In case you didn’t know, today marks the kick off of Entrepreneurship Week, a Kaufmann Foundation supported and sponsored national event starting today Feb 24th through March 3rd. Entrepreneurship Week is a collection of thousands of activities across the country that are:
“designed to stimulate on-going interest from individuals and organizations serving as an educational kick-start for the uninitiated, and an inspiration for young people to begin a journey to fulfill their potential as self-starters and entrepreneurs.”
I am happy to be participating in Entrepreneurship Week with my alma mater UMBC. UMBC’s cutting edge Alex Brown Center for Entrepreneurship, which just received a $2mm grant from the Kauffman Foundation to expand its programming, is hosting a student business plan competition this coming Monday.
I have been asked to be a judge of the competition, and am really looking forward to it. We have 18 groups which have made the submission deadline, and my FedEx packet of biz plans arrived at the office yesterday. I will be reviewing them this weekend, and then on Monday we have back to back presentations from 11:30am-4:30pm. Each group gets 15 minutes to present their idea and do a few minutes of Q&A.
From my initial scan, it looks like there are some very interesting ideas, so the competition should be good. The top prize is $1000.00. Good luck to all of the students who are participating! I look forward to it.
If your interested in participating in any participating Entrepreneurship Week events in your area, this website has a listing of most of the institutions and organizations who are involved. Check it out.
And remember, there’s never been a better time to start a business in America 
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
MySuccessGateway.com 5 Tips For a Successful Entrepreneur
1) develop a strong private network
a. Get a Mentor/Coach (preferably more than one)
b. close friends
c. close business associates
2) develop a stronger extended network
a. chamber of commerce
b. associations
c. face to face networks
d. learn from guru’s on MySuccessGateway.com
3) listen to the network
a. learn from their experience
b. compress time
4) develop a daily to do list of top 6 tasks for tomorrow
a. send to a buddy and keep each other accountable
5) follow through on your word to yourself, integrity
a. commit slowly, act readily
b. do not make commitments you can’t keep
EntrepreneurshipWeekUSA Feb 24th – March 3rd
MySuccessGateway.com is releasing an eSeminar called the Ultimate Business ToolBoxâ„¢ http://www.ultimatebusinesstoolbox.com for entrepreneurs and small businesses. The program is delivered by http://www.davidbullock.com and it will cover the following:
• It teaches entrepreneurs how to think like business owners
• It teaches entrepreneurs how to ask the right questions being business owners
• It teaches entrepreneurs how to make money vs. how to make millions and get rich quick
• It teaches entrepreneurs that being profitable requires testing ideas and making adjustments along the way
• It teaches entrepreneurs how to structure their business and how to ask their accountant and attorney the right questions
• It teaches entrepreneurs the value of a supportive mentor
Alright Jim, thanks for that follow up comment. Those are good success tips for any entrepreneur.
- G