Start your own company! A week-long webinar with Penelope Trunk
This is a webinar on how to get an idea for a business and launch it. It includes four days of of video sessions and email-based course materials. You can purchase this workshop for anytime, on-demand access. The cost is $195.
I’m giving a webinar on how to get an idea for a business and launch it. And, you’ll be pleased to know that I have never had a lot of money when I launched my businesses, so I’ll teach you how to launch a business the same way: with very little money.
I give lots of big speeches about entrepreneurship, but they are always closed to the public, so blog readers rarely hear them. Also, I do a lot of coaching sessions for entrepreneurs, evaluating their ideas, getting them out of slumps, helping them raise money—all the stages of a business. And I keep thinking that so many of the calls are the same that I should do a webinar about the most frequent issues.
So the webinar will be one week long: October 15 – October 19. I’ll do a live video each day about how to launch your own business. At the end of each session I’ll take questions, and the last day will be all questions—you can ask me anything, live, and I’ll answer. If you miss any of the sessions, you can listen to the recording on your own schedule.
The cost of this webinar is $195. You can pay the fee via PayPal to penelope@penelopetrunk.com. I’ll send you a confirmation and an introduction to the webinar which will include some fun initial reading and instructions for accessing the videos.
Here are the topics we’ll cover:
How to Get an Idea
October 15 9pm est
Some people have tons of ideas. Some people have not even thought of their first idea. The key to generating ideas is setting parameters for ideas, because it’s much easier to think of something out of the blue when you have clear guidelines. I’ll explain my process for generating hundreds of ideas each year. And I might even give you an idea that you can run with.
How to Get Money
October 16 1pm est
The best tactic might be to get a business idea that does not require you to raise money. I’ll show you how to do that. But I’ll also show you a simple checklist for coming up with a business that will get funded. Nothing is certain in the world of entrepreneurship, but this checklist is a pretty safe bet: do everything on the checklist and you’ll get funding.
How to Get a Team
October 17 1pm est
You already know the research that says that most entrepreneurs fail. But do you know the research about what makes an entrepreneur succeed? Research from the Darden School of Business shows that success depends on surrounding yourself with the right people. This session will show you how to identify the right people for you to work with, and how to convince them to work with you.
How to Get Guts
Oct 18 9pm est
This session will show you how to make the final leap. But also, before that, I’ll help you decide if entrepreneurship is right for you. It’s a big trend right now, but to be honest, it’s not right for most people. It’s just that people who are accustomed to being successful at what they do assume that they should start a company. This session will show you how to figure out what’s right for you.
Ask Me Anything
October 19 1pm est
Ask me anything. This will be a fun free-for-all I’m sure. But I also think you’ll learn a lot from each others’ questions. Often it’s hard to think of the question you should be asking, but a lot of times someone else will ask it for you.
In addition to the live video sessions, I’ll send reading each day that you can do before the session. It won’t be long. More like the length of a blog post. I don’t publish a lot of how-to-do-a-company posts on my blog because only a small portion of my readers are interested. So during this webinar I’ll send you a bunch of blog posts I’ve always wanted to write. And each post will relate to the day’s topic.
Reminder: The cost of this webinar is $195. You can pay the fee via PayPal to penelope@penelopetrunk.com. I’ll send you a confirmation and an introduction to the webinar which will include some fun initial reading and instructions for accessing the videos.
I’m really looking forward to this!
can i pay you $30 and get just one section?
No, I’m sorry. That would be an administrative nightmare. But if you want to watch the videos on your own schedule, you can do that– they’ll be available to everyone who pays.
Penelope
Looking forward to it. Both for me and so I can help my son initiate some entrepreneurial “hook” ideas. Great idea!
What a great idea and the timing is right for me business-wise but not personally (moving). I’m starting a niche ag-related business and it is interesting that you abandoned your goat business. That’s a little scary, but I have suppliers, marketing partners and some customers already, so at age 63, I’m taking the leap. My only concern is that I may be thinking too small (supplemental income) instead of growing a business that could be sold.
I’m going to be away that week – if I sign up, can I watch the videos after the fact?
Sounds great! Will you provide videos and transcript in case one can’t make every session?
Yes! For sure.
Penelope
Any idea how long each session will be? Basically, could I squeeze this into a long lunch?
Oh. I should have said that. Thanks for asking. Each session will be one hour.
Penelope
Yes! Super, terrific, perfection. Now how stale is my paypal?
Can videos be watched offline as I’ll be traveling that week and connectivity will be limited
You can watch them later, when you come back. You don’t have to watch them live.
Penelope
I guess I was one of the first to register… and the Buy Now label was not up yet in your post but I went directly to PayPal. ( I was in such a rush to register!). Didn’t receive any confirmation from you but I guess it’s on it’s way? Thanks .
So excited for this! I’m in NZ , and sounds like from the comments you’ll share videos after the live sessions. I’m sure you have a lot on the go, and I’m not in rush to get the videos just curious when they might be made available as I’m really keen to hear from you!! Bugger the time zone but I love that you’re making options available.
Your site has been recommended to my wife by a friend.I She is seminar crazy, so expect to hear from her soon. legum.org
Hi — I love your blog!! Here is my question: I know you write primarily about Gen Y but what about a 43 year old woman who needs to embark on a new career? This is where I am but I have no idea where to start. I think I will take your webinar but what if I can’t start a business right now….. I need to earn a living first. Any blog posts on women like me?
Hi, motherofkandb,
I told myself last time I saw Penelope Trunk offer something like this, I would take part. So I have signed up. I will shortly be a grandmother and am about a decade older than you.
We both read this blog because we are already getting something from Penelope. Not to be speculating about what you are getting, but I find her writing to be authentic and direct, makes me think, makes me hope, makes me grab my journal and take notes about the thoughts and ideas I have. I plan to consolidate everything into a more solid game plan with this seminar. You?
I just finished reading your comments. I am in the same situation. I have recently resigned from my position. I have decided to start my own business. It is so hard to get the ball rolling! I have made phone calls to establish networking leads. Interested in how things are coming along for you?
Very glad you are doing this Penelope. I hope one aspect of this helps focus on partnering with great entrepreneurs. I think my personal niche might be taking the brilliant idea of an engineer and making their hard work into a success rather than generating the ideas and production of something on my own.
We will definitely be talking about how to get a partner. I think it’s actually one of my strengths — finding a great partner to help me launch the business. I’ll explain how I do it. But also, each person’s needs for a partner are different, and I’ll show you how to know what kind of partner you should find.
Penelope
Your course may indeed useful and helpful to those who have a dream of entrepreneurship. I know with all your past experience in that area you bring a lot to the table.
However, I also know that in many of your past posts, including the most recent one on careers, you state emphatically how hard entrepreneurship is; how it takes an inordinate amount of time and can ruin marriages. You advised your readers more than once to just get a job.
Now you teach the very thing you advised against. I know you have to make a living. But this discrepancy really stood out for me
There’s a big difference between starting a business and launching a startup. I will cover both in this seminar.
I have had three startups funded by investors. That’s a very, very hard life because the company has to move super fast. I will tell people how to get that life if they want it — it’s pretty exciting, even if it is hard.
I will also tell people how to have a business that suits their lifestyle, that moves at their preferred pace, and that they retain control over – without involving investors.
Both are great ways to run a career. They are just really different, and suited for different people. One of the most important things to think about when you start a business is which of these two options do you want. I’ll tell people how to answer that question for themselves.
Penelope
Hi Penelope,
Always enjoy your writing and have just now ordered your seminar. Couple of questions:
* I suppose you’ll be emailing some details about how to gain access, receive the readings, etc.?
* Will we be able to download the videos, so, for example, I can put them on my iPad for convenient viewing later? (I often travel internationally and would love to study them in transit).
Thanks!
Barry
Thanks for signing up, Barry! Yes you can watch the videos later – whenever is convenient for you. And when the start date gets closer I’ll send some introduction materials to get us all started on the same page.
Penelope
I am in the middle of starting a sideline company & have been enjoying your writing for the last year. Signed up & looking forward to it!
Will these seminars be released free at any point in the future?
No, they won’t ever be free. Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to charge for it!
Penelope
I’m thinking (at least some of) what is taught in this seminar could be used by an intrapreneur ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrapreneurship ). So the knowledge could be used in small businesses, start-ups, as well as the corporate world.
Hi Penelope,
I am really looking forward to the seminar; already signed up! I just wanted to let you know that reading your posts have been utterly eye-opening for a twentysomething like me.
Thank you for your hard work.
thank you thank you thank you for getting going. you do believe in working at the margin–a lesson in itself
Now that I’m a month late to this post and opportunity – two questions. 1. Can I sign up and still access videos and reading materials? 2. Are you Q&A sessions on video as well?
Thanks.
Hi,
I’m reading this about 4 months too late. Is there any way I can pay a discounted rate to access the videos of the seminar? Or will there be another soon?
Thanks!!
Carra
hi penelope are there any recordings of this seminar availlable
to download?
“Sounds” like a must have! :-)