Desert Estate Planning Law Blog : Palm Springs Estate Planning Lawyer & Attorney : Daryl Binkley Law Firm : Palm Desert, Indian Wells, Southern California

One of my resolutions this year was to read more. One book per week, ideally on my iPad while working out (a bit ambitious, I know).  Books inspire ideas, provoke, educate, delight and motivate. I especially love reading biographies, books about innovation, business and entrepreneurship. 

I am starting the year, re-reading one my favorites “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill.  I was introduced to this book by chance, awhile back while studying for my real estate broker’s exam. One of the instructors mentioned it as one of his favorite books and I decided to check it out to add some variety to my medley of law and real estate books at that time. 

Published in 1937, “Think and Grow Rich” summarizes the teachings of Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and many others on achievement, success and breakthroughs. If you own your own business, or aspire to be an entrepreneur, innovator, self-starter, I think this book would make an excellent addition to your library. I have read this book many times, and every time I get some new nuggets of information that I somehow missed on a previous read.  I also find that reading it at the beginning of the Year can give you a little extra motivation to get some of those goals achieved… Afterall, I agree with Diana Scharf Hunt “Goals are dreams with deadlines”.

*To the left is the version of the book I have purchased many times and given as gifts to friends.

I was lucky enough to find a free version of this book on my iPad, check out iBooks to see if it is still available.

Have you read this book? What are your thoughts?  Let me know here or on my Facebook page.

Think and Grow Rich, Week 1

I have already downloaded my book for next week:  “Boomerang” by Michael Lewis--and I'm curious, if anyone has read it?

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As anyone that knows me can attest to, I love entrepreneurs. My wife would tell you I was an entrepreneur since I was in diapers...

Today, I am surrounded by a good number of them, and many of them are friends. I work, network and support that entrepreneurial spirit in others...So when a networking group of entrepreneurs I am involved in (current Vice President of the BNI Desert Professionals--Rancho Mirage Chapter)  was thinking about charitable giving I was particularly interested in supporting young entrepreneurs.
 
So this year, I am pleased that our group of 17 business owners awarded our first Rancho Mirage BNI Chapter Entrepreneurial Scholarship of $1,750.00 to Jensen Bryant of Palm Desert High School.  He is an amazing young man--Eagle Scout, extremely high academics, and has an entrepreneurial spirit!

I see only blue skies and a bright future here.  Congrats Jensen!  As a member of the scholarship committee, he made our selection process much easier. 

As a father of a 5 year-old, I feel strongly about education and the need for scholarships to qualified candidates that my law office gave $500.00 to the scholarship fund.  Our chapter overall gave $500.00 from its "kitty" and a few other business owners in the group combined contribution was the other $750.00.  I hope that this is just the beginning of our new tradition. 

At the Senior Scholarship Awards Ceremony -- Miramonte Resort in Indian Wells, CA on May 17, 2011
Pictured from the left: Maria Dobkin (co-owner of Mr. Rooter Plumbing Palm Desert) Ana Radisic (Law Office of Daryl Binkley) Jensen Bryant (winner of BNI Desert Professionals 1st Entrepreneurial Scholarship) Daryl Binkley, Attorney & David Dobkin (Owner of Mr. Rooter Plumbing Palm Desert)

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Amid all the bad news about economy, I love hearing the good news about entrepreneurs and start-ups making their own mark and taking charge. Just recently released report by Kauffman Foundation ranks California among the nation's leaders in start-up businesses. According to the recent article, “More people hung their shingles and started businesses in 2010 than at any time in more than a decade.” Most of them started business with very little or no help/employees as this Inc. article points out.

We caught up with Yon, the owner of the recently opened Tutti Frutti of Palm Springs to chat about yogurt, business and favorite places in Palm Springs.

 Q: How did you decide on starting this venture?

A:  I decided to open my own frozen yogurt store after working many years in the Real Estate and Mortgage industry.   When the mortgage melt-down and the economy went bad, things got very stressful. I had well-qualified clients I couldn’t get the loan for, while others had to give up their homes. I wanted to get out of that and go into something that was fun, made people happy and could still pour my energy into. I was always happy when I visited self-serve yogurt shops in Long Beach area with my kids.  I really enjoy being my own boss and make customers happy as they have their first bite of my fresh creamy yogurt.

 Q: What is your business motto or philosophy?

A: Always put the customer first

 Q: Your favorite places to hang out in Palm Springs?

A:  Personal favorites include looking down from the Aerial Tramway or The Grind and casting for lunch over at Fisherman's.

 Q: It turns out indulging in yogurt is healthy--can you tell me a bit more about health-benefits of yogurt?

A:  Tutti Frutti is a healthier desert choice than many other treats because it is non- fat, you can control the portion size and you can  top it off with some of our fresh fruits or nuts.

Q: And the most important question- what is your favorite flavor?

A:  My favorite flavor is one of the tart based ones mixed and blended with fresh fruits like Mango, or a vanilla based one like Taro and or Pistachio

 To learn more about Tutti Frutti check out their website http://tuttifruittips.com/

Photo of Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at Tutti Frutti Palm Springs
Yon Pictured on the Left Side of the big Scissors

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The Palm Desert Graduate Center of UCR hosted an event today for budding entrepreneurs, Angel investors, and professionals that advise both groups. The event drew a decent sized audience of professionals from around the desert.

One theme of today's event was "Why This Might be a Good Time to be an Entrepreneur."  A Keynote Speaker, a venture capitalist mentioned that companies in the "CleanTech" industry are performing quite well, and seeing increasing revenues, at a time when many companies are struggling.  Some of these companies help other companies save money through products that in one way or another reduce the amount of energy used, hence creating both an economic and environmental benefit.

As someone who previously performed Venture Capital research, I thought a comment made by one of the panelists was important for budding entrepreneurs to keep venture capital financing in perspective--namely that getting "VC" funding is very rare (less than 1% will get this type of funding according to a small business consultant at the event).

Entrepreneurs must find ways to have enough capital to get their idea off the ground. After all the number one reason businesses fail is under-capitalization.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal was mentioned and is a must-read for anyone thinking about becoming an entrepreneur, because it takes an honest look at what it really means to be an entrepreneur, and asks someone considering that route 10 probing questions. 

I think besides the extreme financial risk one takes when starting a business, two other questions are very important for the would-be entrepreneur to think about--1. "Are you willing to sacrifice your lifestyle for potentially many years?...If you're used to steady paychecks, four weeks' paid vacation and employer-sponsored health benefits, you might be in for an unpleasant surprise."

The second question that a want-to-be-entrepreneur may have on their mind: "Is your significant other on board?"

Of course another question could be whether they are ready to deal with all the professionals they must interact with when starting a business:  lawyers (such as for incorporating and other legal agreements), CPA's for tax strategies, business consultants, bankers, etc.)

Anyone considering whether the entrepreneurial path is right for them should read the Wall Street Journal article "So You Want to be An Entrepreneur" twice.

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