how to succeed


Friday, December 11th, 2009

How to Succeed Against the Odds

How to succeed against the oddsNeysha Soodeen’s successful magazine “MACO” is now distributed in 53 countries, with the largest markets (besides the Caribbean) being the United States, Canada and Australia. This entrepreneur created an incredibly successful international business and worked out how to succeed after being dealt a tough hand from life.

At 21, Neysha graduated from university and landed a contract with Elite models in Milan, Italy. She moved to Europe and threw herself into her work. However, at 23 she was diagnosed with throat cancer, underwent a full thyroidectomy which left her with a scar across her neck, and endured three years of treatment until she was in remission.

With her modelling career over, Neysha was keen to show she knew how to succeed. According to this driven young woman, the whole situation did nothing but ignite her determination in life. She began MACO soon after. Her hard work and commitment pulled her through her first year. A tough start, she made a financial loss, however her natural business smarts meant she had budgeted realistically so she could survive while she grew the business.

MACO started out as an architectural magazine but, by the third issue, was expanded to include a cuisine and travel section. By 2004, the magazine featured more than 200 pages. Neysha then decided to separate out the travel section and launch Destinations Magazine.

In 2004, Moving Magazines, a magazine- and book-distribution company, was launched to help other budding publishers distribute and market their products.

They now produce seven magazines and a number of books, including their first children’s book, Brown Sugar & Spice, a book for the tween market launching in December.

Ten years ago she was young and hungry for success. After life dealt her lemons, big sour ones at that, she has managed to turn her life into a creative powerhouse learning how to succeed against the odds and blazing the way for other women to follow.

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Thursday, November 19th, 2009

How to Succeed with Shocking

Achieving successLaurence Eales knows how to succeed. He is the owner of one of Australia’s largest equipment hire firms, EA Hire, and he is celebrating after upstaging some of the wealthiest thoroughbred owners in Australia to win the Melbourne Cup with his horse Shocking.

Eales, 37, was born in Cairns, and is now based in Melbourne.
The entrepreneur has a classic rags-to-riches story. He dropped out of high school early to go and work in his father’s butchers shop and later became an apprentice tiler. He was learning how to succeed through life experience.  Moving to Sydney, he decided to diversify and get into the earthmoving business after buying a single excavator. He built EA Hire into a thriving business with more than 150 staff.

Eales contends he worked hard at his business and set it up so he could have a little bit of a dabble with the horses. His philosophy is you’ve got to do what you like.

Four years ago he took a share in his first racehorse, named Rednex. It managed to place first at a minor Victorian country meeting, not a terribly auspicious start, but for the long-time punter, the ownership bug had bitten.

As an owner he has his own particular system and way about him, echoing his entrepreneurial skills. Most owners rely on others to help fill their stable, whereas Eales picks horses from the sales himself. He also concentrates on the progeny of imported stallion Street Cry.

Two years ago, he sent two Street Cry horses to trainer Mark Kavanagh. The first was Whobegotyou, who is apparently raising eyebrows and thought of as a potential champion. The galloper has already won more than $2.2 million in prize money.

And the second was Shocking, who has now earned more than $3.8 million after his Cup victory. At a total cost of $83,500 for both horses, the return on investment is almost staggering. They have now earned more than $6 million! Now that’s how to succeed with Shocking.

Shane Krider- Polaris Media Group

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Sunday, November 1st, 2009

How to Succeed Despite Tall Poppy Syndrome

tall poppy syndromeWhen an entrepreneur figures out how to succeed and he
surpasses the expectations of his peers, he has exceeded his underdog novelty value.

Many Australians are said to experience or indeed dish out the Tall Poppy Syndrome, with some claiming it as an Australian cultural phenomenon. In fact it stems from the UK and Commonwealth nations, where many resent success of their fellows. Conservatives often criticise Australians for their alleged desire to punish the successful. Sometimes, tall poppy syndrome is even claimed to be linked to the concept of ‘The Politics of Envy’.

Critics of the tall poppy syndrome sometimes declare that the United States is relatively free of “tall poppy” attitudes. Americans are thought to appreciate the successful, seeing them as an example to admire and attempt to emulate but that’s not always the case.

It is a universal phenomenon, more common in some cultures than you would think. The concepts of janteloven, or “Jante law”, in Scandinavia, and A kent yer faither (I knew your father) in Scotland, are very similar.

A related concept is that of a crab mentality in which members of a disadvantaged community are seen as undermining the success of community members. The image is drawn from the observation that a crab clawing its way out of a bucket is pulled back down by his fellow crabs keeping it them all at the bottom forever until they are eaten.

Most cultures have a way of bringing the young upstart down to earth when they’ve become “too big for their britches,” however many use their cultural heritage to attack successful entrepreneurs who know how to succeed.

Similar phenomena are said to exist in the Netherlands (where it is called ‘maaiveldcultuur’) and American minority communities. Benjamin Franklin Fairless, president of United States Steel Corporation (1950), criticised such behaviour when he stated: “You cannot strengthen one by weakening another; and you cannot add to the stature of a dwarf by cutting off the leg of a giant.”

The cold fact is some will always be jealous of success, and while some may try and cut you down, the biggest blow to their crazy yammering at you is to succeed against adversity. Flourish and prosper. We know how to succeed and we are going to, because that’s what we all deserve.

Shane Krider- Polaris Media Group

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Friday, September 18th, 2009

The Australian Dreamtime

Entrepreneurial spiritEver hear that old Chinese curse – “May you live in interesting times?”

Well, these are interesting times, aren’t they?

It’s a brave new world –exciting, dynamic and new. But do we have the skills and self confidence to survive in this rapidly changing reality? Things that were the norm even two years ago are now obsolete.

The way people communicate has shifted radically and in turn, how we work and earn money has shifted with it. While some businesses are closing, with people being laid off and struggling to support themselves and their families, others are finding their path to success in these tough times. But you have to know how to succeed.

Australians are adept at making the best of a rum deal. It’s our entrepreneurial spirit – that ‘never say die’ attitude.

The “proudly Australian” campaign in the 90’s proved that we’d support our own. Proudly. (Even if some of those silly swing tags got in the way when we tried on a new t-shirt.)

Now, I am not for one minute suggesting that we put swing tags on our entrepreneurs. That would be sillier than a koala founding a ministry of silly walks.

However, if more people stopped relying on others to take care of them and instead took responsibility for their own lives and their own future, their happiness and most of all their sense of fun…the world would be an undeniably better place.

Now is the time for “thinking outside the box” and all the other buzzwords you can think of. It’s how we deal with the challenges that mark us as men and women. It makes us who we are.

Entrepreneurs are the dreamers in our society. They have the vision and the strength to succeed through adversity.  They have the self reliance to know they’re going to get where they want to be.

And right now, today, more than ever, we need entrepreneurs to dream big and succeed.  Not just here in Australia, but globally.

And the bigger, better, and more competent you are, the better it is for the world. Because when your business or idea succeeds, it makes the world a better place for us all.

Shane Krider – Polaris Media Group

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