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Tag: Entrepreneurs

  • Why Insurance Policies Are Critical to Your Rental Business

    Why Insurance Policies Are Critical to Your Rental Business

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    As an investor, taking calculated risks is part of your job. Not every investment is profitable, and you can’t always know the risks you’re taking when buying a property. Problems could arise many years down the line. For example, an apparently sound building could develop infrastructure problems after several years of ownership. Or an unpredictable squabble between tenants could turn into a liability issue you couldn’t have foreseen.

    For this reason, it’s essential to protect yourself from risk by purchasing insurance. Both you and your tenants should have coverage to protect you should something unpredictable occur. But how much will your coverage cost? Why do your renters need insurance, too?

    Let’s explore these questions and discover why insurance policies are critical to your rental business.

    Related: The Beginner’s Guide to Investing in Rental Properties

    Landlord insurance

    Like any insurance coverage, landlord insurance protects you and your rental business against potential losses and liabilities.

    Here’s how it works: When you buy a property, you work with an insurance provider to decide which dwelling policy (DP) you want. Dwelling policies are insurance plans for property owners with varying levels of coverage.

    For instance, the cheapest dwelling policy might only provide basic coverage for fires or storms. More substantial dwelling policies may add other types of natural damages, lost rent if those disasters make your units uninhabitable or liabilities.

    What does landlord insurance cover?

    A typical landlord insurance plan covers three types of losses:

    1. Property damage to your building or equipment, including that caused by natural disasters, fires, wind, lightning or criminal break-ins

    2. Lost rent from months wherein your properties are uninhabitable due to any of the above damages

    3. Liabilities, or legal claims (including medical bills, legal fees or court costs) made against you, usually resulting from an injury on the property.

    These three types of coverage are standard across many insurance plans. However, you also have the option to purchase additional coverage. These add-on policies may cover vandalism, construction damage, or upgrading to fulfill building or health code policy changes.

    Another thing to note is that flood and eviction insurance are not included in a typical landlord dwelling policy. Coverage for these losses must be purchased separately.

    When deciding on your coverage, think about where your properties are located. Is the geographical area vulnerable to flooding, wildfires or earthquakes? Is the crime rate in the neighborhood high? If so, you might consider purchasing more comprehensive insurance coverage.

    How much does landlord insurance cost?

    The average cost of landlord insurance is around $1,200-$1,300 a year, paid in monthly installments. This is approximately 25% more than a typical homeowners insurance policy with the same coverage — because renters tend to introduce more risk.

    However, the cost ultimately depends on several factors, including the building’s age, the materials used to construct it, the presence or absence of pets, the dwelling policy you choose and the location of your property.

    In general, dwelling policies that use replacement cost value (RCV) are valued higher than those that use actual cash value (ACV). RCV represents the cost of rebuilding your property at today’s construction rates, while ACV represents the current, actual value of your property. Coverage based on RCV will lead to higher premiums.

    Why buy landlord insurance?

    If you take care of your properties, do you really need to be insured? Landlord insurance is highly valuable and usually worth the monthly fee. Here are some of the top reasons to purchase landlord insurance:

    • Protect your investment: You can’t predict what might happen to your properties or your tenants. It’s best to be prepared.

    • Achieve better interest rates on your mortgage: Some lenders require landlord insurance.

    • Take advantage of tax deductions: Landlord insurance premiums are usually fully deductible as operating expenses that you can subtract from your taxable income.

    Related: Getting Your Feet Wet in the Rental Property Business

    Renters insurance

    If landlord insurance protects your properties, what does renters insurance cover? Your landlord coverage won’t cover every loss related to your rental properties. Your renters need insurance coverage for their losses as well.

    What does renters insurance cover?

    Like landlord insurance, renters insurance typically covers three types of losses:

    1. Personal property and tenant belongings, such as clothes, electronics or valuables

    2. Liabilities due to a tenant’s responsibility for an injury or property damage

    3. Living expenses in the case that a tenant’s unit becomes uninhabitable and they must find other accommodations until repairs are made

    You may decide to offer a standard renters insurance package to your tenants, but they might also wish to purchase their own coverage. For instance, if a tenant keeps particularly valuable items in their unit, they may wish to add on scheduled personal property or valuables coverage.

    Tenants may also purchase theft extension coverage to cover their cars, boats or trailers; credit card coverage for unauthorized transactions; or other add-on policies.

    How much does renters insurance cost?

    Renters insurance is relatively inexpensive for tenants. The average cost is around $15 per month. However, this cost varies depending on the coverage level.

    Ultimately, the benefits offered by renters insurance are well worth the monthly premium. Your tenants may not appreciate the extra fee up front, but they’ll be thankful they have coverage should something happen.

    Why require renters insurance?

    Many landlords make renters insurance a requirement to rent their units. This is generally a smart move, and here are our top reasons why:

    • Prevent resentment for damages: Your tenants are less likely to sue you or pursue litigation if their insurance policy covers the loss.

    • Be transparent: In the event of a natural disaster, for instance, your tenants may expect that your landlord insurance will cover their belongings. They’ll be surprised to learn that it doesn’t. It’s better to inform your tenants upfront.

    • Avoid unnecessary complications with your insurance: If an accident occurs on your properties, it’s likely that your tenants’ renters insurance will kick in first. This saves you the trouble of interacting with your insurance company until necessary.

    Related: 5 Real Estate Mistakes That Could Make You Lose Money

    Insurance tips and tricks

    If you’re ready to get started with landlord and renters insurance, here are a few tips and tricks:

    • If your property management software offers renters insurance as a secondary feature, use it: This saves your tenants the trouble of finding a policy themselves and allows you to determine which type of coverage you think your tenants need.

    • Track renters insurance policies: Remind tenants to renew their policies before their coverage expires.

    • Avoid making claims for minor damage: Conserve your coverage for more severe losses and prevent your rate from increasing.

    • Ask for a discount if you own multiple buildings: You never know which deals are available until you ask.

    Disasters and accidents can be entirely beyond your control. However, by preparing for them ahead of time, you’ll know you’re protected in case of a major loss or casualty in your rental business. Both you and your tenants will appreciate the peace of mind and protection offered by insurance.

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    Dave Spooner

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  • This 17-Year-Old Founder Is Helping Farmers Using AI

    This 17-Year-Old Founder Is Helping Farmers Using AI

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    Nathan Elias, now the 17-year-old founder of the cutting-edge app InvasiveAI, was in fifth grade when he first recognized an algorithm’s potential to solve real-world problems. His own problem at the time? Math homework.


    Courtesy of InvasiveAI

    Determined to avoid completing 50 tediously long multiplication problems, Elias used Python to create a program that could do it for him.

    But that was just the beginning.

    As a freshman in high school, Elias encountered another problem in need of a solution while visiting his grandfather’s rice farm in Kerala, India. Because the farm is located in Kuttanad, a town that lies below sea level, it’s especially vulnerable when it rains or floods — an increasing issue with the shift in monsoon seasons.

    That’s exactly what happened during Elias’s trip that summer.

    “The floods actually brought in an invasive plant from the upper regions,” Elias tells Entrepreneur. “And that’s known as Giant Salvinia. My grandfather wasn’t able to identify that early enough, and as a result, that plant just overpopulated the entire farm.”

    Elias began to learn more about invasive species, ultimately discovering just how many issues they cause across the globe — and realizing that AI could be the answer.

    Related: 3 Ways to Drive Business Growth Using AI

    “But I realized that [if we could] identify invasive species via an image and predict where they’re going to go, that would be powerful.”

    Initially, Elias had the idea to create an app that would allow users to identify an invasive species with just a photograph. But it soon became clear that InvasiveAI couldn’t compete with other platforms like iNaturalist in terms of scale. He considered what more he could do and eventually landed on geospatial prediction.

    “It took a while to actually figure out which parts of AI I was using, because there are so many different aspects,” Elias says. “But I realized that [if we could] identify invasive species via an image and predict where they’re going to go, that would be powerful. That’s how I started experimenting with machine-learning models.”

    But AI models need a data set to go off of, learning over time “just like the human brain,” so Elias had to tackle the challenge of building an invasive species database essentially from scratch.

    Additionally, having only a handful of invasive species in the database wouldn’t have the impact Elias wanted to make. He knew he needed at least a couple of hundred — plus thousands of images for a clean, accurate model.

    “I had to scrape all these images using a technique called web scraping,” Elias explains. “I created my own data set, and that took a while because you have to organize each image by each species.”

    Building out that geospatial prediction also took a lot of time and effort because it’s not just based on coordinates: It also takes into account factors like climate and competition between invasive species and clusters.

    Image credit: Courtesy of InvasiveAI

    Related: Can Technology Help Us Fight Climate Change?

    “I don’t want a farmer to identify an invasive species but then have no idea how to take action against it.”

    Along the way, Elias also met with the Texas Master Naturalist program to pinpoint the specific impact invasive species were having and the specific problems that needed solving. You have to fully understand the problem to figure out what to do: “Live in the problem when you’re finding a solution,” Elias says.

    Now, Elias is working on building out the app’s potential for connection — giving people the resources they need to effectively get rid of invasive species. It’s not as simple as recommending a one-size-fits-all pesticide; there’s too wide a range of invasive species, including plants, animals, insects and pathogens.

    “I don’t want a farmer to identify an invasive species but then have no idea how to take action against it,” Elias says. “That’s pretty much the same as them not having a tool at all. Farmers definitely can get rid of invasives on their own, but if they don’t do it in the right way — if they’re not taking care — the invasive species can come back.”

    Connecting farmers with a local university or removal group that has firsthand experience eradicating an invasive species helps ensure the issue remains resolved.

    So far, InvasiveAI’s progress speaks for itself: The app has prevented and projected more than 10,000 cases of invasive species growth across all 50 states.

    Elias has received funding and recognition from companies and organizations like Google, USAID, National Geographic and NASA. He’s also published his work in the scientific community and has been working with researchers at the University of Texas at Austin and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

    Image credit: Courtesy of InvasiveAI

    Related: 3 Lessons Entrepreneurs Can Learn From NASA About Organizational Design

    “I really enjoy it — it’s a passion of mine.”

    Founder is just one of Elias’s current roles — he’s also still a high school student, finishing up his senior year at Liberal Arts and Science Academy (LASA), a public magnet school in Austin, Texas with an advanced curriculum. Being a student at LASA has helped Elias hone his time-management skills, he says, noting that he seizes every spare moment to continue his work on InvasiveAI.

    “Summer, winter break, I’m just developing this app, spending a lot of time on it,” Elias explains. “But I really enjoy it — it’s a passion of mine. If you like something, then you’re going to do it automatically. That’s how it was for me.”

    What’s next for Elias once he graduates from high school? It’s a question he gets a lot.

    “And I don’t have a concrete plan,” Elias says. “But what I always say is that I’m looking for a place that cares about this idea that I have, because it’s been a huge part of what I’ve done in high school — it’s almost like going to debate club every day, but I’ve been working on this app.

    “This is something that I care about,” he continues. “It’s a passion of mine. [So I’m looking for a] CS program that can offer me the skills to continue developing this, to create a better network. It doesn’t matter where it is, as long as I’m able to expand this app.”

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    Amanda Breen

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  • Free Webinar | November 9: How Veterans Are Finding Big Success With Franchising

    Free Webinar | November 9: How Veterans Are Finding Big Success With Franchising

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    With exceptional leadership skills and a deep understanding of how teams work, veterans are uniquely well-suited to running a successful business within a proven system. That’s why each year, more and more entrepreneurial veterans are getting into the franchise industry when their military service ends — and finding meaningful financial and personal success in the process.

    If you’ve dreamed of starting your own business, this event will put you on the path. We’ve assembled a panel of leaders from brands named on Entrepreneur magazine’s Top Franchises for Veterans list who will explain the ins and outs of finding, buying, and running the perfect franchise for you. Join us for this free webinar on Tuesday, November 9th at 3:00 PM ET.

    Key topics:

    • Transferring your military skills to small business

    • Finding the franchise that matches your goals

    • Financial incentive programs for veterans

    • What you can expect in your first year

    • Road map to success from veteran franchisees

    • Audience Q&A with the experts — ask anything!

    Register Now

    Our Panel:

    Steve White, President and COO of PuroClean

    • Steve White has more than 35 years of leadership experience at every level of the franchising industry including food and B2B franchises, ownership and his current role as the President and COO of PuroClean. His passionate leadership has radically changed failing organizations and helped good organizations become great. Steve is an Army Veteran, a Board Member of the International Franchise Association (IFA), and immediate past Chairman of the IFA’s Education Foundation VetFran Committee.

    Tom Kasbohm, Director of Franchising of Snap-on Tools

    • In his over 32 years with the Snap-on Tools company, Tom Kasbohm has held numerous leadership roles, including that of a franchise owner. Currently, he serves as the Director of Franchising for the 3600+ franchise owners and 165 company stores across all of North America. Tom is charged with leading the #1 Franchise for Veterans and the #1 Tool Franchise, as recognized by Entrepreneur. For the past 10 years, Tom has helped the franchise system reach historic highs and navigate safely through the Covid-19 pandemic. Snap-on was recognized for the past two years as a Recession Proof Franchise by Franchise Business Review. A proud member of the VetFran committee and the IFA, Tom Kasbohm is an accomplished franchise industry leader.

    Drew Daly, GM and SVP of Dream Vacations

    • As a leader in the travel industry, Drew sits on several boards and serves a voice among other industry thought leaders. He is also a member of the American Society of Travel Agents, the Executive Leadership Broward Class of 2017 and is on the events committee for Gilda’s Club of South Florida. In addition to being interviewed by CNN, he is a regular contributor offering travel advice and tips on NBC and FOX affiliate; and is often cited as an industry expert in travel trade publications.

    Register Now

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    Entrepreneur Insider

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  • How to Start a Stride Fitness Franchise

    How to Start a Stride Fitness Franchise

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Founded in 2017, Stride Fitness is a treadmill-based interval training concept that delivers a total body workout designed for every fitness level. An engaging program led by dynamic, certified fitness professionals and utilizing heart-rate monitoring technology, Stride Fitness offers a supportive and inclusive environment for participating in three signature class formats, including interval, endurance-based and strength training.


    STRIDE

    With studios in some of the most competitive markets across the United States and almost 90 licensed locations, Stride Fitness is the first and only treadmill-based interval training brand. Based on the most universal modality in the world that has recently experienced a resurgence and participation, Stride Fitness is delivering an effective and dynamic total-body workout for a loyal, growing member base.

    Stride is the first and only indoor running franchise. Stride’s treadmill-based cardio and strength classes are perfect for any level of walker, jogger or runner — reimagining the definition of a runner. At Stride, certified run coaches lead dynamic interval classes and members choose their speed and intensity on state-of-the-art Woodway treadmills to match their fitness level and goals.

    The concept of Stride consists of three core class formats and a unique leveling system that allows clients to take every class as a walker or runner. Each individual can find the workout that best challenges them and aligns with their fitness ability.

    There are numerous benefits to consider in becoming a Stride Fitness franchise owner, including the following proof points.

    • First mover advantage: With studios in some of the most competitive markets in the U.S, there is still extensive market opportunity. Be the first to bring Stride to your local market and help others find their finish line.
    • Smart investment and seasoned support: Along with Stride Fitness attracting a broad range of members to market to, prospective franchisees also enjoy a low-cost entry, a recurring revenue model, strong EBITDA margins and the confidence in a team with decades of experience in fitness franchising.
    • Executive model: Stride’s franchise model provides a completely scalable business, allowing owners to determine their own success. Franchisees benefit from leveraged development costs and national vendor relationships, allowing them to launch successful studios.
    • Evolving member experience: Stride’s member experience is the core of what they do. The brand curates and consistently updates class programming and music, all while empowering coaches to facilitate member growth, class after class.

    Considering franchise ownership? Get started now and find the personalized list of franchises that match your lifestyle, interests and budget.

    Stride is part of the Xponential Fitness family of brands, the curator of leading fitness and wellness brands across every vertical in boutique fitness. With decades of fitness and franchising experience across its team, Xponential Fitness has the resources and network to ensure continued growth and support for its franchise owners.

    How much does a Stride Fitness franchise cost?

    To open a Stride Fitness franchise, here are the financial requirements, cash required and ongoing franchise fees associated with business ownership.

    Initial franchise fee: $60,000.

    Initial investment: $372,412 to $533,512.

    Net worth required: $500,000.

    Cash requirement: $100,000.

    Royalty fee: 7%.

    Ad royalty fee: 2%.

    Term of agreement: 10 years.

    Request Free Info

    Stride Fitness franchising doesn’t offer in-house financing for candidates but does maintain relationships with several third-party funding sources which offer financing to cover the franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable and payroll. Please review Item 7 of the 2022 Stride Fitness FDD for explanatory notes and additional details.

    Support and training offered by Stride Fitness

    The Xponential and Stride Fitness team has the resources and network to ensure continued growth and support. The brand teams guide new owners through the entire opening process, from site selection, lease negotiation and construction, to recruiting studio staff, activating the membership sales process and marketing the studio. Stride provides extensive ongoing training, weekly and monthly update webinars and one-on-one support to guide owners as their business matures.

    Comprehensive training and extensive ongoing support are both pivotal for success as a Stride franchise owner. Here are the specific areas where the brand assists franchisees in the system.

    • Real estate: The brand’s expert team will guide owners through the entire process, from site selection to lease execution, locating the ideal site for their Stride Fitness studio.
    • Finance: Stride’s finance team can assist in loan processing through the SBA and preferred financiers.
    • Construction and design: Stride Fitness will guide new owners through the entire build-out process of their new franchise location — from corporate-approved layout and general construction to interior design, onsite security and technology.
    • Sales: Franchisees can expect comprehensive and ongoing sales training, monthly calls and expert guidance — from pre-sale, through grand opening, and on to sustainability. New owners are introduced to the sales process, retail range, app and POS system, allowing them to drive sales from the start.
    • Marketing: The minute new owners execute their LOI, the marketing of their studio begins with personalized support to ensure they generate maximum leads.
    • Recruitment: Stride Fitness knows that staffing is at the core of the studio’s success. New owners receive assistance in hiring and developing the most qualified coaches, general managers and sales teams.
    • Comprehensive training: Each new franchisee will attend a three-day training course at the brand’s corporate headquarters in Southern California, an invitation to the annual franchise convention and ongoing weekly support. The new owner’s staff will also undergo extensive sales training to ensure the team achieves the studio’s goals.

    Not only does Stride Fitness provide extensive training and support to each franchisee, but it also develops coaches as well. Through the Stride Certified Run Program, all coaches learn how to dynamically lead class formats, practice safety and form correction, and empower clients of all ages and levels to cross their finish lines.

    To learn more about franchise opportunities with Stride, please visit the Stride Fitness brand page on Entrepreneur‘s franchising website.

    Request Free Info

    Related: The 3 Biggest Questions Facing the Fitness Industry

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    Entrpreneur Staff

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  • 5 Ways to Clear Your Mind and Be Your Most Productive Self

    5 Ways to Clear Your Mind and Be Your Most Productive Self

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    You can be in flow one day and out the next. While earning my doctorate, I worked full-time while running a business and engaging in a dysfunctional marriage. I had committed to doing everything I had set out to do with no consideration for the impact of the pressures on my life.

    But one day, I found myself unfocused and uninterested in completing my work. I sat at the computer for a while, but nothing came. I couldn’t produce. Does this sound familiar? If it does, you have experienced a mental block.

    Related: 7 Unexpected Ways to Get Around Mental Blocks

    Spotting the signs

    I was in the middle of my doctoral program with tons of papers to write, but I was stuck. It lasted for days. Although that was the first time I had experienced a mental block, it wasn’t the last.

    I realized I was prone to mental blocks when I was engaging in long periods of mental stimulation, experiencing prolonged stress, and in a highly creative period. Here are some signs to watch out for in yourself:

    • Feeling frustrated and overwhelmed
    • Trying to push through to finish a task but feel stuck
    • Difficulty completing any tasks that required me to think, strategize or create
    • Trouble producing anything of high quality
    • Finding it hard to describe how you’re feeling and what you’re experiencing

    One of the hardest things about experiencing a mental block is that it cannot be seen, which makes it hard to identify. Furthermore, a mental block can happen to anyone, varies in length and can happen at the most inconvenient time. They can range from acute to severe.

    Related: 7 Mental Blocks Preventing Your Success

    Contributing factors

    Several factors can contribute to mental blocks. Some of them include:

    1. Mental exhaustion: As in my case, I was overworking my brain muscles all day and night by constantly engaging in creative activities. I was experiencing mental fatigue from excess decision-making. My life was structured so that all decisions had to pass through me and couldn’t be delegated to someone else. My brain was exhausted.
    2. Lack of sleep: With 24 hours in a day, eight were dedicated to my full-time job, six were going to my business, two were for traveling back and forth and three were used for cooking, bathing and spending time with my family and friends. On average, this schedule left me with five hours each day to sleep. The recommended amount of sleep per day is six to eight hours. I was not giving my brain enough time to rest to function correctly.
    3. Environmental disorganization: Your workspace should reflect the clarity you want when working. When my environment is in disarray, I have the most difficulty focusing on a task. When I earned my doctorate, I was in a dysfunctional marriage. My ex-husband was verbally abusive and battling drug addiction. He would often throw fits and destroy the apartment. On days I would arrive home, items would be all over the floor and out of place. I would need to leave home to think clearly. This was one of the contributing factors to my staying so busy and out of the house as much as possible.
    4. Impostor syndrome: I doubted my experience and abilities at the highest level while earning my doctorate. It felt like I was in an in-between space where I had years of professional experience, but I didn’t feel like an expert in my field. This led me to question my abilities and hesitate before writing a paper. I wanted everything I submitted to be perfect and I feared judgment. So instead of creating, I would find myself stuck on validating myself.

    Related: 6 Powerful Ways to Get Out of a Mental Slump

    Overcoming a mental block

    Once you can identify the root cause of your mental blocks, that is half the battle. The next half consists of taking some actions to help overcome it so you can accomplish your goals. Here are a few things to try:

    1. Turn up your physical activity: This is my go-to anecdote. We are full of energy, and mental blocks are created when that energy becomes stagnant. Engaging in regular physical activity helps prevent and remove blocks that occur. Physically, exercise pumps blood to the brain, which can help us think more clearly.
    2. Grab a coloring book and start coloring: Coloring is relaxing and allows you to get your creative juices flowing without using much brain power. It can help your brain and body relax to improve brain functioning. When coloring, various parts of our brain’s cerebral hemispheres are activated.
    3. Schedule your sleep: Putting your sleep on your schedule helps to regulate the amount you get. By getting more sleep, your brain has time to relax.
    4. Meditate daily: Meditation is a powerful tool that can help us remove distractions and negative thoughts. It helps us to get in touch with our subconscious mind and release the thoughts holding us back. It also produces peace within us, which helps us gain clarity in any situation.
    5. Tap into music: Music can serve as a form of therapy to help us process emotions and act as a calming agent. Listening to music also has incredibly positive effects on our brains.

    The most important thing to remember when feeling stuck is that stepping away from what you are working on is always an option. Take some time to relax and shift your focus. After all, continuing to work will only frustrate you, which is never helpful. Instead, take the time to try some of the suggestions above.

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    Fanike-Kiara Young

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  • How To Find Success During Search Fund Launches

    How To Find Success During Search Fund Launches

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Search funds have started flipping the script on generalists winning in a largely specialized business environment. The efforts of a specialized thesis have recently proved more fruitful than the opportunistic approach, as Stanford’s 2020 Search Fund Study found, “Searchers who focus their search, as well as developing and adhering to a systematic approach of creating deal flow and analyzing deal opportunities, have a higher likelihood of identifying and closing an acquisition.”

    Although the inspiration for a thesis and industry vertical might be apparent based on the searcher’s passions and past experience, often finding an enterprise that fits the search mold could prove challenging.

    Related: Search Funds: What You Need To Know About This Investment Model

    The good news, however, is that value chains in almost every industry are riddled with opportunities that fit the model. They are the hidden gems. What this means, for example, is if the goal is to serve as an operator in the healthcare supplement industry (from knowledge gained over the years as a professional athlete), an operation that makes or procures a certain ingredient that goes into the final product, as opposed to the final product sold to consumers, would make for an ideal opportunity.

    This “value-chain-based searching” approach also opens up flexibility on the geographic front. Running a geographically agnostic search while widening the pool of potential targets might not be viable for most searchers. Offsetting this with more businesses within an industry’s value chain helps keep the net wide while respecting the searcher’s mandate.

    While necessary from the outset, alignment with the entire cap table on a thesis (and geography) and continuing commentary through the process unlocks resources that come from having a large experienced team and seeing multiple searchers and transactions from an investor’s lens — the successful, the break-evens and those who didn’t make it. The most valuable resource of which is a playbook, be it in the form of time committed to mentorship or proprietary documentation conducive to a successful search.

    Related: Search Funds: A Financing Option for Business Buyers

    Whoever first said, “it takes a village,” was probably a searcher. Building out a team who are unequivocally sold on the vision and believes in the mission is crucial to the searcher’s experience as a leader pre-CEO, as well as their chances of landing on a hidden gem of a business. Most searchers achieve this through interns, both in undergrad and business school, looking for an appetizer to private equity.

    While more heads the better by way of sourcing and in the data room looking over opportunities, a key factor lies in the fund’s governance. Karl Scheer, now CIO at the University of Cincinnati, was clear in his governance remarks, “you can’t have investment success with a bad governance structure.”

    Although at a vastly different scale, the same principles apply in aligning incentives and what a potential intern or search fund fellow can get for their time and effort. Additionally, a decision to build out a remote vs. in-person team in 2022 remains a personal preference. This could change with a clearer answer as work dynamics continue to get tested and studied over the next few years.

    Another important set of people to have in a searcher’s arsenal is a set of mentors who celebrate your success by way of unbiased advice — advisors, for lack of a better term. With a large population of the search community embarking on the search journey out of business school, a valuable pool of resources could come from a supportive group of professors and classmates in touch with the focus industry. The Stanford Search model dubs these people as “river guides” and even suggests an incentive structure with which searchers have found success over the years.

    With the people in place, the tools to set the search up for success help close the loop on the most effective use of everyone’s time. A tech stack helps automate low-effort tasks like initial outreach, and net-net gets the searcher in front of more potential targets. A project management suite opens up a layer of transparency on what everyone’s working on and helps move the needle from zero to one.

    Finally, like many things, we are tuned to think the next opportunity around the corner could be a better bet, and regardless of how good the current deal looks, it’s hard to think past the “what-ifs.” With most searches limited to a two-year time horizon to complete an acquisition and competition from other searchers as well as some private equity funds intensifying, having a “take the train” approach should be top of mind. If a deal fits the thesis, can model out successful growth over the next five to seven years, has a viable exit strategy, and is an experience a searcher deems enjoyable above all else — go for it!

    Related: A New Breed of Private Equity Investors Present More Exit Options Than Ever for Entrepreneurs

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    Karl Eshwer

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  • Is Your To-Do List Overwhelming? Here’s What You Need to Do.

    Is Your To-Do List Overwhelming? Here’s What You Need to Do.

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Do you feel extremely overwhelmed from looking at your to-do list? Do these tasks feel infinite and impossibly daunting? Do you dread opening your laptop with the idea of facing your unorganized, messy assignments? We’ve all been there.

    More often than not, going through your tasks may feel like wading through waist-high sand. This may sound trivial, but work stress often comes from task disorganization, making them look more difficult than they actually are. Worse, it can deter your motivation, productivity and sense of accomplishment. From swamped emails to meeting deadlines, the anxiety of not knowing where to start or how to finish can burn you out.

    Perhaps it’s about time to regroup and rethink the ways to manage your overwhelming to-do list. Here’s how:

    Related: The Hidden Secret to Completing Your To-Do List

    1. Delete low-priority tasks

    The truth is you can’t do it all. The first step to managing your to-do list is to sort your tasks according to priority. Keep an eye on your low-priority tasks. Quickly go over them and assess their importance. If deemed inconsequential, delete them. The reality is some tasks are better deleted than completed. Just because they’re on your to-do list doesn’t mean you have to do them.

    Low-priority tasks are jesters in a deck of cards. Oftentimes, they’re there for no reason, and yet they’re the biggest obstacles that prevent you from completing your high-priority workload. For one, low-priority tasks don’t age well. They may have displayed importance the moment you captured them, but some tasks simply resolve on their own and no longer require further attention, making them obsolete. In fact, they are often tagged as “no priority.” Not only do they make your list a lot longer than it is, but it takes you in a completely different direction, hindering your productivity.

    Use your sense of discernment in determining their relevance. For each task, ask yourself, “Is this necessary?” If the answer is “no,” delete them, move on, and don’t waste your time.

    2. Batch similar tasks together

    It’s important to remind yourself that you’re human, not AI. Unlike a computer, you can’t effectively run multiple processes at a time. The brain takes time to process whenever you switch contexts, halting you from finding your flow.

    The key to productivity is by getting into the groove. Once you’ve found your rhythm, it will be much easier for you to go with your workflow effectively and efficiently. Being in the zone is key to accomplishing tasks quickly without compromising their quality. The trick to this is grouping similar tasks together.

    Task batching is an effective productivity strategy that helps you avoid context switching. By categorizing your work, you’ll be able to find a perfect approach that applies to a variety of assignments, making it feel like it’s just one fluid execution rather than mentally jumping back and forth from one type to another. Not only will this make your to-do list a lot more organized and easy on the eyes, but it will also improve your speed and efficiency.

    Related: The 5-Minute Solution That Can Transform Your To-Do List

    3. Make a list of completed items

    On top of your to-do list, it’s equally important to include your completed items. This will not only help you track your progress, but it will also help boost your confidence by knowing how productive you have been. If it’s taking a long while to fill your completed items, that’s your cue to reconsider how to improve your speed. Perhaps you’re taking too long on a task that’s not necessarily urgent? Perhaps you’re spending too much time in your inbox? Perhaps you’re prioritizing obsolete tasks? It’s your opportunity to reassess and adjust to hit your daily quota.

    4. Don’t overcheck your inbox

    Did you know that most professionals spend more than two hours of their time at work checking their emails without even realizing it? From waiting for responses and digging through old attached files, to simply mindlessly scrolling, over-checking your email is one of the leading productivity deterrents in a workplace. Ideally, one shouldn’t spend more than 30 minutes in their inbox. Remember that it’s a communication tool, not your task manager. Not only does it interrupt your flow, but it interferes with your work execution. My friend Yoel Israel, CEO of WadiDigital, once told me during a collaborative work session that I spend too much time in my inbox. I agreed with him and fixed it.

    Keep in mind that emails can wait. They don’t bear significant weight in the urgency of your tasks. Consider alloting a good amount of 25 to 30 minutes a day for checking your inbox — 15 minutes in the morning and another 15 in the afternoon. Or you can evenly divide it into seven minutes every 2 hours.

    Related: Find a To-Do List Strategy That Works for You

    The golden rule is to always be on top of your to-do list. From the level of urgency and degree of importance to the type of context, the key is to be organized to achieve clarity on what to do first, what to do next and what not to do. Strategize, launch your tactics, and attack. Control your tasks; don’t let your tasks control you.

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    Omri Hurwitz

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  • How to Start a Row House Franchise in 2022

    How to Start a Row House Franchise in 2022

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    Row House is a network of premium boutique indoor rowing studios, delivering a low-impact, high-energy workout focused on generating team energy. Established in New York City in 2014, Row House was born from the idea that rowing is simply the most efficient, low-impact, high-energy, full-body workout for any fitness level.


    Row House

    The brand’s multiple workout routines are designed to unite, inspire and drive people to dig a little deeper. Though Row House only began franchising its rowing concept in 2017, there are already over 90 studios open across the globe and over 300 licensed locations. Row House is delivering on the increased consumer demand for sustainable, lower-impact workout options that reduce the risk of injury but still deliver an exciting, effective workout with a community-focused approach. With its widespread and devoted national following, Row House is leading the market, as evidenced by the astonishing amount of interest in establishing new units over the past three years.

    Now, you can become a Row House franchise owner and lead an indoor rowing facility in your community. Consumers are seeking more sustainable, lower-impact workout options that reduce the risk of injury but still deliver an effective workout. In an industry traditionally built on competition within a class, Row House is different. The brand isn’t changing the experience, they’re creating a new one — one that brings everyone together, rowing in the same rhythm, the same flow and with the same energy.

    Rowing is one of the best full-body workout options in fitness today.

    • Cardio health: Activating so many major muscle groups raises the heart rate and increases oxygen intake for an effective cardio workout.
    • Weight loss: Row House’s method of interval training boosts fat-burning progress by alternating the rowing intensity between high and low.
    • Strength: The required push and pull is fairly unique to other machines, and the setup means one of the benefits is strength training.
    • Low impact: Rowing is gentle on the joints but still gets the heart rate up, breaks a sweat and builds muscle without breaking the body down.
    • Increased endurance: Build endurance with short bursts on and off the rowing machine. Row House’s classes will help build cardiovascular performance.
    • Community: Row House is more than just a workout, it’s about people, connection, strength and community. This is a brand that doesn’t intimidate or alienate participants.

    Related: Considering franchise ownership? Get started now and take this quiz to find your personalized list of franchises that match your lifestyle, interests and budget.

    Backed by science and data, the benefits of rowing are unparalleled. Each workout produces maximum results by engaging over 86% of the body’s muscles (legs, core, arms, back), delivering the perfect balance of aerobic endurance and muscular strength all in one workout. Row House offers participants the opportunity to build strength, endurance and confidence with six different class types. Each class has a different focus and programming varies to help individuals progress throughout the week to avoid plateaus.

    Row House’s six different class types include the following.

    • Signature: Improve cardiovascular health, muscle tone, mobility and alignment with a popular blend of rowing and floor exercise.
    • Strength: Grab weights and feel the burn. Build strength through floor exercises to increase power on the rower.
    • Full row: This is cardio endurance at its finest. Keep the heart rate in the aerobic zone by rowing for the majority of the workout.
    • Restore: Work up a sweat in this active recovery workout that combines rowing, stretching and core work.
    • Intervals: Experience quick transitions between rowing and full-body floor exercises to maximize the anaerobic threshold.
    • Foundation: Participants can build the right foundation as they begin their Row House fitness journey with an emphasis on rowing stroke techniques.

    A rowing-based fitness program will burn calories, improve posture and strengthen the body from head to toe. Rowing has many benefits, and at Row House, there is a place for everyone, whether an accomplished athlete or a beginner.

    Row House has been named a Top New Franchise (2021 & 2022) and a Fastest Growing Franchise (2021) by Entrepreneur Magazine, as well as being listed in the prestigious Inc. 5000 rankings. Row House is also part of the Xponential Fitness family of brands, the curator of the best fitness and wellness brands across every vertical of boutique fitness. With more than 25 years of boutique fitness franchising experience within each brand, Xponential Fitness has the resources and network to ensure continued growth and support for its franchise partners.

    How much does a Row House franchise cost?

    To open a Row House franchise, here are the financial requirements, cash required and ongoing franchise fees associated with business ownership.

    Initial franchise fee: $60,000.

    Initial investment: $247,116 to $483,316.

    Net worth requirement: $500,000.

    Cash requirement: $100,000.

    Royalty fee: 7%.

    Ad royalty fee: 2%.

    Term of agreement: 10 years.

    Request Free Info

    Row House franchising doesn’t offer in-house financing for candidates but does maintain relationships with several third-party funding sources which offer financing to cover the franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable and payroll. Please review Item 7 of the 2022 Row House FDD for explanatory notes and additional details.

    Why should I own a Row House franchise?

    Row House is leading the industry in providing members with a workout that preserves the longevity of the body and achieves fitness goals. There are numerous benefits to consider in becoming a Row House franchise owner, including the following proof points.

    • First mover advantage: With a proven concept in one of the most competitive markets, Row House has extensive market potential. Be the first to bring Row House’s unique workout to your local market.
    • Investment: Prospective franchisees can enjoy a low-cost entry, a recurring revenue model, truly exceptional EBITDA margins and the confidence in a team with decades of experience in fitness franchising.
    • Executive model: Row House’s franchise model provides a completely scalable business opportunity, allowing you to determine your level of success. Thanks to support from the brand, franchisees can leverage development costs and existing national vendor relationships to launch their studio successfully.
    • Extensive support: Row House believes extensive training drives franchisee success. From lease negotiation to build out, recruitment to finance, sales and marketing to sustainable business, new owners are supported every step of the way.

    Comprehensive training and extensive, ongoing support are both pivotal for success as a Row House franchise owner. In addition to over 20 hours of classroom training instruction and additional on-the-job instruction, here are examples of the specific support you can expect from Row House.

    • Real estate: The brand’s expert team will guide you through the entire process, from site selection to lease execution, locating the ideal site for your Row House studio.
    • Finance: Row House’s finance team can assist in loan processing through the SBA and preferred financiers.
    • Site build support: Row House will guide you through the entire build-out process — from corporate-approved layout and general construction to interior design, onsite security and technology.
    • Sales: Franchisees can expect comprehensive and ongoing sales training, monthly calls and expert guidance — from pre-sale through grand opening and on to sustainability. New owners are introduced to the sales process, retail range, app and POS system, making it possible to drive sales right from the start.
    • Marketing: The minute that the lease agreement is signed, the marketing for a location begins — with personalized support to set up social media, marketing materials and all means of generating website traffic and memberships.
    • Recruitment: Row House knows the expertise of the coach is pivotal for the member’s rowing experience. That’s why franchisees receive assistance hiring only the most qualified coaches, general managers and sales associates.
    • Comprehensive training: The brand believes that extensive support and comprehensive training are pivotal for the success of a Row House franchise owner. New franchisees will attend a three-day training course at the brand’s corporate headquarters in Southern California, an invitation to the annual franchise convention and ongoing weekly support. The new owner’s staff will also undergo extensive sales training to ensure the team achieves the studio’s goals.

    Request more information about franchise opportunity with Row House by filling out this form and begin the discovery process for your very own franchise operation.

    Request Free Info

    Related: How Mistakes Helped This Business Leader Build a Successful Company

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    Entrepreneur Staff

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  • How to Hire a Tech Team When You Don’t Know Much About Tech

    How to Hire a Tech Team When You Don’t Know Much About Tech

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    For many leaders at many organizations, it’s tough to hire a tech team. After all, while you have a deep understanding of your own business, if you’re not a software engineer or IT specialist, it can be difficult to tell if the person you’re talking with can actually do all that wonderful stuff he or she is promising. (That’s why you need help in the first place!)

    A lot of business owners and executives without technical expertise often select their engineering hires or partners based on the things they are more confident assessing – how well a person presents and the cost of hiring that person or team. And while those metrics are certainly helpful, they are often not the best metrics to figure out if the person or the firm you’re interviewing can actually do the job well.

    Related: 5 Ways Businesses Benefit From Having a Tech-Savvy CEO

    That leaves many executives hoping for the best and crossing their fingers. Given that IT budgets are often some of the biggest costs for an organization, given how critical these systems are, and given the increase in cyber attacks, choosing incorrectly can have dire consequences.

    I’ve led three different technology companies over the last 15 years and have seen a lot go wrong. Today, as Chairman of a software development company called Plan A Technologies, one of the most common requests I hear comes from leaders who have chosen incorrectly…and need us to help bail them out of a bad situation.

    So what are some of the pointers we share with our clients about how to avoid such situations in the future? Here’s a quick list of what you should be listening for and what you should be saying.

    Cover the basics

    Make sure the person or the firm you’re talking to is friendly, easy to communicate with, follows up quickly, and behaves professionally in all your interactions. Make sure to ask for (and check!) references, and make sure those references are from legitimate companies and not friends and family.

    Are they asking multiple relevant questions?

    The external firm you hire or the individual you hire should have a lot of questions for you about your vision, the problems you may be facing, and your current tech stack. They should be asking about how everything has been designed, where everything is hosted, the front-end and back-end technologies that were used to create or integrate your applications, and more. In addition to technical questions, external firms should ask at least a few big-picture business questions as well: about your timelines, budget, how you’d like to differentiate yourself from your competitors, etc.

    Related: Pros and Cons of Hiring a Consultant for Business

    But are they only asking questions?

    Yes, questions are good. But at a certain point, they should also be making suggestions off the cuff. There’s an old saying in writing: show, don’t tell. The same is true for a good engineer or software engineering firm. During your conversation, they should be showing you how much they know about the issues by speaking about potential solutions, potential pitfalls, and more.

    Are they condescending?

    Mediocre engineers often throw around a lot of technical words and try to intimidate a non-technical audience by showing how much more terminology they know. But great engineers are usually also great teachers and have no problem explaining complex concepts to a non-technical audience.

    Do they seem to know your industry?

    Ahead of time, check their history to see if they’ve worked in your field before. And when talking, ask yourself: Do I believe they’re capable of handling my business? This is something you can question them about with confidence—after all, you know your business. Ask specific questions about how they’ll handle your specific needs. If you’re unsatisfied with a response, ask follow-ups.

    Related: Don’t Know Much About Tech? Don’t Panic.

    Can they talk details?

    Let’s say they show you a case study about building a mobile app for a hospital. Even if you’re not experienced in health care, you can still dig in: Walk me through how you built it. What was your biggest concern going in? How did you handle privacy information? Did you find a way to show ER wait times? Etc.

    Can they spot the trick?

    Do some research ahead of time about a technology that’s pretty new (say, 4 or 5 years old). Then ask: “Do you have at least ten years of experience with X?”

    If they proudly say they do, it’s time for the next candidate.

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    Aron Ezra

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  • How to Improve Employee Motivation to Increases Your Profits

    How to Improve Employee Motivation to Increases Your Profits

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Employee motivation is critical to any organization as it directly impacts its earnings. A motivated employee is a productive employee, and a productive employee is an asset to any organization. Employee motivation can be divided into three main categories: intrinsic, extrinsic, and intrinsic-extrinsic.

    Intrinsic motivation comes from within the employees and is based on their desires, needs and motivations. Extrinsic motivation comes from outside sources, such as rewards and punishments. Intrinsic-extrinsic motivation is when external rewards and punishments enhance the employee’s personal motivations.

    Motivation leads to higher levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, which results in increased profits for the organization. It is therefore essential that organizations find ways to increase employee motivation. There are several ways to motivate employees, including financial incentives, positive reinforcement and opportunities for advancement. Below are some ways employee motivation increases an organization’s earnings.

    Related: Employee Motivation Has to Be More Than ‘a Pat on the Back’

    1. Increased employee commitment

    Employee motivation is one of the most important aspects of any organization. Motivation can increase employee commitment, which in turn can lead to increased revenue. When employees are motivated, they are more likely to put in their best efforts, which can result in better productivity and overall success for the company.

    Many companies understand the impact of motivation on commitment and use various means to increase employee motivation, but there are a few drawbacks. Firstly, motivation can be contagious, leading employees to be more committed to the company and produce more products. However, if the motivation is not sustainable, it can lead to burnout or a lack of enthusiasm.

    Related: 3 Strategies to Keep Employees Motivated In The Age of Burnout

    2. Increased profits

    The most effective way to motivate employees is to focus on the individual needs of each employee. Companies can create an environment that encourages employee productivity and motivation by understanding what motivates each employee. Businesses that focus on employee motivation see an increase in profits. Motivated employees are more productive and efficient, have lower absenteeism rates and are more likely to stay with a company for the long term.

    3. Reduced employee turnover

    Employee motivation has been shown to have a positive effect on both employee turnover and company revenue. In an Indeed.com study compiled from employee reviews, it was found that employees motivated by their job were less likely to leave their position, and companies with motivated employees had higher revenue levels. The study showed many ways to motivate employees, but the most effective way is through monetary and non-monetary rewards. While financial rewards are important, they are not the only way to motivate employees.

    4. Improved product quality

    Lack of employee motivation is the main reason for low productivity and business revenue. By fostering a sense of urgency, clarity and purpose among employees, employee motivation elevates product quality and revenue for the company. Employees are more likely to produce high-quality products and boost sales by being encouraged to work toward a common objective. As a result of increased effort due to increased motivation, the cost of producing a product decreases, increasing revenue for the company.

    5. Optimized training development

    Employee motivation optimizes training development and ensures that employees can positively contribute to the organization. Investing in employee development through training and education can lead to higher motivation levels and, as a result, increased productivity and profitability. It is important to note that employee motivation is not always about financial compensation. Research has shown that employees are motivated by various factors, including recognition, meaningful work and career growth opportunities.

    6. Improved customer satisfaction

    Employee motivation improves customer satisfaction and increases business revenue by creating a connection between an employee and their job. Employees who are satisfied with their work are more likely to provide top-notch customer service. Motivation also increases the likelihood of employees recommending their company to others. Happy employees also tend to be more productive and are less likely to leave their job. In turn, this leads to increased revenue for businesses.

    7. Constant employee development

    Motivation fosters employee development so that employees are constantly growing and learning to meet the company’s ever-changing demands. Motivation should encourage constant employee growth and development, not just periodic bursts of enthusiasm. Constant motivation helps employees stay engaged, leading to better work performance and a higher sense of job satisfaction.

    Sources of employee motivation

    Bonuses and other financial incentives

    Bonuses and other financial incentives are often used to motivate employees. Studies have shown that bonuses can improve employee motivation and productivity. Financial incentives can come from cash bonuses, stock options or profit sharing.

    Related: Reality Check: Not Everyone Deserves a Bonus

    Flexible working schedules

    Flexible working schedules can have a significant impact on employee motivation. In particular, employees who are allowed to work flexibly are often more motivated to work harder and contribute positively to the organization. There are several reasons for this, including that flexible working schedules often allow employees to balance their work and personal lives better. Additionally, flexible working schedules can give employees a greater sense of control over their work lives, leading to increased motivation.

    Improved working conditions

    New employees are often motivated by the potential for improved working conditions. Companies can increase employee satisfaction and motivation by providing a positive work environment. This can lead to increased productivity and a reduction in turnover. Improved working conditions can take many forms, including better equipment, up-to-date technology, safety gear and safety installations to prevent work accidents and related risks.

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    Ferrat Destine

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  • Feel Awkward? This Founder Wants to Fix Your Social Anxiety.

    Feel Awkward? This Founder Wants to Fix Your Social Anxiety.

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    Why do some people struggle to make friends while others have no trouble at all?


    Courtesy of SocialSelf

    David Morin, now the founder of startup SocialSelf, wanted an answer to that question — but nobody seemed to have one.

    “They never know,” Morin explains. “They just say, ‘Well, that person is just really likable.’ Almost like it’s magic.”

    Morin wanted to crack the code, so he launched a company that offers an automated solution for the “loneliness pandemic.” Today, SocialSelf boasts one million monthly users.

    Entrepreneur sat down with Morin to learn more about SocialSelf’s evolution, “social overthinkers” and how being uncomfortable can be a good thing.

    Related: How to Become a Master at Talking to Strangers

    An automated solution for the ‘loneliness pandemic’

    Before Morin began SocialSelf, he was already well-versed in entrepreneurship. At 17, he co-founded an electronics company, which he sold as a multimillion-dollar entity. Then he started another company to sell advertising space on websites.

    But an encounter with Robin Sharma’s book The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, which contends that happiness is found through helping others, changed Morin’s perspective.

    Morin started to consider what made him truly happy. Ultimately, he landed on something simple: Having everyday experiences with friends.

    “If you have good friends, you can go through any struggle in life,” Morin says. “But if you have everything else in life and you still feel lonely, it’s like nothing is worth it.”

    But he also recognized that forging meaningful relationships is difficult for some people — and he wanted to help them.

    Morin launched SocialSelf in 2012 as a simple blog with a focus on social psychology. But the site garnered a larger audience during the Covid-19 pandemic.

    Now, SocialSelf offers content authored by counselors and therapists, free training to help people build their social confidence and paid courses for those who want to go more in-depth.

    Related: Welcome to the Age of FOMU (Fear of Meeting Up)

    ‘Hardcore’ customer development helped build SocialSelf

    In his research to build out SocialSelf’s courses, Morin spoke to at least 10 people for each one, working out to 20-30 hours of phone calls.

    Undertaking this “hardcore version of customer development” was essential, Morin says, as he needed to have a deeper understanding of various socialization issues — or risk providing overly general advice that could be ineffective or even detrimental to SocialSelf members.

    Consider the example of someone who struggles to connect with others in a social setting. The root of the problem could be social anxiety, but it could also just as easily be a lack of empathy. Naturally, telling someone with social anxiety to develop empathy is counterproductive.

    “If you read the advice online to ask more questions because people like to talk about themselves, that sounds like a good piece of advice,” Morin explains. “But then when we interviewed our members, it turns out that many of them feel like they aren’t really interesting, so they never talk about themselves. And then they read that piece of advice and think, Oh, I need to ask even more questions. And then they still don’t connect.”

    When users navigate to SocialSelf, they have the option to take a brief survey. Based on those results, users are assigned tags in the SocialSelf system, which then customizes their next steps through automation.

    SocialSelf’s courses aren’t a replacement for therapy, Morin notes, but they can still provide value to a lot of people — without the equivalent price tag.

    “If you [go to] a therapist, they ask you quite simple questions at first to try to figure out how to help you,” Morin says. “And, if it’s a [cognitive behavior] therapist, they use proven methods that are based on what your situation is and what your goals are. And that’s actually not that hard to do in an automated shape.”

    Related: 4 Important Social Skills You Need to Succeed at Work

    Image Credit: Courtesy of SocialSelf

    What is a “social overthinker”?

    Morin kept encountering the term “social overthinker” during his research process.

    It was an idea that resonated with people who saw others socialize in a seemingly careless, easy way — while they were trapped in a cycle of overthinking that made those same kinds of interactions difficult.

    “Often, these people are quite well-off and smart,” Morin says of social overthinkers. “They have good jobs and everything, but when it comes to socializing, they get nervous because they put pressure on themselves, and they complicate things in their heads.”

    But there’s some good news for social overthinkers too: People tend to think they come across as more awkward or nervous than they actually do.

    Morin cites the example of people who give speeches and believe they appear more anxious than their audience does — empirical research backs that finding.

    But so does the common experience many people have had: They return to their seat after giving a presentation and lament how nervous they were, only to be told that they didn’t look nervous at all.

    Related: 10 Tips to Beat Your Fear of Public Speaking

    Socializing isn’t easy — and some things make it even harder

    Many people believe socializing should be easy because we’ve been doing it since childhood, but it’s an incredibly complex process, Morin says.

    Covid-19 added another layer of difficulty: A report from the Harvard Graduate School of Education found that 36% of all Americans, including 61% of young adults and 51% of mothers with young children, feel “serious loneliness” in the wake of the pandemic.

    Yet at the same time, Covid’s socialization restrictions were a relief for people who suffer from social anxiety, Morin says. It became normal not to socialize, which, in turn, only exacerbated those underlying issues.

    “When you socialize less, it just gets harder because if you socialize over chat, for example, there are so many thousands of nuances that you don’t pick up on and that you aren’t getting used to,” Morin explains.

    That’s why some social overthinkers are finding the return to school or work — and the social interactions that come with that — more difficult than ever before.

    Social media is another complicating factor, Morin says. He likens it to eating candy: It fills you up to an extent — you’re not really satisfied, but you lack the incentive to go to the kitchen and prepare a real meal.

    “There seems to be some type of mechanism where people use social media, and because of that, they aren’t motivated enough to go and actually socialize in real life,” Morin explains.

    Related: How the Health Crisis Will Change Socializing in Business Settings

    Get comfortable with being uncomfortable

    Some people who have social anxiety when they’re young grow out of it with time, Morin says, while others move in the opposite direction — becoming less socially savvy over the years.

    What makes the difference? Whether or not someone is putting themselves in situations that require those socialization skills, Morin says. Essentially, only those people who get comfortable with being uncomfortable will be able to find a more natural social footing.

    But that doesn’t just mean showing up to the party you don’t want to go to — you have to engage in the behaviors that create the discomfort, Morin explains. Spending the whole time on your phone or helping wash the dishes won’t stretch those socialization muscles.

    Instead, start that conversation — and keep it going longer than you might like.

    “If it’s uncomfortable to keep a conversation going a little bit extra, and you’d rather just cut it short because you’re afraid that there’s going to be an awkward silence if you push yourself to make conversation for a few more minutes, that’s what turns out to be helpful,” Morin says.

    And that’s exactly what Morin wants to do — keep helping people enrich their lives through socialization. He hopes to turn SocialSelf’s one million users into 10 million one day.

    “I want to continue to scale this,” Morin says, “so that it can maybe make a little bit of a difference in society as a whole, [help] people feel more confident and able to better bond with other people.”

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    Amanda Breen

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  • This millennial took a gamble during the pandemic. Now her startup has raised over $225 million

    This millennial took a gamble during the pandemic. Now her startup has raised over $225 million

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    When the Covid pandemic was raging in 2020, much of the world was in lockdown and more turned to online shopping.

    But Chrisanti Indiana did the unexpected: she expanded her e-commerce business — offline.

    Her beauty and personal care e-commerce startup, Sociolla, had just two brick-and-mortar stores in Indonesia in 2019. By the end of 2021, that number grew “10 times” more, she said.

    “A lot of people actually told us that it’s a very bold move to actually open an offline presence, while everybody was closing their offline stores [during the pandemic],” she added. 

    But that was a “well-calculated” move for Social Bella, which operates Sociolla. 

    We know that this is the time for us to actually prepare … to make sure that after the pandemic, we can serve more and more consumers.

    Chrisanti Indiana

    Co-founder and CMO, Sociolla

    “We know that this is the time for us to actually prepare … to make sure that after the pandemic, we can serve more and more consumers,” she added. 

    Looking far ahead turned out to be the right move for the 31-year-old. Her online and offline approach transformed her e-commerce startup into a multimillion-dollar beauty conglomerate.  

    Since 2018, it has raised around $225 million, and drawn an impressive list of investors that include East Ventures, Jungle Ventures, Temasek and Pavilion Capital.  

    Indiana, the co-founder and chief marketing officer of Social Bella, tells CNBC Make It how she took her Jakarta-based startup to the next level.

    Tackling counterfeits  

    The idea for Sociolla came about in 2015, when Indiana returned home to Jakarta, after studying in Australia.  

    The makeup junkie realized that in Australia, she had easy access to a wide range of beauty products from international brands. That was a stark contrast to Indonesia.

    “There was lot of options for me, but then I came back and there’s basically none,” said Indiana. 

    “There wasn’t a platform that had it all — I had to find specific sellers on social media, ask friends who can help purchase the product for you [when they are] overseas.”

    What made matters worse for her was the online proliferation of counterfeit makeup products that were sometimes selling at “a fraction” of the original’s price. 

    I still remember vividly in my mind that there’s a lot of like sellers online, especially on social media, that claim their products are 99% authentic. What does that mean, 99% authentic?

    Chrisanti Indiana

    Co-founder and CMO, Sociolla

    “I still remember vividly in my mind that there’s a lot of like sellers online, especially on social media, that claim their products are 99% authentic. What does that mean, 99% authentic?” 

    Indeed, locally made counterfeits in Indonesia are rife, thanks to cheap labor costs and materials. According to a local report, Indonesian authorities seized illegal cosmetic products worth $9 million in 2018 — twice the previous year’s amount. 

    Seeing friends buying these products left Indiana perplexed. 

    “It’s skincare, it’s makeup. It’s something that you put on your skin. It’s just bizarre for me,” she said. 

    Sociolla has expanded into brick-and-mortar shops. It now has 47 stores in Indonesia and 16 in Vietnam.

    Social Bella

    Determined to build a space where consumers can get products that are safe and authentic, Indiana teamed up with her brother and friend to launch Social Bella, with a starting capital of $13,000.

    “Since we started, we ensure that we only work with authorized distributors or brand owners,” Indiana said. 

    Building an ‘ecosystem’

    Sociolla may have started off as an e-commerce platform, but the trio had bigger dreams. 

    Social Bella has since gone beyond offline shops — it’s also a distributor for beauty and personal care manufacturers worldwide.  

    “We become an associate partner for a lot of global brands in Indonesia. We help them not only to distribute their products to Indonesia, but we also help them understand the market,” said Indiana.

    On top of that, the business also operates Soco, which Social Bella says is Indonesia’s largest online review service for beauty products. Soco has amassed more than 2.5 million reviews for around 36,000 products, the company added. 

    Social Bella was founded in 2015 by Chrisanti Indiana, her brother and president Christopher Madiam (left) and CEO John Rasjid (right).

    Social Bella

    The “beauty journey” for customers goes beyond putting something in their shopping carts and checking out, said Indiana. 

    “We realized that there’s a lot of touch points that are really important … finding the right products for yourself is not just about going to the store and picking it up. You will make sure that you read the reviews, talk to your friends, or Google first,” she added. 

    “Soco makes sure that they can access tons of product reviews before they purchase products.”

    On top of that, Social Bella also runs Beauty Journal — a lifestyle website, and Lilla, an online retailer for mothers and babies.

    That’s all part of building the business “ecosystem,” as Indiana calls it.

    We want to make sure that we are scaling up and reaching more and more consumers. If Social Bella becomes a unicorn, it’s a bonus.

    “We want to … to serve more and more women, not only in beauty and personal care, but also in other industries.”

    The startup appears to be on the right track — it now boasts more than 30 million users across all its business units, said Social Bella, selling an inventory of 12,000 products from 400 brands worldwide.

    Indonesia’s next unicorn? 

    Over the last two years, Social Bella expanded aggressively, growing from just three Sociolla stores in Indonesia in 2020, to 47 stores there and 16 stores in Vietnam today.

    While much of the expansion took place during the pandemic, Indiana said that had always been part of the plan for the e-commerce platform, lockdowns or not.

    “It’s actually to create a seamless omnichannel experience … because we believe that we are serving the same customer whether she shops offline or online,” the Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia honoree said.

    “They can choose to do click-and-collect or … she can also deliver the purchases to her home. It’s making sure that she can shop the way she likes.” 

    Social Bella aims to serve more female customers.

    Social Bella

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  • 3 Financial Terms All Starting Entrepreneurs Need to Know

    3 Financial Terms All Starting Entrepreneurs Need to Know

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When you jump into the world of entrepreneurship, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. From learning about marketing and sales to books and payroll, it’s a giant learning curve. Everyone comes in from different backgrounds and experiences they bring into their journey. For those without any financial background, it can be overwhelming to do the administrative aspect without proper resources.

    While it’s always smart to hire a bookkeeper or an accountant to help with the financial aspect of your business, understanding the nuances of finances and taxes is also highly beneficial to ensuring things are done right. Here are three terms all entrepreneurs should know to ensure that their books and finances are in order.

    1. What is your cost basis?
    2. What is commingling?
    3. What is depreciation?

    With these three terms, you’ll understand how to organize your books better and eliminate stress during tax season for yourself as a small business owner or CPA.

    Related: 8 Financial Tips for Entrepreneurs Launching a Startup

    1. What is your cost basis?

    Your cost basis is an important part of starting your business. Simply put, it’s the amount of capital you’ve deployed to start your business. That number matters down the line as you start to increase your revenue and create profit.

    When starting your business, it often takes a decent amount of capital to purchase equipment, lease office space, pay employees and more. These expenses can seem daunting and even more overwhelming if you had to pay taxes on net revenue generated in the first year or the first couple of years of business.

    The great part about understanding cost basis is that keeping track of this number helps you during tax time to understand what you owe. Since you’ve already earned the money, and paid it isn’t taxed again. So if you spend $100,000 on getting your business up and running, and you net $300,000, you can repay yourself $100,000 without paying taxes on it.

    Your cost basis is an important number to keep track of to understand the financial health of your business and to ensure you’re not paying more in taxes than is necessary. Make sure you keep track of it and those transactions.

    Related: 5 Finance Tips for First-Time Entrepreneurs

    2. What is commingling?

    Commingling is something we often see when an entrepreneur is moving quickly in building their business and often with side hustles as well. Commingling happens when you are using the same bank account or credit card for both personal and business. Not only can it make things difficult to track expense-wise, but it can also be a flag for an audit.

    In a traditional sense, commingling is the act of combining funds. In investing, it can be beneficial, but in a business, it can lead to all sorts of problems. One of those problems is when you apply for a business loan, it can be hard to clearly define business income vs. other funds and understand your cash flow. Keeping these funds separate will be much easier for you or your bookkeeper to establish what your cash flow is and help you understand what size loan you might be able to qualify for.

    At the end of the day, it’s extremely important for a business owner to understand what commingling is and to avoid it at all costs. Do so by starting a separate business bank account and using a separate credit card for business transactions, even if it’s a personal card that you only use for business purposes, while you build enough revenue to apply for a business card.

    Related: These 6 Finance Skills Will Destroy Entrepreneurs if They Don’t Master Them

    3. What is depreciation?

    Depreciation, or a depreciation expense in business, is the ability to write off a physical asset or fixed expense, such as a car, as it depreciates over time, less the salvage value. Essentially you can write off a fixed asset as an expense if it’s used for business purposes. It’s considered an operating expense. Understanding this will also help you at tax time, so you’re not paying more than what’s truly owed.

    For instance, if you purchase a computer for $3,000 and plan to use it for four years and resell it for $400 at the end of those four years, your yearly depreciation expense would be $650.

    There are multiple ways to calculate depreciation expenses, the one described above is called the straight-line method. Other methods accelerate the depreciation of the asset and allow you to write off more of the expenses earlier on in your life. Talk to a tax advisor to better understand these accelerated methods and why you would use them.

    Understanding these three terms as a beginning entrepreneur will help you set yourself up for success and avoid headaches in the future. Most importantly, consult the proper experts for your accounting, bookkeeping and tax planning needs.

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    Kale Goodman

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  • 10 Horror Movie Characters That Teach Entrepreneurship Skills

    10 Horror Movie Characters That Teach Entrepreneurship Skills

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    The name of my business is Hollywood Sensation Jewelry, which means I don’t just love glamour, I love movies too! Now it’s Halloween season, putting many of us in the mood for a spine-chilling movie starring a hero we can cheer for or a villain to hate as they demonstrate valuable skills in entrepreneurship! Yes, there are many lessons we can learn from some of our favorite horror movie characters. So, kick back with your favorite movie-time snack (make mine chocolate-covered raisins, please), and grab a pillow to hide behind. Prepare yourself to be scared successful!

    Here’s how these famous movie icons get the job done:

    Sticking to it and making it work

    Jason Vorhees (Friday the 13th Part 2, 1981, etc.) and Michael Meyers (Halloween, 1979, etc.).

    Mr. Vorhees and Mr. Meyers have two important traits to teach us: persistence and flexibility. These two goal-oriented, do-it-yourselfers won’t be stopped from achieving their aims, regardless of what obstacles are put in their path. If anything, they seem to enjoy challenges, preferring to see them as learning experiences. When they start a project, they don’t stop until the work is done, no matter how often they are delayed. And their flexibility is unparalleled! Both self-employed gents work effectively in any environment (small towns, campgrounds, outer space, the underworld) because they know their craft so well that they can switch mediums easily while still producing reliable results.

    Related: 5 Ways to Master the Persistence That Makes a Great Entrepreneur

    Carving out a new niche

    Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street, 1985, etc.)

    Back in the 1980s, in a full industry that didn’t seem to have room for yet another artiste of his flavor, Freddy carved a new niche by dealing with his clientele in their sleep. This move made meetings easier for him and set him apart as the “one guy” who could take care of business during the wee hours. That’s a real time-saver, and people noticed. By taking this step, Mr. Krueger broke new ground and ensured he had repeat business for decades.

    Related: Your Halloween Candy Will Be Smaller This Year (And Not Just Because of Inflation)

    Being the best at what you do

    Father Merrin (The Exorcist, 1973).

    Father Merrin sets the standard by being an established expert in his field. A position he has attained by becoming a vetted, certified thought leader whose opinion and skills are highly sought by people — including celebrity clientele. When a devilish problem requires only the most qualified professional, he’s the one to contact. Nobody is better at handling demanding clients. He even makes house calls.

    Making a career switch when the time is right

    Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs, 1991).

    After his lucrative career as a medical professional, Dr. Lecter becomes a part-time consultant for the FBI from a small, underground office. He is a prime example of a midlife career change, moving from a rewarding but stressful and time-consuming career in medical psychiatry to a freelancing job where he can relax and pursue his interests. Now he takes only the cases he chooses to work on while enjoying hobbies like cooking and travel.

    Balancing life when working from home

    Jack Torrance (The Shining, 1980).

    Jack agrees to spend the winter as the caretaker for an isolated hotel, a job he takes pretty seriously. However, when working from home, it’s essential for your health and happiness to have downtime. Without the traditional job “markers” of a commute, or an office, at-home workers can feel they never get a break. Jack knows that when your home is also your office, it is important to spend time with the family, enjoy the outdoors, and make new friends. Remember Jack’s motto, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

    Pivoting business when times get tough

    Norman Bates (Psycho, 1960).

    Norman runs his family’s motel, but business hasn’t been so great since the highway moved. How does Norman deal with being “off the beaten path?” By introducing specialized services that guests can find nowhere else, ensuring that clients are well looked after. Norman makes his motel so unusual that soon, people are actively seeking him out and can’t stop asking questions!

    Breaking away from the pack

    Victor Frankenstein (Frankenstein, 1931).

    There’s much to admire in an inventor who chooses their own path, saying, “maybe we can do better than the way it’s ‘always been done before.’” When Dr. Frankenstein’s colleagues refuse to think outside the box, misunderstanding his project, they discourage him from venturing into promising new territory. Never mind; this brave doctor takes matters into his own hands. He opens a private laboratory, does his own research and development, and gets results that have crowds raving.

    Making your customer experience unforgettable

    Annie Wilkes (Misery, 1990).

    The name of the game for Ms. Wilkes is customer service. As one of the first to discover the passive income boom of the Airbnb industry, she has only one guest at a time in her spare bedroom. Still, she devotes all of her attention to him, ensuring that his stay will be long and memorable. In an era where customer reviews and word-of-mouth mean everything, her name and reputation precede her.

    Working with the environment in mind

    Leatherface (and family) (the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, 1974).

    Let’s hear it for farm-to-table, family-run businesses! The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in this crafting family, with several generations working together on their sustainable homesteading project. They were downsizing before it was cool and barely leaving a carbon footprint, except for a little bit of chainsaw gasoline.

    Now take a page from their scripts

    As you move forward with your entrepreneurial plans, remember that many of your favorite movie characters can inspire you through even the tough times. There are plenty more great entrepreneurial examples in horror cinema: the alien (Alien, 1979) who learns to grow, adapt, and take charge in a foreign setting; Chucky (Child’s Play, 1988), who didn’t let his small start-up size discourage him; or Jigsaw (Saw, 2004), who has an incredible grasp on branding. Follow the example of these go-getters, and I’m sure you’ll be ready to take on the most difficult challenges!

    Related: Jeffrey Dahmer-Inspired Halloween Costumes Banned at eBay Amid Netflix Series Backlash

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    Mary Hood

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  • Ford reins in hopes for self-driving cars as Argo AI shuts down

    Ford reins in hopes for self-driving cars as Argo AI shuts down

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    After betting big on self-driving cars — including $1 billion on soon-to-be shuttered startup Argo AI — Ford Motor Co. is softening its expectations on vehicles that don’t require drivers.

    Ford
    F,
    -0.08%
    executives on Wednesday said they were winding down their investment in Argo, which confirmed an earlier report of its plans to shut down, saying there were too many challenges to running a profitable network of fully self-driving vehicles anytime soon. That resulted in a $2.7 billion impairment on the startup, disclosed when Ford reported third-quarter results earlier in the day.

    “We still believe in Level 4 autonomy, that it will have a big impact on our business of moving people,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said on the company’s earnings call, referring to cars that are autonomous enough not to need handling from a driver. “We’ve learned, though, in our partnership with Argo, and after our own internal investments, that we will have a very long road.”

    “It’s estimated that more than $100 billion has been invested in the promise of Level 4 autonomy,” he continued. “And yet no one has defined a profitable business model at scale.”

    Executives described hurdles with building out technology and auto fleets, as well as the vast infrastructure of non-technological services, to turn a profit on self-driving cars. And they said the talents of the staff they have today would be better spent on less-sophisticated driver-assistance systems.

    Argo AI told MarketWatch that some of its 2,000 employees would be able to continue working on the vehicle technology with Ford and Volkswagen AG. Volkswagen
    VOW,
    +0.41%
    was Argo’s other big backer.

    “In the third quarter, Ford made a strategic decision to shift its capital spending from the L4 advanced driver-assistance systems being developed by Argo AI to internally developed L2+/L3 technology,” executives said in Ford’s earnings release. “Earlier, Argo AI had been unable to attract new investors.”

    The remarks came as the auto industry deals with more immediate concerns about both production and demand, as ongoing supply-chain contortions lead to parts shortages and higher prices. Some signs have emerged that those supply-chain hitches have eased. But higher prices risk spooking potential car buyers.

    During the call on Wednesday, executives said they’d seen a slight downtick in commodity prices. But Farley painted a mixed portrait of pricing and demand trends.

    Demand for commercial vehicles and electric vehicles was “through the roof,” he said. But he noted a “slight uptick” from the prior quarter on 84-month customer financing, as customers stretch out car payments. And he said some of Ford’s rivals had boosted spending on incentives.

    Meanwhile, Ford’s third-quarter results beat analysts’ estimates, though the auto maker forecast full-year adjusted profit at the low end of its expectations.

    Ford reported a net loss of $800 million for the third quarter, or 21 cents a share, contrasting with a $1.8 billion profit, or 45 cents a share, in the prior-year period. The auto maker’s sales were $39.4 billion, compared with $35.7 billion in the quarter last year.

    Adjusted for gains and losses on pensions, investments and costs related to things like staff and dealerships, Ford earned 30 cents a share, compared with 51 cents a year ago.

    Analysts polled by FactSet expected adjusted earnings of 27 cents a share, on sales of $37.46 billion.

    Executives said they expected full-year earnings before interest and taxes to be about $11.5 billion. In September, the company said it expected that figure to land within a range of $11.5 billion to $12.5 billion.

    Ford also raised its full-year outlook for adjusted free-cash flow to $9.5 billion to $10 billion. It ended the third quarter with operating cash flow of $3.8 billion, and adjusted free-cash flow of $3.6 billion.

    Shares fell 1% after hours.

    Ford in September warned that tighter supplies of auto parts would leave it with 40,000 to 45,000 unfinished vehicles sitting in its inventories at the end of the third quarter, with “inflation-related supplier costs” running about $1 billion higher than expected. But the company, at that time, stuck with its full-year adjusted-profit outlook.

    Ford, as with other auto makers, is putting more effort behind developing electric cars and trucks, including an electric version of its popular F-150. But it is laying off thousands as part of a split into two businesses — one devoted to electric vehicles, called Ford Model e, and one devoted internal combustion engines, called Ford Blue.

    A day earlier, rival General Motors Co. noted signs of its supply chains loosening up.

    On Tuesday, executives at General Motors
    GM,
    +2.30%
    noted easing in its supply chain and production improvements despite a difficult economic backdrop. GM stuck with its full-year outlook, cited strong demand, and said the company had landed some supply agreements and was working with chip makers to loosen up the flow of car parts and components.

    Shares of GM fell 0.2% on Wednesday.

    The auto market has been roiled by a semiconductor shortage that gummed up production and drove up the price of new cars, and then used ones, as new vehicles got too expensive for buyers. Used car prices have trended lower since. UBS analysts have said that an auto undersupply could balloon into an oversupply, as higher prices threaten to suppress consumer shopping and raise concerns of a recession.

    Edmunds last month said it expected new-vehicle sales in the U.S. to fall 0.9% in the third quarter when compared with the period in 2021. The auto-data provider said auto inventories have expanded, as chip supply chains open up.

    Ford stock is down 38% so far this year. By comparison, the S&P 500 index
    SPX,
    -0.74%
    is down 20% over that time.

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  • 5 Secrets to Product Success From Japanese Tradition

    5 Secrets to Product Success From Japanese Tradition

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In a world where “innovation” is the new buzzword, it’s easy to forget that some of the best ideas come from time-tested traditions.

    Japan has a long history of creating products that are not only durable and reliable but also aesthetically pleasing. From cars to electronics, the country has a reputation for quality, and this is no recent development. In ancient Japan, artisans strived for perfection in their craft, and this commitment to excellence is still evident in products made there today. So, what can we learn from the Japanese approach to product design? Here are five secrets to success:

    1. The design must be an experience in itself

    A Japanese idiom says, “mono no aware,” which translates to “the profound appreciation of the beauty of fleeting moments.” This philosophy is evident in many Japanese products, which are designed to be enjoyed for their aesthetic appeal as well as their function.

    One product that epitomizes this idea is the Furoshiki, a traditional Japanese wrapping cloth. These cloths are typically made from beautiful fabrics, and they can be used to wrap gifts or to carry objects. The act of folding the cloth into a specific shape is a meditative process, and the result is a work of art that can be reused again and again.

    Modern products, too, can be designed with the “mono no aware” philosophy in mind. For example, even a simple suitcase can be transformed into a luxurious experience if it is well-crafted and beautiful to look at. The luggage and travel firm Monos.com is named after this Japanese concept, which recently raised $30 million in funding, demonstrating that there is strong demand for products that offer more than just utility.

    2. Form should follow function

    The Japanese aesthetic known as “wabi-sabi” embraces imperfection, and this principle is often applied to product design. The idea is that a product should be designed to perform its function well, and its form should be secondary.

    This philosophy is evident in the design of traditional Japanese swords. These swords are designed first and foremost for battle, and their form follows function. They are not meant to be beautiful objects; instead, they are meant to be deadly, efficient weapons.

    Ironically, the functionality of these swords often makes them more beautiful, as their simple designs are elegant and efficient. In a world where many products are overloaded with unnecessary features, the wabi-sabi philosophy is a refreshing reminder that less can be more.

    3. Simplicity is key

    Another Japanese aesthetic, “shibui,” translates to “elegant simplicity.” This philosophy is evident in many Japanese products, which are designed to be as simple and efficient as possible.

    One example is the bullet train, which was designed to be a fast and efficient way to travel between cities. The trains are sleek and streamlined, with no unnecessary flourishes. This simplicity makes them not only efficient but also beautiful in their own way.

    4. Materials matter

    In Japan, great importance is placed on the selection of materials. Artisans take care to select only the finest materials for their products, and they often use traditional methods to process them.

    For example, Japanese paper is made from a type of tree called kozo. The bark of the tree is harvested and then boiled to create a pulp. This pulp is then formed into sheets of paper, which are left to dry in the sun. The result is a strong and durable paper that is used for everything from arts and crafts to traditional architecture.

    5. Quality over quantity

    In Japan, it is believed that a product should be made to last a lifetime. This philosophy is known as “monozukuri,” which translates to “the art of making things.”

    Monozukuri is a holistic approach to product design that takes into account everything from the materials used to the manufacturing process. The goal is to create products that are not only functional and reliable but also beautiful and timeless.

    This philosophy is evident in Japanese cars, which are known for their durability and quality. Many Japanese cars are still on the road today, decades after they were first manufactured. This is a testament to the quality of the materials and the care that goes into their construction.

    Japan has a long history of creating quality products, and there is much we can learn from their approach. By applying the principles of “mono no aware,” “wabi-sabi,” and “monozukuri,” we can create products that are not only functional, efficient and reliable, but also aesthetically pleasing and timeless.

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    Frederik Bussler

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  • The Emerging Franchisor Conference (EFC) Is the Premier Event for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

    The Emerging Franchisor Conference (EFC) Is the Premier Event for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    On paper, the Emerging Franchisor Conference (EFC) is an event for emerging and re-emerging franchisor brands to discuss, learn, and gain critical insights for growing your franchise business. It’s that – and so much more. This year, the Emerging Franchisor Conference will take place in the great state of Tennessee in the entertainment capital of the southeast, Nashville, November 2-4.


    IFA

    What to expect at the EFC

    Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with fellow franchisors at their same stage of growth – as well as the most seasoned experts in the business – from across the United States. Each attendee shares the universal experience of pursuing success through the franchise business model. Franchising is unique in the opportunities and challenges it can present to managers and executives, and this conference is the place to find solutions to what you’re facing and discover new areas of expansion. The sprawling network of connections made at EFC lasts far beyond the three-day conference.

    Related: Emerging Brands Fuel Consistent Growth in the Franchising Industry

    Last year, Aamer Rehman attended EFC for the first time after making the decision to transition his business into a franchise. Aamer has spent the last ten years building his business, Primera Insurance and Tax Services – and is using the connections he made at EFC last year to create a growth strategy.

    Aamer took advantage of one of the many benefits of becoming an IFA member and joined the Franship program. The Franship program connects emerging franchisors with experienced veterans of franchising to mentor and guide them through the challenges. Aamer was matched with Nancy Bigley, President and CEO of Little Gym. While Nancy and Aamer own two different types of business, they share a common goal: to grow their business, maintain excellency across their brand, and continue to learn from one another. The two met for the first time at the Emerging Franchisor Conference and have been in touch ever since. Throughout the last year, Aamer has reached out and had conversations with Nancy whenever he found himself in a bind that needed the expertise and knowledge of a veteran franchisor.

    After attending his first EFC conference, Aamer realized, “I am not alone, there are tons and tons of people that are either on the same timeline of their business as I am, or they have gone through what I’m going through in the past, so they understand where I’m coming from. I can relate to them, and they are always willing to help me.” This year, Aamer is attending EFC with an employee from one of his eight locations in Texas.

    Get franchise experts’ advice

    As a franchisor, the challenge of scaling and growing your business can be scary and daunting. At EFC, there is a sense that no one is alone in franchising. There will be a range of experts from across the industry varying in size, market, and reach. Every sector of franchising will be covered: food and beverages, education and technology, service and lodging, Retail, and more.

    The International Franchise Association created this conference around the unique needs of emerging franchisors. Speakers, panels, and general session meetings will cover topics specifically tailored to those newest to franchising and looking to learn more. Sessions will dive into hot-button issues like today’s inflationary climate and how it may be affecting your business. IFA CEO Matt Haler will host a session on the importance of advocacy, sharing why the recent passage of the FAST Act in California matters to you and your business. And of course, there will be ample time for networking, roundtable discussions dedicated to exchanging ideas, and certainly some live music with fellow franchisors at one of Nashville’s famous honkytonks.

    Related: 2022 Franchise 500 Ranking

    The EFC Conference is the place to immerse yourself in the franchising community. It is the opportunity to be a sponge, soaking up knowledge and information from peers. When asked about how he felt following his first EFC Conference Aamer said, “We win together as a franchising community, that’s what I felt and that’s what I walked away with.”

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    Matthew Haller

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  • 3 Key Tips for Optimizing Your Physical Health as an Entrepreneur

    3 Key Tips for Optimizing Your Physical Health as an Entrepreneur

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Entrepreneurs and business leaders are the backbone of a thriving economy. These high achievers spend their lives building and scaling successful enterprises. With such demanding day-to-day activities, many of these go-getters find themselves with a high-performing bank account at the expense of their physical health.

    Many would argue that the solution is simple: Get a trainer, go to the gym, and eat healthily. However, those who prescribe this type of game plan are forgetting that an entrepreneur’s lifestyle is not that of the average person. Like an athlete, business leaders and entrepreneurs have an intense and focused mindset. Their lifestyle is not the same as everyone else’s, and their health plan likely isn’t either. However, having a plan in place to protect personal health is necessary for an athlete or entrepreneur to meet their goals.

    The purpose of this article is to introduce three specific resources that allow business leaders to personally optimize their physical health. These three tools, or “The Three Bs,” are blood work, biomechanics and biofeedback:

    Related: Why Entrepreneurs Should Make Fitness A Priority

    Blood work

    An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This pearl of wisdom is widely used by those in both the medical and professional realms — and for good reason. Whether you are protecting your health or business, thinking ahead is critical to longevity. Prevention of possible threats also minimizes the impact of potential long-term repercussions.

    Blood work is one of the best means of prevention when it comes to health. Blood work is an effective hedge against potential diseases, health risks and the inevitable side effects of aging. Blood work clearly identifies vitamin-mineral deficiencies and the unique needs of your body as you age.

    When having blood work done, find an expert. Many doctors use blood work to look for life-threatening diseases alone. The blood work you need digs deeper. You need a doctor who will look at the whole picture instead of immediate concerns alone. The greater purpose of blood work is to understand your deficiencies and create an action plan to help you feel your best.

    Jonathan White is the founder of T3 Body, a coaching company that specializes in working with business leaders. While interviewing White, he stated that blood work is a crucial first step he utilizes to help his clients reach peak performance.

    “Blood work needs thorough attention,” said White. “We use blood work to identify exactly what our client’s body needs from a nutrition and supplement perspective. We do a biomechanics screening to assess their mobility, flexibility, range of motion, pre-injury history so that we can best customize a training solution and then the biofeedback is an ongoing weekly measurement of their sex drive, energy, mood, appetite and digestion to ensure all the work that we do upfront is working effectively.”

    Related: 6 Ways to Grow Your Business By Focusing on Personal Health

    Biomechanics

    Discovering and fixing your biomechanics is the key to giving your physical body longevity. Performance researcher, Duane Knudson, says, “Biomechanics provides key information on the most effective and safest movement patterns, equipment, and relevant exercises to improve human movement.”

    Understanding your personal biomechanics will give you the data needed to train safely and obtain the most optimal performance from your physical body. However, paying attention to your biomechanics does more than simply allow you to perform fully at the gym.

    In order to move fully, you must develop functional strength in your muscles. Functional strength differs from traditional strength training because it focuses on everyday movements and mobility. Proper knowledge of biomechanics, along with functional strength training, will help you build useful muscles that will let you move freely throughout life.

    Remember that your muscles are also metabolic currency. The stronger and healthier your muscles, the more effective your body is at managing carbohydrates and fat. Finding an expert to do a biomechanical screening is a great way to reveal weak links and lessens the risk of injury during workouts. Training safely is of paramount importance to a business leader or entrepreneur’s continual success.

    Related: 10 Ways to Stay Healthy While Running a Company

    Biofeedback

    The final “B” is biofeedback. Biofeedback involves using a subjective scale to survey your biomarkers. Biomarkers include mood, energy, libido, appetite and digestion. Tracking changes in these biomarkers will help you determine the effectiveness of the lifestyle and biomechanical adjustments you are making.

    “Through biofeedback training, a subject can be made aware of an otherwise unconscious physiologic function, such as his heart rate, and learn to alter it voluntarily,” says Herbert Benson, bestselling author and Harvard Medical School associate professor. “[A subject] uses a device that measures the function — heart rate, for example — and ‘feeds back’ to him information corresponding to each beat of his heart. He can then be rewarded (or reward himself) for increases or decreases in his heart rate and thus learn partial heart rate control.”

    To track your biofeedback, use a scale of 1 to 10 to measure your hunger, desires, libido, energy, fatigue level, sleep quality, stress and temperament swings. You may consider tracking your biofeedback with an app or professional. Both resources can help you identify patterns and suggest solutions.

    Listening to your biofeedback is also one of the best ways to maintain consistency in your health endeavors. It is always easier to quit or take longer than anticipated “breaks” when your body is working against you. However, biofeedback will help you track what your body is telling you. Using this internal data, you will find clarity on where you’re at and where you need to go to make adjustments. Monitoring your biofeedback over long periods of time is a motivating experience.

    Being fully aware of your overall health and identifying when professional help is needed, is an empowering step to becoming the healthiest version of you. Again, having a plan in place to protect personal health is necessary for entrepreneurs to meet their goals — and using “The Three Bs” as tools is a great place to start.

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    Andres Tovar

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  • How This Former Investment Banker Tapped into 5,000-Year-Old Skincare Traditions to Start His Own Brand

    How This Former Investment Banker Tapped into 5,000-Year-Old Skincare Traditions to Start His Own Brand

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I suffered from acne on and off for most of my adolescent life. It was painful not only physically but also emotionally. My peers regularly hurled names like “crater face” and “pizza face” at me. “Go wash your face” was another favorite phrase one of the boys in my class would shout. I was embarrassed. I felt ugly. I stopped looking in the mirror. My self esteem was in the toilet.


    Apres Pacific

    “So many of us go through having acne, and the impact on your self confidence can be devastating,” says Neel Patel, founder of Après Pacific. “I started Après Pacific to provide access to Indian skincare secrets and Ayurvedic remedies so we all can feel confident in clear, comfortable skin.”

    According to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, acne is the most common skin condition in the U.S. It usually starts during puberty, and it can occur at any life stage. It affects up to 50 million Americans annually. Acne can take a significant toll on our emotional health. Study after study shows the damage acne can have, including increased anxiety, depression and the feeling of being isolated and alone. And particularly for teenage girls, acne can cause severe stress, making them feel less attractive and causing low self-esteem. For me, once the acne cleared, the dark spots left behind served as a constant reminder of the pain acne continued to cause.

    Enter Après Pacific. Its hero product, the Pacific Glow Clay Mask, is supercharged with turmeric, alma berry, aloe vera and lemon peel extract. It only uses 100% natural, vegan ingredients that are safe even for sensitive skin. Not only does this amazing mask fight acne, but it also tackles the stubborn dark spots and hyperpigmentation that so many Brown and Black consumers suffer from.

    Image credit: Apres Pacific

    Patel picked the name Après Pacific as a nod to the Pacific regions of the world where Ayurvedic remedies have existed for more than 5,000 years. He wanted to develop a modern brand with a fun, fresh and calming vibe. “And most importantly, I wanted the brand to be inspired by and incorporate all of the Indian skincare remedies my mother made from scratch in our kitchen when I suffered from acne.”

    As Patel builds his skincare brand, here are three lessons he has learned along the way:

    Take the risk

    From as long as he can remember, Patel has always been willing to take the risk. When he was 9 years old, he and his mother left India to start a new life in Canada. Although he didn’t speak any English, he supported his mother in making the move for better opportunities. After settling down in their small Canadian town, his mom started her own Indian food catering service. “I knew my mother’s talents and what she was capable of,” he says “I pushed her to take the risk and start the service. It gave me first-hand insights into running a business.”

    After starting a career in investment banking, Patel risked it all and walked away. “People thought I was crazy walking away from this lucrative career,” Patel says. “But I wasn’t willing to put in 12-15 hour days for a big paycheck in exchange for my happiness. Doing research and moving company logos from one part of the deck to the other wasn’t how I wanted to live my life. I know many who have enjoyed being in the industry, and I wanted to build something of my own.”

    The idea of building Après Pacific came to him in September 2020. Inspired by his own battle with acne and what he saw adult friends experiencing with their skin, he started looking for manufacturers. He worked closely with a chemist to finalize the hero product and ultimately launched in April 2021. “Now some of my former colleagues who thought I was crazy for taking this risk see how the brand has quickly evolved and gained great traction,” Patel says. “They want to know how I did it.”

    Be open about your mistakes and adapt quickly

    Although Patel had a strong finance background, he had never started an e-commerce brand before. He did his best to talk to as many founders as possible to try to avoid their mistakes. “You can’t avoid mistakes, they will always happen,” says Patel. “The important thing is to be open about your mistakes, learn quickly and adapt.”

    Patel shares that one of his biggest mistakes was hiring an established, well-known marketing agency to help run paid ads for the brand. He discovered that the agency wasn’t devoting as much time as it should to his brand, because it didn’t earn as much commission from smaller brands that didn’t spend as much. “I learned that lesson the hard way after spending significant money with the agency and not seeing any results,” Patel says. “We finally parted ways with the agency and hired two media buyers who fully devoted their time to Après Pacific. As soon as we changed directions, we saw incredible results.”

    Remember that every dollar counts

    As a self-funded, bootstrapped founder, Patel is always focused on ensuring that every dollar counts. “We are figuring out unique ways to stand out and succeed in the marketplace, and at the same we have a limited budget,” he explains. “Every single dollar should have a return on investment. It can be scary and hurts when you make mistakes, and having limited funds keeps you on your toes.”

    With limited funds comes a strong sense of focus for Patel, and he is smart about where he’s investing. Although Après Pacific could be in a number of retailers and broaden distribution, he wants to focus on continuing to build brand awareness before spreading the brand too thin. As he looks to connect with investors and begin the fundraising journey, he is committed to building a skincare brand that continues to honor and embrace his South Asian roots.

    Recently, Patel has started to see brands pop up similar to Après Pacific’s vision. “They may have the money. But what’s more important is to have a community that loves your product and naturally becomes advocates of the brand — that’s not something you can easily replicate,” Patel says. “This isn’t a two-year plan for us; we are in this for the long haul. Slow and steady wins the race.”

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    Mita Mallick

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  • How Feeling Excluded as a Child Drove this Entrepreneur to Start Her Own Company

    How Feeling Excluded as a Child Drove this Entrepreneur to Start Her Own Company

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    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I remember having classmates over for a playdate once in elementary school. My friend walked by my parents’ room and peeked in. “What are those funny looking dolls? Why are there flowers in front of them? Why is there smoke burning from that stick?”


    Itsy Bitsy Memories Photography

    I explained that it was my mother’s prayer area. As a Hindu, my mother prayed every evening after bathing, offering flowers and lighting incense. And those were not dolls; they were our Hindu gods.

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    Mita Mallick

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