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Enterprise Strategy at its Worst?

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4OPFl2Kxhs]

  • Will your ‘dream business’ REALLY be your dream business?
  • IF you start to make money – will it REALLY make you happy?
  • Is starting a business in YOUR self interest or in that of a bureaucrat/government department?
  • Will managing your business REALLY improve your wellbeing and happiness?

My Favourite Enterprise Podcast…ever

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While many businesses pay lip service to the idea of environmentally responsible practices, Patagonia has defined itself by “inspiring and implementing solutions to the environmental crisis,” says Chouinard.

The company has pledged that by 2010, it will to make all of its clothing from recycled and recyclable materials. Chouinard says that he would exit the clothing business altogether rather than compromise his standards.

Patagonia takes many steps to control its growth, such as drastically limiting its catalog distribution and not taking the company public in an IPO.

Chouinard even encourages his customers to buy less and focus on their needs rather than their wants. He insists that every time Patagonia invests in the environment, he sees an increase in the company’s bottom line.

Check out the full podcast here it is well worth the effort.

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Smarta.com – a step in the wrong direction?

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Just over a year ago I blogged about smarta.com.

It was essentially a one page site, full of short videos of entrepreneurs of all kinds talking about their response to certain questions and challenges.  You just chose an entrepreneur and a topic and you were away.

No sign ups, no profiles, no networks, no business tools. Just quick, easy access to technical and emotional support for entrepreneurs.

This month the full smarta service was launched.  And it appears to have all the bells and whistles you would expect from an online entrepreneurs network.  But it is, in my opinion, complicated, time consuming, unintuitive and all those great resources are now presented in a much less creative and serendipitous manner.

I have joined smarta and will do my bit to help it work.

Fingers crossed!

Make Your Mark – Technology and the Enterpreneurial Journey

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Really interesting use of technology by the Make Your Mark people on their Pioneer project.

Essentially young entrepreneurs record video diaries of their journey which they can then use to reflect on and learn from.  http://tinyurl.com/cun9j5 for more info.

Couple of observations:

  • encouraging entrepreneurial characters to learn from reflective practice can be tricky.  They are usually obsessed about diving into the next experience rather than reflecting on the earlier one (generalising I know). This can be  a battle worth fighting!
  • this sort of project will appeal to those who are already entrepreneurial and risk taking by nature – great that we can support these people – but aren’t they likely to do it anyway?  Could we use technology to engage more ‘risk-averse’ and introverted types and use it to engage them in the enterprise agenda too?

Big THUMBS UP for the Make Your Mark team on this one.  A real effort at innovative enteprise support!

Tumbleweed Moments

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEl5k3Tzedc]

We might be moaning about the leaves that blow into the garden – but at least we don’t have 6 ft of tumbleweed to clear away.

But here is what enterprising Idahoans get to do with their problem – sell it over the internet at $16 a pop plus postage!

Can you imagine the conversation with the business adviser?

“I’ve got this idea for a business…you know that tumbleweed that blows all over the prairie…well I am going to sell it to posh shops to use in window displays and as the perfect present for the person with no sense of humour.  I think I can make a killing….”

For more business ideas that ‘just won’t work’ (except that they do) – click here.