Fans of free enterprise are usually unwelcoming of news of new government mandates, but recent proposals put forth by President Obama that can help recently graduated entrepreneurs are not meant to infringe upon the free market. Instead, they’re geared toward helping graduates lead more fulfilling lives by reducing the maximum repayment cap on income-based federal student loans to 10% of discretionary income. Discretionary income is the sum total after things such as rent and utilities are removed from the equation. Obama wants this to take effect starting next year, an edit to the original provision passed by Congress that lowered the repayment cap to 15%, which was written to effect in 2014, not 2012.

“Pay-as-you-earn” is not a new concept in the world of student loans. In fact it’s been a standard practice in nations such as the United Kingdom for years. While allowing the government to essentially cover the leftover bill once 20 years of faithful lowered payments sounds particular unAmerican to ears used to hearing the sweet sounds of independently-won success, such sorts of success are becoming less and less of a likely possibility for recent graduates suffering under massive student loan debt. The average debt accrued from a four-year education is in the $25,000 range. But some people could be having to pay back as much as $60,000 or $75,000 just for a four-year degree. Who, with the exception of the most fortunate and ultra-brilliant among us, can afford to start a business right out of college, or take out a business loan, when we already owe this amount of money?

You might not be a fan of this President, or the idea that the government should step in and help those who borrowed more than they can pay back. But you certainly can’t argue with the idea that those who attended college right before, during, or immediately after the global economic meltdown were given a bad break. If you disagree, stop and really let that next student loan statement figure sink in. Think about how much you could do with even just an extra $100 at the end of every month. You could star a business with that kind of scratch.

Disclosure: This was a paid post submitted to Dorm Room Biz for posting and it’s content are the opinions and thoughts of it’s author and not necessarily Dorm Room Biz.

It’s not hard to see why, because it’s cheap and convenient, although there are downsides to the idea too. For example, it can be a very solitary existence working out of a bedroom, study or even the garage. What’s more, there can often be frequent intrusions and interruptions from well meaning family members and friends. So, while it might be good enough, it’s far from ideal.

A new way forward

Little wonder then that the reasonably recent phenomenon of renting desk space and hot desking has really been taking off, thanks to an endless array of options all of which can be found by using the free and easy services of a comparison website online. What’s more, renting desk space or hot desking can be a really cheap way of getting you set-up in business at a prime location.

You’ll generally find that desk rentals can be had on a short-term rolling basis when it comes to contractual obligations, and due to the fact that landlords out there are desperate to make the most of their vacant office areas, you’ll probably find that prices are surprisingly competitive too.

Flexible and convenient

When you’re in the early stages of running a business then keeping overheads to an absolute minimum is a must, and the desk space rental scenario does just that. Adding to the appeal is that it’s very flexible, so if you start to outgrow your desk then simply ask the landlord to add on some more space. Further down the line you could always look at serviced office scenario, which is a rather grander setup complete with receptionists, IT support and post. However, in the short term, the concept of desk space rental or hot desking is very likely to help you drum up more business. For a start, there is a much greater chance of being able to network when you’re in an office with other like-minded people. It’ll also make a great location for meeting clients and prospective new customers too.

And, if you’ve got a business that needs to look it’s best, especially if you deal with the public on a regular basis, then having a desk space rental option in an upmarket business park or an inner city location will make a lot of difference when it comes to gaining credibility. Adding to that is the fact that you’ll also gain yourself a decent postcode too, which really could prove to be the icing on the cake of a new website or on your freshly printed office stationary.

In short then, if you’re prepared to spend a little time comparing the options that can be found online in mere minutes, then the desk space rental route is a great one to take. It could well be the best business decision you’ll ever make.

About the author: Rob Clymo writes on behalf of www.officegenie.co.uk, the UK’s online marketplace for finding office space in London and across the UK!.

Image from Roy Shaff's blog

During tough financial times, it’s not enough to have a solid, well-paying job that you can at least tolerate, if not enjoy. More and more people are turning to the Internet for low-cost start-up business

ideas that will help them augment their family’s finances and earn their way to financial independence.

The online marketplace has indeed paved the way for all sorts of small enterprises to be put up and operated by just about anyone with common sense and good business skills. Now more than ever, it’s important to choose just what kind of business you should get into because you don’t want to waste what little start-up cash you’ve scraped together.

The 2008 recession is still profoundly felt in many parts of the world, and as an entrepreneur-to-be, it’s your job to ensure that your money is invested into the right money-making machinery that will provide you with good profits in the shortest time possible. Here are five of the most in-demand and most convenient ways for you to earn more in this time of great financial setbacks:

1. eBay trading assistant

eBay, one of the world’s first online marketplaces, has grown to become not just a source of great bargain buys but also as a good source of extra income. Some individuals resort to auctioning off unused or unwanted items on eBay just to make ends meet.

If you’ve ever tried selling something on eBay, you know how hard it is to capture the attention and imagination of your target market and convince them to purchase the item you’re auctioning. You can capitalize on your photography and copywriting skills and turn yourself into a professional trading assistant to help other people sell their items on eBay.

2. Freelance jobs

From software development to article writing to graphic design to website development, freelancing has become one of the most in-demand online jobs today. Put your creativity and technical proficiency to good use and sign up with any of the online freelance marketplaces today like elance.com, odesk.com or guru.com.

If you feel that you can pull off the job on your own without having to go through a middleman, you can also set up your own online agency and offer your services straight to potential customers. There are a lot of webmasters who own more than two websites, so they need other people to take care of the day-to-day content management and upkeep of their websites. As a freelancer, you get flexible work hours and pay terms and can even choose the things you want to work on.

3. Virtual assistant

A virtual assistant or VA is similar to that of a freelancer, but your creativity is not the number one thing that employers will look for. To streamline operations and cut down on labor costs, some companies simply outsource administrative tasks to VAs that they can hire online. This way, they can focus on their core business activities and still be assured that miscellaneous tasks like collating mailing lists or telemarketing are being done properly.

A VA needs good grounding in simple office tasks because you are an all-around assistant for whatever business needs your client may have. It may not be a very glamorous job but you are being trained in several different fields like accountancy, web marketing and advertising at the same time.

4. Internet marketing services

As a tech-savvy Internet marketer, it is your job to help other webmasters and bloggers to build site traffic and drive online sales despite the bad economy. This is akin to working as a business consultant, only now you are focused exclusively on Internet-based businesses that are in need of a serious boost in readership and sales.

Your first priority is to teach fellow online entrepreneurs how to make their content relevant, fresh and exciting so that site visitors will flock by the thousands and eventually end up purchasing their products or services. Not all online businessmen know the ins and outs of Internet technology, so you have to take them through the basics and teach them the tools of the trade in order to increase their profits.

5. Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is yet another popular money-making enterprise that a lot of people are going into. If you run a few websites with high and consistent readership, you may want to consider signing up for an affiliate program so you can earn money from advertisements placed strategically on your web pages.

As an affiliate marketer, you don’t have to do much beyond choosing the products or services you want to advertise and putting the links on your website so that people can see them. With every click that goes from your website to the affiliate company’s website, you earn a handsome commission that can tide you over the hard times.

This is a guest post from Ally Tobias. Ally is part of the team that manages Australian Credit Cards, a personal finance blog that covers business credit card tips. You can follow ACC on Twitter if you like to stay updated on their latest contents. Before joining ACC, Ally was a Media Planner with McCann Worldgroup Philippines, Inc., with award-winning executions, including the Levi’s 501 “Live Unbuttoned” global campaign.

I think it’s pretty obvious that we all hope to become an absentee owner where we can just let out business run and not have to worry about whats going on all the time. With techniques such as outsourcing, automation, and utilizing technology, this is more achievable now then ever before. Guys like Tim Ferriss talk about it their books all the time. However, as a young entrepreneur, sometimes it’s hard to set up your business that way from the start and you have to start out being an owner operator and living in your business day to day. Plus, your business is your baby, and at such an infant stage, you don’t want to just abandon it, now do you?

As you grow your business, streamline your activities, and determine what actions make you the best return for your time, you can start to slip into the ‘absentee owner’ mode and start to let your business just run by itself. Think you can handle that? One of the great things about the interenet is that it allows you the chance to make it happen much more quickly then when everything was “brick and mortar” based.

If you want to check out 63 other ways that absentee owners think and act differently than an owner operator, check out the website of Hands On Solutions, a Seatle based consulting services business. They’ve got a great archive of resources and articles on the topic!

Starting your own business is tough, especially in the current economy.  I’ve recently started up a business called Real College Student LLC. Only a couple months ago, I launched my website www.RealCollegeStudent.com into the business world.  I’ve created these helpful building blocks throughout my venture to guide other young entrepreneurs how to complete your goal of starting your own business.

1. Just Do It!
   The number one difference between an average person and an entrepreneur is whether or not you act on your ideas.  Being creative is a huge characteristic of being an entrepreneur! Having amazing ideas is just as important.  However, unless you act on your ideas…they only stay ideas.  Entrepreneurs take ideas and make them into reality through hard work and the acceptance of risks.  For example, if you have an idea for a website, and you have a general business plan for your website made up, what’s stopping you from making it reality? Money? Maybe a few unanswered questions? Instead of waiting around and letting your idea dissolve, go out and buy the domain name for your idea for only $10.00!  That’s an extremely small investment, but it will get your mind motivated and in gear to obtain the goal of creating your website.
2. Create Goals
   In order to achieve in any aspect of life, you need to set goals.  Goals are what drive people to obtain higher levels of achievement.  In business, goals give you forward direction.  Make daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals.  Literally, make goal lists.  Crossing off goals that you or your business achieved is a great confidence booster, and will push you to obtain more distant targets.  Create small celebrations for when you achieve a goal.  For example, the owner of Amazon.com used to ring a small bell every time they received an order as they were starting up—for numerous reasons they don’t ring the bell anymore.
3. Pinching Pennies
   There are millions of tiny ways to save money when starting up your business.  They may seem small at first, but they add up quick.  For instance, let’s say you begin selling products through a website you create—you’ll need to find a shipping carrier.  Depending on your product, US Postal Service “Flat Rate” boxes are the way to go!  UPS charges for pick up and by the weight of your box.  You’ll save at least a dollar on every package–but like I said it depends on the product.  Another way to save money is your telephone bill.  You need a business line for your company.  There is no reason to pay $60.00 a month for a business line from big name brand companies.  You can use call forwarding companies such as Grasshopper.com which give you a toll free line, 100 minutes a month, no contracts, and calls sent to your cell phone for only $9.95 a month.  Little savings such as those two aspects of startup monthly costs will help you become profitable.
4. Count On Yourself
   If you want things done in your company, be prepared to do it yourself!  Friends and family will help out, but you have to understand…It’s your company.  People tend to only perform tasks for other people for incentives.  If you are a sole proprietor, find ways to give people incentives to help you with small tasks to improve your company.  Free t-shirts, memorabilia, discounts, shout-outs, and quid pro quo (this for that) are all non monetary ways to get help while starting up.
5. Entrepreneurs Drive Home In The Dark!
   The 40 hour work week does not apply to you.  You go to work before the average person, and leave after they left.  Entrepreneurs never get stuck in “rush hour” traffic, because leaving work at 4 or 5 o’clock everyday doesn’t apply. You are an entrepreneur.  You work until the job is finish or you are satisfied!  This means you might work 10 hours, get dinner, then come back to work for the night.  Much like in college, you’d need to pull an all nighter to study for a test or write a paper.  When you’re a business owner, you stay up and put in as many hours as possible or else you don’t get paid!
6. Write All Your Ideas Down
   According to Benjamin Franklin’s autobiography, only 1 out of every 100 of his ideas actually became successful.  That didn’t stop him from writing them down.  Learn to write everything down!  No matter how relevant it is to your idea, it may prove to be helpful in your endeavor.  Once you begin to get wrapped up in a business venture, writing things down is the only sure way you’ll remember something.  Many times you’ll become distracted or lost in deep thought and forget about these magnificent little ideas.  UNDERSTAND that most ideas don’t pop into your head when you are in front of a computer or a pad and pen.  They come when you’re out for a walk, lying in bed, or even in the shower!  Don’t let the ideas slip away no matter where you are…Write them down!
7. No Money? Not An Excuse!
   Money is everywhere.  If you have an idea, make a business plan.   Talk to you family, friends, teachers, or neighbors and see if they would invest in your company.  Show them what their return on investment in your company will be in order to get them interested.  If not people you know, try banks, investors, venture capitalists, or check your college or SBA.gov for business grants you can apply for! Money should be the last item on the list when you are pursuing your goal.  If all that fails, look for a partner or propose giving away equity of the company for capital.
8. Ask Questions!
   Knowledge is vital for the success of any business.  You need to know every angle, even if they don’t exist!  Part of starting up is learning from other companies or personal trial and error.  The business world is continually evolving due to Economic Darwinism—survival of the fittest company.  When starting your own business, you are basically hitting the ground running!  You’re going to have to figure out your unknown questions quick! Don’t be afraid to ask questions.  Ask everyone:  business owners, web designers, employees of other companies—even if their company has nothing to do with your business.  Taking advice from other business owners is important to evolving your business.   By communicating with a wide variety of people you’ll stay diverse business minded—which you need to be to cover all the angles and problems in the future.
9. Stay Confident
   Getting down on yourself is part of being an entrepreneur.  You WILL run into road blocks though out your millionaire voyage.  Stay confident.  Road blocks only block one path, there are millions of ways to get around or over them as long as you remain positive.  When you hit a road block, before you become too frustrated or angry, take a break.  By break I mean completely walking away from what you were working on for a few hours and go to the gym, get coffee, or some food before going back to work on it. The break will relieve you of your stress and allow your mind to not focus on the problem, but the solution.
10. Patience…You don’t become a millionaire over night!
    Rarely, do people become a millionaire over night.  Every company takes time to grow and become recognized.  Just because your business is up and running doesn’t mean you will automatically receive sales.  This is why everyone isn’t a business owner.  There are risks, a lot of them!  By starting your own business takes guts, but putting in numerous hours and sticking by your company through hard time’s shows true entrepreneurial character.  With hard work, patience, and perseverance you can make things work. If you love what you do, then see it through!

Through my blunders and accomplishments, I hope these 10 building blocks help and inspire all young entrepreneurs.  Take these 10 building blocks and use them to construct your ideas into reality. I wish you the best of luck in all your endeavors! NOW QUIT READING, AND GO START YOUR BUSINESS!

About Real College Student: We specialize in items that REAL college students need.  We have over 400 different products, a classified section (post your used text books directly to your school for free!), and a funny college blog. Please contact me though the website if you have any questions or ideas to improve my website!

Definitely go check out the full post for a list of all the sites and hopefully you will find some new ones to follow. But, also, thank you to you all for continuing to support Dorm Room Biz and help to build the site up to what it is today!

Happy New Year,

Chris

A few normal distractions that we as young entrepreneurs face:

• School – Probably the biggest distraction you could face at a young age.
• Relationships – Boyfriends and girlfriends can easily get you off track and take up a lot of your time. Learn to balance the relationship and set some ground rules for when you need to be focused on your business.
• Friends – During school you’re friends are always looking to be going out, partying, drinking, and getting crazy. After you graduate, it doesn’t change too much but it may slow down some. Saying “no” to your friends is a hard thing to do but if you’re going to be starting a business while also working a job after graduation, you need those evening hours and weekends to hustle and grow your business.
• Life – Sometimes you just may not feel like doing any work or just want to have a normal relaxed evening. That’s fine; just don’t let it happen every day, otherwise your ambitions of starting your business up will quickly slip away.
• Sports Fan? – Are you a big football fan? Don’t waste 4 hours on a Sunday sitting in front of the TV drinking and eating, being non-productive and wasting your time. Either record the games, read the highlights the next day, or leave it on in the background while working. For young entrepreneurs, especially dudes, sports can be a major distraction…almost every night of the week. Don’t let it overcome your life like many people do. Watching a 4 hour football game won’t better your life; building your business will.
• Work – I know, it sucks. There’s no two ways about it. If you’re an entrepreneur and stuck working a normal “9-5” type job, you’re just itching to get out and leave that place.

In all of these cases, it comes down to one thing – your passion for your business and future. If you’re passionate about your business, then you HAVE to keep moving on and not let these distractions get in your way. Now, on the flip side, it’s also important that you do have a life outside of your business, don’t think that I’m suggesting you don’t.

There has to be a balance of work and play, and you should try to not blur that line as much as possible. If you are passionate about what you are working on it, then it will be easy to stay driven and focused. This is the key to success, and everyone is talking about it! Being passionate about your business, your baby in most cases, is what makes the difference for most people. Just working something on the side for a couple hours on a weekend is cool and all, but you’re clearly not passionate about it. If your driven, you’re going to be working on that business ever moment that you are awake.

Are you focused on your success?

It’s time to get inspired.

The opportunities to connect with millions of like minded people are limitless through the power of the internet. Social media has made it incredibly easy to meet people who want more out of life than the average person you’d meet walking down the street. It’s not that every person online is inspired or on a mission–it’s the ones that stand out who are. The people who reach out to you, who you seem drawn towards, who are intriguing to talk to, are the ones who are doing the leading. The conversations they are having make them leaders, make them popular and make their businesses grow. They’ve achieved this success online because…

They took the leap.

It’s time to stop thinking and start doing. It’s time to open your mouth or moving your fingers to have real conversations with real people. Want people to know about your brand? Your Twitter search better be streaming at all times, tracking your industry. Get into the trenches and start conversing, answering people’s questions and finding people who have the same passions you do. It’s this network of people who will grow your brand for you.

Don’t know what you stand for?

Start meeting other inspired people. The biggest leaders will shout from the rooftops to get the message out about what they believe in. Reading blogs and surfing Twitter are great ways to get to know people who love what they do. Starting taking notes from these people who are completely lost in their work.

Follow these passionate people:

@SmallBizTrends (Small Business)
@ProBlogger (Blogging)
@JohnnyCupcakes (T-shirts)
@TomZiglar (Personal Development)
@GaryVee (Wine)
@LivestrongCEO (Health)
@Under30CEO (Entrepreneurship)
@BarryMoltz (Customer Service)
@GrowthCoachCorp (Business Coaching)
@Philanthropy411 (Non Profit)

Matt Wilson is co-founder of Under30CEO. Learn to create your rock star online presence at http://RockStarBusinessSeries.com

In my short video review of the book Bootstrapping: Weapons of Mass Reconstruction by Sramana Mitra, I mentioned that she brings up the topic of mental capital. At many points throughout the book, Sramana talks about why entrepreneurs and start-ups should not go looking for venture capital, but instead focus on bootstrapping their business…hence the name of the book.

As a substitute for venture capital, she recommends getting as much mental capital as you can. Mental capital is the idea of utilizing the people around you (friends, family, mentors, and other business people) as your mental investors. It sounds pretty simple though – instead of going after venture capital (real money to surge into your business), bootstrap your business and gather as much mental capital (knowledge from other entrepreneurs, mentors, and business people) as you can. The mental capital that gets invested in your business by other people around you can be so much more beneficial to you and your company that it would worth more than any amount of venture capital.

As a young entrepreneur it’s important to soak up and get as much mental capital as you can. Talk with everyone around you, and more importantly, listen to everyone. Ask questions, discuss your business, get feedback, and then use it! If you’re a student entrepreneur, you even have another huge advantage over other young (recently out of college) entrepreneurs – you have so many more resources on campus: Your professors, library, resource centers, etc. Utilize them all, now.

Don’t let peoples suggestions just glaze over your head or in one ear and out the other. Be thankful for the time that people spend in giving you feedback, ideas, considerations, and sharing their contacts with you.

Now, go out there and get as much mental capital as you can and you will crush it.

One thing you can do to brace yourself is to go back to your suppliers—to your telephone provider, landlord, car dealer—and renegotiate.  Go to the people you are paying out to, and renegotiate on the contracts you had made with them.  See if they are willing to pull back at all.  Although they are dealing with the same slow-down as you are, you will find that they are more willing to cut you some slack than lose you as a customer.

I cannot stress enough the need for products you are selling to be presented in more detail.  You must make the clients understand your philosophy and your product. Market better!  Understand where people are coming from: be compassionate with their concerns.  Be willing to work out payment plans for potential clients.

Save money using technology: take advantage of email and video conferencing.  You should email documents rather than sending them via mail.  This will save you in postage and in paper.  Also, instead of driving or flying to meet with a client or vendor, you should videoconference with them.  Both of these will save you time and money.

With today’s adversity constantly pulling on your being, implore as much persistence and fortitude as you can muster.  When you are stuck and everything is working against you, when it seems like you cannot last a second longer, you must persist, for it is at that peak in struggle that you will conquer and turn the tides.

This was a guest post from Robert Tuchman, who is the Founder of TSE Sports & Entertainment, a company he started out of his one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan at the age of 25. TSE has gone on to appear on Inc. 500’s list of America’s Fastest Growing Privately Owned Companies. Tuchman now serves as President of Premiere Corporate Events, a division of Premiere Global Sports. His Book “Young Guns: The Fearless Entrepreneur’s Guide To Chasing Your Dreams and Breakout Out On Your Own” is out now.