value insights

Hacks for the Entrepreneurial Minded- Valutrics

An entrepreneurial-minded individual is someone who is flexible, always hustling, value-oriented and driven to achieve success. Working for themselves, they make decisions on the fly and are prepared to pivot at a moment’s notice. With these qualities comes the need to leverage some business hacks that can help them stick to the way they work.

Here are 7 business hacks that work well with that entrepreneurial mind:

  1. Carrying less is more. An entrepreneur is always moving – on the road, in the air, and between locations. During this constant movement, the last thing you want to do is carry extra stuff. It’s heavy and cumbersome plus it increases the risk that you will lose something of value. In going with the less is more strategy, technology has made it possible to shrink your wallet down to nearly nothing. Something like the Wocket Smart Wallet means you can take all your credit, debit, loyalty and membership cards with you digitally, creating a secure way to tap into these necessary items without physically tracking them as you go.
  2. Always be charging so you can always be closing. Typically, the saying goes that you always want to be closing, but the reality is that we need to always be charging so all of our devices can continue to work so we can communicate with prospects and customers. Plus, to keep your workflow going as an entrepreneur, you need to take advantage of technology’s ability to continually send and receive files related to work. You don’t want an important decision to be put on hold or you to fall off a video conference on a new deal because your smartphone battery died. New chargers are letting entrepreneurs keep their devices working at all times. The Solpro charger fits in your pocket and is compatible with multiple devices, relying on renewable energy sources to do so.
  3. Don’t be unprepared when critical information comes your way. Being on the go means that you are always talking to people and sharing information. You don’t want to carry around bulky notepads or worry that your pen is just about to run out of ink but then again you don’t want to forget something that could mean the difference to your business like key data or contact information for a new prospect or investor. That’s when technology offers a digital solution so you don’t miss a phone number or key point from a keynote speech. Using a Smart penlike the Livescribe Echo SmartPen tracks content and audio, saving it for you to use later on so you are never unprepared to capture important information.
  4. Dress the part to make that great impression even if you want to be wearing sweats. While some entrepreneurs have been able to get by with shorts and flip flops or a turtleneck, the reality is that most investors and prospects still want to see entrepreneurs in more professional attire. What you wear tells others a lot about your character, and those first impressions are still everything. For those entrepreneurs that still secretly wish they could attend meeting sin sweats, there are professional attire brands that let you do that like Blackbird Label’s Stealth Comfort Pants.
  5. Keep your home office and proprietary info safe. Working from home adds convenience for entrepreneurs, but it also creates new challenges in relation to securing proprietary information, equipment, and other assets you now keep at home rather than in a commercial building. While traveling you may have strangers like a cleaning service, home repair technician, or even housesitter come in, so it’s critical that you know your home office is secure. You can get various apps that allow you to lock and unlock your home as well as rooms within your home like Lockitron. Controlling your home office security through your smartphone is an excellent way to keep your business safe.
  6. Staying cool under pressure keeps those emotions in check. The road to entrepreneurial success can be a bumpy one. There are days where everything seems to go wrong and frustration and stress take over. However, if you let these emotions get the best of you, it can take away from making sound business decisions or you may not make a great impression with a business associate because you are too emotional. This is when you may want to take a walk, go for a run, take that yoga class, or just smack that Desktop punching bag. You are releasing that tension in a safe, practical way that can help you refocus on logical solutions to turn the day around.
  7. Track your health because a sick entrepreneur isn’t a successful entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur you may be prepared to work all the time, but, in reality, that commitment to all work will make “Jack a dull boy” as well as contribute to serious health issues down the line. We all mean to get to the gym but the day gets away from us, so it may be a good idea to reschedule your day to start with exercise plus track your health through various apps that keep an eye on what you eat and how often you move and rest. MyFitnessPal offers an easy way to track what you eat with a food diary while a Fitbit or Jawbone allows you to actively examine the areas that need attention for you to maintain your well-oiled entrepreneurship machine.

All of these hacks are designed to help the entrepreneurial mind to stay on top of its game, providing security, convenience, value and balance that may not always be part of the mental equation.