The day we lose our passion for our idea or business is the day we should stop being an entrepreneur. But that does not mean that our passion can make us blind. When we are under the influence of our passion, we often don't see what is going on around us and reduce our chances of success. The key is to realize that this can happen, and create tools and process to bring more objective points of view to the table.

If we walked into a Board room at Apple and said, "we are going to pursue every market with every product", everyone in the room would laugh and security would escort you out the door. 

There are many startup coaches out there that believe that in today's fast paced world, creating a business plan adds no value. After all, chances are that the day you finish it, it will be irrelevant. The market will have moved. Your competitors will have changed. And your basic assumptions will be out the window.

Do we focus on creating a superior product or on superior positioning? While we can never have the product or service we are delivering be deficient, more often than not it is positioning that wins out over the nature of the product.  In our cluttered day, it is often hard for a purchasers to have the time to see all the features and functionalities of a product.

We have all had friends and family say to us, "you need to get some sleep." Our immediate reaction is "who has time to sleep - we are trying to create a business here and we have a million things to do." As entrepreneurs, it seems like foregoing sleep is not only a necessity but a badge of honor that comes with the title "entrepreneur." Nothing could be further from the truth.

We all have friends and family who offer to help us in our businesses. Unfortunately, we don't take advantage of these valuable offers in a way that really helps our business. To do it right, think about a specific need you have that is small and focused but that can help you.

Raising money can be a full-time job and takes years of experience to understand how it works. There are many individuals sometimes called brokers, that spend their lives helping companies raise the capital they need. Generally these third parties earn their keep by receiving a percentage of the amount that they raise - usually 5 to 10%. So when does it make sense to use a third party like a broker raise money?

Companies use the word "accountability" but it is hard to know how to put that in place in the fast moving environment of an entrepreneurial venture. In many cases, the leader or founder of the company tries to drive accountability by talking directly to someone about a goal, activity or deliverable. And while that should work in many cases, often times in a one on one an individual may not respond. So what can you do?

When we are talking to investors, we are passionate about our product or service. While this is a good thing, it causes us to use language that can be a turnoff to investors. If you are describing how your customers view your product or service, and you respond, "our customer LOVES our tracking software", it strains your credibility.

What sets one sales effort apart from another? If we all have competition, how do we earn the right to advance in the sales process. Every good sales professional will respond to customer requests for more information about your product or service quickly and thoroughly. But there are very few salespeople that will provide customer proactively provide customers with valuable information. In other words, provide "more than they ask, before they ask."

Raising money can be a full-time job and takes years of experience to understand how it works. There are many individuals sometimes called brokers, that spend their lives helping companies raise the capital they need. Generally these third parties earn their keep by receiving a percentage of the amount that they raise - usually 5 to 10%. So when does it make sense to use a third party like a broker raise money?

This is a tough one. People that know you and believe in you are often very willing to give you money to pursue your business. They often don't put you through the rigors of due diligence the way an independent third party does. So in this sense they are a common source of capital for early-stage companies. But there is a catch. Because you have a personal relationship with these individuals, the nature of your relationship is not simply as an investor. Often times they will have higher expectations of you and you may have higher expectations of yourself because of that personal relationship.

One of an entrepreneur's most challenging dilemmas is how much money to raise. It has far-reaching implications, not the least of which is how much ownership in your company you're going to give away. While there is no magic answer to this question, here is a simple guideline that might help you in your fundraising efforts.

They say nothing in life is free - except for the entrepreneur who is willing to think outside the box. In this day and age, there are many money saving alternatives to traditional ways of doing the things we need to do to run your business. One of the ways we can use that skill we all have - to think of things from a different perspective - is to take advantage of free opportunities.