It doesn't matter who you are, every entrepreneur has the same obstacle to overcome in the beginning.

If you're looking to market yourself and your business on a tight budget, you've got to learn to be creative and you've got to learn to start asking creative questions.

Ask yourself:

1) How can I

Start with another creative question like:

2) If I needed help with (blank) this person could help me. This is a fantastic question to remember.

Here's another one:

3) Who do I know that would exchange for ?

What about this one:

4) How can I do this cheaper? or How could I do this faster? or How could I do this with less effort? or How could I do this without paying? That's a great creative question.

Try and answer this question:

5) What can I substitute for 'X'? Could I substitute 'XYZ' for 'ABC'? Just think about whatever you could, or want to change.

This next one is a great one because it puts you in the shoes of other people, someone who is thinks completely different than you.

6) How would solve this problem?

A good example: How would my mentor solve this problem? How would my four year-old daughter solve this problem? It's a great question because it forces you to think from a different perspective.

I've answered these business questions myself and it has allowed doors to open in every direction, propelling my career to new heights and success to be and continued to be achieved.

I'll show you an example of how I used this method of creative questioning to help me.

As soon as I graduated University I decided that I wanted to become a professional speaker instead of working within a corporation. My focus was college and high school students, which I still do talks for on occasion, to teach them the importance of creativity. Creativity had helped me rise from being a University failure in my first year to graduating with straight A's, and being names Most outstanding Male. The transformation that occurred between my first and fourth year I owe to learning the skill of creative thinking.

The problem was I didn't know the first thing about being a professional speaker or building a profitable speaking business.

I went to and joined an organization called CAPS, which is The Canadian Association for Professional Speakers.

It was at one of the local meetings were I asked a gentleman, who was doing very well with his speaking career, "What did I have to do to get to where he was?" He replied by saying, "I'll give you three things to get started on. Once you finish those come back and I'll give you some more." He said it would be simple, so I said, "Okay."

He said, "Number one, you need to join CAPS. You need to surround yourself with like-minded people, who are working in your industry and can help you grow." I said, "Okay."

In order to join CAPS it cost $200, which at that time was a squeeze. Thinking back on it I remember paying for it on payments in order to be able to do it. I did number though, I joined CAPS.

Then he said, "Number two, you have to get out to the CAPS National Conference." And I thought, 'Man, how in the heck am I going to get out there?' It was on the complete opposite side of Canada. The seminar itself was relatively expensive. Anything for me, at that point, was expensive. I had no money. I had to pay for my flight and all that nonsense.

I needed to find a creative solution. Here's what I did. I asked myself some creative questions. What I started to do was look at what I had that, perhaps, somebody might need and want.

What I had at the time was time itself. I wasn't speaking very often because I had just started my speaking business, so I had some time on my hands.

Then I started to say, "Okay, how could I use my time to benefit somebody else?" From that question I came up with a campaign, and I called it Help Stu Be Like You.

This is how I used that creative idea to my advantage. I went to the largest chapter of CAPS in my province, which consisted of about 75 people and asked for 30 seconds in front of the whole group.

This was something new to them, no one had asked for that before. I got up in front of everyone and asked them, "When you started off as a speaker, how many of you had no experience?" With no surprise, everybody's hands went up in the air.

"Awesome," I said. "Keep your hand up if you have ever attended the CAPS national conference before." Seventy-five percent of the group kept their hands up.

I said, "Of those who still have their hands in the air, how many of you feel that it would be beneficial for somebody with zero experience to get out to that CAPS national conference?" They all had their hands in the air.

I said, "Great. Because I am somebody with zero speaking experience that you just said needs to get out to that CAPS national conference."

But then I gave them my situation. I said, "I have a problem though. I don't have any money. The one thing I do have though is time. That is why I have created a campaign called, 'Help Stu Be Like You.' Basically I am willing to make an exchange and I'm hoping you will too." I passed out 8×6 black and white flyers I had printed off at home on 8-1/2×11 sheets to save costs. I made sure everyone in the audience got one.

I said, "Here's what I'm willing to do. I'm willing to do all the dirty work that you speakers don't like doing or don't have time to do. I will make sales calls for you. I will write sales letters for you. I will lick stamps for you. I will cut your grass. I'll even wipe your baby's bottom, if that's what you want me to do, for a financial contribution of your choice."

Surveying the audience at this point, I could tell some people's minds were racing with all the odd jobs they could get me to do for cheap.

I finished up by saying, "Whatever you don't like doing I will do, in exchange for an financial contribution of your choice. Everything I make from this campaign will go directly towards getting me out to the CAPS national conference."

As I was finishing up a gentleman in the back of the room stood up. I thought he had a question but instead he said, "Stu, I will take care of your seminar entrance fee." Half of my costs, just like that, were basically taken care of.

Another gentleman stood up right after him and said, "Stu, don't worry about paying to get out there, I will take care of it." In a matter of five minutes 85% of my expenses needed to go were taken care of.

That is what being creative can enable you to do.

By asking myself that creative question, I was able to come up with a solution that got me out to the conference and my entrance fee paid for. By the time I got there it had turned into a big story, the national CAPS publication had written a story about me and I had all kinds of people coming up to me asking me questions.

By exploring your creativity ideas will come to you when you need them the most!

Until next time!

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