I bought this book Trump University Entrepreneurship 101 at San Francisco Borders ship on Jan 13, 2007 evening. During that time, I was on a business trip attending a sales meeting and was browsing the bookshop on a free evening night.
This is a great book and I completed my first reading on March 25th, 2007. It gives me a lot of thoughts about how to go about in my business dealing. Now in the year of 2017, it is almost 10 years from the time I bought this book. I wish it will re-generate my passion of entrepreneurship and make a great success in my career this year.
Device A Winning Strategy
It is crucial for any business to come up a winning strategy, if the company want to succeed in business. With the winning strategy, company will be able to generate a sustainable and superior financial performance in the long run. Famous Harvard business professor Michael Porter talked about using Competitive Strategy and Competitive Advantage for company to succeed.
In order to beat your competitors for the market share and satisfying your customer needs better than them, you must differentiate your products and services from others. Why do customer choose you instead of your competitors? It is the value that you put forward to them, that determine the reason for them to choose you.
There are 4 broad strategies you can choose to pursue in your business. You can choose either one of them or combining them to compete with your competitors.
- Become the low-cost supplier
- Develop differentiated, innovative products and services
- Target a niche product/service
- Offer differentiated business model and approach
The strategy that you choose need to match with your company strengths and weaknesses, and also look at the external and internal environments. Factors like competitions, technology trend, regulations, environmental impacts, etc will affect your strategy formulation. And strategy need to evolve often to meet the forever changing need of the business conditions and surrounding environments.
Mobilise Your Resources
Great accomplishments require powerful resources. No matter what size or type of company, gathering your needed resources can make the difference between success and nonsuccess. There are 6 main categories: people, physical, financial, knowledge, infrastructure, and your imagination.
People Resources
This is the most important of all resources. You need to systematic building and nurturing this crucial resources. People resources include you, your partners, company culture, management team, business advisors, mentors, directors, business service professionals, family friends, and all other stakeholders.
Physical Resources
Real estate, equipment, machinery, manufacturing capabilities, and research facilities are physical resources, and these are very capital intensive.By using physical resources that belongs to other companies, you can reduce your business risk and provide flexibility.
Financial Resources
Your company will need money at every stage and you need working capital for growth. Therefore, you need to know how to mobile, allocate, controlling and generating this most crucial resources.
Knowledge Resources
This encompass many topics like patents, product knowledge, business processes, research and development capabilities, etc. For service business, your clients use your service is because of your knowledge which they do not know. Therefore, you must continue to develop and protect your knowledge.
Infrastructure Resources
This refers to your computer networks, information technology, communication systems, software programs, internet connections, business operations, quality control, purchasing, sales, human resources. All these resources can help to improve your business productivity, efficiency, professionalism and profitability.
Imagination Resources
Use your imagination freely. Do not neglect about the power of your own imagination. Think what other resources you can use to move your business faster and further? Imagine it in your brain. You can consider accessing the marketplace through distribution channels, go into international markets, work with strategic partners, focus on key customers, build better relationship with suppliers, increase your advertising, etc.