About 3 months ago I noticed a big For Sale sign go up in the yard of the building shown above (before it was painted pink). It was once a residential property but was rezoned for commercial. It sits on a relatively busy intersection with lots of shopping across the street (grocery stores, UPS, fast food, etc.).

As a real estate guy I spent some time thinking about what I would do with this property if I were to buy it. What kind of business would I create and how would it stand out? It looked nearly identical to the residential property sitting next to it and down the street. Simply putting a sign in the front yard wasn’t good enough to draw attention. People pass this “house” going 45 miles per hour and there are a lot more interesting stuff to look at on the other side of the street.

“The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education” - Albert Einstein.

When we are children our imagination and creativity has not been tampered with by education. We put A and Z together in ways schooling teaches us not to. When starting and marketing a business, try to think unconventionally because thinking like everyone else leads to doing what everyone else does. And doing what everyone else does is risky.

We are all born creative creatures with an imagination of limitless possibilities. Somewhere along the line education has focused our attention to think a certain way. To illustrate this change, look at how children respond to questions before they start school. They typically give positive responses:

• cool
• I like that
• Great
• I’m sick

Once grown up they are saying:

• not bad
• not a bad idea
• no problem
• I’m not feeling well

I was watching an episode of Kitchen Nightmares the other night and watched as Chef Gordon Ramsay worked to turn around a restaurant that was about 6 months away from closing its doors. This show is a perfect example of how people might be good in their trade but not necessarily good in the realm of business (although in this show it seems he doesn’t think any of the chefs are very good).

Here are some lessons learned from this show. When business is slow and closing up shop is appearing more and more likely, something is wrong. Take a second and think about your situation laterally (in another way). I say it over and over again . . . it’s all about solving problems. If it’s your restaurant - you have a problem, no business. There are people outside the doors and they have a problem everyday, they get hungry.

To solve both problems, Gorden typically takes a stroll around the neighborhood and evaluates the restaurant’s customer base.

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We’ve all heard the expression “Time is money,” but have you ever really stopped to think about what that famous saying actually means?

What do banks, real estate mortgage investors, and the lottery all have in common?

They understand how the diagram above works and how the value of money changes everyday.

As an entrepreneur, it’s important to understand how and why the value of money changes. Can you get by without understanding it, probably. But just like the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad tells us, if you want to be rich, wealthy, successful, etc., you have to model the people who are.

Don’t you think Donald Trump knows about the time value of money? If if does, don’t you think you should as an entrepreneur? The more you know, the more you can use it to your advantage.

The value of money changes for a number of reasons, but here are a few to paint the picture for you.

Chess is a thinking game.

Good players think many steps ahead before they make a move. They also have a number of set moves (both offensive and defensive) in their back pocket.

So do most seasoned real estate investors.

To buy and sell property they must solve buyer’s and seller’s problems in order to make a profit. I know investors (including myself) who spend a little time each night imagining themselves talking with a seller or buyer and showing them how if they can work the deal in a different way then they can both get what they want. Why should business owners be any different?

Let’s look at an example of a real estate investor being creative and then turn that example into how a business owner could do the same thing to increase sales.

A Creative Real Estate Investor Example

Say you’re selling your home and it’s listed with a Realtor for $300,000.

Well the short answer to the statement in the title of this article is that social media is where users interact with other users online. You should know about it because it’s the way of the future.

Social media (also referred to as Web 2.0) is just beginning to really catch on with the general public and either you will embrace it or just forget about it because you don’t understand it. If you choose to ignore it, you could be sinking your ship. Like I point out in my blog article Using Social Media To Market Your Business, you don’t have to be a computer-wiz to comment on other’s articles, like this one, and leave a link to your site below your name. Click through the links in the Social Media side above and see how people use them.