A young man who is a friend called to tell me that he is going into his own business and wanted tips on how to be a successful entrepreneur. I went to the net and got some very serious tips not just for him but anyone else who is going into business;Don’t try to please everybodyFor everything you do in business, there will be some people who like it and some people who don’t. You have to live with it; don’t try to please everybody. Learn to say no to some people so you can better serve your real market and move on.Appearance Matters Remember that first impression is always the last.  People will judge you by your appearance. It does not sound fair but it is the truth. If you show up for a meeting wearing a dirty suit you won’t make a great first impression. Look good and people will pay a lot more attention to what you have to say. Not all thoughts are real Every time a thought comes to our minds, we get scared because we don’t have the experience, no you don’t have to be scared. A thought is not reality; it’s just a thought. Just never start your business with negative attitude picturing how you are going to fail. That is just but a thought and is best when forgotten. Have a vision boardA vision board is a whiteboard with pictures of things you want to accomplish. You can put your favourite car, a beautiful house, a beach holiday, family time or whatever you want to accomplish in life, having a constant reminder of what you want in life keeps you on the right path to getting it.Investing longer hours to learn the ropes In the book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell explains that it takes 10,000 hours of rigorous practice to really master a skill. Running a business is a very complex skill or set of skills, so don’t expect to start your business and be a great entrepreneur and leader in 10 days. Work hard on perfecting your skills. And never ever give up. If something doesn’t work, try it from a different angle or try something else, but don’t give up.Do not be over obsessed with your competitorsSome business owners waste too much time looking at what their competitors are doing. Don’t do that. Innovate; compete with yourself. Spend some time every once in a while analyzing your competition but don’t be over-obsessed about them. Check out their websites and their specials. Where do they advertise? Have they been advertising in the same medium for a while? Well, it must be paying off for them, but did they launch a product and took it off the market right away? It probably failed, find out. Ask them for a proposal; see what they offer and how they present their solution. Get ideas from them. But, at the end of the day, it’s your company that you have to run, so focus on making it better. Read business books and magazines when it comes to a good read in business, I always make sure I get Management Magazine from Kenya Institute of Management; this magazine has very good information in matters of business, something that I don’t miss to read every month. It also has stories about people who have been in business, and it’s good to learn from other people’s experiences. These are people who have made mistakes hence one can learn from them, by avoiding to make the same mistakes. Also, reading opens up your mind to new ideas and gives you the tools to solve the challenges you might be facing. Most successful entrepreneurs say that one of their keys to their successes is reading a lot.Having the right team Having the right people working for you is very important in your business, they help you grow your company. Having skilled, experienced and hard-working team allows you to delegate effectively so you can focus on your business strategy.Take care of your health Working hard and making a lot of money is important, but being healthy is more important. Being healthy makes you a lot more productive and effective at work!

Do some sports for fun, spend quality time with your family and most importantly surround yourself with serious people, a mediocre will not take you anywhere.