Creative Business Questions Can Get You Passed A Tight Budget

Nobody starts on top. You have to find ways to overcome the one obstacle that every entrepreneur has in the beginning.


To get past the obstacle of having a tight budget to begin with you really have to learn how to market yourself creatively by asking yourself some simple creative questions.


Questions such as:


1) How can I


Another creative question starter:


2) If I needed help with (blank) this person could help me. This is a fantastic question to remember.


Here's another one:


3) Who would exchange for ?


What about this one:


4) How can I do this faster, with less effort, cheaper? Could I do this for free?


Try and answer this question:


5) How could I substitute 'XYZ' for 'ABC'? How could I substitute 'X' for 'Y'? Or whatever you want to do. What could I substitute for 'XYZ'?


If you answer this question you will really be putting yourself in the mind frame of some of your unique and different customers:


6) How would solve this problem?


Here are some examples: How would my mother solve this problem? How would my competitor solve this problem? The great thing about this question is it forces you to think from different perspectives.


These questions amongst others have opened up all kinds of opportunities for me, and they've been the oxygen - the lifeblood - of my career and the success that I'm experiencing.


Let me give you a small example about how I used this creative way of questioning.


As soon as I graduated University I decided that I wanted to become a professional speaker instead of working within a corporation. My focus was college and high school students, which I still do talks for on occasion, to teach them the importance of creativity. Creativity had helped me rise from being a University failure in my first year to graduating with straight A's, and being names Most outstanding Male. The transformation that occurred between my first and fourth year I owe to learning the skill of creative thinking.


The problem was I didn't know the first thing about being a professional speaker or building a profitable speaking business.


I went to and joined an organization called CAPS, which is The Canadian Association for Professional Speakers.


At one of my first meetings I attended I approached a gentleman there who was doing very well with his speaking career about what I needed to do to get to his level. He replied by saying. "It's very simple, Stu. I'll give you three things to do, once you have those finished, come back and I'll give you some more."


"Number one," he began, "You should join CAPS. By surrounding yourself with like minded people in your industry it will help your business grow."


In order to join CAPS it cost $200, which at that time was a squeeze. Thinking back on it I remember paying for it on payments in order to be able to do it. I did number though, I joined CAPS.


The second thing he said I had to do was, "Get out to the CAPS National Conference." As much as I wanted to go, it was on the other side of Canada, which meant more costs on top of the relatively expensive conference fee. At this point everything was expensive for me as I had no money. To get there I would have to pay for my flight, accommodations and everything else.


I needed to find a creative solution. Here's what I did. I asked myself some creative questions. What I started to do was look at what I had that, perhaps, somebody might need and want.


At this point I wasn't speaking very often because I had just started my speaking business. This allowed me to have time. Time to be able to do other things for someone else.


It was at this moment I asking myself, "How could I use my time to help someone else?" By answering that question I came up with, 'Help Stu Be Like You,' a campaign to help me get to the National Conference.


This is how I used my creative thinking. The largest chapter of CAPS in my province consisted of about 75 people. I went to one of their meetings and asked if I could have 30 seconds in front of them.


This was something that nobody had ever asked for. While up there I said, "How many of you, at one point, started off as a speaker with no experience?" Of course everybody's hands went up in the air.


The next question I asked was, "Out of all of you who have your hand up, how many of you have been to the CAPS national conference?" About 75% of the room kept their hands up.


I continued, "With experiencing the national conference, how many of you with your hands up belief that it would be beneficial for somebody with zero experience to go to?" Everyone who had been kept their hands up.


I said, "Great. Because I am somebody with zero speaking experience that you just said needs to get out to that CAPS national conference."


Then I said, "But here's the problem. I don't have any money. But what I do have is time. Here's the exchange I'm willing to make and hope that you are willing to make as well. I've created a campaign called Help Stu Be Like You." And I handed out these little flyers, black and white. Basically what I did was I printed two 8x6 flyers on an 8-1/2 x 11 sheet to save costs, and I just cut it right down the middle and I gave everybody in the audience one.


I continued to explain what my campaign was about, "This is what I am willing to do. I will do everything you as speakers don't like doing or don't have the time to do. Whatever it is, licking stamps, calling clients, writing sales letters. If you need me to I will come to your house and cut your lawn. All I'm asking in return for my time is a financial contribution of your choice."


Surveying the audience at this point, I could tell some people's minds were racing with all the odd jobs they could get me to do for cheap.


"All of the money I earn through your financial contributions will be used directly towards enabling me to get out to the CAPS national conference. I will do anything you don't like doing in exchange for a financial contribution."


I finished explaining my campaign and immediately a gentleman at the back of the room stood up. He said, "Stu, I will pay for your entrance fee to the seminar." Just like that, half of my costs were taken care of!


Once that gentleman was finished telling me about what he was willing to contribute another gentleman stood up. He said, "Stu, I will take care of getting you out to the seminar." Bang, Bang. In a matter of minutes 85% of my expenses were taken care of.


That's what being creative is about my friends.


By asking myself that one creative question, I was able to come up with a creative solution that solved my problem of not being able to get to the national conference. By the time the conference happened all kinds of people had heard about my story and even had a story published about me in the national publication.


Ideas will come to you when you explore the possibilities of creativity!


Keep your eye out for more!

Article by: StuMcLaren | Total views: 12 | Word Count: 1227

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