Have you ever wondered how to succeed in business? Jim Beach has both lived and taught the lifestyle of entrepreneurship. He thinks that creativity, risk, and passion are killing the potential new entrepreneurs. He shares how you can move past creativity, risk, and passion an open new doors to find success in what you do. We also discuss how being a contrarian can help you see the hidden potential to get the competitive edge over your competition.
Recommended Reading: The Millionaire Next Door
Today's episode is sponsored by: Mighty Travels and OpportunityInChina.com
Jim is known for this belief that entrepreneurship is not about creativity, risk, or passion. Jim’s first book, School for Startups, was published by McGraw-Hill in June 2011 and reached as high as number 9 on Amazon’s business section. Promoting the book, he has done over 100 radio interviews, was featured in a UPS commercial, was referred to as the Simon Cowell of venture capital by CNN, and was excerpted by Entrepreneur magazine and the Wall Street Journal India.
Author of “School for Startups,” Jim argues that entrepreneurship is not about creativity, risk, or passion. Featured in a UPS commercial, published by McGraw Hill, hired by SunTrust, Wells Fargo, and Toshiba, and featured speaker around the US and in Egypt, Dubai, Japan, Brazil, and India, he is a recognized leader in entrepreneurship.
At the age of 25, Jim founded American Computer Experience. From 1993 to 2000, Jim grew the company with no capital infusion to $12 million in annual revenue and to over 60 permanent and 700 temporary employees, operating in 39 states and in three countries. The company was the world’s largest technology training company for children, and enjoyed corporate tie-ins with Microsoft, Intel, Lego, NASA, and many others. In 2000, Jim closed two rounds of venture funding, one for $2.4 million and another for $6.4 million. Jim was selected as one of the “Forty under Forty” most influential citizens by Georgia Trend magazine, and he appeared on NPR, MBNBC, CNN, and in the New York Times, Wired, and Entrepreneur Magazine as an expert on technology and education.
In 2001, Jim joined the Institute of International Business at Georgia State University. He taught international entrepreneurship, with a focus on risk avoidance, creativity, and internet marketing skills, and was lectured at universities in Colorado, Texas, Utah, Hawaii, Japan, Korea, India, Dubai, and Egypt. In 2002, Jim started his first import/export firm, called TimelessChair.com. The firm was the result of a bet he made with a class. In 2009, Jim founded the School for Startups, a web resource devoted to teaching his philosophy of low risk entrepreneurship. He is Executive Director of a non-profit source on entrepreneurship for over 100 countries called InternationalEntrepreneurship.com. Jim has presented for or on behalf of Wells Fargo, Toshiba, UPS, SunTrust and others on topics as diverse as the “Future of Oil Scarcity,” “How to Export in a Down Economy,” and “Getting to Number One on Google.”
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