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The 10 Rules of Business

The 10 Rules of Business

There are 10 rules of business which we believe should stand true for any business owner, no matter how small or large. These rules will get you through rough and great times. 

The 10 Rules of Business are: 

  1. Always keep your cool
  2. Get up when you get knocked down
  3. Relationships are everything 
  4. Anything worth doing is worth doing well 
  5. Always be coachable 
  6. Attitude determines how far you will go 
  7. Focus, focus, focus
  8. Listen, listen, listen
  9. Gratitude is always the best policy
  10. Never be afraid to ask for help

Klaire Nelson is a bright light at any gathering. Whether she is at her martial arts class or cub scout meeting, she is a leader and inspiration for others. At just 5 years of age, she started her interest in business by asking her mom if she could learn everything there is to know about business. This turned into “The 10 Rules of Business: So Simple You Can Remember It. So Effective You’ll Want To.” Klaire is now 10 years old an excited as ever for the business community.

Listen to the podcast here:

Listen in as Karla and Klaire discuss The 10 Rules of Business 

Karla Nelson: Welcome to the People Catalysts’ Podcast, Miss Klaire Nelson.  

Klaire Nelson: Hi.

Karla Nelson: Hello. We are so excited to have you. You are the first 10-year-old to have on the show.  

Klaire Nelson: Well, I’m very honored to be on the show. Ask my mother.

Karla Nelson: If anybody hadn’t picked that up yet, Klaire Nelson is my 10-year-old daughter who has been very interested in business since a very young age. She even has attended meetings with me where we’re raising capital for companies and all sorts of good stuff, and so she’s had to witness a lot of the different business things that happen regardless if it’s the recording of video and podcast and teaching and training, all sorts of good stuff.  

When Klaire was about four years old, she was almost five, she came to me and said, “Mom, when I get older, can you teach me everything there is to know about business?” and I said, “Well, of course. I’ll teach you what I know, but learnings are endless when it comes to business. You can never really learn everything.” But what we’re going to talk about today here is how your inner five-year-old is often your best coach. Miss Klaire, are you ready to walk us through the 10 rules of business?  

Klaire Nelson: Absolutely. I am ready to go.

Karla Nelson: Awesome. Why don’t you tell us the rule of business first? Actually, no. Why don’t you tell the story, and then after you tell the story of what was happening and how you learned it… and this was probably… it started, I don’t know, a couple months after she actually asked me because I’m thinking, “What in the world? I’m just going to make… How am I going to create these 10 rules of business?” and we did it around her own learning. Why don’t you tell us what the story is for the first rule of business?  

Klaire Nelson: Well, I was having a total complete meltdown about having my homework not correctly done from the night prior. I was not keeping my cool or anything, and my mom was pretty annoyed. She said my name, “Hey, Klaire, would you like to know the first rule of business?” and I said yes, and I very quickly stopped crying. She said, “Rule one-”

Karla Nelson: It was very-  

Klaire Nelson: ” … of business-”

Karla Nelson: … exciting moment, wasn’t it? Very-  

Klaire Nelson: It really was.

Karla Nelson: … exciting.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, and she said, “Rule one of business is always keep your cool. No matter what. Always keep your cool.” That is rule one of business and how I learned it.

Karla Nelson: Yep, and you straightened up really quickly, and we figured it out, got your homework put together, and got you in the car and off to kindergarten, right?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, and we still use all the rules today in our household.

Karla Nelson: Yes. We do.  

Klaire Nelson: Almost every day.

Karla Nelson: Klaire, tell us the story around rule two of business and how you learned that.  

Klaire Nelson: Well I was riding my scooter around a very small piece of concrete, and I had fallen and scraped my knees. My hands were hurt, and I came inside crying, wanting help, and my mom said, “Hey, would you like to know rule two of business?” and I said yes and quickly stopped crying.

Karla Nelson: Yep, and so what- 

Klaire Nelson: She said, “Rule two of business get up when you get knocked down,” and I stopped crying. I got a hold of myself, and I went back out to play.

Karla Nelson: It was amazing. I was amazed that that would… you responded so positively because you were cut up pretty good from that scooter fall.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: All right, so Klaire rules three of business, can you tell us a story around that and then what the rule is?  

Klaire Nelson: Yes. I would love to. One night when my brother was babysitting and I was kind of angry at him, I was pretty young, and I went to my mom and dad when they got home, and I was telling him all my brother’s fault. I was just listing them out and calling him out on everything. My mom said, “Hey, Klaire, would you like to learn rule three of business.” I said yes, and I was quiet. She said, “Rule three of business is relationships are everything.” I quickly said, “Okay, I will not list anymore of these.” I had fun, and-

Karla Nelson: Yeah, and I remember when you went to… Mr. Allen had one of his book launches, and you even sat there for three hours when you were five years old, and it got boring. Then Dad looked over at you and said, “Klaire, remember rule three business.” That’s when you were five. My goodness. That’s been like five years ago.  

Klaire Nelson: It was fun though. He was taking dollar bills, and everyone who got them right, he made a money shower.

Karla Nelson: Yeah, the $2 bill man, huh?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: All right. Okay, so let’s move on to rule four and what was happening when you learned rule four of business.  

Klaire Nelson: Well, when I listened to my mom, and she said, “If you want… ” I wanted to go to the mall, and she said, “If you want to go to the mall and play in the kids’ area, then you have to clean your room.” I went upstairs. Five minutes later, I came down and said, “Mom, I’m done. Mom, I’m done.” She was still skeptical about it because it was a five year old cleaning a room in five minutes and …

Karla Nelson: Not too believable, huh?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, she went upstairs. I had just put all my stuff in my closet, under the bed, and my drawers were a mess. My mom said-

Karla Nelson: You’d be sneakier about it these days, huh?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah. My mom said, “Hey, Klaire, would you like to learn rule five of business?”

Karla Nelson: Rule four.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, rule four.

Karla Nelson: Yeah.  

Klaire Nelson: I said, “Yes,” and my mom said, “Anything worth doing is worth doing well. That is rule four of business.” I quickly cleaned my room, and I had done a good job on it because rule four, anything worth doing is worth doing well.

Karla Nelson: Yeah, and you wanted to go to the mall and play in the kids’ area.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: All right. Let’s move on to rule five of business. What was your story, and then what was the learning from it?  

Klaire Nelson: Well, I was trying to… Well, I wasn’t being very nice to my father, and I wasn’t responding correctly. He was trying to teach me something, and I kept saying, “I know, I know.”

Karla Nelson: Because five-year-olds know everything, right?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah. Yeah.

Karla Nelson: Yep. What happened? He kept on trying to teach you something, and then you kept on responding with, “I know,” and then he was trying to teach you something of the same way, and then you said, “I know,” a couple of times?  

Klaire Nelson: Yes, and my mom quickly heard and-

Karla Nelson: I was at the top of the stairs over-listening the conversation.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, and my mom said, “Hey, Klaire, would you like to learn rule five of business?” I said, “Yes, I would like to learn rule five of business.” She said, “Always be coachable,” and I quickly said, “What does coachable mean?”

Karla Nelson: That’s right. You did say, “What is coachable mean?” and then Dad and I laughed.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, and then they told me what coachable means, and I quickly listened to my father. I still a little bit of the problem to this day.

Karla Nelson: You’re aware of it, right? You’re aware of it and-  

Klaire Nelson: Yes. I am …

Karla Nelson: … awareness is important. Yes. Yes. Well, you come by it honest, darlings, so I’ve had to learn that in my own life as well. Okay, let’s move on to rule six of business.  

Klaire Nelson: Okay.

Karla Nelson: Yeah? 

Klaire Nelson: I’m ready.

Karla Nelson: All right, take her away. Let’s hear your story about rule six of business and then what the learning ended up being.  

Klaire Nelson: Rule six of business was when I wasn’t responding correctly to my father, and it was not acceptable. When he tried to tell me something, I shook my head with an attitude.

Karla Nelson: You did a teenager shake at five years old.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: I was like, “What? No way. You’re five. You’re not supposed to be shaking your head like that until you’re at least 13.”  

Klaire Nelson: I did that, and my mom, her instincts had been quickly now because she has told me all the other rules of business, and she said, “Klaire, that is not acceptable. Would you like to learn rule six of business?” and I said, “Yes.” She said, “Rule six of business attitude determines how far you will go.” I said, “I’m sorry, Dad. I will not do that anymore because that is not acceptable,” and I also still have a little bit of this problem today.

Karla Nelson: Well … we all just have to work to get better. Yes. I’m glad you’re still learning from your learnings, Miss Klaire, so okay-  

Klaire Nelson: No one’s perfect.

Karla Nelson: Yep. None of us are perfect. It’s all just a part of knowing who you are and learning and being coachable to be able to learn these things in life because it makes life a lot easier, doesn’t it?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah. It really does.

Karla Nelson: Yes, it does, especially when you’re leading a team. Let’s go ahead and talk about now rule seven of business and what was happening, and then what your learning ended up being.  

Klaire Nelson: Well, it was in the morning while I was getting ready for school, and my mom was reading off the stuff that I should know, like get my backpack, get my schoolwork, get my clothes, get my shoes, get into the car. I wasn’t listening, and I was not being nice about it, and she said-

Karla Nelson: I think it took you like 15 minutes to get your shoes on that morning.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah, and then-

Karla Nelson: And you were bouncing over the walls and halfway dressed and yeah.  

Klaire Nelson: And then my mom quickly said, “Klaire, would you like to learn rule seven of business,” and I said, “Yes.” She said, “Rule seven of business is focus, focus, focus,”-

Karla Nelson: Yes.  

Klaire Nelson: … and-

Karla Nelson: What does that mean, Klaire? What does focus, focus, focus mean?  

Klaire Nelson: You… Well, you do one thing… It’s kind of like focusing on one thing and then trying to focus on multiple things and getting confused-

Karla Nelson: Yep-  

Klaire Nelson: … and-

Karla Nelson: … or running around in a circle like you were that morning, not getting anything really accomplished except for one shoe on and halfway dressed-  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: So you got to focus, focus-  

Klaire Nelson: Focus.

Karla Nelson: … focus.  

Klaire Nelson: Focus.

Karla Nelson: Yes. Okay. Let’s now move on to rule eight of business and what happened and what your learning was.  

Klaire Nelson: Well, I was on one of the beanbags that we had in our house, and my mom was trying to tell me about the horrible accident my grandma and grandpa had got in. My grandpa only broke a couple ribs, and my grandma, she broke almost every single bone in her leg. I wasn’t listening about it, and I just kept interrupting my mom and trying to tell her story about a friend at school because I wasn’t listening, and she said, “Klaire, would you like to learn rule eight of business?” and I said, “Yes.” She said, “Rule eight of business is listen, listen, listen.”

Karla Nelson: Yep.  

Klaire Nelson: I quickly listened to my mom, and I’ve realized that I should have listened way earlier. I helped get a gift bag, and we sent my grandma and grandpa a gift basket.

Karla Nelson: Yeah, you did. You send them a gift basket so that hopefully they would heal up and feel better. That was very cool. Now, all right, well, we are going to move on now to rule nine of business, and so share with us, Miss Klaire, your learning, or your story first of what happened, and then what you’re learning.  

Klaire Nelson: Well, we had gone to the gym, and my parents were working out. After the gym, we had gotten a pizza, and-

Karla Nelson: Not the best thing to get after working out, huh?  

Klaire Nelson: Nope.

Karla Nelson: But at least you can eat the pizza after you work out, right?  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: It’s better to eat the pizza after your workout than not-  

Klaire Nelson: Than eat before.

Karla Nelson: … work out and eat the pizza.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah. My mom had let her limits push, and she let us get some chocolate milk. When we got our chocolate milk, she said, “You only get one, and that’s all you get, okay?” I said, “Okay, but can I have some potato chips?” and she said no. I started whining. If you know my mom, you’ll know that she does not like little kids whining.

Karla Nelson: I don’t like anybody whining.  

Klaire Nelson: Yeah.

Karla Nelson: You got a what? What’s the thing? Instead of whining, what do you do first, Klaire?  

Klaire Nelson: Ask questions?

Karla Nelson: You can. Ask questions is good, but look to solve your problem because whining, does whining help anybody?  

Klaire Nelson: No, it doesn’t make. It makes your head hurt.

Karla Nelson: Okay, so you’re sitting there, and you got your chocolate milk. You don’t get your potato chips, and you’re whining and throwing a fit. What happens?  

Klaire Nelson: You say, “Hey, Klaire, do you want to learn rule nine of business?” and I said, “Yes.” Mom said, “Gratitude is always the best policy.” I said, “What does gratitude mean?” You have this five-year-old saying, “What does gratitude mean?”

Karla Nelson: Now, what is your definition of gratitude now?  

Klaire Nelson: You accept what you get and accept people’s answers, like if I wanted potato chips and chocolate milk when I was only allowed to get chocolate milk, and I started whining, I just be thankful for what I get instead of wanting other things.

Karla Nelson: I love that. 

Klaire Nelson: A roof to live, a safe family, that’s the thing you should be grateful for.

Karla Nelson: So being thankful, I love it, being grateful. Gratitude is being thankful and grateful. Okay, so we are wrapping it up with the last rule of business, so if you could walk us through, Miss Klaire, the story around that and what your learning was.  

Klaire Nelson: Yes, ma’am. With rule 10 of business, we were at the gym the same night that I learned rule nine, and my mom said, “Hey, could you please get all the trash and put it in the trash can?” and I said yes, so I took a pizza tray and tried to get all the trash on it. You could tell by looking at me that you or anybody else could know that I needed some help, but as an apple off the tree, I did not want any help.

My mom said, “Hey, Klaire, would you like to learn rule 10 of business?” and I said, “Yes.” Mom said, “Never be afraid to ask for help.” I quickly asked my brother Cole and said, “Hey, Cole, could you please help me get all this trash in the trash can?” and he happily got up to help me, and we got all the trash in the trash can.

Karla Nelson: Yeah. I struggle with rule 10 sometimes, not so much-  

Klaire Nelson: So do I.

Karla Nelson: … in business, but yeah, and all of these are great, wonderful learnings, Klaire. We’re so excited you got to share them with us here today. Out of all 10 rules, what’s your favorite rule?  

Klaire Nelson: That’s really hard because all of them are really helpful on life, and you should always follow them, but maybe rule 10, I think?

Karla Nelson: That’s a great one. That’s one that I can learn from, but my favorite one is rule three of business.  

Klaire Nelson: Oh yeah, that’s a really good one.

Karla Nelson: Yeah. In business and in life, relationships are everything, and that is our tagline here on the People Catalysts’ podcast. We need you all. We need you at different times. Miss Klaire, thank you so much for sharing your brilliance with us here today. We’ll have to have you-  

Klaire Nelson: Thank you.

Karla Nelson: … on the podcast again.  

Klaire Nelson: Thank you, Mommy.

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