We all know fitness is important to our health, but did you know it can also be good for your business? Elizabeth Robinson, a Philadelphia-based personal trainer and creator of VitFit, a mobile app for customizable downloadable workouts and Dega Schembri, co-owner of City Fitness Gym in Washington D.C., say regular physical activity can make you a better entrepreneur.

Here are seven ways physical activity can improve the health of your business:

1. Build your network.

Whether working out at the gym or participating in a team sport, fitness can help you network with prospective clients or strengthen existing business relationships. Robinson met several of her business investors and clients through fitness activities. "A lot of barriers break down when you're working out with somebody," says Robinson. Fitness challenges open a window into individuals' personalities and allow you to communicate with others in a very different way and consequently learn more about each other than would normally be possible over a cup of coffee.

2. Get your creative juices flowing.

Exercise not only tones muscles, but improves brain power. A 2012 study by the Montreal Heart Institute showed aerobic exercise increased cognitive function. This is because exercise increases blood flow to your brain, meaning a jog might be just what you need before a brainstorming session.

3. Reduce stress.

Physical activity reduces stress hormones and increases the production of endorphins that give you a natural high. Getting in a workout, whether before work or during the workday can allow you to approach your work with a calmer mindset. "The more stressed you are, the more unable you are to make really good, rational business decisions," says Schembri.

4. Boost your confidence.

Whether building a business or going through a rough patch, even the smallest fitness win can help you gain the confidence you need to achieve larger goals in your business life. "Having a great workout translates into every area of your life, making you feel more accomplished at the end of the day about everything that you do," says Robinson.

5. Overcome business challenges.

Training for a fitness challenge such as a marathon can help entrepreneurs re-learn the importance of goal-setting and determination. Schembri participated in her first triathlon when she was 58-years-old and says the vigorous training regime she underwent to achieve her fitness goals helped her to be a more tenacious entrepreneur. Removing the word "can't" from her vocabulary made her view obstacles as simply another challenge to be overcome, she says.

6. Improve your energy.

Ditch your morning cup of coffee and head to the gym instead. A 2008 study published in the Journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics concluded that inactive individuals who normally complained of fatigue experienced increases in energy of up to 20 percent and decreased fatigue as much as 65 percent by participating in regular, low-intensity physical activity. "Exercising regularly helps you sleep better, and if you sleep better you’ll have more energy during the day," says Schembri.

7. Learn to let go of control.

"A lot of business owners think that they have to do it all, [but] there's a lot of stress that goes along with that level of control, power and decision-making," says Schembri, who argues power-hungry entrepreneurs can benefit from a personal trainer. "When you hire a trainer you're acquiescing to someone else, accepting that you're going to let them direct you," says Schembri. Participating in team sports can also teach control-freak entrepreneurs about the importance of entrusting others with important tasks, proving they don't have to do it all on their own to have a successful business.

Courtesy: www.entrepreneur.com

Virgin Empire founder Richard Branson’s first job was selling Christmas trees. NBA Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban’s first job was selling garbage bags. Las Vegas Sands Corporation CEO Sheldon Adelson’s first job was selling newspapers. Groupon co-founder Eric Lefkofsky’s first job was selling carpets. And Elon Musk, the founder of Telsa Motors and PayPal, started his working life writing video games.

From their humble beginnings, all of these self-made billionaires have changed course scores of times. The infographic below, generated by San Francisco-based startup organization Funders and Founders, shows just how many different businesses these legendary entrepreneurs launched.

Funders and Founders also analyzed all 1,426 billionaires in the world. From there, the company segmented out the 960 that are self made and determined that 830 of them earned their wealth from more than one business.

As an entrepreneur, your job is to be one step ahead of the market, always ready with the next big idea. Whether you want to design a new product or disrupt a market, you need to be able to come up with creative solutions for problems of everyday life.

Creativity often eludes us because we're accustomed to certain norms. "We're highly socialized and have fixed assumptions about what the world looks like," says Barry Staw, an organizational behaviorist at University of California, Berkeley. "You have to try to envision another world."

To do that, Staw suggests a series of exercises, all designed to help you consider a wider range of options as you brainstorm.

As you do each of these exercises, resist judging your ideas for as long as possible. "A creative person is willing to suspend their caveats for a longer period of time," Staw says. The selection process can come down the road -- creativity requires freedom.

To flex your creative muscles, try these three easy exercises:

1. Re-imagine a familiar situation. To think more creatively, consider alternatives to obvious choices. If you assume that a restaurant will buy and prepare the ingredients for your meal, then make a list of other options. Perhaps the customers bring their own ingredients for the chef to prepare, or the restaurant provides ingredients that customers cook at their tables. "Think of opposites or radical differences," Staw says.

That exercise can lead to exciting new business ideas. For example, companies like Bag Borrow or Steal and Rent the Runway, which both allow customers to rent high fashion goods, started as alternatives to the assumption that we have to own our wardrobes.

2. Practice breaking the rules. "To learn how to act creatively, you have to violate norms," Staw says. Practice breaking the rules with harmless violations that might be embarrassing or uncomfortable, like asking to read a poem over the loudspeaker at the grocery store, or offering to help the usher hand out programs at a play.

It's okay if you get shot down -- the point is to get comfortable trying options that most people would rule out immediately. Staw calls these "lessons in chutzpah" because they help you gather the nerve to take creative risks. Just thinking of rules to bend promotes creativity because you force your brain out of its comfort zone.

You can also look for ways that others are breaking norms. For example, Staw's son discovered that teenage girls like mismatched socks, so he created LittleMissMatched, a colorful teen clothing line.

3. Make a list of things that bother you. As you go about your day, Staw suggests creating a "bug list," or a list of annoyances. You might list slow internet or noisy air conditioner units. "Usually, if something has bothered you, that means there's a hole in the service," Staw says.

By thinking of possible solutions, you may stumble on a product opportunity. For example, one frustrated inventor created a stemware tether to stop wine glasses from chipping in the dishwasher.

Courtesy: www.entrepreneur.com

From the medieval days when it originated as a way to show both parties came in peace and were weapon-free, the handshake has been tied to a person's word -- no more so than when used in business to make a deal.

While certainly not as concrete as a legal document, a handshake can be a legitimate way to seal a business deal. Just keep in mind that if it isn't followed up with an agreement on paper, each party must let the justice system decide what's what in court.

Protection, protection, protection

If you prefer the old-fashioned way of doing business, follow these tips, which could provide some protection, as listed by Legal Zoom.

--Bind the deal by having others witness it take place

--Follow up with an email, even if written as a thank you, with details of the agreement

--Keep any correspondence or other documentation that could be used as "evidence"

--Put the deal in motion immediately. Even if the other parties do not act honorably, their compliance can be used as indicating validity

A deal junkie who made billions on handshakes

For the CEO of Camping World, Marcus Lemonis, operating with a handshake is the only way. The self-admitted "deal junkie" built his $3 billion company making more than 100 such agreements, rolling smaller businesses into the brand.

"I don't know if there's an art to it," he said. "I'm a big believer that a person's word and handshake are the best signature you can have."

For the past 12 years, Lemonis has been investing in struggling businesses and taking charge to help them survive. Now, as the star of CNBC Prime's "The Profit," he'll put $2.6 million of his own money into turning around businesses around the country that need help.

How the deal goes down

Lemonis wouldn't give away all his tactics in approaching a handshake deal, of course, but did have some tips.

First, always walk in with a game plan and enough information to be effective, never asking a question to which you don't already know the answer.

Second, keep it basic. The more complicated a handshake deal becomes, the easier it is for the other person to say he did not understand the agreement.

"If you keep it simple and clear ... the only reason you get screwed is because the other person is lacking in character," Lemonis said.

Finally, discuss the essential terms surrounding the economic foundation of a deal: What the business structure will look like, who will pay what and who will get what.

"If I give you a dollar, what do I get for it?" he said. "If you can't agree on these basic terms, then there's nothing you can agree on."

Use paper to solidify a deal, not hinder it

Besides his personal preference for the handshake deal, Lemonis dislikes walking into an initial meeting with a written document because it can weigh down the negotiation. Fluidity is essential to adjusting on the fly, as circumstances can change if a seller's request is reasonable.

"Maybe you'll understand their tax situation better, or their family dynamic, or even the emotions they tie into their business," he said. "If you walk in with a written document it can get visceral real fast." He does get each deal down on paper with an attorney, typically within a week.

Lemonis will never stop doing business this way, he said, though he acknowledges having been burned a few times.

"My attorney hates that I do deals on handshakes because you can get screwed," Lemonis said. "But if someone is intent on screwing you, they're going to do it whether you have it down on paper or not."

When a deal goes bad

Lemonis recalls a deal he made with a business that was set to close its doors last Christmas Eve. He wrote a $125,000 check so the owner could make payroll and settle with its vendors.

"Four days later, they sent me an email and said, 'We don't know what you're talking about. We don't know you. Don't come to our business anymore.' "

Such an occurrence is rare, Lemonis said, and he refuses to let it ruin future deals, saying some people are just bad.

"At the end of the day you have recourse, but it's expensive and time consuming, and it's just bad energy," he said."What am I going to do? Spend $100,000 chasing $100,000?"

Don't be misled: Lemonis takes such an event seriously and stresses that no one should confuse his kindness with weakness. He just realizes that no one is right 100 percent of the time. Rather than dwell on the deals that went wrong, this deal junkie finds it best to move onto 

the next one.

Courtesy:www.entrepreneur.com