The Business Master (3rd Edition)

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CHAPTER I THE BIG BUSINESS OF BEAUTY PAGEANTS In a small city in Southern California, an elderly woman goes to her bank every other month and deposits more than $10,000. "I don't run Beauty Pageants for the money," she says. "It's just a hobby. I was once a Beauty Queen myself." In New York State, a Computer Systems Analyst runs Beauty Pageants in his spare time. His last two pageants netted him more than $6,000. Just ordinary people. They're not organizing geniuses. They have no special abilities, they simply run Beauty Pageants, and they do it very successfully, and there are many like them. They work hard at what they do, but neither of them are working at their full potential. By innovative thinking, which I will explain later, both of them could double or triple their present income with hardly any extra effort. The interesting thing about both this man and this woman is that outside of their own states, very few people know about them, yet they both earn a very comfortable income. We haven't started to talk really big money yet. I have made no mention of the Miss America, Miss U.S.A. or Miss Universe Pageants. And I haven't so much as breathed a word about any of the "Teen" pageants, which are the possibly the most profitable of pageants. So far we're only talking about the "small" pageants. REMEMBER: YOU ARE LIMITED ONLY BY YOUR OWN INITIATIVE. You have bought this book because you want to earn more than $60,000 a year running Beauty Pageants. I'll tell you how to do it. If you'll stick with me, I'll also show you how to double or triple that amount of money by becoming involved in some of the Beauty Pageant off-shoots. But for now, lets take a look at Beauty Pageants as a whole. After all, they're going to become a major part of your income, so you'd better know them from the ground up. I promise I won't bore you. Let me say however, right at the beginning, that Pageant contestant, producers and directors are of both sexes. To save the irritating his/her, he/she throughout the rest of the book, I will mostly refer to the contestants as female. This shows no bias on my part, merely a personal convenience. Beauty Pageants are exciting. Come to think of it, who could get bored when they've got their sights set on a big new house with a swimming pool or a brand new, Silver-Gray Cadillac? Or both? Perhaps you have other ideas on what you would do with a great deal of extra money. Start thinking about it. You're on your way. * Beauty Pageants Worldwide Just about every country in the world has its Queen. There's a Miss France, a Miss England, A Miss Ireland, a Miss Brazil, a Miss Japan, a Miss Venezuela and a Miss America. There's even a Miss Thailand. Then in its turn, each country has its subdivisions. America has Miss Nebras- ka, Miss Louisiana, Miss California, Miss Ohio, and so on. Then the States get broken down into cities. Califor- nia has, for instance, Miss Hollywood, Miss Santa Barbara, Miss San Francisco, and on and on. When we get tired of being surprised at the tremendous number of different areas with which Beauty Pageants are associated, we can start on objects. There is a Miss Future World, a Miss Bikini, a Miss Tourism and a Miss Liberty. Hard to believe perhaps, but there's even a Miss Sweet Pickle. You name it, there's probably a Queen of it. But just in case I'm misleading you slightly, let me point out that each of these titles is carefully considered and very jeal- ously guarded, but more about titles later. For now, let's continue with the outline. We have taken a very brief look at the extremely wide diversity of places and subjects associated with Beauty Pageants. Enough perhaps to give you a slight idea of the tremendous potential that Beauty Pageants possess for making money. The people who run all these Beauty Pageants don't do it just because they like running Beauty Pageants, (although they undoubtedly do), they do it because it's profitable. It is a business, a business in which you can start at ground level and build - and there's almost no limit to how big you can build. And you'll love it. Every moment. It's not the easiest way to make money, in fact at times it's quite hectic. But IT IS Exciting and IT IS Interesting ..... and it can be very, very profitable. * What You Will Need To Get Started You will need a little money. Not very much, but a little, just to get you started. Here is what you will need, more or less in the order shown. I have not put a dollar amount on them for two rea- sons. Firstly, the dollar value varies so much from year to year. Secondly, you may have better access to some things than I have. 1. Location: For this you may need a small deposit. We will be looking at hotels, church halls, city community halls, parks and gardens, etc. 2. Advertising: Your greatest expense and it will depend on your locality and your perseverance - a lot of advertising can be obtained FREE. 3. A typewriter or computer. I have to assume you have this. 4. A copier. Alternatively you'll need approximately $20 for the local Quik Print. Later you will need: 5. Trophies and Ribbons. 6. Prizes. 7. The balance of your location fee. 8. Meals for Staff and Judges. 9. Out of pocket expenses - telephone - travel - post- age. 10. Music. Live or canned - it's your choice - your money. 11. Stage Decor. Although you will eventually have to pay these last five or six expenses, they can wait until later. By then you will have a cash flow. Having been involved with Beauty Pageants for many years, I know there are questions running through your mind and I will try to answer them as I go. If I miss any, or if I can help you further after you have entered the business of Beauty Pageants, please let me know and I will be pleased to help you to the best of my ability. The Immediate Questions: Q. How much money do I need to get started? A. You can start on the very smallest of shoe strings, but you will need some money for things such as the printing of entry forms and advertising. We will be cover- ing these subjects in depth further down the book, but for now believe me when I say you can afford to get started. Even if you have no money at all, there are still ways to get started - if you are really determined to succeed. Q. Do I have to be female to run Beauty Pageants? A. Male or female, it makes no difference. Q. How old do I have to be to run a Beauty Pageant? A. As there are some legalities involved, you should be of legal age. At the other end of the scale there is no limit. Q. Do I have to live in a big town? A. Not if you are really set on getting into the big money. Q. Is it something I can do in my spare time? A. Yes it is, but making the really big money can be a full time job. However, you can make a lot of money in your spare time so don't think about giving up any present occupation until the spare time money becomes steady and considerably more than your regular income. * Beauty Pageants Are Big Business Tell yourself, right at the start, that Beauty Pageants are a business. They may be fun, but they are without doubt a business. Big Business. Competition between competing Beauty Pageants is like competition between any other two similar businesses. It all depends on the people concerned. Sometimes two Pageant producers will get along well and help each other. That is the way things usually go. On the other hand there are also those people who simply cannot stay in the same room together. That is something entirely personal and well outside the scope of this book. However, you'll find some hints and tips that may help as you proceed through the book. No matter how many Beauty Pageants there are or have been in your immediate area, there is always room for one more, especially if it is more attractive and more effi- ciently run than most of the others. There's a couple of other advantages other than a substantial income to being a Beauty Pageant Producer. The first is that there is a certain amount of social prestige attached to high quality Beauty Pageants, and yours are going to be high quality. The second advantage is that as a self employed person, you'll be able to enjoy all the tax break privileges that go with being self employed. Later, you may contemplate becom- ing a corporation. A good accountant will be able to give you advice on that and similar matters. But unless you already have other business ventures, it would be best to wait until you get established before you contemplate incor- porating. A few paragraphs back I mentioned briefly about part time and full time working. Just how much time will running Beauty Pageants consume? It all depends upon how deeply you want to become involved. As I said, The big bucks will require that you spend a considerable amount of time working on your Pageant, and we are really only interested in the BIG money. So just how much time are we talking about? Well, with this type of business we have one tremendous advantage. Nearly all the Beauty Pageants are held at week- ends. Saturdays and Sundays. You will have to work on many aspects of the Pageant, both in the days and weeks before and after the Pageant, but much of this work can be accom- plished in the evenings. So, if you are working at another job, you may be faced with the prospect of coming home in the evenings, grabbing something to eat, clearing the kitch- en table and then starting again. Believe me, it will be worth it! It is pleasurable work and you can pace yourself at a comfortable rate. But more about that in the next chapter. *** THINK *** The only true difference between you and the person next door is your brain and the way you use it. I have had people say to me, "Aren't you lucky to have a house like that" - or a car like that - or a cabin in the mountains like that - or a boat like that. LUCK HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT!!!