Share Your Know-How contest: Where do you go for inspiration?
As part of our celebration of Small Business Week, we’re continuing our Share Your Know-How contest and giving you another chance to win a new BlackBerry Curve 9360.
Here’s this week’s question: Where do you go for inspiration on how to grow and run your business?
With so many resources out there, the abundance of information can be overwhelming at times. That’s why we’re turning to you – hardworking entrepreneurs and business owners – to get your insight. When we say “where do you go for inspiration,” we’re not necessarily talking about a physical location. We’re really talking about web sites or online resources that you find helpful or inspiring.
For a chance to win yourself a new BlackBerry, just leave us a comment on this week’s topic (100 words or less) to be entered into this week’s random draw.
A contest winner will be announced both here on RedBoard Biz and via our Twitter account, @RogersBiz.
UPDATE (November 1, 2011, 2:00 pm): The Share-Your-Know-How contest is now closed. Thanks to everyone for your great suggestions and feedback. We’ll be announcing the winner of the BlackBerry Curve 9360 both here on our blog and on our Twitter account, @RogersBiz. The post will remain open for comments, so please continue to leave us comments on where you go for inspiration, however, any comments received after 2:00pm on November 1 will be ineligible for the draw for the BlackBerry. Also, remember there’s still one more chance to win. We’ll be holding another BlackBerry giveaway this week. Stay tuned!
UPDATE (November 1, 2011, 4:49 pm): Congratulations to Jason, our second winner in the Share Your Know-How contest! Jason, we’ll be sending you your new BlackBerry this week. Thanks to everyone who participated and make sure you check out our next contest for your final chance to win.
Miranda is a regular contributor to RedBoard Biz
Contest closes at 2:00 p.m. ET on November 1, 2011. Open to residents of Canada who are 18 years or older, excluding residents of Quebec. To enter, tell us in 100 words or less, in the comments section of this blog post, about where you go for inspiration. Prize: Participants are eligible to win one (1) BlackBerry Curve 9360 valued at approximately $349.00 each. One entry/person. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries. Mathematical skill-testing question to be correctly answered to win. No Purchase Necessary. Full rules here.
Categories: 
Tags: 43 Comments
Leave a Reply
Polls
Loading ...-
I would probably go to an Apple store. Steve Jobs is an inspiration to all of us and seeing business being run and the success of their products would inspire me to strive for the same.
I always make a point of going to our local Chamber of Commerce socials and events because there is such a wealth of knowledge in the membership, plus their advice is geographically apt too. I’d also like to think that I help out with my own experiences too…
Personally I go to the people that I look up to for inspiration and take a look at how they develop their businesses. Really love to check Twitter for new things to consider such as UI ideas, graphic design ideas and the like.
For inspiration for how to run and grow my business, I usually go to 2-3 seminars or conferences every year that are presented by successful corporations. I look for advice and ideas to help my own business.
I try as much as possible to attend networking events. I find speaking to other in business very informative. I also enjoy watching and sharing motivational videos and quotes with my staff.
We have a great team that share ideas and resources. You can only grow your business, or yourself if you have the drive to suceed and an open mind to continue learning.
I look to my competition, for my inspiration, I check out what they are doing, or lacking and try to implement the improvements.
To find inspiration how to grow and run a business is a tricky thing to do. When you look around you usually see more things “Not to do” than really ideas to help you grow. In the end it all comes down to trial and error. Ideas that work for my business might not help my neighbor next door. Always keep an open mind an eye for the successes and mistakes of other people that will point in the drifht direction.
I look for inspiration from websites like profit, websitemagazine, and entrepeneur. A whole lot of inspirational stories and advice from a wide range of people.
I look for inspiration from my close friends and family, as a lot of them have done some pretty inspirational things in their lives and I always welcome their advice.
I go online and talk with other Small Business owners. They are the ones that know what works and what doesn’t through trial and error.
To find inspiration I often attend seminars advertised in our local paper. These seminars are held by major companies and investment firms and are a great free way to obtain knowledge and inspiration!
I go to my customers, they are the people that use my products and only they know what they need/want.
I go to magazines, books and outdoors for inspiration. I look for colour, trends, and earthy natural things to inspire my soul!
For me this weeks question is similar to last weeks question, in that, for me it is all about listening. Inspirations comes in many different ways, so for me, during a productive day, inspiration can come from an interaction with a customer, or stuck in traffic just being silent.
The thing about inspiration is that it always feels the same. That spark of energy is a good feeling!
I look to history for my inspiration. While times have changed, many of the challenges faced by people today are similar to those faced by the business greats of the industrial age.
Looking back at those challenges, and how people dealt with them, can be a great way to find solutions to modern problems as well as anticipate the problems we might see in our future.
I have a personal guru with whom I discuss business ideas nand aother related issues. The give and take is preferrable to getting info from a web site.
The best place (person) for inspiration is to have a close network of business acquaintances and a mentor. In addition join a business network. Running a small business can be lonely and having a network of business acquaintenaces will allow you to share ideas and get feedback.
The mentor will listen to you, provide advice and feedback. In some cases the mentor may even provide you business.
I talk to other small business owners and we share information and knowledge. I also attend conventions and seminars.
For inspiration, I utilize Twitter. Our small company uses Technology to aid in social and economic development. Working in such a field requires you to be in tune with the needs of people and communities in the moment. Twitter is great for this because it is real-time and it also houses the most current info and resources to aid us with what we do. It is also useful in partnership development and networking. We could not have gotten this far without Twitter!
The inspiration for me, as a workplace safety advocate, comes from the families of victims of workplace tragedies. There are way too many workplace accidents happening in Ontario still, but at least we are doing a better job sharing the stories and details of such incidents. Follow @safeTrevolution on Twitter for details.
I hit the library – or my kindle! Books give me so much inspiration. I have books on copywriting, typology, sales, marketing, business, managements, and spiritual books and novels as well. I find reading is inspiring and sharing what I am reading with others inspires them too!
I have a group of business people I regularily talk to about their experiences which helps to guide me and when I am looking for inspiration for something big I look to online resources that showcase those blazing the trail. TED talks and similar creative thinking always start new ideas to germinate for our business.
Street vendors and small stores. They generate interest and create new business without any fancy technology – take that knowledge and add technology and you have a pretty good mix.
In general I look to my piers and websites. I have attended several conferences and community events this year and always found them to be inspirationaly as well as great for networking.
I mean, peers!!
From close friends, family and associates as well as similar companies. I also get inspriation from reading and studying.
I go for inspiration to my colleagues and close friends who are in closely related businesses. Sometimes people who are in similar businesses have a good insight, even if not in your own niche industry.
I look at my family for inspiration
i go to twitter and attend networking events
It’s all about networking. From one set of people I may learn of a new and interesting business site and then from there something else turns up.
I find inspiration online by reading about other venture funded technology startups at sites and blogs including: venturebeat, techcrunch, blog.guykawasaki, xconomy, startuplessonslearned, onstartups, startupnation (all .com) and several others. There’s info on a wide range of topics from new technologies and financing, through to hiring and operations.
Small business websites and social communities are a great place to exchange ideas and gain inspiration
Industry and trade publications are a great way to stay current and to read about new trends that are occurring. They often serve as a starting point for new avenues of growth.
I find inspiration by looking at other industries and disciplines. Innovation or that a-ha moment can strike while investigating something completely disparate from your own business. Whether it’s a new product idea, a new way of selling a good, or simply a new way to promote the business it’s always best to keep an open mind.
The best way to keep your business fresh and innovative is by having a sounding board(s). Trusted friends and family who can you throw ideas at and in return they can bounce back suggestions and even criticisms. They may see new ways to improve and grow that you might be overlooking.
I get my inspiration from my grandfather, a successful multimillion dollar businessman with a grade 9 education. @sharonnelt on twitter
I have a group of trusted friends who often make suggestions about websites. Sometimes it is trial and error to see what works best for my profession.
I have a group of friends I meet with over coffee on a regular basis. We toss around new ideas and websites and everyone gets a chance to have input on new ideas.
The first person I talk to is my Dad …. with 40 years business and real life experiences he has some pretty good insights and isn’t afraid to tell me how it is even if I won’t like what he has to say.
I try to consult as many different and divergent sources as possible. If there is a concensus then that’s a good indication of which way to go. And if there is a lot of different views, then that give me a wide range of inputs for making my own decision.
If you’re a manager or a boss your best source of inspiration should be your employees. Too often managers make a decision and seek feedback from employees. It’s much better to get inputs and possible solutions to problems from the people who are closest to the situation. And many different people working together can come up with innovative and creative solutions.
Steve jobs was someone so insipring that there are no words to explain he has changed the way i look at electronics forever. Rip steve.
Churchill