It’s been my pleasure these past 12 months to offer my strategies to make your entrepreneurial journey a success. I hope you too have developed an “I love profit” attitude. To conclude this series, I want to share my story of how I reached financial independence and the factors that helped me get there.

In March 1991, I moved to Ohio after earning an MBA with a concentration in marketing. I landed my first full-time job as sales and marketing manager with a printing franchise in Ohio. My hard work and dedication to my profession bore fruit relatively quickly. In 1995, my center won the company award for the highest sales in the country.

My career took a turn for the worse when, suddenly, I was laid off in June 1996. It was an extremely tough time for my family and me. My wife, Anju, wasn’t working, which meant no income for the household. She was also due with our first child later that summer, which meant bills, bills and more bills. When I lost my job, I lost my company car and our health insurance coverage.

Under these challenging circumstances, I decided to fulfill my lifelong dream of becoming an entrepreneur. On October 1, 1996, I started my marketing services and design firm from my two-bedroom apartment in Stow, OH.

The BIG Plan

Four years into the business, at 32, I shared with Anju the 10-year and 20-year plans. One of the goals was to become financially independent between 51 and 55. For that plan to work, I asked her to quit her full-time job and join me in the business. The plan would require much hard work, putting in even more hours and making some tough sacrifices.

Fast-forward to 2018: I reached my goal at 49, a few years ahead of our target. Our hard work together as a team paid off more significantly than we could have imagined. Several factors contributed to our success, and these are the top five:

1. Keep a laser-sharp focus. It’s hard to reach the heights of success without buying 100% into it. Don’t try to ride in multiple boats and expect to excel. That’s true in anything we do in life. I disagree with folks who say that to succeed one has to work smart, not hard. To me, there is no substitute for hard work. You’ve got to do both – work hard and smart. While in business, I was the first to reach the office and the last to leave. I dedicated all my time and energy to my business, even when it didn’t seem like it was going anywhere. It did pay off.

2. Be different. Investigate and learn the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors, but don’t copy them. Go after the markets you understand the best, have connections in or feel the most comfortable in. Make your own distinct path in business, and develop your own USP (Unique Selling Proposition).

When I started my business in 1996, I realized most of my competitors subcontracted their graphic design work or had the supplier do it. To provide a service that nobody in my area was providing, I hired graphic designers. Our company created better design options and ideas, and we did it faster than our competitors. This led to receiveing proof approval quicker and delivering the final product faster than the competition, which resulted in happier customers. Our suppliers loved us because we sent them vector art files with every order. Hiring graphic designers and putting them in customer service roles minimized the number of people touching an order and eliminated so many unnecessary errors. To me, it was cha-ching. Yes, more profitability for the company.

3. Always be hungry. You want to be content but unsatisfied. Your progress stops once you say you’re satisfied with business growth, profit growth, knowledge, expertise, or whatever it might be. Always stay hungry to propel your development to the next level.

In business, you always want more clients, higher sales, higher profitability, increased productivity, etc. If you meet your monthly sales quota by the 23^rd, do you take the rest of the days off? I hope not. If you meet your set profitability targets, do you keep running a tight ship to exceed and do even better? I hope so.

On your way to financial success, more than the money you make, what’s important is how much you get to keep.

Be hungry for knowledge. Invest time in reading, studying the lives of other successful people you want to emulate, taking courses, constantly investing in self-improvement and keeping up with business and industry trends. Knowledge is power. Know more than your competition ever will. Don’t be envious of the competitors – learn from them. Get inspiration to fulfill your aspirations.

4. Concentrate on the bottom line. Most are familiar with small-business failure statistics: 20% fail within the first year, 50% in the first five years, 67.5% in the first 10 years, and 75% fail within the first 15 years.

I was appalled to learn that last number. It’s fair to assume that somebody in business for over 10 years would be reasonably able and capable of running a company successfully. It all depends on how they define success.

To me, success meant a healthy bottom line. I was never afraid to walk away from a deal where we didn’t make money. Mind you, this is not the bottom line for every week or month; it’s for every project. Some businesspeople think they can make up by selling more – in volume. BIG mistake. Every deal, every department, every unit, every location or cost center (if you have multiple) needs to be individually profitable. (To learn more about this, read my “Keys to Success” article.)

On your way to financial success, more than the money you make, what’s important is how much you get to keep. Then, focus on how much you invest in appreciating assets.

5. Have a formidable support system. Your path toward success could be shortened if you have a strong support system: spouse, children, parents, extended family and/or friends. Anju, my wife, worked alongside me for 25-plus years. She handled all the accounting, finance, taxes and human resources functions. She was very conscientious about the company finances and meticulously watched every dollar. She was not only my right-hand person at work; she took care of most of the chores at home. If it wasn’t for her full support, I wouldn’t have been able to dedicate that much time and energy to the business.

I will close with a quote from Mr. Colin Powell. He said, “A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.”Keep at it. Have a plan for the goals you wish to achieve. May I dare to say, write those goals down, please!