It’s true.

As an entrepreneur, however, I bet you are wondering EXACTLY what that difference is and how to get from here to there.

Have you created a small business for yourself and are wondering what will be the tipping point when it will finally take off?

Are you fantasizing about an overnight success?

Have you suddenly been noticing all the wild news stories about unlikely candidates who struck it rich with a crazy idea that became the newest “Pet Rock”?

It makes you wonder…

Maybe you’re watching The Secret over and over again. You might be furiously creating “vision boards,” and filling boxes with cut-out photos of the things you want to manifest.

I’ve done that.

You’ve even taken your sorry bank statement and replaced the numbers with cushy bunches of zeros? Aaaah. Makes you feel good, huh?

Will there be a moment in time when luck smiles on you and something just “happens” to get every potential customer knocking down your door to buy your product?

When will it be “your time?”

Is there really such a thing as a lucky break?

Come on, admit it: I know you have thought about all of this at least once… Maybe a lot!

It took me years to build my own business, and the lessons I learned along the way range from hysterically funny to tragically expensive.

I survived the embarrassment of learning what a DBA was when the bank teller told me I couldn’t cash my first customer’s check without my partner’s signature. That lesson came after I fibbed to her saying my partner (who was my dog) “was in Europe.” I just didn’t know how to say, “Would you accept a paw print?”

That was the funny one.

I also survived the $5,000 penalty the EDD charged me and the angst of being audited to learn the difference between an “independent contractor” and an “employee.” That still hurts to think about.

The point is, I had the customers and cash flow to handle it. Where would I be had I not had customers?

So seriously, what is the deal? How – and when – is your business going to take off?

Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book called The Tipping Point, in which he describes a certain time where a want becomes a need on a mass scale and then it takes on a life of its own.

How the heck do you make that happen?

…especially with a limited budget?

Scratching your head?

I hear ya.

The truth is, some of us are indeed “lucky” types. Some of us have to work much harder to create what we want. Why this happens, is a longer and more involved conversation, but there is ONE NECESSARY thing – which, by the way is always the same for anyone – to gain success. It works, every time, no matter how lucky, cursed, wealthy, or wise you are.

Over the years, I’ve worked with many entrepreneurs, each of whom have their own version of the “pet rock.” They have ranged from bras that eliminate visible bra lines to magnetic wine pourers that make a 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon taste like a 1998 and web businesses that coach, cajole and sell. No matter what kind of business, to me, they are all “products” with tremendous potential.

Some succeed. Most fail.

It was the failures that inspired me to write a book called the PR Handbook for Entrepreneurs. After getting thousands of calls from excited entrepreneurs with great ideas who just wanted to get their product to market, I thought, “Why don’t I just share what I know to teach them to do it themselves?”

So one of the shortcuts to learn how to find that tipping point is to go here and get started on the chapter called “The Mechanics of PR.” It will teach you everything you need to know about positioning your product so it stands out, how to talk about it in a way that gets people’s ears pricked, and how to get interviewed by the press so that millions hear about your product at once.

Sounds like a good option for very few bucks? You betcha.

Making dreams into reality seems like a daunting task, but I’ve learned that the secret to success all comes down to one thing:

Focus.

Then, there are two things that you must focus on:

A grand vision

And

Moving your feet in the direction toward that which you want to create.

Of course a healthy dose of tenacity and fearlessness help – a lot.

Winston Churchill said something that, to this day, I think is one of my favorite quotes: “Education will not. Privilege will not. Experience will not. Tenacity will.”

Cool Mr. Churchill, thanks for the advice, but now what?

How about some short cuts? Could you use a template on “How to Write a Press Release” about your product that gets the attention of reporters from TIME magazine or Oprah? Did you know that when you learn how to write a press release that is truly “newsworthy” you could have magazines, newspapers, and TV/radio shows calling YOU?

Do you realize that if your product gets reported in just ONE place that gets thousands to millions of readers/listeners, that this could be the tipping point?

It could make or break your business.

That’s kinda exciting, huh? Usually this costs $5,000 a month for a PR firm to do for you. You can do it yourself… and get FREE press lists here.

I was hosting some friends over for dinner recently. The conversation turned to “manifestation.” One of them was really into it. The other was skeptical. An interesting conversation ensued that I want to share with you because it’s most likely another “Ah ha” you need to know about getting over that hump and finally getting your lucky break.

We, as living, breathing beings with great business ideas, are in effect, manifestors. We create ideas, products, relationships, and good and bad experiences.

The truth is, there is very little OUTSIDE of you that influences your reality.

If you doubt this statement, PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER, hang up your ideas of becoming an entrepreneur, and focus on finding a job.

You are the key to your success. Your focus on your dreams MUST be your priority in order to succeed.

Now if you watch The Secret, for example, you’ll learn that imagining your goals and putting yourself into the place of already having them is powerful stuff.

And it is.

It’s incredibly powerful, actually. I manifested my first Porsche that way while driving along in my Honda, hearing the engine, smelling the leather, and feeling the horses yanking me up the Pacific Coast Highway.

But my friend at dinner brought up something that I realized was the necessary twin to manifestation; the other thing that “activates” a desire.

Resistant to the skeptic’s contrarian view of the importance of manifestation, we argued with him for a while until he said, “Well, if manifestation is the only way to create success, explain how a large group of the airy fairy ‘manifestors’ always seem to be in a world of wanting and never getting.”

He continued, “And if manifestation is really the ONLY thing that works, why are there so many successes out there who knew nothing about ‘manifestation techniques,’ yet have become incredible successes by just working their tails off?”

Good question. Hmmmmmmmmmmm. His comment inspired the conversation to roll around in my brain for about a week.

His argument was that working hard – moving your feet in the direction of your dreams – is the ONE NECESSARY thing that gets you what you want. Without the ACTION, you can dream all you want, but the Porsche will not just appear on the doorstep.

The upshot of this is that I discovered that manifestation serves as the template for success, but focused hard work is the thing that fills it in and creates the reality.

In other words, manifestation is powerful, but without action, it’s pretty unlikely to create what you want. On the other hand, hard work without vision can exhaust you and create pessimism. Ideally, manifestation and hard work go together.

So, let’s get back to why some businesses suddenly explode and others languish.

How much love are you giving your dream? And how much action-oriented things are you doing to make it happen?

Here’s another secret:

The entrepreneurs who really win are the ones who fearlessly pursue their ideas. QUICKLY.

In other words, DO IT NOW. Don’t wait for anything. PURSUE your dreams and do whatever you can to make it become a reality.

Don’t get stuck on whether it’s the right thing to do. Just do SOMETHING.

Some entrepreneurs stay stuck in creating legal setups and thinking about staffing their office headquarters for months and even years. You can’t expect to become a success if you don’t have a product and people to buy it. Right?

Once you have an idea, get it out there. If it’s not quite done, you’ll be surprised how quickly you’ll get it done when you start your marketing and find that people want it.

Sound risky?

Think again. Better yet, go here and arm yourself with a copy of “How to Contact a Reporter.” Did you know that you can just call TIME magazine and see if the reporter likes your story? This tool will teach you what to say, how and when to say it, and make it comfortable for you to pick up the phone to anyone and get a compelling story about your product out on the table in less than a paragraph.

If you get reported about in TIME, it doesn’t matter if your lawyer has created a corporation for you yet, or if you have a staff or an office… you’ll have customers. And then you’ll be surprised how things fall into place.

Until next time, keep dreaming and moving your feet.