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Education

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With Natasa Cvijanovic
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The gift of giving back – Part 1

By Natasa Cvijanovic were needing to attract investors (regardless of whether
Tesla Payments you need investors). Vet it with folks you trust and solicit
challenges to your assumptions. This will help you hone
The most wonderful time of year is here, bringing joy, your actions and better focus. In each of the instances
love, good times and a lot of work. If past holiday seasons where I built a business, I always started from a plan, and
are any indication, most people will not be ready until the even though in each instance, there was a need to deviate
very last minute. But fear not: your gift is prepared well from the plan, having the plan was critical to understand
in advance. the implications for when I did deviate.

Everyone has heard that it is better to give than to receive. "The plan should be improved through the various revi-
It is much more rewarding to do something good for oth- sions as well as through the feedback received from trust-
ers without expecting anything in return other than the ed sources. Whether you are starting a business or work-
satisfaction of knowing you tried to make a difference in ing through a transition, having a fully thought through
their life. However, in the thick of holiday season prepara- business plan will aid in your success and assist you in
tions, many people lose sight of this, but not here. using your time efficiently. Entrepreneurs have an infi-
nite number of tasks. A business plan will assist in priori-
I reached out to CEOs and business owners in a variety tizing your actions.
of merchant services-related fields and asked what advice
they would give to those considering or currently pursu- "Second, stay married. Life is easier and your business
ing a career in merchant services. They enthusiastically will be more successful if you stay married."
took time away from their businesses to offer you their
best advice. A founder of Humboldt Merchant Services, co-founder of
Eureka Payments, former executive for such payments in-
Instead of the traditional gifts for the 12 days of Christ- novators as WePay, and founder of Napa Payments and
mas, I offer you 12 (and more) pearls of wisdom from Consulting, Ken Musante has experience in all aspects of
powerhouse entrepreneurs who have walked in your successful ISO building. Contact him at kenm@napapay-
shoes. Because they provided so much valuable advice, I mentsandconsulting.com)
will be sharing their words of wisdom with you through-
out December's issues. Following, in no particular order, From Michael Baron
are their comments. The second piece of advice comes from powerhouse entre-
From Ken Musante preneur Michael Baron. Michael has been in the industry
for 30+ years and represents several ISO organizations. He
"There are many obvious suggestions regarding persever- can be reached via email at mbaron954@gmail.com. Here is
ance and overcoming self-doubt. Entrepreneurs will in- what he had to say:
evitably need to keep at it regardless of the circumstances.
I'll try to share a couple that may not be as often repeated. "Natasa asked me to provide some advice to fellow sales-
"First, make a business plan. A full business plan as if you people based on my experience over the past 30 years.

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