Interview with an entrepeneur

At The Next Step Magazine, I get to interview some cool people. Here is a recent interview I did that shares some advice for young people thinkinging about getting into business.

Who: Norm Brodsky, entrepreneur
What he’s done: Norm Brodsky is a veteran entrepreneur whose six businesses include a three-time “Inc. 500” company. He shares advice as a regular Inc. magazine contributor and is CEO of CitiStorage Inc. in Brooklyn, N.Y., an independent records-storage business. He has also partnered with Bo Burlingham and written a book called The Knack. I read it and it's awesome! Buy it at Amazon.com.
How to learn more: Read Norm’s column in Inc., or go to www.inc.com/magazine/columns/streetsmarts/index.html

NSM: What caused you to start your own business in the first place?
Norm Brodsky: I think that goes back to when I was in high school. My friends and I grew up in a lower-middle class family, and there was a consensus that we were all going to be rich.

NSM: What are the benefits of being an entrepreneur, and what are the downsides?
NB: Benefits are numerous: from being independent; setting your own standards, pace, hours; and of course, having the ability to earn a lot of money. A lot of those benefits are also downsides. When you work for someone else, you leave at 5 o’clock. When you’re an entrepreneur, you always take your work home.

It can be a very stressful life at times, and it’s not always as glamorous as it looks. Most people don’t understand, or care, what you’re going through.

NSM: What are the traits that you see in successful entrepreneurs?
NB: The trait of not quitting, ever. You can never give up as an entrepreneur. If their first business goes under, they start another one. If their seventh business goes under, they start another one, and so on.

Also, I see a lot of people that had tough times growing up be successful entrepreneurs. They have a trait of survival. I had to declare bankruptcy on one my first businesses, and it was a miserable experience at the time. But I learned from my mistakes and vowed not to repeat them in the future.

Another trait I see is not listening to the masses when they say something can’t be done. Successful entrepreneurs have the perseverance to see their idea through when others say it can’t be done. They never listen to the naysayer.

NSM: How can young entrepreneurs gain respect and be taken seriously?
NB: People like to be around successful people, whether they’re young or not. So to have an air of success is a very good thing, even if you haven’t “made it” yet. Additionally, people respect people who help in their community with charity, boards and things like that. Be seen at charitable events, and take an active interest in helping your community.

People will admire your confidence as long as it doesn’t cross the line of being a bragger. You can temper your bravado with the charity work and show people that you really care.

NSM: What advice do you have for a teen in high school who is thinking about starting a business?
NB: Develop your contacts. Every time a person asks you to do a favor and you can do it, just do it. What will happen is that you’ll develop a network of people that can help you later in life when and if you need them. The more you put in now, the more you’ll get out later.