Business Skills

For some entrepreneurs, things seem to fall into place on their rise to financial success, observes Jayson Demers, writing for Entrepreneur.com.

However, in spite of appearances, their success is not down to luck but rather an understanding of the importance of learning, adapting and growing, says the author.

Five common mistakes could be damaging your career potential, writes Cheryl Lock for Fast Company via Learn Vest. Learn what they are and how to fix them.

Weak markets are not a valid excuse for a company’s slow growth, write Kasturi Rangan and Evan Hirsh for Strategy+Business. With the right market proposition, you can achieve success, no matter what state your industry is in.

Think you want to be an entrepreneur? Lolly Daskal, writing for Inc.com, reveals what it’s really like to go it alone.

Daskal reveals eight facts about entrepreneurship that you really need to know:

1) You might fail. Almost 90% of startups fail within a few years. You might dream of being the next Amazon.com, but your chances are slim.

Human beings are generally "pretty lousy" at estimating the time they will need to complete a task, says Heidi Grant Halvorson on Fast Company – and obviously that has implications for managers everywhere.

Are you a good boss – or a great one? That's the question posed by Linda Hill and Kent Lineback, writing for Harvard Business Review. They observe that most bosses reach a certain level of proficiency and stop there, leaving their potential unfulfilled.

According to Lynn Russo Whylly, writing for ChiefExecutive.net, ignoring or missing a major consumer trend or behavioural shift can seriously damage a brand’s chances of survival.

Some big-name brands have endured by learning how to reinvent themselves, such as IBM, Apple and McDonald’s.

The right mentor can make a huge difference to your career, writes Katherine Reynolds Lewis for Fortune.

Lois Zachary, author of The Mentor's Guide: Facilitating Effective Learning Relationships, tells Reynolds Lewis that 96% of executives consider mentoring as an important development tool.

On MIT Sloan Management Review, Gerald C. Kane reports from the 2014 South by Southwest festival where he attended a session entitled Tomorrow Is Another Day: Surviving A Social Media Crisis.

Many people launch startups because the idea of being boss is more appealing than being employee. However, as Suzanne Lucas observes on Inc.com, the problems don’t go away just because you are the boss.

“In fact,” writes Lucas, “there seem to be more – clients, employees, investors, regulations – and sometimes, the biggest problem is you.”

Discussing money with employees can be uncomfortable, as Amy Gallo points out, writing for HBR.org. Even if you’re sharing the good news of a bonus or pay rise, it’s difficult to talk about specific numbers when valuing someone’s work, especially if you’re not the one making the decision.