Welcome to the world of the “go-givers”. If you are saying “what the heck is a go-giver?”, it’s cool, I thought the word sounded a little goofy when I first heard it. Let me assure that it is more than a word. It is a lifestyle. It is a movement. To me, it is the ONLY way to run a business. A very profitable one too! Now, I know what you may be thinking… “I am in business to make money, not give it all away.” You are absolutely right, unless, that is what you want to do. Today, I am here to provoke some thoughts with the help of a friend on why giving will change your life and your bank account.

As we wrap up 2009, I want to thank every single one of you for reading this blog. The response has been completely humbling and I have made some tremendous connections in the process. I have had the chance to interview a massive inspiration in Gary Vaynerchuk and just recently interviewed Mike Michalowicz (the Toilet Paper Entrepreneur).

I have spent a lot of time over the past 3 years focused on my weaknesses. That led to a great deal of time spent reading many personal empowerment and business books. I actually get pretty pumped when I discover something in my life that I can improve upon. But while focusing on my weaknesses, I really lost sight to the gifts that I had. I was tiring myself out from the circles I was running trying to be an all-star at everything. There is a very powerful word in the Japanese language called “kaizen”, which means continuous incremental improvements.

More often than not I hear young entrepreneurs claim they are a business owner. In my honest opinion, being an entrepreneur is just a state of mind. As soon as you make a decision and declare yourself one, then you are one. In the case of actually owning a business, there are defining characteristics to determine where you fall. For example, you own a graphic design company. You are incorporated, so technically you own a business. But, if you are doing all the work to make the business operational, do you still see it in the same light?

I am going to teach you exactly what all you previous bosses royally screwed up on teaching you about sales.  You may remember, “It’s all about the numbers.” or “Always be closing.” or in my case, “Get them to by the dang shoe cleaner.” You want to sell, right?  Not make a little, but a whole lot of cash?  Selling is cake.  Actually when I first learned how to sell it was a disaster.  My first “official sales training” was when I was 16 working in the mall at the shoe store Finish Line. I was so nervous to offer people shoes that they came in the store to buy in the first place.  I ended up riding on the selling emotional roller coaster.

Read more on The Making Of A Sales Legend…

Usually when I am working into the night, I shut down all communication devices so I can get some productive work done. This time I forgot to exit Entourage on my Mac and what do you know, my email notification pulled my attention from writing training modules for an affiliate system I am working on.

To my surprise, I received a gift from self-help legend Tony Robbins. Okay, so it was not a personal email from Tony, but regardless he is a man of great value so when he send an email out to his list, I immediately check it out.

I have come to realize over the past few years that what we talk about and the people in which we surround ourselves with, makes up who we are. Let’s even take it a step further. The great Buddha reminds us, “what we think, we become.” So, if we have negative thoughts in our mind, we will usually become just a big heaping sack of negativity. And that will translate to our everyday world through our choice of words. Kevin Hall sums it up tremendously in “Aspire! Discovering Your Purpose Through The Power of Words”, which is one of the best books I have ever read.

I find Twitter to be a HUGE leverage point for young entrepreneurs to build instant credibility. By using Twitter, I have found business partners, constantly get sent tons of free stuff (books, cd’s, food, etc.), made money, drove tons of traffic to my blog, been invited to private parties, met my idol, been on radio and TV shows and the list goes on and on. The only reason if you believe Twitter does not work, is if you don’t work. Plain and simple. You must have a reason to be on it in the first place or you will end up like a lost child in a theme park.

It is quite important for a young entrepreneur to “act as if” they already are successful. Extremely important. It remains true that you must act wealthy before you become wealthy. You don’t become wealthy and then decide to form good habits. That’s just not how this game works. Literally, take a few seconds to think about that. You have to do the things successful people do to become successful. When I think about this concept, Ben Affleck rings in my head from the classic sales movie Boiler Room, “Act as if you are the *bleeping* President of this firm.”

Entrepreneurs are indeed a unique breed. Sometimes it can be a long lonely journey to the top. Friends and family may brand you as crazy. You may be poverty-stricken and struggling to pay the bills. But there is a bright side to all the grinding and hustle that you tirelessly put yourself through day in and day out. There are many hidden blessings of being an entrepreneur that you may just pass over.