Blog | Entrepreneurship

Beyond the Idea: Building a Successful Business in Today's Competitive Market

Using the B-I Triangle to build a successful business around your idea

Summary

• The key to success is learning from failures along the way

• The B-I triangle is the guide to building a successful business

• Building a successful business requires more than a successful business idea

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When it comes to building a lasting and successful business, it’s important to invest in systems, not products. TheB-I Triangle, as taught by rich dad himself, can be used to explain why this concept is so important.

In 1974, Robert Kiyosaki decided he was going to learn to build a business following the model of the B-I Triangle. Rich dad warned him, “Learning to build a business according to this model is high-risk. Many people attempt it, but few accomplish it. But if you do learn to build a business this way, your earning potential is unlimited.”

Fail to succeed

On this journey, Robert experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows as he learned to build a solid business. Whether it was writing advertising copy that never sold anything, or struggling to raise capital and spend investors’ money wisely, the road to building a successful business was a long one.

At one point, he even had to return to investors and report to them that he had lost their money. Luckily, some maintained their hope in him and were willing to give him another shot later in life.

Hard lessons are the pavers to success

However, through it all, each mistake was a priceless learning experience as well as a character-building lesson. As rich dad said, the risk at the start was very high. Yet, as Robert stuck it out and continued to learn, the rewards truly were unlimited.

Back then, he was very weak at every level of the B-I Triangle, namely in cash-flow and communications management. Today, Robert maintains that he is actually the strongest in those areas; and because he can create synergies among all levels of the B-I Triangle, his companies continue to succeed.

The point here is that, even though he didn’t start strong, he continued the learning process. For anyone who wants to acquire great success and wealth in this manner, it’s time to start, practice, make mistakes, correct, learn, and improve.

Give shape to your ideas

Many people think that all they need is a great idea to build a great business. Successful business ideas are a dime a dozen. To build a successful business, you need more than an idea. You need to give shape to that idea through systems, processes, and a great team.

The B-I Triangle is a powerful force to accomplish this. As rich dad said, “It gives shape to your ideas. It is the knowledge of the B-I Triangle that allows a person to create an asset that buys other assets.”

Rich dad taught that once you become good at taking an idea and building a B-I Triangle business around it, people will flock to you to invest in your idea. He said, “Then, it will be true for you that it doesn’t take money to make money. Instead of spending your life working for money, you will get better at creating assets that make more and more money—your money will work for you.”

Follow the way of the rich

If you were to look at the 10 percent of Americans who control most of the country’s wealth and big businesses, you’d understand exactly how they got their wealth. They found their spirit and their mission, built a business, and allowed others to share in their dreams, the risks, and the rewards. This list includes people like Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Rupert Murdoch, Anita Roddick, Richard Branson, and others.

You can do the same thing, if you want. Just follow the same diagram rich dad guided Robert with—the B-I Triangle.

As Helen Keller said, “True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.”

Find your purpose, give it shape through the B-I Triangle, and learn as much as you can along the way. In this way, you can be both successful and happy.