For many years we have set up new entrepreneurs in the blind and shutter business. We hold 3 day trainings seminars at our offices in Southern California. Every few months we have 7-10 people that we get to know quite well. In our training room I had a 20×10 wall made of used brick. For 3 days I would talk about how to succeed in the Blind and Shutter Business. On the 3^rd day I would introduce the concept of the brick wall. Many times young entrepreneurs would quit when they see the brick wall. The key is to learn how to navigate the brick wall. I would then ask them to go touch the brick wall, much to everyone’s surprise it was wall paper. So for 3 days they thought it was a real brick wall when in fact it was wall paper.

Many times what we see as a brick wall is only a facade. We need to make a choice. Go around, go over or go through it. Don’t let it stop you.

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Blind Brokers Network

10 principles to expand your blind and shutter business.

Every business needs principles to operate by. In some businesses it’s make money in others it’s change lives and in a few it’s change the world. In Rick Warrens Book Purpose Driven Church, Warren explains how he grew a bible study into a mega church. According to Rich Karlgaard of Forbes magazine “This is the best book on entrepreneurship, business and investing that I’ve ever read in some time.”

1)      Don’t’ try to make your business grow. Instead, work to make your business healthy. Because if it’s healthy, it will grow.

2)      Don’t be afraid to make it up as you go along. Warren quotes Mark Twain, who one said: “I knew a man who grabbed a cat by the tail and learned 40% more about cats than the man who didn’t” A healthy business is one that tries many things that don’t work-and has the scratches and scars to prove it.

3)      Don’t trap yourself in costly infrastructures. To accommodate Saddleback Church’s continual growth, Warren used 79 different facilities for functions in the Church’s first 15 years-schools, bank buildings, recreation centers, theaters, restaurants, large homes, even 2300-seat tent. Only in 1995, when the church had grown to 10,00 worshippers per weekend, did Warren erect Saddlebacks own building. “The show must never tell the foot how big it can grow.” He says.

4)      Don’t compete for market share. Instead, compete with nonconsumption. “The business must offer people something they cannot get anywhere else, ‘Warren says.

5)      Sell Big! “I’ve discovered that challenging people to a serious commitment actually attracts people rather than repels them, says Warren. “The greater commitment we ask for, the greater response we get.”

6)      Faith and dedication won’t overcome lack of skill and technology. Funny words from a preacher, but how true. “One of my favorite verses,” Warren says, “is Ecclesiastes 10:10: ‘If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.’”

7)      Borrow from others’ successes. “Anytime I see a program working in another church [business], I try to extract the principle behind it and apply it in our church. I’m very grateful for the models that have helped me. I learned a long time ago that I don’t have to originate everything for it to work.”

8)      Never enter a new business without first picking someone to lead it. “If no leader emerged, we would wait on God’s timing before beginning a ministry,” says Warren.

9)      Purpose not only defines what your business should do, it defines what it shouldn’t do. “The secret to effectiveness is to know what really counts. Then do what really counts.”

10)   Nothing should precede the purpose of your business. “Plans, programs and personalities don’t last,” says Warren. Only purpose lasts. It can heal your business, too. “Nothing will revive a discouraged church [business] faster than rediscovering its purpose.”

“The way I got involved with the BBN is that my son, Paul Campbell, got into the business about 3 years ago, loved the business, and has been successful with it, and he showed me the business. I went to his house, spent a couple of weeks, went on some jobs with him and learned a little bit about the business and did some installations with him and went on some sales presentations with him, and thought it would be something good for myself and my wife. So we’ve recently decided to get into the business about 2 months ago and got right in and we love it!” Ken Campbell ~ Talladaga, AL

“Owning my own business has given me tremendous flexibility in my own life instead of the 8 to 5, I might have a day off during the week to do personal errands, I may work on the weekend, I can decide when I work.”

“Owning my own business has put my financial future 100% in my own hands. I used to work for entrepreneurial companies helping them build their business, and I walked away with nothing, but now I know that every hour, every moment I spend on my business is creating my financial security, my financial future.”

“The catalyst for me starting my own business was just realizing that I had spent many, many years managing businesses for others that I had the skills, I wanted to have the control over my own life, and it was time.” Wayne Gray ~ San Diego, CA

“The training that the Blind Brokers Network has provided has been good. I attended a boot camp which I recommend doing.”

“The support has been great, when I call in, if someone’s not there, I get a call back right away, emails are usually answered within the same day.”

Lorne Jacobson ~ Cross Plains, TN

“Owning my own business has given me additional flexibility because I can arrange my time to visit with my grandchildren where I didn’t in the past working for someone else.”

“I feel that owning my own business has given me additional control for the simple reason that I have the flexibility to do the things that I have felt compelled to do for others.”

“Owning my own business has definitely made a difference in my wife’s life and my children’s lives, I have more available time to spend quality time with them when I need to.”

“Control over the financial future was one of the original goals that we established before opening our business, even though we’re not there yet, we are getting closer and closer to the goal and that is being able to build a business that we can be proud of and also sell.”

“The main reason for starting our own business was to develop, in essence a business that we could either manage after retirement or sell it and use those proceeds for our retirement.”

“The Blind Brokers Network is a good contact for the simple reason that they gave us the ability to start up without a lot of pressure.”

“BBN did a lot of the initial homework so that we were not as fearful of starting the business by ourselves.”        Larry Hensen ~ Bakersfield, CA

   “Owning my own business has given me more flexibility in my life, I am able to plan and do things in the schedule the way I want to do them without someone telling me when and where I have to have things done. Moreover, it’s much more fulfilling than working for someone else and meeting those demands for someone else.”

“Owning my own business has added balance to my life, we’re able to balance the things that we want to do, such as boating, hiking, traveling and

being able to have a successful business and spending the time on it when we need to spend the time on it.”

“Owning our own business has made a difference in our life, we are able to focus on our family, and it is a family-based business and so we can all spend time together and all enjoy the rewards of having our own business and the successes.”

“The catalyst that made us want to start our own business was that we were at a point in our lives that we had worked for someone else for ever it seems like, and we wanted to go to another stage, we were getting older and we wanted to have a business that we could spend time with our family without having to take time away from our family, so we decided that we were going to start our own business, it be a family-based business where we could all work together and enjoy life together. We have three sons and they’re all part of the business. We work together every day and it’s been very beneficial from that standpoint, it’s made us closer which is really what you want for your family instead of tearing it apart. It’s just made us closer.”

“It is nice to have control of our financial future; we get to make those decisions instead of having someone else making those decisions for us. If you need more income, you grow your business, if you want to spend more time, then you get to spend more time in the other things you want to do with your life.”

Carol Venne ~ Anacortes, WA

“I wanted to start my own business, because I wanted to be my own boss.”

“I wanted the flexibility of being able to set my own schedule and do my own things.”

“Owning my own business does give me financial control over my future, I’m working for myself and not for someone else, and it allows me the ability to control how much I make.”

“Blind Brokers Network was nice because it allowed me to get set up with everything I needed to get started right away.”              Steve Johnson ~ Holmen, WI

“Owning my own business has given me more freedom as far as the financial and time.”

“I started my own business to gain a little freedom, to be in control of my own destiny.”

“The Blind Brokers Network  is a great business, I really feel that they help me when I need it; I like the start they gave me.”           Rick Moore ~ Lakewood, CO