6 Things to Know Before Starting a Business (Mashable)

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business. An entrepreneur?s life can be a real roller coaster. Having started a few businesses in my career, I thought it would be useful to highlight some of the hard-won experience I?ve learned throughout the process -- the kind of advice I wish I?d known when I started my first, or even second, business.

[More from Mashable: How To Close The Books on Your Startup]

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1. Don?t Underestimate a Business Plan

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If you?re not seeking outside funding at the start, it?s tempting to forgo writing out a formal business plan. However, taking the time to write out your business plan, forecasts and marketing strategy is a particularly effective way to hone your vision. All planning should center around two essential questions: How is my business serving a particular need or pain point, and does this represent a major market opportunity?

In addition, don?t overlook the exit strategy at the beginning. Do you want your children to take over the company? Do you want to sell it? It?s critical to think about these questions from the start, as the building blocks of your company (such as legal structure) should vary depending on your preferred final outcome.

[More from Mashable: Why 2012 Is the Year of Mobile Advertising]

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2. Don?t Get Stuck in the Past

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My husband and I launched our first online legal document filing service in 1997, and then re-entered the market with our second company in 2009. While our previous experience certainly gave us a leg up the second time around, we soon realized the market landscape had changed dramatically since our first company. We had to stop dwelling on previous competitors, customer needs and service expectations and write a brand new playbook.

The marketplace and your business plan are living entities; they?re continually in flux. Whether it?s your first company or fifth in a given market, you?ve got to keep asking: What do we need to do today?

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3. Don?t Hire Friends

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I form bonds quickly and make fast friends with people around me. While I generally consider this a positive trait, it has created some difficult situations when running a business. At times I have been reluctant to let employees go even though I know it?s not a good fit. If things aren?t working out between an employee and startup, it?s time to put feelings aside and trust that the person will find a better situation elsewhere.

Unfortunately, I?ve also learned that people can let you down, ranging from laziness to fraud. I still believe that faith in people is a good thing. However, blind faith can bring trouble.

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4. Don?t Dive in Without a Plan

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Just like the business plan, it?s critical to think through any initiative you wish to launch. When you?re in the midst of startup fever, it?s easy to get wrapped up with every new idea. However, be careful of losing focus. Moving forward is critical for any startup, and constantly switching directions can impede this forward progress. With each new idea, step back and think how it fits into your company?s overall goal and vision, then create a plan for how to make it happen.

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5. Don?t Fall Into a Discount Trap

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At the beginning, too many young companies feel the pressure to heavily discount their prices in order to win business. While customer acquisition is important, attracting customers at unsustainable price levels will just result in a race to the bottom. After all, raising your prices on goods and certain services can be a tricky proposition. I?ve learned that you?re better off in the long run focusing on how to bring more value to customers, rather than simply slashing your prices.

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6. Don?t Be Afraid to Fail

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Soccer coach Sven-Goran Eriksson once said, ?The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure.? An entrepreneur?s path is uncharted and sometimes a little bumpy. It?s easy to get stressed or downright panicked, but you cannot let fear prevent you from following your dreams. Think of it this way: the sooner you fail, the closer you are to discovering what works.

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Conclusion

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While you can?t guarantee the outcome of any new venture, you can stack the odds in your favor. These are six lessons I?ve learned over time and countless others are out there. If you?re open, you can gain wisdom from everything you try and gather insight from fellow entrepreneurs. What do you wish you knew when you started your first business?

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, ineskoleva

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/mashable/20120121/tc_mashable/6_things_to_know_before_starting_a_business

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Union Pacific 4Q profit up 24 pct on higher prices (AP)

OMAHA, Neb. ? Union Pacific Corp.'s fourth-quarter profit jumped 24 percent as the nation's largest freight railroad operator increased prices and hauled more cargo.

CEO Jim Young said he expects the economy and the railroad's revenue will continue growing in 2012.

"Looking ahead, we expect continued slow but steady economic growth in 2012," Young said Thursday. "The diversity of our unique railroad franchise will continue to provide growth opportunities in various markets."

Union Pacific shares rose $2.36, or 2.2 percent, to close at $112.18 Thursday.

The Omaha-based railroad company said that its net income rose to $964 million, or $1.99 per share, during the last three months of 2011, up from $775 million, or $1.56 per share, a year ago.

Its revenue grew 16 percent to $5.1 billion from $4.41 billion a year ago.

Union Pacific said the carloads it carried grew about 3 percent overall during the quarter with strong growth in chemical, automotive, energy and industrial shipping. The only slight volume declines came in UP's agricultural and intermodal divisions.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected Union Pacific to report earnings of $1.82 per share on revenue of $5.05 billion.

Union Pacific's results offer insight into the nation's economic health because of the variety of cars, crops, chemicals, lumber and containers of imported goods the railroad carries.

Railroad officials said they expect small improvements in auto sales, housing construction and the nation's gross domestic product to help Union Pacific's profit grow in 2012. UP predicted that it will see strong growth in the petroleum products, vehicles and lumber it carries this year.

Deutsche Bank analyst Justin Yagerman said UP delivered a quality quarter with improved pricing, customer service and carload numbers.

Standard & Poor's analyst Kevin Kirkeby said Union Pacific's improved productivity in the quarter helped it boost profits above Wall Street's expectations. Kirkeby said UP's automotive and shale oil shipments are likely to remain strong this year.

Fuel costs soared 36 percent to $935 million from $687 million for Union Pacific during the fourth quarter as the price the railroad paid for diesel fuel grew to an average of $3.16 per gallon.

But Union Pacific was able to limit growth in other major costs. The railroad said compensation costs grew only 4 percent to $1.2 billion as it continued to slowly recall furloughed employees.

UP had 1,030 employees furloughed at the end of 2011 and about 600 locomotives stored. A year ago, about 1,500 employees remained furloughed, down from 4,200 at the end of 2009.

Young said the railroad industry is making progress in resolving its national labor negotiations. Ten of the 13 unions have approved contracts and two others are in the process of voting on tentative agreements. He said he hopes the industry will be able to reach agreement with the remaining union, the Brotherhood of Maintenance Way Employees, before the current cooling-off period ends Feb. 8.

"Both parties are very motivated to get a deal done," Young said in an interview with The Associated Press.

For all of 2011, Union Pacific reported net income of $3.29 billion, or $6.72 per share, up from $2.78 billion, or $5.53 per share, in 2010. Annual revenue grew 15 percent to $19.56 billion from the previous year's $16.97 billion.

Union Pacific is the nation's largest railroad with more than 32,400 miles of track in 23 states between the West, the Midwest and the Gulf coast.

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Online:

Union Pacific Corp.: http://www.up.com

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/earnings/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120119/ap_on_bi_ge/us_earns_union_pacific

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Pope hits out at `radical secularism' (AP)

VATICAN CITY ? Pope Benedict XVI says Roman Catholics in the U.S. need to understand the "grave threats" to their faith posed by what he calls radical secularism in the political and cultural arenas.

He addressed visiting U.S. bishops Thursday and used the same language in warning that attempts are being made to erode their religious freedom.

Benedict did not explicitly mention it, but the bishops have complained their religious freedom is eroding in the face of growing acceptance of gay marriage and attempts to marginalize faith. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has recently formed a committee on protecting religious liberty and hired attorneys and a lobbyist to work on the issue.

The pope said many of the bishops have complained about attempts to deny conscientious objection with regard to cooperation in "intrinsically evil practices." U.S. church leaders have been pressing for a broader religious exception to part of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul that mandates private insurers pay for contraception. The Obama administration has not yet made a decision on the policy and the timing is uncertain.

Bishops also are pressing for broader religious exemptions in U.S. states that have legalized same-gender civil unions or marriage. The vast network of Catholic social services in the United States includes adoption and foster-care placement. Bishops in some states have either shut down adoption programs or have lost their government contracts after refusing to place children with same-gender couples.

Benedict also expressed appreciation that bishops have been more outspoken about American Catholic politicians who don't follow church teaching on abortion and other issues.

The pope said Catholics in political life have a "personal responsibility to offer public witness to their faith, especially with regard to the great moral issues of our time."

American Catholics have bitterly debated the obligations of Catholic lawmakers to oppose government policies that go against core Catholic teaching. In recent years, a small but growing number of local bishops have publicly told Catholic lawmakers who support abortion rights not to present themselves for Holy Communion because of their stance on the issue.

The White House had no response to the pope's remarks.

Officials of Catholic-affiliated institutions that have asked for a broader conscience exception to the birth control coverage requirement are frustrated that the administration has yet to make its ruling.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120119/ap_on_re_eu/eu_vatican_us

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5 unemployed Moroccans set selves on fire (AP)

RABAT, Morocco ? Five unemployed Moroccan men set themselves on fire in the capital Rabat as part of widespread demonstrations in the country over the lack of jobs, especially for university graduates, a rights activist said Thursday. Three were burned badly enough to be hospitalized.

Once rare, self-immolation became a tactic of protest in the Middle East and North Africa ever since a vegetable seller in Tunisia set himself on fire in December 2010 to protest police harassment, setting off an uprising that toppled the government and sparked similar movements elsewhere in the region.

The Moroccans were part of the "unemployed graduates" movement, a loose collections of associations across the country filled with millions of university graduates demanding jobs. The demonstrations are often violently dispersed by police and in some towns and cities have resulted in sustained clashes.

While the official unemployment rate is only 9.1 percent nationally, it rises to around 16 percent for graduates.

On Thursday, the government elected in November presented its new plan to parliament with a focus on job creation, education and improving health care. The Islamist-led government promised to create 200,000 new jobs a year through public and private investment.

Around 160 members of the movement have been occupying an administrative building of the Ministry of Higher Education for the past two weeks in Rabat as part of their protest. Supporters would bring them food until two days ago when security forces stopped them.

"The authorities prevented them from receiving food and water, so five people went outside to get food and threatened to set themselves on fire if they were stopped," said Youssef al-Rissouni of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights.

Of the three who were hospitalized, two were in serious condition, while the other two just had their clothing singed, he added.

A video published by the group online shows a crowd tossing bread over the heads of police towards a building. Several young men on the building then douse themselves with a liquid and jump down and begin collecting the bread.

When riot police armed with truncheons move to stop them, at least two of the men burst into flames and begin running around wildly before they are surrounded by supporters and the flames apparently smothered.

Photos afterwards showed men with large sections of their skin burned. The online newspaper Goud reported that two of the men had second degree burns and were going to be sent to the Casablanca burn unit.

While the Moroccan economy has posted steady growth rates for the last several years of around 4 to 5 percent, it has been unable create enough jobs for the growing numbers of young people entering the work force every year.

The self-immolation of Tunisia's Mohammed Bouazizi in the hardscrabble town of Sidi Bouzid in December 2010 became the symbol of the depths of despair to which the poor of North Africa and the Middle East have sunk. Last week, four more people set themselves on fire in Tunisia, including a father of three who died from his burns.

As Morocco's new government announced its economic plan Thursday, parliament was picketed by at least 1,000 unemployed graduates demanding jobs.

Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane's plan called for increased training programs and some government jobs to absorb the unemployed graduates, but will mainly rely on the private sector to create the necessary employment.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120120/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_morocco_self_immolations

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Boa Constrictors Listen To Loosen

60-Second Science | More Science

Boa constrictors kept tightening their grip on dead rats with faked heartbeats for 20 minutes, but let go when the pulse stopped. Christopher Intagliata reports

January 18, 2012?|

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True to their name, boa constrictors squeeze the life out of their prey. But how does a boa know it's snuffed out a rat? The snake listens for a heartbeat. When it stops, that's the cue to let go, according to a study in the journal Biology Letters. [Scott M. Boback et al., "Snake modulates constriction in response to prey?s heartbeat"]

Researchers outfitted rat cadavers with artificial beating hearts. They used dead rats to control for other signs of passing, like muscle spasms. Then they warmed up the rats, set the hearts pumping, and dangled them in front of hungry boas.

The snakes attacked. And as long as that rat heart kept thumping, the boas kept tightening their coils and applying bursts of pressure, sometimes for more than 20 minutes. But as soon as scientists killed the heartbeat, the boas loosened up.

Even captive-born boas who'd never hunted live prey paid attention to the pulse?suggesting the behavior is innate. And for good reason. The authors say constriction takes a lot of energy. And it can be dangerous, say, if an enemy strikes while the snake's coiled around its quarry. But by following the telltale heart, boas can keep the pressure on just long enough. Before a relaxing meal.

?Christopher Intagliata

[The above text is a transcript of this podcast.]?

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=7537ed60e1b9c0c5ff0a3e9328698497

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How to Predict the Future of Technology

Image: Illustration by Chris Whetzel

As a tech columnist, I?m often asked to speak about the future of technology. Well, sure. Who doesn?t want to know what the future holds? Yet I?d be in much better shape if I were asked to predict the future of politics or bass fishing. Because nothing changes faster, and more unpredictably, than consumer technology.

Everybody who takes a stab at these kinds of predictions inevitably winds up looking like an idiot. Surely you?ve seen these things go around by e-mail: ?I think there is a world market for maybe five computers,? said the chairman of IBM in 1943. ?This ?telephone? has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication,? went an 1876 Western Union internal memo. ?Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?? asked Harry M. Warner (one of the Warner Brothers) in 1927.

It?s not predictions in general that will get you into trouble, though. The danger lies in predicting that things can?t be done or will never work. Those are the forecasts that will make you look shortsighted.

In general, it?s much safer to predict things that will happen. If you?re right, you?ll look like a genius. Take Jules Verne, whose articles and stories described electric submarines, TV news, solar sails, ?phonotelephote? (video calling), ?atmospheric advertisements? (skywriting) and ?electronic control devices? (tasers).

Or Arthur C. Clarke?s ?newspad? (iPad), Ray Bradbury?s ?thimble radios? (earbuds), Isaac Asimov?s pocket calculators and George Orwell?s security cameras.

And if you?re wrong, well, who can blame you? After all, if you predict something that hasn?t come true, you can always cover yourself by adding ?yet.?

So the first rule of making tech predictions is this: make predictions about things that will come to pass, not about things that won?t.

Here?s the second rule: history is going to repeat itself. Experience has shown, over and over again, that certain trends are virtually inviolable.

For example, black-and-white formats always go to color: photographs, TV, movies. So back in 1970 you could have confidently predicted the proliferation of color newspapers.

In addition, analog formats always go digital. Audio, video, photos. So in 1990 you could have safely predicted the dawn of digital TV and e-book readers.

We know that Internet access is becoming more ubiquitous, and more gadgets are getting online. Thus, you?re safe describing a future where things that currently aren?t generally online will be, like cars, kitchen appliances and clothing.

If you insist on predicting the demise of things, stick to extrapolating from obvious trends. Look at the way recent college graduates live and assume that they are the future. They don?t subscribe to printed newspapers. They don?t sign up for home phone service. They film with phones or still cameras instead of camcorders. They download their movies.

They expect to get everything on demand?songs, books, magazines, newspapers, TV shows, movies?and you?d be foolish to bet against that trend.

But what about specific products? Is there any way to predict what we?ll be carrying in our pockets in 2020? Can anyone see the next iPhone, iPad or Wii?

Probably not. If they could, electronics companies wouldn?t release flopperoos like Microsoft Zune, the BlackBerry PlayBook and the Iridium satellite phone.

In the end, it?s a blessing we can?t predict the future of tech?because it means we?ll keep trying. If we don?t know if something will succeed or fail, we?ll keep innovating. We?ll heed the words of Alan Kay: ?The best way to predict the future is to invent it.?

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=9fedabeaadb2c71fc074b2726ba88eaf

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North-east Iran hit by 5.5 quake: report (Reuters)

TEHRAN (Reuters) ? An earthquake hit near the north-eastern Iranian city of Mashhad on Thursday, the semi-official Fars news reported. No details of damage or casualties were immediately available.

"This afternoon's earthquake in Mashhad measured about 5.5 on the Richter scale," Fars quoted a local Red Crescent official as saying.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120119/wl_nm/us_iran_quake

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