Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I still have trouble spelling the word, but I didn't let that stop me.

I've always believed that entrepreneurs are the unsung heroes of our economy. They're the ones who start the companies that create the majority of new jobs.

The term "entrepreneur" originally meant a person who led a military expedition. It has come to mean an innovative, creative leader who undertakes a risky venture in the hope of creating wealth and capital.

Eric Sevareid, the legendary radio and TV commentator, wrote: "Entrepreneurs are the lead players in the drama (of business). In at least four specific settings, their role is crucial. A new industry ... a new product in an existing industry ... the one who opens up new markets ... when, so to speak, the economic ground shifts ... The category of entrepreneur includes all the people who set out to change the corner of the business world in which they find themselves -- all the people, in a word, who push the system along its restless path."

Entrepreneurs are a distinct group. They often like to lead the pack. Fulfillment often means more to them than money. Entrepreneurs believe in making things happen. They are seldom content. They're constantly looking for new things. They have faith in their ideas and are risk takers.

In short, they aren't satisfied with the status quo. They need to improve, innovate and invent.

Actor Alan Alda, the star of the TV show "M*A*S*H," gave some great advice to his daughter: "Be brave enough to live life creatively. The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. You can't get there by bus, only by hard work and risk and by not quite knowing what you're doing. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover will be yourself."

Maybe you don't want to start your own company. Maybe you aren't ready to strike out on your own. Maybe the economic climate makes financing tough. Maybe you need a little more time to develop your idea. I understand that. I toiled for a few years at an established company to prepare myself.

But you undoubtedly want to be the master of your own career. You can let your entrepreneurial spirit come through whether you are your own boss or not. You can cut your entrepreneurial teeth at jobs that present opportunities for innovative thinking and management experience. Companies large and small will always find room for employees with attitudes and abilities that will advance their goals. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

Here's some valuable advice that's useful for anyone wanting to get ahead. You can apply these tips to your career and your life, whatever your path might be:

-- Network. The more people you know in your business and outside of it, the more sources of information, advice and support you have to rely on. The more you exercise your networking muscles, the stronger they get -- and the easier networking becomes.

-- Don't listen to naysayers. Some people will always say you can't succeed. Listen to everyone, but don't pay undue attention to "friends" with negative attitudes.

-- Think creatively. Entrepreneurs succeed by finding new solutions to old problems. Don't repeat what everyone else has already accomplished. Instead, look for ways to achieve something different.

-- Learn from mistakes. You're going to make them. Most successful people fail from time to time, but they don't let setbacks stop them. Commit yourself to learning from your mistakes so you don't make them again.

-- Be honest. No matter what you're engaged in, you need associates, friends, employees, investors and other stakeholders to trust your word. Tell the truth at all times to build solid relationships.

-- Be flexible. No matter how good your ideas are, or how committed you are to your goals, remember that things change. Be ready to modify your plans so you can take advantage of opportunities that present themselves.

-- Find a mentor (or two or three). Seek talented people willing to share their expertise and wisdom. You can't know everything, especially when you're starting out, so an experienced mentor can supply guidance that will help you avoid the obvious mistakes.

Mackay's Moral: Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won't, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can't.

In the "Peanuts" comic strip drawn by Charles Schulz, the scene is a classroom on the first day of school. The students have been asked to write an essay about their feelings on returning to school.

In her essay, Lucy wrote: "Vacations are nice, but it's good to get back to school. There is nothing more satisfying or challenging than education, and I look forward to a year of expanding knowledge."

The teacher compliments Lucy on her fine essay.

Leaning over to Charlie Brown, Lucy whispers, "After a while, you learn what sells."

Sales is the lifeblood that drives business. As I always say, there are no jobs unless someone brings the business through the front door. Career success often depends on your ability to sell a product, a service or an idea. No matter what field you're in, you'll sell better by remembering these key pieces of sales wisdom:

-- Satisfy the customer. There's a meat counter in the supermarket in my neighborhood. There are always three or four clerks waiting on customers. But one of the clerks always has customers waiting for him even if one of the other clerks isn't busy.

One day I asked him the reason for his popularity. He said: "The other clerks always put more meat on the scale and then take some away to arrive at what the customer ordered. I always put less on the scale and then add to it. It makes all the difference."

-- Show, don't just tell. A salesperson tells, a good salesperson explains and a great salesperson demonstrates. A company was selling unbreakable mirror glass and had a sales contest. At the awards banquet, they asked the no. 1 sales rep what his secret was. He explained that he had the factory cut him several 4-by-4 squares of the mirror glass. When he went out on calls, he would put one of the squares on the customer's desk and then take out a hammer and try to smash it. It wouldn't break -- and the impressed customer was sold.

-- Sell what's on the truck. Years ago in New York City, an Italian fruit vendor was teaching his son the basics of salesmanship.

"Don't tell people we are out of peaches," the father said patiently. "Ask them to buy some of our very fresh plums. Sell what's on the truck."

Many of today's salespeople could take the same advice. Don't spend a lot of time complaining about the current state of the product line, or describing products you can't deliver right away. Sell what's on the truck, and your customers will be well served with the quality products you can deliver to them right now.

-- Get in front of prospects. Every sale starts with a prospect -- a potential customer with an interest in what you've got to sell. Identify those who need what you're offering. Find out where they are so you can target your sales efforts effectively.

-- Profile your buyers. Your product should fill a defined need. Analyze the kind of people who might benefit from what you've got to offer so you can tailor your pitch to them. Do they already use something similar? Do they need to be educated about what you can do for them?

-- Get into the customer's mind. You have to tailor your approach to match individual buyers. Once you've targeted specific prospects, spend some time getting to know their personal priorities and professional preferences, and what they're looking for when they consider products like yours. You'll do a better job of selling to them if you focus on satisfying their requirements instead of your own.

-- Know when and how to ask for the sale. Author Murray Raphel offers these words of wisdom: "A 'closing' ... defeats your primary goal in selling: the lifetime value of the customer. You don't 'close' the sale. You 'open' relationships. Isn't the end of the first sale really the beginning of the next sale to the same customer?"

-- Ask for the order. I can't believe how many salespeople do everything right, but then they fail to ask for the order. Often that's the most important part of the process.

An insurance agent, a longtime friend of Henry Ford's, once asked automobile pioneer why he never got any of Ford's business.

"You never asked me," Ford replied.

Mackay's Moral: The hardest part of the sale is selling yourself to your customer.

October 1993 was the beginning of one of my favorite ventures: my weekly column. Twenty years of sharing stories and advice have passed quickly and have taught me many lessons about the nature of business.

Did I have a long-term plan in mind when I started writing? Only to provide the most helpful information available. As I research topics, I learn plenty myself. I've offered both successful and embarrassing stories from my personal experiences. I have drawn inspiration from readers who challenge me, and I am always delighted to hear that a particular column had a positive impact on a reader's career or life. Newspapers all around the country carry my column every week, plus 50,000 people subscribe to it for free on my website, www.harveymackay.com.

My favorite part of each column, as often echoed by readers, is Mackay's Moral, which sums it up in a memorable lesson.

I'm celebrating this milestone by highlighting 20 of the most important morals that have run with these 1,000-plus columns:

-- People become successful the minute they decide to be. A goal is a dream with a deadline.

-- People don't plan to fail; they fail to plan. It's easier to prepare and prevent than to repair and repent.

-- Practice makes perfect ... not true. You have to add one word: Perfect practice makes perfect. Amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they can't get it wrong.

-- They don't pay off on effort ... they pay off on results. A lot of people work very hard but never seem to make any headway. Always keep an eye on the finish line.

-- Knowledge does not become power until it is used. There are plenty of people who know it all but have never bothered to do any of it. Ideas without action are worthless.

-- I know that you don't know ... but you don't know that you don't know. Ignorance is not the problem -- it's not knowing we are ignorant that causes difficulty.

-- Your day usually goes the way the corners of your mouth turn. The most powerful single thing you can do to influence others is to smile at them.

-- Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it, you can never get it back.

-- The single biggest tool in any negotiation is the ability to get up and walk away from the table without a deal. Smile and say "no" until your tongue bleeds.

-- You don't have to know everything as long as you know people who do. If I had to name the single characteristic shared by all the truly successful people I've met over my lifetime, I'd say it is the ability to create and nurture a network of contacts.

-- It's never right to do what's wrong, and it's never wrong to do what's right. You cannot do business without trust.

-- Some people go around all of their life asking, "What should I buy? What should I sell?" Those are the wrong questions. Timing is everything. Start asking, "When should I buy? When should I sell?"

-- When a person with money meets a person with experience, here is what happens: The person with the experience winds up with the money and the person with the money winds up with the experience.

-- You will never get ahead of anyone as long as you are trying to get even with them. Helping someone up won't pull you down.

-- The biggest room in the world is the room for improvement. If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.

-- The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your arm.

-- There will always be a place in the world for anyone who says, "I'll take care of it," and then does it. Remember the 10 most powerful two-letter words in the English language: If it is to be, it is up to me.

-- Failure is no more fatal than success is permanent. You don't quit trying when you lose; you lose when you quit trying.

-- People don't care how much you know about them once they realize how much you care about them. Caring is contagious -- help spread it around!

-- We are judged by what we finish, not by what we start. And this seems like the perfect place to finish.

Mackay's Bonus Moral: Gratitude should be a continuous attitude. Thank you, readers!