1. Network: Grow your network use social media and professional sites like Linkedin grow your real social links, meet and talk with like-minded.
2. Love your customer: In radio we are taught to know the listener. In business you need to get to know and understand your customer. My friend who runs a coffee shop constantly studies what his customer wants, who they are and the time they like to eat and drink.
3. Open and honest: See my presentation on 'trust' below. It's important to be trusted, there's nowhere to hide if customers don't like your product they tell others, often over social networking sites.
4. Change: Adapt to your customer don't think they will adapt to you. Back to my coffee shop friend, his customers wanted to be able to drink beer and wine with their meals. So he applied for a licence, and now offers that as an option.
5. Opportunity: If you see something that might work, grab it, meet someone that might help make use of them. A lot of business fails by dithering.
6. Work v Life: Get your work life balance right. Always at work will burn you out. Even if your business is your baby make sure you have staff who can take over when you are not around, trust them. And go out and enjoy the sunshine.
