The Complete Start-Up Guide to Launching Your Own Business

In this video, Kain distinguishes the significant differences between fixed mindsets and growth-oriented mindsets. Successful entrepreneurialism centres around innovative and growth-orientated thinking.

He discusses how these fundamental mindsets form, what their defining characteristics are, and how we can adapt the considerably more fruitful and nourishing growth mindset.

In this video, Kain and Russell have a conversation around some of the commonly asked questions of entrepreneurship. Including;

• How to earn money and keep it?

• What habits have contributed to your success?

• How do you define success in your own life?

Suppose you are interested in becoming financially secure and living a life free from debt and financial stress. In that case, you will be interested in learning how you can invest your time, money, and energy wisely.

Each day we have 24 hours to spend or invest however we choose. While employees typically think about how to have more gratifying experiences in this time, entrepreneurs consider getting a return on their investment!

One of the critical aspects to fulfilling your business goals is knowing how to set smart goals. It's important to have a vision; establish a plan of how to achieve it and then adjust our approach, accordingly when necessary.

Our plans must have flexibility because there will always be situations out with our control that influence our progress or direction. It's also useful to know what we 'don't know' so to build wise and strategic partnerships.

There are four types of goals: short term goals, medium-term, long term and lifetime goals. When people talk about "having too many goals" they are usually referring the last two: long term goals and lifetime goals - which can seem overwhelming is we have too many of these.

In this video, Kain describes the different types of goals we can pursue and also how each type deserves varying durations of time to fulfil.

The mind doesn't like the negative. We influence ourselves (and other people) well by leading attention towards 'desired outcomes' via 'positive language, rather than unfavourable outcomes by using negative language.

In this video, Kain highlights a significantly useful way we can define goals by framing them in the positive. People who learn how to do this seldom find difficulty in mustering up the motivation to take action.

Motivation is the reason 'why' entrepreneurs and business people do what they do. Motivation is all about the factors that encourage people to be continuously engaged and enthusiastic about their endeavours.

In this video, Kain discusses how our values drive our everyday decision making. Having a solid understanding of what our values are is what enables us to stay motivated to work hard and operate our businesses.

Good working relationships give us several other benefits: our work is more enjoyable when we have good relationships with those around us. Also, people are more likely to go along with changes that we want to implement, and we're more innovative and creative.

No person is an island; we need effective working relationships. Russell explains how it's important for him to partner with people who have similar values but different priorities - so to minimize business risk.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory in psychology, comprising a model of human needs, often depicted as hierarchical levels within a pyramid. This model helps to understand human decision making.

Maslow's hierarchy is relevant to organizational philosophy as it concerns itself with human motivation. Understanding what people need - and how people's needs differ - is an essential part of practical entrepreneurship.

In this video, Kain discusses consumer and contributor mindsets. Influential business people are those who find a way to contribute back into society; changing the world in a financially sustainable way.

Social influence involves how people change their priorities to meet the demands of a social environment. Entrepreneurs must understand social structure if they are to maximize the extent of their innovative impact.

A business plan is where you capture several variables so to evaluate the risks of your business idea. The most crucial part is the market analysis you conduct to establish the likely success of your idea.

We might write a business plan for different reasons: to capture the ideas in your head, to apply for a loan or funding, to explain the business to a new potential partner. The key is that it's simple enough that someone can read the business plan and understand your business.

In this video, Kain and Russell discuss the significance of planning a business based around what the market wants. It's also important to be specific in what the persona of your ideal market looks like.

This video demonstration is a world first. Kain assumes the position of a newly inspired entrepreneur with an idea he is passionate about pursuing.

Russell takes Kain through a structured business planning process (you can access the template for this in the additional course materials).

Observe and pay attention to the questions Russell asks Kain, to critique and evaluate his idea - to thicken his business idea and take it from being a 'loose' abstract concept towards becoming a viable business option.

This video is part 1 of 5.

This video demonstration is a world first. Kain assumes the position of a newly inspired entrepreneur with an idea he is passionate about pursuing.

Russell takes Kain through a structured business planning process (you can access the template for this in the additional course materials).

Observe and pay attention to the questions Russell asks Kain, to critique and evaluate his idea - to thicken his business idea and take it from being a 'loose' abstract concept towards becoming a viable business option.

This video is part 2 of 5.

This video demonstration is a world first. Kain assumes the position of a newly inspired entrepreneur with an idea he is passionate about pursuing.

Russell takes Kain through a structured business planning process (you can access the template for this in the additional course materials).

Observe and pay attention to the questions Russell asks Kain, to critique and evaluate his idea - to thicken his business idea and take it from being a 'loose' abstract concept towards becoming a viable business option.

This video is part 3 of 5.

This video demonstration is a world first. Kain assumes the position of a newly inspired entrepreneur with an idea he is passionate about pursuing.

Russell takes Kain through a structured business planning process (you can access the template for this in the additional course materials).

Observe and pay attention to the questions Russell asks Kain, to critique and evaluate his idea - to thicken his business idea and take it from being a 'loose' abstract concept towards becoming a viable business option.

This video is part 4 of 5.

This video demonstration is a world first. Kain assumes the position of a newly inspired entrepreneur with an idea he is passionate about pursuing.

Russell takes Kain through a structured business planning process (you can access the template for this in the additional course materials).

Observe and pay attention to the questions Russell asks Kain, to critique and evaluate his idea - to thicken his business idea and take it from being a 'loose' abstract concept towards becoming a viable business option.

This video is part 5 of 5.

In this video, Kain and Russell have a conversation about the business planning process, emphasizing that Kain HAS NOT come away from the consultation session with a formal business plan document.

Business planning is more about the process of scrutinizing a business idea than the end document that is produced. Kain is now clearer on the areas he must research and consider to move the business idea forward.

One of the most critical choices you will make when forming your new business is which legal structure to choose. Also called a business ownership structure or business form, options include LLCs, partnerships, sole proprietorships, corporations, non-profits, and co-operatives.

In this video, Kain and Russell discuss the different legal structures that we might consider when starting a business. The important thing is to seek professional advice when starting a business.

Most businesses fail because they lack the cash to get them through the early stages of their existence. Capital is crucial at the start of a company's life, as it enables the business to turn its ideas into reality.

In this video, Kain and Russell consider raising capital to start a business. Kain talks about funding his businesses independently without outside funding. Russell talks of his experience of helping companies access financing, grants, crowdfunding and investment.

Disclaimer: Please seek professional advice when starting your business so that you become aware of precisely what capital is available to you.

Not all debt can be classified as good or bad so easily. Often it depends on your financial situation or other factors. A few kinds of debt may be suitable for some people but dangerous for others.

Kain and Russell discuss; while it's easy to discriminate between these two extremes, determining whether or not a debt is good or bad more often involves a more in-depth analysis of specific circumstances.

Showing that you know the state of the market and understand what you need to do to succeed is critical in a business plan. Market research should aim to understand the reasons consumers will buy your product.

In this video, Kain and Russell offer an in-depth understanding of what market research is essential to any business plan, and the 'whys' and 'hows' of conducting meaningful market research.

By placing opportunity seeking and social purpose at the centre of the definition of entrepreneurship, this interview discussion between Russell and Kain might change the way, you think about entrepreneurship forever.

In this video, Russell interviews Kain and asks him about the early days of getting started as an entrepreneur. Recognize what matters if you want to create a venture or re-energize the entrepreneurial spirit in your company.

Your value proposition should describe; how your product, process or service solves or improves problems, what benefits your customers can expect, and why consumers should buy from you over your competitors.

There are many benefits that the value proposition can have on a business. An exceptional value proposition is a statement that portrays a definite depiction of what your brand has to offer for prospects.

A Consumer 'Communication' touchpoint is any interaction (including contacts where there is no physical interaction) that might alter the way that your customer feels about your product, brand, business or service.

If we want to improve our interactions with our customers, the starting point is to learn what and where exchanges happen. Without this knowledge, it would be tough to gauge improvements or see if changes made to those connections were having a detrimental or positive impact.

The typical marketing mix includes factors of Price, Product, Promotion and Place. However, today, the marketing mix frequently includes other Ps like Packaging, Positioning, People and Politics as vital mix elements.

In this video, Kain and Russell discuss how great marketing plans involve an over-riding strategy for communicating with customers (or potential customers) at every stage of the buyer's journey (pre and post-purchase).

Investigation reveals that if we receive excellent customer service, we will likely tell two or three people. However, if we experience poor service, we will tell between ten to twelve others. These maths are scary!

Word of mouth and online recommendations are often key drivers of new business; all businesses should strive to achieve consistently high service levels. With that in mind, Kain and Russell discuss the practicalities of enhancing customer service in a business.

Setting short-term, mid-term, and long-term financial goals is an essential step toward becoming financially secure. If you aren't working toward anything specific, you're likely to spend more than you should.

In this video, Kain asks top Chartered Accountant, Ian Blackie, about how entrepreneurs can start setting smart financial goals in their business. As you build up an accurate picture of your business and customer base, your financial goals and objectives of the business begin to stand out.

There are four sections to a company's financial statements: the balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, and explanatory notes. In this video, Kain asks Ian about using financial information in business.

Ian explains the value of using accounting software for efficient bookkeeping. He describes what balance sheets, profit & loss statements, and cash flow statements are - and why they're crucial in your business!

Many people struggle financially because they don't know the difference between an asset and a liability. Unless a new product, service or process is inserting money in your pocket, it's not an asset.

Many things can be considered as assets, such as investment real estate, digital products (ebooks or courses), or dividends from stock and bond investments. Wise entrepreneurs focus on building a portfolio of assets.

It can be exhausting to keep finding new avenues of business growth and trying something new demands, time and effort without a guarantee of success. Leverage is about finding creative ways to scale-up business.

Leveraging is about creating a win-win arrangement when working with people. In this video, Kain and Russell discuss ways you can boost the effectiveness of your efforts and rapidly expand your business.

Generating sales in the early stages of a business are not everyone's strength, but eventually, revenue is. Unfortunately, many new companies don't succeed beyond their first 12 months of trading in these times.

Many entrepreneurs leave employment to start a business - this can be a severe change. It's wise to step-change this transition. Kain and Russell build on these ideas as they share of their own experience of creating revenue in the early stages of building a business.

Every company wants to grow its business, yet few know how to sustain it for the long-term or look beyond the next quarterly or yearly report. Russell highlights that planning is key to effective time management.

Developing a business needs the right intellectual capital, strategic partnerships, and products or services with strong market demand. Beyond these fundamentals, sustaining growth requires a strong operational base – to reduce the risks to the business over time.

Ultimately, approaching Business, innovation and Entrepreneurship as a 'finite game' or 'infinite game' impacts your daily attitude. Considering your business endeavours through this frame helps you determine if you are making the right choices to win at the kind of game you want to play!

This video sees the end of this Business, Innovation & Entrepreneurship Masterclass. Thank you for remaining with us through to completion, and we look forward to hearing of your future entrepreneurial successes.

In this video, Kain & Russell draw the course to a conclusion with a few final thoughts and book recommendations that you might want to invest in to continue your growth and development.