Elephant, anyone?

Last night was Week 2 of our Launch and Grow Business Class.After leaving the class, Dave and I both agreed we like the format of the class (even though it is 3 hours!)  It is a pretty open format; class discussion and questions are highly encouraged throughout and the instructors have a few slides prepared to keep us on topic.  So far I have learned a lot from listening to our peers.A few quotes or tidbits I want to reflect on from last night's class:>>   How do you eat an elephant?    One bite at a time.  Our "to do" list does seem as big as an elephant, but if we just take it a step at a time, we will eventually get it eaten. But then I imagine there will be a second elephant to eat.>>   "Working on your business is just as important as working in it."  Something to keep in mind.  It is so easy to get wrapped up in the day to day, that some business owners forget to work on how the business is actually working and what direction it is moving. Business ownership is a process, that constantly continues to change.  A guy in our class set out to do one type of business but has recently learned that there is a demand for another service as well.  He is changing his business plan to incorporate both services.  You never know what your plans will morph into.>>   We talked a lot about marketing.  Who are your customers? What are their demographics? Psychographics? In other words, what are their common buying patterns and how do you get them to say "yes" to buying your product?  The psychology of people has always fascinated me, so I am excited to do a little research into the "psychographics" of our clientele.>>   Develop a personal network. Make a list of people you want on your team to advise you throughout this process. Luckily, we have Dave's parents to guide us, but that will take us only so far, because we are eventually hoping to expand and change the business they have already created.  We will have to sit down and write out a list (ya! i love lists!) of people that are going to help us through.  The Pappajohn Center is a good place to start.>>   The president of the chamber of commerce came to speak briefly last night.  He encouraged us to get involved in the Chamber activities (coffees for entrepreneurs) and "Tech Brews" at the local microbrews in town.  I am eager to be more involved in the community and make connections (add people to our personal network).  My dream is to be a part of the "local green community" making local foods and goods more accessible to people and promoting health in the community.We will miss Week 3 (I'm kind of bummed--weird.) because we will be at Leech Lake for a little get away.But, we start our "Master Gardener" class on Tuesday.  Holy learning Batman!