small and... Read More
So you want to get into the auto detailing business... Read More
Over regulation of small business is so intense it is... Read More
Becoming a contractor or sub-contractor for the U.S. government can... Read More
All franchises must meet the legal definition of a franchise... Read More
Think of all of your business ideas as tiny seeds... Read More
There are many factors to be considered when you are... Read More
Having their own business is something many millions of people... Read More
"Order Now!" "Your Business Will Fail If You Don't Have... Read More
My 16 year-old daughter said, "Gee Dad! You look just... Read More
Let's face it, we all tend to get stuck in... Read More
If you really want to earn more money with your... Read More
How to do itPeople skim through newspapers and magazines and... Read More
Canon City, Colorado is known for it's 6 Prisons; State... Read More
The American system of business management has been admired and... Read More
What image do you and your people portray to your... Read More
The temporary staffing industry continues to expand, with yearly double-digit... Read More
Just as you are about to say "good-bye" to your... Read More
The Federal Trade Commission which governs the franchise industry thru... Read More
Is this you?You dreamed of owning your own business, doing... Read More
Do you have all the customers your business can use?The... Read More
Most new small businesses won't be in business this time... Read More
Financial Consultants are one of the fastest growing industries today.... Read More
Office support services can range from basic data entry to... Read More
best value cleaning service Northbrook ..As an entrepreneur you can learn a lot by following... Read More
Where do you find more customers?How do you compete with... Read More
The Customer Analysis section of the business plan assesses the... Read More
Too often in business we get trapped into reviewing our... Read More
It's a strange anomaly.Most people who set out to start... Read More
Everything starts with a business plan: If you don't have... Read More
There are no "rules of thumb" in the pursuit of... Read More
While there are few career paths that some would call... Read More
Don't let your customer satisfaction research initiative collect dust on... Read More
It is imperative to have your business legally prepared. How... Read More
Most business owners know when they need an accountant, but... Read More
SBIR Corner: FFP vs. CPFF contracts:In the SBIR/STTR world, the... Read More
No matter your age or station in life, we all... Read More
Just as you are about to say "good-bye" to your... Read More
If you're an entrepreneur responsible for your own small business... Read More
Your business is making profits, but where is the cash?... Read More
BioTechs even with the latest news had shed over 1000... Read More
Why are we over regulation the franchising industry, what purpose... Read More
How careful are you with the data you collect from... Read More
How a donation is different from a sponsorship and what... Read More
Shopping for a franchise is easy if you know what... Read More
A corporate shell could be liken to a house that... Read More
When working from home, it is usual to find that... Read More
For really tough boat hull cleaning you will need to... Read More
Most new small businesses won't be in business this time... Read More
| Small Business |