Anyone can start a successful business, according to Norm Brodsky, lifelong entrepreur and coauthor of The Knack: How Street-Smart Entrepreneurs Learn to Handle Whatever Comes Up.  The key, he said it to learn the hard lessons before you get started.

Brodsky and coauthor Bo Burlingham recently shared their wisdom with listeners of the Business Owner’s Toolkit radio show.  According to the authors, there’s a mentality to business success that helps street-smart entrepreneurs solve problems and pursue opportunities as they arise. Brodsky calls this mentality “the knack,” and said it has made all the difference to the successful start-ups of his career.

Here are three founding principles of the knack, and free resources you can use to hone your skills in these areas:

• Numbers run a business. If you don’t know how to read them, you’re flying blind. Learn about managing your business finances by visiting the Business Owner’s Toolkit. The Toolkit also offers a free webinar on Bookkeeping Basics.

• A sale isn’t a sale until you collect. Treat account receivables like loans. Learn about accounts receivable financing and accounts receivable to sales ratio at Toolkit.com.
• Identify your true competitors, and treat them with respect. Get to know your competition and learn how to size up the competition using resources at Toolkit.com.

Thankfully, the Knack is a mentality that can be learned and shared by business owners. Brodsky and Burlingham prove that street smarts and business acumen can be within any entrepreneur’s reach.

If you’re ready to start your business, visit incorporation leader BizFilings to learn the benefits of forming an LLC or corporation for your new business. Doing so will ensure you and your company will have personal liability protection.