Don't worry about other people. I use to get bogged down with that at the beginning of my company. I would see other people running startups that were getting more attention and publicity. I would think they are not doing anything. I am here slaving away 22 hours a day and think no one even cares about me. They are out partying on the weekends and, they are barely doing anything and being published in the media. And they are realized that behind the scenes, it's all a façade. Now five years after that, look what it came to, my 8-9 years of no one paying attention to me is now paying off.

Realize your strengths and weaknesses. Understand that the people around you really do have superhuman abilities compared to what you may have. You need other people and identify where people are strong, so you can synergize and make something bigger than what you are on your own together. That's a real thing. You can't do it all alone, so you need to find the right people to help bring something amazing.

You, Devin, are a consumer. If you were going to hire you to do the job you do. What would you look for and, what would you want to know? And I think we forget that we are consumers. We look at it as business owners, marketers, and the person building the thing.

One of the biggest mistakes I think we see is people thinking about intellectual property too late. They start to run up against those deadlines and lose out on some of those property rights. My biggest piece of advice would be to think about intellectual property early and often. Intellectual property is one of those things you can lose out on. And not just from the typical ways that we hear inventors and entrepreneurs complain that someone else is ripping them off. Sometimes they are their own worst enemy as far as making sure they are getting their intellectual property on time.

First and foremost find a mentor. Find somebody who has what you want, is going where you want to go, is willing to mentor you on how to get there, and listens to what they have to say.

I think it is always good for entrepreneurs to keep an eye out as to what the competitors are doing. Not a fear necessarily but, I think you need to be aware of other companies. Being a little bit paranoid about that is actually a good thing. That is one thing we always try to see if our product is differentiated enough and has enough defensibility in the market when we go talk to customers. I would say that is the most important area where we continue to stay focused.

First, don't give up. It's going to get tough. Don't think it is going to be so easy. And then get advice from people you trust their sense of judgment. You need mentorship. Be open to change your idea. Sometimes your original concept can change along the way. So be willing to listen to professional advice and don't give up.

Entrepreneurship is a journey. It never ends. It's not something that you can say I am going to be an entrepreneur today and, then tomorrow it's off. No, if you start entrepreneurship today, you are in it all of your life. It will never stop. When I am saying entrepreneurship is a journey I am also saying be patient. Don't believe all the things you see on social media. Most entrepreneurs are not that successful.

Think in terms of what your audience wants to hear rather than what you want to say. We all get so hung up on these are all things I want to tell people about my company, my brilliance, and my services. And instead, turn it into what are they coming to this for. What is the value that they want? And make that the first thing you give them.

Don't be shy. Do a lot of cold calling. The nice thing with cold calling is they don't see you on the other end. You can just smile and dial. Ask the silly questions. You can always hang up and dial the next person. So don't be afraid of cold calling. The next thing is to have an outlet. You have your 9-5, you have your family, your kids, your side hustle you're trying to do. So I say have an outlet. have a de-stressor. For me, it is snowboarding, so go snowboarding. Running, when you are doing the pirate run, have something like a stress ball with you. Do some meditation.