“Money is a terrible master but an excellent servant.” –
P.T. Barnum
John Ray, the famous 17th century author, was known to have
written the aphorism, “Money begets money.” In the
business world, I’m sure you’ve also heard the saying,
“You’ve got to have money to make money.”
There are countless sources of cash, but by far, the best
one to utilize for your business is … other people’s
money.
Perhaps one of the greatest “secrets” of the richest people
in the world is summed up in those 3 words: Other People’s
Money – OPM for short. If you took a cross-section of
the most affluent business people, you’ll find that the
majority of them launched their fortunes using OPM. In the
next few minutes, I will show you how you can obtain other
people’s money for your business. What you do with the
money, however, is up to you – but if I were you, I’d take
P.T. Barnum’s advice, and make money your servant so that
you, too, you can make your own fortune.
The use of other people’s money has become such an ethical
and acceptable mainstay in business because one can
leverage other people’s money to your benefit.
For example, you can leverage borrowed money into
high-yield investment programs that could generate a return
that would then pay back your lender and line your pockets
as well. Or you can leverage borrowed money into
asset-producing or income-generating real property. Or you
can simply borrow money to start or grow your business.
The benefits to using OPM are obvious: 1) When you use
other people’s money, especially within the parameters of a
corporation, your debt is assigned to your business, and
your debtors can make no claims against your personal
finances; and 2) the infusion of cash allows you to have
money to make money for your business.
Of course, even with the proliferation of lending
institutions and venture capitalists, it is often difficult
to obtain other people’s money.
Well, since Wall Street Journal has kindly called me a man
who “finds answers in unlikely places,” I’m going to reveal
an unlikely place where you can obtain other people’s
money. This one is available to all, and yet very few ever
take advantage of it. It’s the federal government.
I’ve coined a phrase for this source of money: I call it
“other taxpayers’ money” – OTM for short. The federal
government has millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money
allocated to funding businesses like yours.
Here are a few great sources of OTM:
1) If you want to get training and/or money to start your
own business, millions of dollars are available at
www.sba.com. They’ll also show you how to find alternative
sources of financing, how to protect your invention, how to
sell your idea, how to license your product, how to write
legal contracts, how to sell overseas, and how to buy
business equipment.
2) If you want money to export and sell products to
foreign countries, you can obtain it from the Export-Import
Bank of the United States at www.exim.gov. Or you can go
to The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) at
www.opic.gov.
3) If you want to obtain government contracts, then access
the Procurement Assistance Offices online. Here, you’ll
learn how to draw up a business plan that’ll get your
business noticed. They can match the product or service
you’re selling with the appropriate agency, and then help
you market to them more effectively. You can find these
programs at www.dla.mil.
4) If you need venture capital for a new or existing
business, then you need to go online and access the Small
Business Investment Company (SBIC). These are
privately-organized and privately-managed investment firms
that are licensed by the Small Business Administration
(SBA). With their own capital and with funds borrowed at
favorable rates through the federal government, SBICs
provide venture capital to small independent businesses,
both new and established. You can access them at
www.sba.gov/INV.
5) If you need free help or want to learn how to do your
own personal or business taxes? All you have to do is
access www.irs.ustreas.gov/prod/bus_info-bus_help.html.
You can also obtain a free 26-page book on the Internet
called The Credit Process: A Guide for Small Business
Owners. It’s written for small business owners seeking
financing for the first time. It covers sources and types
of financing; funding resources; preparation of a business
plan; preparation of loan applications; and action to take
if a loan is denied. It also contains an especially useful
and comprehensive glossary of finance terms, agencies
, and
fair lending regulations.
