Entrepreneur's Maze: Finding Your Ways

April 6, 2015, 7:26 pm

≪ Previous: Flaking Bad: Who can you trust?

Rats have been used in mazes for experiments and testing for over 100 years. These studies are used to understand cognition in rats. Using the studies, we have learned about motivation and psychology of humans and other mammals.

The startup journey is a maze in itself, and the entrepreneur making his/her way behaves predictably. There are always dead ends, shiny distractions, competitors who are more experienced and little tastes of success which keep the entrepreneur going.

In this rat race, it is wise to do as our rodent friends do:

Assess where you are and where you have been, to guide your journey.
Don't get too distracted by pseudo success.
Persistence will get you to the cheese.
There will always be others who seem to be doing it better. Be aware, but ignore them.
Continually remind yourself of your core motivation to propel you to the end.
Try to find hacks to go outside the box, instead of through the existing path!

What else has been in your maze? Let us know in the comments below.

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Is the Customer King?

April 21, 2015, 6:00 pm

≫ Next: Moot Parachute

≪ Previous: Entrepreneur's Maze: Finding Your Ways

Who knows better? You or your customers?

The answer is that it depends...

In a corporate role, or one in a large organization, market research consists of occasional focus groups or surveys, if at all. More often the decisions are made by executives who "think" they know the customer and can spot the opportunity. This is a crapshoot - sometimes the hunches are right, and sometimes they are painfully wrong. The worst part is that when the decisions are wrong, they can be a costly waste of time, money and company resources.

In a startup, many founders fall into a similar trap. They assume they know the market, or use their own opinions. These are most likely wrong! The successful startups all are grounded in insights about the market, and use that wisdom to guide the next steps. Some effective and inexpensive ways to validate ideas include interviews, and leveraging tools such as Amazon's mTurk.

Customer insights should bookend all product development and marketing decisions - at the beginning and and the end. Even if customers never expressly say they want "product ABC", as a leader, you have to read the hidden, non-verbal cues to uncover the truth.

What market research did you use in your startup? Share the details in the comments below.

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Moot Parachute

May 4, 2015, 5:44 pm

≫ Next: Customer Pipeline Dreams

≪ Previous: Is the Customer King?

I went skydiving about 5 years ago. The experience was not too different from starting a company.

Firstly, the anticipation runs through your system. In advance of skydiving you prepare yourself mentally and physically in the plane, strapping on the harnesses, and wondering how it was going to feel to jump. Similarly the excitement and groundwork at the thought of starting a company is exciting and intimidating all at the same time.

Next is leaving the plane. Whether you close your eyes and jump, or quit your corporate job and start your company the next day, the only way to do it is to GO. When a skydiver leaves the plane, the force on him is his own weight, and soon thereafter other forces completely out of the skydiver's control.

And then it is a blur. Your stomach churns, and you realize you can't focus on anything. The drag force of the air resistance increases as you go faster and faster.

After the initial moments of free fall, your velocity is now constant and you feel you are in a wind tunnel. As the impact and the pressure keeps building, you anticipate the pull of your parachute. Make sure you have one! In a startup, sometimes there is nothing to stop the free fall to the finish.

And finally, the parachute opens and you can finally see the horizon. You are on a giant swing and able to revel in your experiences as you gently land.

Have you ever been skydiving? How does it match your startup experience? Let us know in the comments below?

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Customer Pipeline Dreams

May 19, 2015, 6:18 pm

≫ Next: Limited Time Offer

≪ Previous: Moot Parachute

Tossing and turning? Trying to figure out how to grow your business, and you glance at the clock and see it is 4 am? Creating a self sustaining customer acquisition strategy is one way to feel more confident about the future and sleep easier.

What is a customer pipeline?

The purpose of a customer pipeline is the following:

Creating brand and product awareness
Generating solid leads
Converting the leads to sales
Maintaining existing customers and keeping them happy
Upselling and cross-selling

How to create a customer pipeline?

Identify your target customer and persona - often new businesses skip this step, and spread their net too widely. Extreme focus will land you lasting customers.
Identify leads that fall into the target customer and persona.
Categorize the leads that you have identified into short-term, medium-term and long-term.
Create communication tailored for the different categories you have created.
Execute on the communications and re-categorize leads if needed.
Tweak and edit communications, positioning, and offering if needed.
Convert leads into customers and continue process.

As we created a customer pipeline, we noticed the leads closed more quickly and seamlessly. Also, when we lost a lead, it didn't matter as all our eggs weren't in one basket. Also, as word spreads, leads beget more leads, and soon business is thriving.

Tell us more about your customer pipeline in the comments below. How did you create it, and how long did it take you to create it?

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Limited Time Offer

June 2, 2015, 2:33 pm

≫ Next: Forgo a Logo

≪ Previous: Customer Pipeline Dreams

What do you have in common with every entrepreneur big and small, successful and novice? Time. It is the one great equalizer in this world. Everyone has the same number of hours to play with, splurge, spend and invest in any way they want.

If you've ever negotiated with an investor, money is probably the lever. However entrepreneurs forget the other currency they can leverage: time. I know you've heard the phrase "time is money". It is true entrepreneurs are always grasping for time, and there is never any time. A few things to remember if you are constantly grasping for more "free time".

Don't squander your time on unnecessary tasks.
Time box your free time and your work time. Check out the Pomodoro Technique.
There is more time than you think.
Procrastination is a sign that your work may not be the right work.
Deliver earlier than planned.
Being busy all the time may imply that you are not managing your priorities correctly.
Say 'no' and see how it frees up your time.

Let us know how you effectively manage your time as an entrepreneur in your comments below.

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Forgo a Logo

June 16, 2015, 6:48 pm

≫ Next: Driving Change and Making Waves

≪ Previous: Limited Time Offer

In the first month of starting a business, the most important task is to validate your customer problems and find a paying customer.

For the wantrepreneur, however, the first task is usually something more fun like, logo design. What's in a logo? Some entrepreneurs have carefully selected their logos, and some have just used simple clip art. Others carefully craft their brand strategy before the logo, and some just choose their favorite colors. And yet others claim their logo is the reason for their business success.

As a new entrepreneur, it is best to find a very simple logo design, as it may change as your product evolves. Some of our favorite logo tips can be found here. 99designs and fiverr are fast and inexpensive ways to get a logo created so you can focus on the most important parts of the business.

Let us know how you created your logo in the comments below.

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Driving Change and Making Waves

June 30, 2015, 5:30 pm

≫ Next: The road not taken

≪ Previous: Forgo a Logo

Are you on the status quo train or are you driving change in your organization?

In a large company, to drive even the smallest change, an intrapreneur must align with countless stakeholders. Often the executives of these types of company are risk averse. These large companies got to be so big because of their existing business models and product lines. This is why driving change in these organization is like watching ice melt in Antarctica - it happens but it is a slow drawn out process.

In a startup, change is effortless. Even the simple act of being in a startup: answering a call, taking a shorter lunch break, talking to one more person, can change the course of the whole company. Initially entrepreneurs may want to change their vision based on all the feedback they receive. Remember to keep the end goal in mind as long as it makes strategic sense, because many other factors will constantly be in flux around you.

In both situations, ensure there are allies and influencers who can help you drive the change you are seeking.

Tell us about your experience driving change in your organization. What hurdles did you encounter?

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The road not taken

July 14, 2015, 5:45 pm

≫ Next: Do the Freelance Dance: A Solopreneur's Routine

≪ Previous: Driving Change and Making Waves

The road to success and the road to failure are almost exactly the same. -- Colin R. Davis

This quote surprises many new entrepreneurs who assume that the only two options are success or failure. They don't realize "success and failure" are actually one and the same path. The only distinction is the road to success is much longer.

A friend recently shared a story of building a product for the wrong customer. Eventually his team did pivot, and find a successful, sustainable business model, but it would not have been possible without first finding the wrong customer. "It would have been easy to give up and assume we would never be on the right path".

The added benefit of failure is that new entrepreneurs can learn from the failures from other entrepreneurs, and the cycle continues. This article helps us get an insight into famous entrepreneurs and their failures.

Let us know what road you took in the comments below, and if you experienced failure and success.

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Do the Freelance Dance: A Solopreneur's Routine

July 28, 2015, 5:50 pm

≫ Next: In Scope

≪ Previous: The road not taken

Excellent at web design? Can cook up a meal in 20 minutes? Have an ear for music and teaching? Aspiring freelancers everywhere, get your shoes on and start the freelance dance:

(To the tune of the Hokey Pokey)
You put your feelers out
Take the feedback in
Do some free work and,
Show it all around
You do the freelance dance and
Get a payment down
And that's what it's all about.

Many entrepreneurs got their start as freelancers. Freelancers sell their services for a fee or a rate. Finding these types of gigs requires a sellable skill, tenacity and patience.

To really differentiate, freelancers should find an untapped niche in the market and focus specifically on that narrow target market. Specialists often will find more projects than generalists - especially if the skill set is in demand. Some sites to find freelance projects include Odesk, Elance and Freelance.com.

Let us know about your freelance experiences in the comments below. How do you find your customers? Do you do the freelance dance?

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In Scope

August 11, 2015, 6:26 pm

≫ Next: An Entrepreneur's Iconic Love Story

≪ Previous: Do the Freelance Dance: A Solopreneur's Routine

What line of sight does a new business owner need? Deep into the weeds? Or out far in the horizon?

With a microscopic lens, an entrepreneur can look at what is working in his/her business, and what can be improved with processes and employees. Initially, the day-to-day minutiae for new founders require continued attention. A CEO of a startup recently shared that staying attune to the small details of her business gives her the confidence to sell products to potential clients.

With a telescopic lens, an entrepreneur can assess the vision for the future. Sculpting, molding and envisioning the long run for the company can inspire your employees and motivate them forward. A startup founder I recently chatted with, explained that it his visions differentiated his company from the competition.

Ironically, the best entrepreneurs need a microscope to do telescopic things, and use a telescope to do microscopic things.

Are you a telescopic or microscopic founder? Let us know the details in the comments below.

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An Entrepreneur's Iconic Love Story

August 24, 2015, 6:40 pm

≫ Next: Don't Drop the Balls

≪ Previous: In Scope

I recently had an entire conversation with a startup founder with a handful of emojis, some bitmojis, and a picture. As time is of the essence for founders, not a second should be wasted on non-essentials. Who has time to type out words?

An entrepreneur's love story can be portrayed in a series of icons:

Firstly inspiration hits and an entrepreneur must do all he/she can to woo the idea.
As the entrepreneur tries and tries to finds a customer, the sweat and tears change the love story into a tragedy as we are not sure if the entrepreneur's efforts will ever live up to the idea.
The entrepreneur gets it in his/her head that a sure way to expand the love for the idea is through investors.
The entrepreneur gets used to rejection and feels hopeless.
The entrepreneur's emotions go into a pit and he/she wonders if it was ever really true love with the idea? Perhaps it is time to give up?
When the entrepreneur is seconds away from giving away the true love of his/her life, the first customer materializes. The skies break, and the sun shines through.

What's your iconic story? Let us know in the comments below.

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Don't Drop the Balls

September 8, 2015, 6:04 pm

≫ Next: The Truth about Startup Lawyers

≪ Previous: An Entrepreneur's Iconic Love Story

New and experienced entrepreneurs need to learn the art of juggling. No longer just meant for circus performers, juggling requires skill, timing, and concentration.

Multitasking is one thing. But ensuring the right balance of timing, emphasis and effort for these balls are critical to the success of any entrepreneur. If any one of these balls is dropped, chances are the others come tumbling after:

Sanity - Don't let this ball drop! All the other balls are dependent on this ball.
Capability - Keeping this ball up is a challenge, but it is critical to keep this ball in the air to differentiate from the competition.
Agility - This ball usually comes right after the capability ball, as being nimble ensures an entrepreneur can adapt new opportunities.
Integrity - This ball is particularly fragile and none of the others are as precious as this one.
Quality - Sometimes this ball gets forgotten, but if it falls down, your customers will let you know immediately!

These are the most important balls, but perhaps we missed a few.
What balls are you juggling, entrepreneur? Let us know in the comments below.

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The Truth about Startup Lawyers

September 22, 2015, 6:31 pm

≫ Next: First Marketing Push

≪ Previous: Don't Drop the Balls

In your first startup venture you may not think be thinking about the about the legal implications of what you are working on. Your only aim is go and launch.

When startups are self sustaining and profitable enough to afford an attorney, that is good news. However it also implies that they are also large enough for dire consequences, if something goes wrong. Many small startups work with services like LegalZoom, but others prefer seeking out dedicated legal counsel.

Working with an attorney can sometimes be frustrating, as it seems the default response from him/her is "No! No! Not possible. Not legal. Too risky." After all the purpose of having an attorney is to protect you. The way to get around this is to ask your attorney the "What is the risk of not obeying their recommendation?" Then you can make an executive decision on what to do next.

Let us know about your experiences working with startup lawyers.

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First Marketing Push

October 6, 2015, 4:09 pm

≫ Next: Something old, something new

≪ Previous: The Truth about Startup Lawyers

I have some enterprising friends. Not a day goes by that someone isn't launching a fitness blog, a recipe channel, a consulting practice, or a new startup. Every week I get messags requesting me to "please like my Facebook page" and "send this link to everyone you know"! Many of the requests from my friends are not relevant to me nor will I ever be a target customer. I've even liked a men's weight loss page just to support a friend (I never looked at that page again).

As a wantrepreneur starts a business, he/she just wants visibility. "Like my page" validates their idea, but doesn't guarantee any sales. When we first started #entrepreneurfail, we were guilty of this!

Entrepreneurs on the other hand do not target their friends unless the people match their customer profiles. They do not focus on the mere number of followers on social media but rather the tangible sales. Entrepreneurs start building deep relationships with potential customers from day 1, instead of through superficial social media clicks.

Have you ever begged a friend to like your social media page? Let us know in the details below.

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Something old, something new

October 19, 2015, 5:58 pm

≫ Next: Fail on Sale

≪ Previous: First Marketing Push

Fear can be crippling.

What is your risk threshold? Do you make a list of pros and cons when you have to make a big decision? Are you trying new things at work or resurrecting all the projects you've already done?

In many corporate roles, trying new processes, launching new products, and driving change of any kind can be intimidating. Often the effort is just not worth the risk. The game-changers in the organization are up against "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

In startup roles, however, doing the "same old thing" is deemed risky, and often downright frightening. In fact, the best founders ensure that they are trying new things, because the risky path equals complacence.

Are you risk averse or are you always taking risks? Let us know about it in the comments below.

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Fail on Sale

November 10, 2015, 7:48 pm

≫ Next: Are we there yet?

≪ Previous: Something old, something new

Trying is scary.

When I first thought of a business idea many years ago, I brushed it aside. I can't afford to think about it, I thought. If it didn't succeed, I would have lost time, money, resources, dignity, promotion potential, and who knew what else. What I didn't realize is that not trying actually was digging the hole much deeper.

If you are worried about the cost of failure, you're solving the wrong accounting problem. Even though many flirt with the idea of starting a business, it is often too intimidating.

As Seth Godin said, "The tiny cost of failure... is dwarfed by the huge cost of not trying. This is news, a state of affairs due to the significant value of connection, to the power of ideas that spread and to the low cost of production. Delighting a few with an idea worth spreading, is more valuable than ever before."

So start trying. It's the penny-wise thing to do.

Let us know if you were scared to fail in the comments below.

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Are we there yet?

November 23, 2015, 6:26 pm

≫ Next: Perfection Selection: What would an entrepreneur choose?

≪ Previous: Fail on Sale

Ahoy! Stormy seas ahead. All hands on deck...

How are you getting there? You have two options for transportation. One option is the Entrepreneur Ship. But beware, there is no schedule! And as this boat never docks, so you have to leap on! The ship roams uncharted waters through hurricanes and typhoons, all without a life boat, map or a fixed destination. It is not for the weak-stomached.

The other option is the Gravy Train. This steam engine was meant for anyone who can't or doesn't want to make it aboard the Entrepreneur Ship. If you are not familiar with a Gravy Train, it is described as a "cushy situation where little to no work is involved". So even though you may have a challenging corporate job, it is nothing compared to the Entrepreneur Ship. The Gravy Train stays on the track so there aren't many surprises and the ride is slow and steady - making it great for sightseeing.

So how are you getting there? Let us know in the comments below.

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Perfection Selection: What would an entrepreneur choose?

December 8, 2015, 6:16 pm

≫ Next: Find your traits, entrepreneur

≪ Previous: Are we there yet?

"We can't launch! There are still a million things to do!"

Every entrepreneur at some time reaches a crossroad: he or she will have to choose perfection or choose progress. The best products and services are never done. Entrepreneurs always have to make that last optimization, that final color change, or the critical code edit. At some point though, the entrepreneur needs to say "enough is enough" and ship the product or service to customers.

The best entrepreneurs realize this, and always choose progress over perfection. A caveat for new entrepreneurs though - do not sacrifice the quality of your product or service. Quality matters to a customer. Perfection only matters to an entrepreneur.

Do you choose perfection or do you choose progress?

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Find your traits, entrepreneur

December 21, 2015, 7:49 pm

≫ Next: Interesting vs. Interested: Which one are you?

≪ Previous: Perfection Selection: What would an entrepreneur choose?

In the first 5 minutes of speaking to a person, you can tell if they are destined to be an entrepreneur.

Some traits just stick out, and others you have to dig deeper, look backwards, forwards, and diagonally.

In the "Word Find" above, see how many entrepreneurial traits you can find hidden in the letters. Here are some clues:

This is the trait that lets the entrepreneur see and plan for the future - VISIONARY
This is the trait that keeps an entrepreneur going, despite hurdles and challenges
This is the trait that means the entrepreneur is very motivated
This is the trait that was popularized by Steve Jobs, with Stay Hungry, Stay ______
This is the trait that allows the entrepreneur to think out of the box
This is the trait that prevents entrepreneurs from complicated things unnecessarily
This is the trait that is a result of an entrepreneur's fear

Were you able to find all the traits? Are you able to find all of yours? Let us know in the comments below.

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Interesting vs. Interested: Which one are you?

January 4, 2016, 5:20 pm

≫ Next: Ideation Stagnation: Don't Let Your Brainstorming Session Be Hijacked

≪ Previous: Find your traits, entrepreneur

"I do this. And I also do that."

If you are at a cocktail party or an event it's easy to spot the wantrepreneurs. They are the ones talking about their ideas, their products, their team, their potential. Rarely do they give a chance to let the other person share anything about themselves.

On the other hand, if you witness a conversation with the entrepreneur, you'll notice that the entrepreneurs don't say much. They are instead focusing on listening, and developing a relationship with anyone and everyone they talk to. They are genuinely interested in others and helping others and are always aware of who could be the key to their next opportunity.

Are you interesting or interested? Let us know in the comments below.

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