Mind, Business, and Success

By Stantisha Kemp

There is a remedy to building success. A person has to be in the right state of mind and has to have a workable plan and several income generators. You are how you work.

Eight out of ten new businesses fail in the first five years. Nine out of ten people actually reach their goals. Still wondering why only 10 percent of the population is successful?

This book will break down three key behaviors of successful people:
What successful people do
How successful people build great businesses
What successful people include in their portfolio

Its time to put the thought into action. Take what you already know, elevate it, and bring it to life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Oct 25, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543457742

Stantisha Kemp

Stantisha Kemp is certainly the Entrepreneur’s CPA. Stantisha has a flair and excitement about her craft that bodes with her energetic spirit. Using her personal journey of trial to triumph and her learned behavior from millionaire executives, she has become a connecting force to individuals and businesses across the country on and off the ledger. Kemp reflects on those failures as pillars of innovation, education, and strategy that have contributed to her success today. Her love for God and family keeps her grounded as she continues to say each day, “It’s all good but I’m still growing.”

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Copyright © 2017 by Stantisha Kemp, CPA.

Kemp Accounting

280 Interstate North Circle SE, Suite 325

Atlanta, GA 30339

[phone]

www.stantishakemp.com

Library of Congress Control Number:           2017915705

ISBN:                  Hardcover                                  978-1-5434-5772-8

                           Softcover                                  978-1-5434-5773-5

                           eBook                                         978-1-5434-5774-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 10/25/2017

Xlibris

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CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

INTRODUCTION

PART I: MIND

IT STARTS HERE

KNOW YOUR WHY

CIRCLE 5

MEET PROCRASTINATION

MEET MOTIVATION

MEET FAILURE

MEET YOUR RESOURCES

MEET TIME MANAGEMENT

BE SMART

PART II: BUSINESS

THE BUSINESS IN YOU

FOLLOW THE LEADER

EMPLOYEE VS. EMPLOYER

CHOOSING YOUR BUSINESS

PERSONAL SWOT ANALYSIS

BUSINESS SWOT ANALYSIS

IF YOU DON’T KNOW IT, HIRE IT

STRUCTURING THE BUSINESS

SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP

PARTNERSHIPS

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (LLC)

CORPORATIONS—C-CORP

CORPORATIONS—S-CORP

PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL

CORPORATE TAXATION

GRAND OPENING

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

THE HOME STATE

DEVELOPING A PLAN

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

THE BUSINESS SECTION

THE MARKETING SECTION

THE FINANCIAL PLAN

BASIC INCOME STATEMENT

BALANCE SHEET

BASIC STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

BREAKEVEN ANALYSIS

NETWORK OR NOT WORK

WIN YOUR NETWORK

WHAT’S YOUR FICO SCORE?

DOWN IN THE WEEDS

THE BALANCE SHEET

THE INCOME STATEMENT

THE STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

PART III: SUCCESS

MANAGING YOUR WEALTH

MYTH: YOU DON’T HAVE THE MONEY TO INVEST

INVESTING BASICS

CASH EQUIVALENT INVESTMENTS

LENDING TYPE INVESTMENTS

OWNING TYPE INVESTMENTS

YOU WIN SOME, YOU LOSE SOME

THE FOREIGN EXCHANGE

WHAT EVERY RICH PERSON HAS

REACH ONE—TEACH ONE

MIND – BUSINESS – SUCCESS

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

F IRST AND FOREMOST, I’d like to thank my Lord and Savior for giving me the courage and will to want to put this book together. There was a time in my life when I wanted to just crawl under a rock, hoping circumstances would just disappear. Well, even if I found a rock big enough to crawl under, the reality was, my circumstance wouldn’t fit. So I had to learn to trust in him and believe that through prayer and work, he would lead me through the storm. As long as I was willing to put action into motion, he was willing to direct me. So here I am.

I’d like to give thanks to my husband, Steve, who showed me that marriage can be trusted and love is not overrated. There is a time for everything, including when to depart and when to engage with a person. Sometimes we don’t know the difference, but it’s these moments that teach us how to handle the new things we will embark on. My Steve has been my support system, my friend, my companion, and my reality. He’s not afraid to tell me the truth. What I love most is, he puts me and our family first. I count my blessings that God gave us each other. I love you, Steve Kemp.

I give thanks to our children: Stevie, Keonna, T’von, Dream, and Xara. They are my whys. Stevie and Keonna, I thank you two for embracing me with your open hearts.

T’von and Dream, you two keep me young and motivated. I’m so proud of the young man and lady you’ve become. As you soar through life, I will forever be your loudest cheerleader. You two will be great as long as you continue to believe you have to be.

Xara, I prayed for you. I prayed hard for you, and God answered. Everything about you gives me joy. You teach me how to be better even though you don’t know it yet. Everything I do today is for your tomorrow.

Of course I can’t leave out my mother and father. My mother taught me to be a strong woman that has to stand proud of who I am. I learned that the only way I could be happy was to love myself. I had to love myself enough to want more and strong enough to get it regardless of the naysayers. Her anthem was Back Stabbers, sung by the O’Jays. They smile in your face but all the time they want to take your place – the backstabbers. My father, in his Trinidadian voice, would say, Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do it. You can do anything in this world. I know it. I love you, Mom and Dad.

Finally, I send love to my circle of love who loves me when things are good and loves me harder when things are not.

A person’s life should have meaning. If my closest loved ones cannot look back and be proud to call me their wife, mother, daughter, sister, or friend, then I need to ask where I dropped the ball.

I’ve learned through life that your circle of trust is never gray. It is always either black or white.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

B ORN AND RAISED in Brooklyn, New York, I came from a family (oftentimes a single-parent home) that didn’t have much. Somehow, my mother managed to find a way to keep just enough money coming through the house that we didn’t feel as poor as we really were.

As a young girl, I learned the value of money quickly. I started my first job at thirteen years old, working as a waitress at a burger restaurant. I attended high school in New York City, and spent most of my time in Manhattan. If I wasn’t in school, I worked. I had my first corporate job at seventeen years old with Ogilvy & Mather as an accounting clerk. Once I graduated, they hired me as a full-time accounts payable supervisor. This became the start of a very fast-growing career in accounting. Ironically, I had no desire to be an accountant. I actually wanted to pursue law but couldn’t walk away from the good money I was making in accounting. Ha! Tell God your plan so he can get a good laugh.

Because my corporate career started so early, I decided to attend college locally. After my first year, I had my son and was forced to take some time off from school. Three years later, I relocated to Waterbury, CT, transferred schools, and eventually received my bachelor’s degree in accounting from Post University.

I met my husband, Steve, on New Year’s Eve outside a nightclub in Brooklyn, New York. We were both one-year separated from a previous marriage. We fell in love, blended our family, added to our family, and now almost twenty years later, we still love every bit of each other.

The joy of my life is living.

INTRODUCTION

T HIS BOOK WAS written to share information, empowerment, and innovation personally and professionally. I’m sure you’ve heard some of the information in this book before, but the art of mastery is repetition. As you read through this book, ask yourself, does this apply to me? And better yet, am I applying this? Be honest with yourself. There are thousands of books, seminars, and online tutorials readily available to teach you how to spend less, save more, take action, set goals, make a plan, get out of debt, become healthier, invest wisely, and solve just about every other personal and financial conundrum. The irony of it is, you’ve read it or heard it all before, and yet you still feel it’s worth your time to read and hear more.

Evidently, it takes a little more than reading a bunch of books, attending a few events, or listening to a series of audiobooks. You do this for the aspirations of growing. This is the goal—to continue your growth. We are creatures of habit, and in order to change our behaviors, we have to change our habits.

You already know that a goal without a plan is just a wish. A wish is synonymous to an aspiration. So in other words, a goal without a plan is a mere aspiration. To aspire to become something, you dream or wish for it. That’s what many books and seminars accomplish. They give you aspirations and hope. They tell you, you can do it. Get out and leap. Make it happen. Don’t think small. Yes, this is all very true. Is it enough?

You’re probably wondering why I decided to be another professional with a little success, writing another how to increase your wealth book. I wanted to use this book as a tool to share my story and knowledge. Sometimes we respond like children. Some people tell you things and you hear it but don’t feel it. Then one day, someone says the same thing, and all of a sudden, you hear and feel it.

You have to be disciplined to gain success. You have to have control of your behavior. Only you can allow yourself to win so that you can be a blessing to someone else. To grow, you must be able to identify your purpose and then be on purpose. Success does not occur by accident.

Don’t lose hope, give up, or cut it short. Good bad or indifferent, you have to believe that you are creating your story.

From my perception and transparency, I only hope you will be able to relay and take away something that can help you in your growth. My approach may be somewhat different from others; however, the goal is the same—to share information for the benefit of your personal and professional wellness.

The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit.

—Proverbs 14:8

PART I

sec1.jpg

IT STARTS HERE

Where there is no vision, the people perish.

—Proverbs 29:19

L IFE IS MADE up of stages. During your lifetime, you will experience many stages but two in particular will be a point in your life when:

1. You are depending on others and a point in time when

2. Others are depending on you.

These two stages are a part of the cycle to success. While you are climbing the ladder and building your brand, you will need to depend on others. Don’t think you will get from zero to one hundred all on your own. As your experiences age, the stage will begin to transition to others now depending on you. This is one way to know you’ve grown.

Success will mean different things for different people. Why you want success will vary and how you get there will also vary. What is consistent amongst successful people is knowing why you are doing what you do. We find people whose path we admire and respect and try to mimic it. You can’t because that’s their story. Their blueprint is just for them as is their fingerprint. Use their story as a directional tool but understand that their story and their result is not going to be yours.

How you think will determine how you work and how you work will reflect your level of success. Mind, business, and success.

The direction of any business is based on its leadership. Dysfunctional leadership will trickle down to a dysfunctional business. Before starting any business, it’s a great idea to not only actively prepare yourself but to also mentally prepare yourself.

There are several steps necessary to start a business. Determining a business name, a concept, or a team are just a few components necessary in developing a new business. There is, however, an even greater need when starting a new venture. And that is to prepare your mind-set.

Mind over matter is an honest phrase. Suppose you’ve decided to run a marathon, which is a little over twenty-six miles. The goal isn’t so much to be the first to complete the race, but the real goal is to complete the race. You have already run twenty miles with six more to go. You are tired, and your legs feel lame. You keep thinking that no matter what, you are going to complete this race. You begin to imagine yourself already reaching the finish line (after all, you’ve trained for this marathon for months). You hear cheers from the crowd and can smell victory. Six miles later, you finally approach the finish line, barely able to stand on your two feet. Just one more step and you tiresomely cross over and complete the marathon. You realize your body finished the race miles ago, but your mind remained focused on the goal.

Business is very much the same. Like that marathon, the only way to complete a challenge is to set your mind to expect the hardships you are likely to endure and remain focused on the end goal. I get it’s easier said than done, but the truth of the matter is, most of us will quit after sticking our toe in the water.

My mother used to say, Everything starts from home. Home is where the heart is.

Your home should be your safe haven. It’s the place you should be able to lay your head down, kick your feet up, and unwind. It’s the place that should allow you to reset. I emphasize should because this common necessity oftentimes does not exist for some people. They end their day dreading to go to an unstable and uncomfortable place they call home. After a hard day of work, the greatest closure is peace of mind.

Family is everything. It gives you purpose. It validates your whys and your actions. Family encourages your growth or failures. When your family is broken, it affects you. Good or bad—it affects you.

A peace of mind starts here. It does start from home, and it starts with family. In order to be focused, your engagement with family must be in order. It’s your job to find a way to make that happen so that you can move forward prosperously. Only you can truly control your surroundings. It may mean making some tough decisions, but at the end of the day, your growth will remain still until you find order in your intimate space.

How do you mentally prepare for business?

1. You prepare for the challenges you are bound to face through acknowledgment. Don’t ever be surprised about what you already know. It’s already known that over 80% of start-ups will fail within the first five years. Those failures are frequently a result of undercapitalization (not enough money going out) or insufficient customer acquisition (not enough money coming in). Beat the odds. Forecasting the hardships your business could potentially face will allow you to consider how you will respond to them, thus reduce the stress of the unknown.

2. Don’t take it personal. It will take many creative attempts demonstrating the value of your business. Keep in mind, what may seem valuable to you may not be valuable to many. Trial your product, and be ready for feedback. In the early stages of a new business, there is always room for improvement. Wear a thick skin for the honest reviews. It’s a tough crowd out there, and the crowd gets tougher each day we evolve as a society.

3. Learn to control your emotions. As the CEO of your business, you will have to make many tough decisions. Some decisions may not be favorable to others but better for business, and some may be great for others and still not good for business. Avoid making decisions in the midst of an emotional high. Put the moment on pause, and come back to it later. That emotional decision can be the bane of your business growth.

4. Be your biggest critique, and don’t settle. Professionalism has a look and standard. You cannot start a new business thinking you get a pass for less than simply because you are new. If you are not 110% excited and impressed, what makes you think anyone else will be?

5. Incorporate time to think. You cannot be so busy engaging in the development of a new business that you do not take time to think about the development of your new business. Quiet time is not only essential for the progress of your business, but it will also help you channel the emotions that arise from the various impediments.

6. Your business will require a certain amount of time. Determining the amount of time will be required to build your business, particularly if you have multiple businesses or are working a full-time job. Insufficient time allocation can result to a stressful business owner.

7. Build your support system. Remember, you will not build a successful business alone. Having supportive people around you gives good energy. Good energy exudes positivity. Your support system can come from any combination of friends, family, mentors, or even other experienced professionals.

8. Stay humble. It’s exciting to start a new business (even if you are a seasoned entrepreneur); however, every business should be unique from another. There is no guarantee that a business will be successful because a previous business was. Great businesses come from humble beginnings.

9. Know