In talking with one of my funding reps recently, he mentioned that in his many dealings with entrepreneurs at many levels, he found that the vast majority of them had been trained to "think small." The reasons for this were that they were constantly being reminded of

1. the difficulty of raising capital,
2. high interest rates charged by lenders to small companies or
3. the insistence by many venture capitalists that the company owner(s) surrender control of their companies.

If, instead, they continued to "think small," they could still retain control of their company, even if they were unable to expand due to lack of capital and a funding strategy. Thus, these entrepreneurs are encouraged to export their products or services and are discouraged from becoming multinational corporations.

ENTREPRENURIAL FEARS

I've found similar attitudes. When I discuss a $1 million funding , I've often heard, "But it costs more to go public in the States" or "We only grossed $2 million, last year." These are often examples of being stuck in a mental rut, locked into what is thought to be "possible."

In such cases, my response is, "I understand. That's what you've been thinking about and planning...and that's fine. However, can you set that plan aside for a few moments and imagine what you might be able to do if your company were a multinational corporation? If you could get not only that million, but several millions more?" I generally hear a long silence at that point.

Then the ideas begin to pop, the possibilities expand. If, however, you really don