Richard

Real estate prices have been soaring, making it challenging for many people to afford homes. However, the push for affordable housing has been gaining traction. More and more stakeholders believe that addressing the affordable housing crisis could not only meet urgent societal needs but also propel the growth of the real estate sector.

Affordable housing can attract a large pool of buyers, stimulate construction activities and create job opportunities — all of which contribute to the growth of the real estate market.

Additionally, more and more organizations and thought leaders affirm that housing is a basic human right, akin to clean water and food.

The demand for affordable housing drives not just social impact but also yields substantial investment opportunities. Experts believe with conviction that investing in affordable housing offers attractive financial returns, supported by stable cash flows, tax incentives and reduced vacancy rates.

Related: Property Tech Is Creating An Incredible Real Estate Opportunity for Entrepreneurs

PropTech — conduit for community and collaboration

Needs arise, and people increasingly require communities where they can collaborate seamlessly. This is where PropTech steps in. By integrating technology with real estate, PropTech companies enable easy access to community facilities, making neighborhood collaborations simpler and more inclusive.

Space for new entrepreneurs:

The field of PropTech is expansive and constantly evolving. While many businesses are already making significant headway in this space, there remains ample room for new entrepreneurs to bring unique value propositions.

PropTech is poised for a transformative evolution. Emerging trends like artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT) are continuing to shape this field. As these technologies mature, they will offer unprecedented opportunities for innovation within the real estate sector.

Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI can optimize property management and enhance customer experiences through predictive analytics and chatbots. Entrepreneurs can develop AI-driven platforms that help property managers anticipate maintenance needs, streamline tenant communications and even predict market trends.

Virtual Reality (VR): VR offers immersive property tours, which are crucial in today’s digital-first world. Entrepreneurs can leverage VR to provide potential buyers or renters with a virtual walkthrough of properties, making it easier to make informed decisions without visiting multiple locations physically.

Blockchain: Blockchain technology ensures transparency and security in real estate transactions. Entrepreneurs can capitalize on blockchain to develop smart contracts that simplify property sales and lease agreements as well as reduce fraud.

Internet of Things (IoT): IoT devices can enhance property management by automating lighting, heating and security systems. Entrepreneurs can create smart home solutions that offer residents convenience and security while providing property managers with valuable data to improve operational efficiency.

Related: How This New and Innovative Technology Is Disrupting the Real Estate Industry

Strategic entry points for entrepreneurs

Affordable housing solutions: With the call for affordable housing growing louder, entrepreneurs can focus on developing cost-effective construction technologies and materials. Solutions that reduce construction time and cost can make affordable housing projects more viable.

Sustainable living: The push for eco-friendly living solutions is stronger than ever. Entrepreneurs can invest in sustainable property technologies — solar power systems, rainwater harvesting solutions and green building materials — that not only reduce operational costs but also appeal to an environmentally conscious market.

Community-centric platforms: Platforms that facilitate community engagement and collaboration are increasingly in demand. Entrepreneurs can develop apps or platforms that allow residents to connect with local services, organize community events or even share resources.

Data analytics and marketplaces: Data is the new oil in real estate. Entrepreneurs can create data analytics platforms that offer insights into property values, market trends and investment opportunities. Similarly, online marketplaces that connect buyers, sellers and renters can streamline transactions and enhance market liquidity.

Capitalizing on PropTech — practical steps

1. Identify market gaps: Start by identifying unmet needs in the real estate market. Conduct thorough market research to understand existing solutions, and pinpoint gaps where your innovative idea could thrive.

2. Build a robust business model: Develop a business model that outlines your value proposition, revenue streams and growth strategy. Ensure that your model is scalable and adaptable to changing market dynamics.

3. Leverage technology: Embrace cutting-edge technologies to differentiate your solution. Collaborate with tech experts to ensure your platform or product is user-friendly, secure and efficient.

4. Engage with stakeholders: Build relationships with key stakeholders in the real estate industry, including property developers, investors and community leaders. Their insights and support can be invaluable in refining your product and scaling your business.

5. Secure funding: Funding is crucial for turning your PropTech idea into reality. Explore various funding options, including venture capital, angel investors and government grants. Present a compelling case for your business’s potential impact and profitability.

Related: Future of Proptech: The Next Billion-dollar Opportunities

The future of PropTech is bright, filled with opportunities for entrepreneurs to innovate and thrive. By focusing on affordability, sustainability, community engagement and leveraging advanced technologies, you can carve out a lucrative niche in this dynamic industry.

As the real estate market continues to evolve, those who are willing to embrace change and drive innovation will find themselves at the forefront of this profitable sector. Stay tuned as we further explore practical strategies and inspirational success stories within the PropTech arena.

Climate change is causing more frequent and intense extreme weather events, resulting in widespread adverse impacts and related losses and damages to nature, structures, people, and businesses alike. Risks of severe weather and the resulting economic impacts are making business leaders’ decisions about where they locate their business and its resources critical.

But what can entrepreneurs and other business leaders do? Thankfully, we have some answers. Join us for a free webinar, How Business Leaders Can Prepare for Climate Change Other Costly Risks, produced by Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Entrepreneur.

Moderator and Entrepreneur Expert-in-Residence Terry Rice will lead a lively discussion with Hilary Doe, the state of Michigan’s Chief Growth Officer. Doe will outline some of the biggest threats businesses face from climate change and other costly location-based risks, while offering tips, tools, strategies business leaders can take to help mitigate those risks.

Attendees of this webinar will:

• Understand how climate change affects business operations and the economic consequences it brings.
• Discover the key factors for assessing and managing risks at your business locations to minimize environmental and economic threats.
• Learn strategies to develop and implement plans that protect your business from climate-related disruptions.
• Explore how to collaborate with government and industry partners to access resources and funding that help reduce climate risks.
• Recognize the importance of purpose-driven work in attracting and retaining younger talent.

Join us for the How Business Leaders Can Prepare for Climate Change Other Costly Risks webinar, which will take place live on Wednesday, October 16 at 3:30 p.m. ET | 12:30 p.m. PT.

In this episode of Reclaim + Advance, we’ll hear from Jess Ekstrom. Jess is the founder of Headbands of Hope and Mic Drop Workshop. She also invests in women-owned businesses, is a two-time bestselling author, a top-rated speaker, and a new mom. Jess and her companies have been featured on Today, Good Morning America, 17 magazine, Vanity Fair, Forbes, People, and more importantly, they’ve helped millions of women and girls around the world.

For years Jess Ekstrom avoided speaking about a formative event in her family life — her family getting swindled out of money by her uncle, Bernie Madoff. But on the show, she explains what spurred her to start speaking about formative challenges, and how true optimism isn’t naive.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• How Jess turned a family scandal into fuel for her entrepreneurial journey.
• The shocking pay gap revelation that inspired Jess to champion women speakers.
• Why simplifying complex ideas is key to connecting with your audience.
• How embracing vulnerability can amplify your impact as a speaker and leader.

I’ll share a few of my favorite quotes from my conversation with Jess below:

On Authentic Expertise:

“A lot of [the] time, the thing that you teach to others is the thing that didn’t come naturally to you. It’s the thing that you had to will yourself to learn and to practice.”

The Power of Simplicity:

“I like to simplify the complex for people. We make things too complicated, whether that be entrepreneurship or speaking or writing. I like to make things feel attainable to someone.”

Embracing Struggle in Storytelling:

“No one wants to learn from someone who’s just naturally good at something. Sometimes the greatest lessons that you have to share with others come from your worst moments.”

Click here to listen on your platform of choice, or tune in below.

In August, Google entered a $2.7 billion agreement with AI chatbot startup Character.AI. The official reason? Getting a license to use Character’s technology.

The unofficial reason? According to a Wednesday Wall Street Journal report, the consensus within Google is that the tech giant primarily wanted to rehire a former employee who quit in 2021 after creating an AI chatbot that Google refused to take public.

The engineer, 48-year-old Noam Shazeer, was one of the first hundred employees at Google. He quickly established himself as an AI expert and wrote a paper in 2017 with seven other Google employees called “Attention is All You Need” which introduced a new deep learning architecture. That paper has been cited by other researchers more than 100,000 times and established him as one of the inventors of modern AI.

Related: Google Introduces Its New Project Astra AI Assistant at I/O Event — Here’s What Else You Missed

Shazeer claims credit for his contributions: His LinkedIn “About” section at the time of writing reads, “I have invented much of the current revolution in large language models.”

^{Noam Shazeer. Credit: Winni Wintermeyer for The Washington Post via Getty Images}

In 2021, before the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Shazeer was working on AI at Google. He and his colleagues created an AI chatbot that could interact with users conversationally, and they advocated for Google to demo it to the public. Google refused multiple times and Shazeer quit to start Character, building up the startup from 2021 to the present with over $150 million in funding at a valuation of $1 billion as of March.

Google’s August agreement with Character brought Shazeer back into the company as part of the DeepMind research team, which works on AI.

Shazeer made hundreds of millions of dollars as part of the deal, according to the WSJ.

Related: Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Is Back at the Company ‘Pretty Much Every Day.’ Here’s What He’s Working On.

Other big tech companies have made similar agreements recently. In late August, Amazon signed a deal to non-exclusively license AI models developed by AI robotics startup Covariant and bring over Covariant’s co-founders and some employees.

Local search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the most important aspects of SEO strategy. For many businesses, the local community makes up most or all of their customer base. But even for larger businesses with multiple locations, local SEO is a powerful tool to help your ideal audience find you faster and easier by bringing you to the top of their search results.

In fact, local SEO is one of the best places to get started if you’re new to SEO, because it’s often much easier to achieve high search results ranking for localized queries rather than general queries. Here are the basics you need to get started:

Related: 12 Local SEO Tips From SEO Agency Founders

Start with best practices to optimize your website

Local SEO begins with the same best practices that any type of SEO uses. Before you move on to more specific strategies, make sure you’re already doing the following well:

• Your website has been set up to follow technical SEO rules so it’s functioning well and doesn’t have any issues that would cause it to be penalized by Google’s algorithm.

• Your website is designed for both mobile and desktop users to engage with easily and loads quickly with alt text on all images and those images optimized for website performance.

• You publish valuable and interesting content and optimize it with keywords that you’ve researched, as well as title tags and meta descriptions.

• You’re effectively using internal links.

• You use analytics tools to track your website traffic and make adjustments based on that data.

Understand your market

If you’re a local business, understanding your market requires you to know your local community as well as your competitors. Research in this stage is particularly important for businesses that have multiple locations and may not have a strong understanding of how the market differs in each location.

Analyze your competitors in order to understand what they’re doing well and where you see room for improvements. Both of these serve as valuable information you can use to improve upon what they’re doing. Start by seeing where they pop up in local search queries and visiting their websites. Do they have particular pages that perform well in the search results? If so, can you create a page that’s even better than theirs?

Next, look them up on Google Maps and view their ratings and reviews — what do people say they love about the business, and what complaints do they have?

Whatever you discover, good or bad, look for ways you can improve upon it for your own website and your customer experience as a whole. While you’re bound to find ways you can improve your website, you may also find some tips about how to beat your competitors offline as well, which will ultimately come back around to benefit your website in the form of improved reviews, repeat customers, referrals and increased traffic.

Related: Struggling to Attract Local Customers to Your Business? Use These Digital Marketing Strategies to Increase Your Visibility.

Make sure you’re set up to be seen locally

Google Maps and other local directories are one of the primary ways customers find businesses in their area. It’s important to build a strong brand that addresses client-centered marketing strategies. While it may seem obvious that you want to be on Google Maps, you’d be surprised how many businesses haven’t set up their Google Business Profile properly. In some cases, someone else may even have set it up for them!

Here’s a quick guide:

• If you haven’t set up Google Maps for your business, someone else may already have done so. Don’t worry if they have — you’ll just need to claim your business.

• Once you have your Google My Business profile set up, fill it out in full. Include your website, phone number, business hours and photos of your business. The more complete it is, the better. Don’t forget to keep it up to date! This information directly interacts with Google’s algorithm and will boost your website.

• Ask customers to leave a positive review for you on Google Maps. And for any reviews you receive, be sure to respond. Thank people for positive reviews, and respond politely and respectfully to negative reviews with an offer to fix any problems. Do not argue with or insult negative reviewers, as it will reflect badly on you — prospective customers are more likely to identify with other customers and not with your business.

Once you’ve gotten set up on Google Maps, you’ll be able to make use of the Google My Business’s insights dashboard in order to analyze data about your leads. This can give you important information to help you focus your SEO efforts for better results, such as which search queries led to your pages and where website traffic came from.

Publish local content

One of the best ways to optimize your website for local SEO is simply to publish content that’s relevant to your community using localized keywords. The more often you publish content related to a specific location, the more Google’s algorithm will associate your business with that location. It’s also often easier to rank for location-specific topics than for topics that aren’t tied to any location.

One of my favorite ways to create local content is by engaging with my local community and posting about it. You can highlight businesses and events in your area, and if you attend any of those events, write or make a video about it! This strategy can go far in creating a strong reputation in your community.

Reach your community through offsite SEO

In addition to publishing content about local topics, there’s a significant amount you can do to boost your SEO by engaging with your community off of your website. This could include link-building with other businesses, publishing articles in a local publication and even getting offline and engaging with the community directly in order to build relationships and your reputation.

Related: 4 Strategies to Help You Attract More Local Customers to Your Small Business

Never stop learning more about SEO

Search engine optimization is a constantly changing practice, and even those of us who are experts need to continue learning to stay up to date on best practices. Luckily, there are many resources available to keep learning. Watch recently published YouTube instructional videos about SEO, and read recently published books about how to create effective SEO strategies written by SEO experts.

Ultimately, the best way to learn is to create your strategy, document the results and then simply learn through experience. The more you experiment, the more you’ll learn. Just keep trying — remember, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint.

Although 83% of U.S. adults said parents are the most responsible for teaching their children about money, 31% of American parents never speak to their kids about the topic, according to a survey from CNBC and Acorns.

Last week, the subject came up on Northwestern Mutual’s A Better Way to Money podcast, which featured social media star and owner of Stur Drinks Kat Stickler and Northwestern Mutual vice president and chief portfolio manager Matt Stucky.

“I love and respect my parents, but we didn’t really talk about money ever — I never saw them talk about money,” Stickler told Stucky during the conversation. “It was taboo. It wasn’t brought up once.”

Related: Members of Every Generation Have Side Hustles — But They Don’t Spend Their Earnings the Same Way. Here’s the Breakdown.

According to Stucky, parents can instill strong money management skills like any other good habit.

“It just takes a lot of repetition — things like saving, investing,” Stucky said. “I’m not going to teach my 4-year-old about investing, but just the idea of if I save a dollar, that means I can spend it down the road on something that I really want. That takes a while to sink in.”

Money might not have been a regular topic of discussion while Stickler was growing up, but the entrepreneur says her mother did show her the value of a dollar in other ways: repurposing old jeans into shorts or empty butter tubs into containers for school lunch.

In addition to talking to their kids about money, parents can lead by example when it comes to smart financial decisions.

“There are new risks that are now in the equation of being a parent,” Stucky said. “Things like, What if something happens to me; what if I can’t work anymore? How does that impact my child’s financial life?“

Navigating those uncertainties means planning for big-ticket items, according to Stucky. Stickler, who has a young daughter, said she’s already taken some key steps to secure her future: setting up a will complete with a month-by-month timeline and establishing funds for healthcare and school — and even one for clothes and toys.

Related: What Your Parents Never Taught You About Money

According to Stucky, parents should leverage today’s circumstances for tomorrow’s success.

Stucky recommends setting up a 529, to which you can contribute funds for education, and a Roth IRA for your child.

“[With a Roth IRA], you are able to contribute on their behalf up to the child’s earned income amount or the current contribution limits of $7,000, and the dollars come out tax-free after age 59 ½ or if they need to use it for a qualifying life event,” Stucky explains. “It’s a way to set up your children for their retirement, as well as support generational wealth.”

Parents might also consider a Uniform Transfer to Minors Account (UTMA), which has no limit on the amount that goes in and allows them to retain control until their kids reach 18-21, depending on where they live, Stucky says.

Related: Shark Tank’s ‘Mr. Wonderful’ on Teaching Kids About Money: ‘Put Their Noses In It, Like You’re Training a Puppy’

Finally, Stucky recommends the “often overlooked option” of permanent life insurance for your child.

“The policy will pay a death benefit someday so long as the required premiums are paid,” he explains. “In addition, policies accumulate cash value, which your child could access during their lifetime.”

As the 2024 election grows closer, many voters are wondering how different outcomes will affect them financially. A big question is how the outcome of the presidential election could affect interest rates.

In July, the Federal Reserve chose to keep the federal funds rate steady at 5.25% to 5.50% after increasing it 11 times between March 2022 and July 2023. When the federal funds rate is high, this increases the cost of borrowing for businesses and consumers.

The sitting president doesn’t have a direct impact on interest rates, but they can indirectly influence them with their actions and policies. Let’s look at how each candidate’s policies could affect the financial landscape going forward.

Related: How Billionaires, Millionaires and Market Analysts Are Reacting to the Trump-Harris Debate

How does the President impact interest rates?

The Federal Reserve aims to keep inflation at around 2%, and it does this by raising or lowering interest rates. When inflation falls too low, the Fed lowers interest rates to stimulate the economy.

Likewise, if inflation gets too high, the Fed raises interest rates to make it harder for banks to borrow money from each other. When interest rates are high, business and consumer spending tends to slow down, hopefully reducing inflation at the same time.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) sets the federal funds rate, which is the target interest rate range. However, there are several ways the President can influence interest rates:

• Removing the Fed chair: According to the Federal Reserve Act, the President can remove the Fed chair “for cause.” Some legal scholars have taken this to mean malfeasance, not policy differences, but the statute is ambiguous at best.

• Nominating members: The President can appoint the Federal Reserve Chair and nominate members of the Board of Governors. However, each term lasts 14 years, and the Senate has to confirm each appointment, so the President’s authority is still fairly limited.

• Voicing concerns: The President can disagree with the Federal Reserve’s decisions and express them publicly. However, they can’t prohibit the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates.

It’s also important to note that there are 12 Federal regional banks located across the country. The President has no say in who runs these banks.

Related: 10 Significant Ways Your Taxes Will Be Impacted By A Kamala Harris Administration

Election outcomes that could affect interest rates

The President’s policies and actions can indirectly affect the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise or lower rates. There are two major candidates in the upcoming 2024 election — let’s look at how a win on either side could affect interest rates.

Kamala Harris wins:

When President Biden was running for re-election, the general consensus was that a Biden victory would result in almost no change to interest rates. But in July, Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, and Kamala Harris is now the Democratic nominee for president.

It’s hard to predict how a Harris presidency would impact interest rates, especially since she hasn’t fully outlined her economic policies. Harris has urged lowering taxes on lower and middle-class families and has promised to repeal the Trump tax cuts if she wins the White House. And like Biden, Harris supports investing in green energy and infrastructure.

As a Senator, Harris voted against Jerome Powell’s confirmation as the Federal Reserve chair in 2018. Some have speculated that she’s unlikely to reappoint him when his term ends.

Former President Trump wins:

If Donald Trump is elected in November, he will likely extend tax cuts until at least 2027. His policies tend to favor tax cuts and deregulation, which benefits businesses and could increase the demand for business loans. However, there’s speculation that his plan to cut taxes could drive inflation higher, causing the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates to combat inflation.

During Trump’s term, there was significant tension between him and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Many people have wondered whether Trump will fire Chairman Powell if granted a second term. Chairman Powell’s term ends in 2026, and the former President has stated that while he’ll allow Powell to finish his term, he will not reappoint him.

The Federal Reserve has already indicated it might cut rates in September. However, if inflation becomes a concern or begins going up again, the Fed could maintain or even increase interest rates.

Related: This Election Season Full of Deepfakes, Doubts and Disinformation Should Motivate You to Do Your Own Research — Here’s How to Uncover the Truth

How to prepare for election season

Election seasons can be stressful as many people wonder how the outcome will affect the economy and their livelihood. Fortunately, data shows that the market tends to perform well during an election year.

Even if the election outcome creates some volatility, the impact will likely be short-lasting. Fundamental drivers of the economy, like inflation and Federal Reserve policies, will likely have a bigger impact on interest rates than the election itself.

For example, JP Morgan found that during the 2020 election, the ending of lockdowns impacted the market more than the views of either presidential candidate. Likewise, in 2008, the Financial Crisis was the primary driver of the economy, not the election.

Inflation is decreasing, and unemployment is at an all-time low, so it’s likely we’ll see a potential rate cut or two in 2024, regardless of who wins the presidency. But regardless of what happens, there’s never a perfect time to access capital. If you have an opportunity to grow your business, don’t let it pass you by due to election fears.

Look, chances are that if you’ve clicked on this article, then you’re at least interested in the possibility of becoming an entrepreneur. However, if you’re like most of us, then it’s also likely that just as quickly as dreams of entrepreneurship enter your mind, you’re also seeing warning signs, roadblocks, depressing statistics and maybe a horror story or two of that person you know who took a leap that didn’t pan out. You’re not alone. And yet … it’s a tempting thought.

As a former corporate employee of many years, I am all too familiar with the motivators behind becoming an entrepreneur:

• The autonomy to decide your own fate after years of bureaucratic red tape
• The flexibility of building your own schedule after a traditional 9 to 5
• The financial security of knowing your hard work directly impacts your bottom line rather than accepting a predetermined salary
• The sheer excitement of finding purpose in the day-to-day work

Trust me, I get it.

However, as we know, entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. So how do you decide whether to consider it for yourself, much less take the necessary leap? In my current role as a franchise consultant and small business owner, I work with people all of the time who are on the cusp of making this very decision. So before diving in, how can you prime yourself for entrepreneurship before jumping in with both feet?

Related: How to Know If You’re Ready to Leave Your 9-5 and Go All In on Your Side Hustle

1. Reflect and self-assess

As mentioned, not everyone can become an entrepreneur, so you have to honestly ask yourself: What am I good at? What do you like to do? Am I a creator/visionary or am I an operations/execution person?

Make a list (yes, actually put pen to paper or pull up a document) and take an inventory.

2. Start networking with business owners in your community

At the end of the day, being an entrepreneur requires a certain level of social ability. I’m not suggesting that you need to be the life of the party or the most extroverted person in the room — in fact, there are lots of successful entrepreneurs who are predominantly introverted. However, there is no faster way to become aware of the ups and downs of entrepreneurship than putting yourself in front of business owners.

Meet them through the chamber of commerce events, meetups, professional development service get-togethers, trade networking events and education groups. There are even executive transition groups specifically designed for making this jump.

Don’t limit yourself. Unless you are totally confident in the type of business you want to own, cast a wide net. Network with franchise owners, online startup business owners, etc. If you are making an effort to meet these people and make these connections, you will find them.

3. Educate yourself

Unless you are sitting on a large inheritance, there isn’t a golden ticket way to fast-track your success. It’s important that you take the time to educate yourself on various opportunities. Hit the books and read, read, read about business ownership, leadership and management skills. Perhaps consider getting something like Kindle Unlimited which allows you to peruse thousands of books and check out up to 20 at any given time for a monthly subscription.

I often like to say that as a business owner, you are the OEO (Only Executive Officer), so make sure you are also reading up on some of the less glamorous aspects like human resources, training and tech tools.

In addition to reading, watch YouTube videos, follow social media influencers, listen to podcasts — whatever it is that you think you may be lacking or whatever skill you need to hone before becoming a business owner, make a list and cultivate your knowledge in these areas.

Related: Most People Have No Business Starting a Business. Here’s What to Consider Before You Become an Entrepreneur

4. Start a small side hustle

Ultimately, if you’re going to start a business, you are going to have to juggle and sacrifice things. For example, there may be times when you can’t go on a vacation or take time off. You know the phrase: “The grind is real.”

As an entrepreneur, your work life and your personal life intertwine, especially at the beginning. A successful business gives you all four of those motivators I mentioned above (autonomy, flexibility, financial security and purpose), but not upfront — it takes time to get there.

If you, like many, are considering entrepreneurship but still have a day job, you need to ask yourself: Do I have the mental flexibility to compartmentalize and move back and forth between both?

Starting a small side hustle is a testing ground for you. Start with low stakes and a lower investment. This can help you prepare to become an entrepreneur.

5. Speak with the decision-makers in your life

Last, but certainly not least, it’s important to speak with the people in your life who may be impacted by your decision to become an entrepreneur, most likely a spouse.

Have a deep dive and a serious conversation that you schedule separately from just another evening conversation after a busy day. Have a planning discussion for the future. Create a future vision for what you want your life to look like over the next 5, 10 or 15 years. Will you stay in your corporate role? Do you have plans in place for retirement? What’s your risk tolerance? Rate it on a scale of 1-10. Now what is your spouse’s risk tolerance? Is there alignment?

I truly can’t overstress this: Creating that future plan/vision is key. After all, if you don’t have a target to aim at, you won’t hit it.

Ultimately, entrepreneurship can be a fantastic path leading toward a fulfilling and exciting life — it’s the best professional decision I ever made. That said, it’s vital that you take the time to understand yourself and the opportunities available. Consider taking these steps above to prime yourself for entrepreneurship so that when the time comes, you’ll be ready to take the leap.

Three Mile Island, the three-mile nuclear station near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, has been closed since 2019. Now the island is set to reopen by 2028 to power Microsoft’s data centers, which are foundational to the tech giant’s AI and cloud computing businesses.

Constellation Energy, the owner of the power unit, announced the 20-year deal on Friday, which involves Microsoft buying energy from the restored plant. Restarting the plant means a $1.6 billion investment to revive it, ensure everything is up to date, and obtain the necessary permits and licenses. The payoff is significant though — the plant could create 3,400 new jobs directly and indirectly, and add $16 billion to Pennsylvania’s GDP.

Microsoft’s decision to turn to nuclear power is a sign of the high amounts of power required for the AI boom. According to Bloomberg, AI has increased demand for carbon-free electricity — and Microsoft’s move to purchase nuclear energy for 20 years, the first agreement the tech giant has signed of its kind, is the latest move to meet that need.

^{Three Mile Island. Credit: Getty Images}

Since the agreement was announced, opinions have been mixed about how to proceed. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro supports the deal and wants it “fast-tracked.” Residents of Perry County, Pennsylvania, however, are writing letters to the newspaper noting that the problem of nuclear waste or by-products should be addressed before the plant opens.

Related: How Much Does It Cost to Develop and Train AI? Too Much.

Dr. Michael Goff, acting assistant secretary of the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, stated that the restart was “an important milestone.”

“Always-on, carbon-free nuclear energy plays an important role in the fight against climate change and meeting the country’s growing energy demands,” Goff said.

Three Mile Island was once known as the site of the most serious accident in U.S. commercial operating history. In March 1979, part of the power plant melted down and released small amounts of radioactivity. The incident inspired greater regulations and led to less public confidence in nuclear power in the following decades, though there were no injuries, deaths, or long-term health effects observed from the accident.

Did you hear about Google’s recent $1.67 billion settlement in a patent lawsuit? It really puts the spotlight on the high stakes of patent disputes. While this might be a minor setback for a giant like Google, it’s a loud wake-up call to every enterprise about the importance of effective management of patent programs.

As the saying goes, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” This maxim fits perfectly in the context of managing a patent program, where the focus isn’t just on creating defensive legal shields but also on strategically selecting which innovations to patent. Such decisions, closely aligned with business goals, are crucial for major players like Google to avoid litigation and are even more critical for startups. For startups, a strong patent portfolio can be the ticket to boosting their market value and attracting investors.

With this consideration in mind, let’s look at how even slight mismanagement of patent programs can lead to significant setbacks.

Related: Top 5 Intellectual-Property Challenges Businesses Face

Can failing to protect an innovation be life-threatening?

Imagine it’s the middle of the night. Someone with a known heart condition is sleeping, relying on their smartwatch to alert them to any dangerous irregularities in their heartbeat — a feature they trust like a lifeline. But without informing them, this very feature has been quietly disabled — caught in the crossfire of a corporate patent war. Suddenly, this isn’t just about a watch failing to tick or a screen freezing. It’s about a critical safety net being pulled away at the worst possible time. This isn’t just a technological glitch; it’s a grave misstep in corporate ethics. Decisions like these can shatter consumer trust and cast a long shadow over an enterprise’s commitment to protecting its customers when they need it most.

A case in point is the lawsuit by Masimo, a medical technology company, against Apple for using their patented blood oxygen monitoring feature in two new Apple watches. Initially, Apple was asked to recall the product from the market, but in response, they decided to disable the feature to continue sales. This decision, while seemingly strategic, could have serious implications. Could a consumer who bought the product for the health monitoring features that was injured or even killed because the feature was removed file suit?

In the unforgiving world of intellectual property, even industry titans can occasionally err in determining which inventions to secure with patents or licensing.

Consequences of mismanagement of a patent program

For larger enterprises, a mismanaged patent program could lead to significant financial losses, weakened market position and increased vulnerability to litigation. Meanwhile, for smaller enterprises, the stakes are even higher. They may not have the resources to rebound from similar missteps, which could lead to disastrous consequences, including potentially shutting down the business.

Let’s now take a closer look at these dire consequences of mismanaging a patent program and how they can be avoided:

Missed market opportunities

A common pitfall in patent program management is when your strategy fails to keep pace with your evolving business goals. As markets and technologies rapidly change, what’s critical for your business today might not hold the same importance tomorrow. This dynamic can lead you to accumulate patents that no longer support the direction in which your business is moving.

Such misalignment can lead to inefficiencies and, more critically, missed opportunities in the marketplace. What’s crucial here is to do the soul-searching regularly, reassessing and realigning your patent portfolio with your business goals. This means pruning where necessary and expanding where opportunities are seen, ensuring that your intellectual property supports your long-term business objectives.

Related: Unlocking the Market Potential of Your Patent Portfolio — A Guide for Entrepreneurs

Lost money on bad patents

Let’s face it: It’s challenging to predict which patents will add value to your business without understanding their market potential, which can be impossible at the time of invention. Many enterprises opt for a “shotgun approach,” filing a broad array of patents and hoping some will eventually pay off.

This strategy is risky — “bad patents” can consume significant resources in filing and maintenance fees without providing any return on investment, cluttering your portfolio with non-valuable IPs.

To circumvent such issues, my approach with clients involves focusing on innovations with high commercial potential or protecting the most important products of your enterprise. I identify this by analyzing competitors’ patent portfolios, identifying market gaps for competitive advantage and steering clear of saturated areas. Regular portfolio reviews and targeted pruning help remove underperforming patents, maintaining a lean and effective patent portfolio.

This strategy is crucial not only for established businesses but also for startups. Research indicates that startups with valuable patents are 10X more likely to secure funding, highlighting the significant advantages of strategic patent filings.

Compromised defensive value of patents

For many large enterprises, the purpose of amassing a robust patent portfolio is to use it defensively — to deter potential lawsuits from competitors. I have seen enterprises often believing, “If we’re sued, we can countersue with our patents.” And to do so, they build large patent portfolios by patenting anything and everything.

But what happens if your portfolio isn’t strong enough? A lack of a solid defensive shield can leave you vulnerable to aggressive legal challenges from strong competitors in the market, which can be both costly and disruptive to your business operations.

To mitigate this, the strategy must focus on quality over quantity. It’s not just about having many patents but ensuring that each patent is robust, enforceable and covers key technologies crucial to your products or the industry generally. This requires a strategic evaluation of both your own technological needs and your competitors’ patent landscapes. Regularly assessing the strength and scope of your patents helps to ensure that your portfolio can effectively serve its defensive purpose.

Furthermore, engaging in proactive IP audits and seeking opportunities to strengthen your portfolio through acquisitions or in-house innovation can further bolster your defensive strategy. These studies can identify patents no longer relevant in the industry to avoid paying for further maintenance fees.

Related: The Basics of Protecting Your Intellectual Property, Explained

Patents are more than legal safeguards; they anchor businesses and impact lives. The story of Massimo’s patent battle illustrates the stakes — safeguarding not just business futures but human well-being. It’s important to ensure your strategy is robust, blending business goals with meaningful innovation. The right approach isn’t just protective — it’s a competitive advantage rooted in responsibility. Transform your intellectual property into a cornerstone of success and impact.