How One Boy’s Good Deed Snowballed
What would you do if you found a $20 bill? Eight-year-old Myles Eckert excitedly picked up a twenty from a snow-covered parking lot at a Cracker Barrel restaurant off I-475 in suburban Toledo, Ohio, and began to daydream about buying a video game. But when he and his family walked inside the eatery and noticed […]
A Small Business Rises from the Ashes
Brad Sterl was out of town in March at the busiest trade show of the year when he answered the phone and heard, “We just called the fire trucks.” The call came from back home in Pittsfield, N.H., where flames blew through the roof of his Rustic Crust frozen-pizza company. Volunteer firefighters from nearly two […]
How One Entrepreneur Is Harvesting Hope
As a small crowd gathered by a closed runway at a little airport outside Dallas, 40-something father of five Lane Segerstrom did an unlikely thing. Stepping onto an extra-long skateboard made of pressed corn refuse, a novel material called CornBoard that he hopes to popularize as the next big thing in sports equipment and building […]
Social Media Trendspotting
Social media expert Gary Vaynerchuk dishes on what he sees in his crystal ball: 1. “I definitely predict that there will be a new photo/social network that we literally don’t even know right now that by this time next year will have 100 million users,” Gary Vaynerchuk says, thanks to the speed at which apps […]
The 4-Step Formula to Making Money through Social Media
A sense of urgency ripples Gary Vaynerchuk’s raspy New Jersey-accented voice. The 38-year-old self-made social media marketer is sitting at an office table, looking intently into a video camera as if you, the viewer, are seated directly across from him. This is important, his demeanor signals. Before we get to what he has to say, […]
“Gary Vaynerchuk Sent Me a Bacon Cheeseburger!”
More than a million people follow Gary Vaynerchuk, featured in the February 2014 issue of SUCCESS, on Twitter and one reason is what happens when he occasionally asks: What can I do for you? “Good morning everyone – need anything?” Vaynerchuk, co-founder of the New York-based VaynerMedia social media brand consulting agency, asked via Twitter […]
Entrepreneurs’ Optimism Outweighs Worry
Entrepreneurs express more optimism about their future than regular workers, Gallup reports, even though they also are a bit likelier to say they experience stress and worry. So upbeat are entrepreneurs that 30 percent of those polled imagine that in five years they’ll enjoy their “best possible life,” as compared with 25 percent of other […]
Don’t Lose Your Smartphone!
Smartphones don’t just walk off or get shot into the night sky like a firework. But something apparently happens in July that does cause them to go missing. July is second only to December in terms of losses, the likeliest days being Fridays and Saturdays, and the likeliest hour being 6 p.m. This breaking news […]
Time to Start a Business: MythBusters
Myth: If you own your own business, you can spend less time at work and make more money. Reality: “The truth is you’re working all the time. When you’re not working, you’re thinking about it,” says Diana Kander, entrepreneur-in-residence at the Kauffman Foundation. But if you love what you do and you’re following your dream, […]
20 Questions Before Starting Your Business
Think you’ve got what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Ask yourself these 20 questions to make sure you’re thinking about the right key business decisions: 1. Why am I starting a business? 2. What kind of business do I want? 3. Who is my ideal customer? 4. What products or services will my business […]
What Type of Business is Right For You?
FRANCHISE Pros: Instant name recognition—you’re associated with an established company, which may reduce risk. With standardized operations, systems and training, you won’t start from scratch creating your own. Some franchisors offer financing to buy a franchise, as do credit unions and banks. You can pick a franchise that fits your lifestyle—a restaurant that may require […]
Hometown Hero
Ralph W. Braun was 6 when he was told he wouldn’t live past his teens. He and his cousins