Episode 39 Don’t let self-doubt set in; build as little as possible.

Writers are told, “Write what you know” for entrepreneurs it’s not quite that simple. When you are starting a business you are imaging something that has not been done before, or at least not in the way you are contemplating your business vision. This applies even if you are considering a consulting or coaching business, there may be many similar businesses out there but yours will be unique because you will bring your particular skill sets and unique personality to the table. Unfortunately this is when many aspiring solopreneurs decide that building a business is not for them. Although they have the passion they let self doubt set in. They convince themselves they do not have the hard skills they need to be successful.  Let me tell you a secret, every entrepreneur has doubts that their business with be successful. Even the most successful were not sure of success when they launched. Jeff Bezos of Amazon told his investors he thought that Amazon had about a 30% chance of succeeding.

You do not need a team, money or degree to start building your business. Remember you do not learn and then start, you start and then you learn. 

Episode 38 Start with Community

Sahil Lavinga starts this chapter with a story about entrepreneur Sol Orwell who, in 2009, was overweight and unhappy. He decided he needed to learn more about fitness and nutrition. He joined a Reddit community and the more he learned about the subject, the more he shared, he answered questions and posted about his personal journey of losing sixty pounds (27KG). Working with co “Redditor” Kurtis Frank, they built a community of 50,000 members. Kurtis and Sol noticed a common theme, many questions were raised around the subject of nutritional supplements. In 2011 together they launched Examine.com, they did not sell anything, just provided information. In 2013 they began to think about monetizing. By asking their audience Kurtis and Sahil identified a need for a single reliable source of information about supplements available in the market. They launched Research Digest a full four years after Sol started posting on Reddit. The launch exceeded their expectations, all built on reputation, trust, and word of mouth. As Sahil puts it, Sol is now healthy happy and wealthy all because he built a community, served its needs, and developed a business.

Episode 37 Are you a Minimalist Entrepreneur?

Introduction:

Sahil Lavingia started his career chasing unicorns. He joined Pinterest as employee number two but left before his stock invested to build his own billion company: Gumroad. A tool to help creators sell their products online. Simplicity was key, no complicated setup, no elaborate storefront. Just a link for customers to pay and you are in business. Fifty thousand people visited the site on the first day and Sahil felt he was on the cusp of something big.

Gumroad never did become a unicorn, after burning through $10 million of investor’s capital, growth plateaued, attempts to raise additional capital failed. Three quarters of the company’s staff were laid off including many of Sahil’s good friends. From the perspective of Silicon Valley, and in his own eyes, Mr. Lavinga was a failure.

A move from San Francisco to Provo Utah enabled Sahil to change his perspective. Gumroad was a sustainable business, thousands of creators were using Gumroad to build their own businesses. Real people in the real world were paying their mortgages, their kid’s college funds or simply making pin money selling stuff online. By most people’s estimations Gumroad and Sahil Lavinga were a success. By changing his environment from the white-hot environment of San Francisco to the much more conservative atmosphere of Provo Utah it became clear that many more entrepreneurs want to build a sustainable business that matched their values and gave them a lifestyle they found satisfying rather than chase the elusive unicorn.

Episode 36 Continually reinvent yourself – Think in Waves.

That you cannot do it all at once is obvious, nor should you try if you are playing the long game. But do not fall into a trap that many professionals fall into. Which is finding an activity you are good at, and simply keep doing that forever. This leads to frustration as you begin to feel you have plateaued. Often this is because they have overplayed their strengths and ignored areas where they are weak, or they are afraid to take a chance on something new.

Heads Up, Heads Down.

Articulated by Jared Kleinert an Atlanta based entrepreneur. Heads Up, Heads Down provides guidance on how to avoid the shiny object syndrome, the difficulty many of us face in avoiding chasing the next big thing. There is no shame in trying other things, but only when you are in Heads Up mode, where you are looking for opportunities, But not when you should be Heads Down mode, the time when you are focused on execution, getting stuff done. Doubling down on what is working or investing time on a possibility you have not yet fully vetted its true potential.

A different approach to the same concept advocated in his book The Long Game is thinking in waves. Dorie Clark has identified four waves that can lead you to becoming a recognized expert in you field. They are Learning, Creating, Connecting and Reaping. By transitioning through these four phases, smoothly will keep you growing, developing and moving forward. Avoid hanging onto one wave for too long which will lead to frustration and lack of progress, Learning, as its name implies, is the phase when you are learning all you can about the topic you are interested in or focused on.

Learning your craft is an essential first step, but if you want to be recognized for the unique contribution you can make, you need to move onto the second wave creating. Take what you have learned, consider what seems right to you, and what seems to be wrong. By sorting and sifting the information through the lens of your experience and knowledge you will develop content that is unique to you. This could be in the form of a newsletter, a blog, or a podcast. Likely they will not attract a lot of attention at first, but if your content is compelling then your audience will grow.

Connecting. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know that’s important, is a well know phrase. Building a network is crucial for the solo entrepreneur. When you start out your initial enthusiasm to create content will sustain you for a while, but if after 3 or 6 months with little visible progress how do you keep going? Connections will help you discover new ideas, expose you to new communities, and provide general encouragement. Playing the long game will result in you building up more and more valuable connections over time. The fourth and final wave is Reaping. You have learned your craft, you have created content and made connections. It’s taken some time but now you are recognized as an expert in your field. Let the good times roll, you command higher fees, you are in demand and you making a good living. But are you as good as you can be? Reaping is not your final destination. What delivered success in the past will not deliver success in the future. It’s time to start the four waves from the beginning and to re-invent yourself. This is the long game, you are not ready for retirement just yet.

Tags: How to grow a business, achieve business success, employee individualism, self-assessment, motivation, the successful entrepreneur, business common mistakes small business start-up; avoid these common mistakes; IBGR.network, Jeremy Gray, Practical Solutions to Difficult Problems

Episode 35 Taking the Long Game View – Making the impossible, possible

When setting objectives for our careers whether entrepreneurial or corporate we often default to monetary objectives. That’s why business degrees are so popular, they appear to offer a more direct route to well-paid employment. But one of the best aspects of being an entrepreneur is that you can focus your activities on what interests you. Dorie Clark calls it optimize for interesting.

Do not be constrained by what is possible now. Think about where you want to be in the future.

Twenty percent time – find the time to experiment.

3M allowed its employees 15% of their time for experimentation, which famously led to the Post-it note. Google went one step further “We encourage our employees, in addition to their regular projects, to spend 20% of their time working on what they think will most benefit Google” Of course this became known as 120% time, as that 20% became additional to normal working hours.

You will have read the research that the human brain is not suited to multitasking. If you are on a Zoom call and writing e-mails at the same time you are not giving full attention to either. But there are some tasks that are complementary where multitasking can save you time. Such as eating lunch and listening to audio books. If you take public transport to work you can read a book that motivates you. If you drive another opportunity to listen to new ideas. Dorie Clark states that he has found an additional 29% of time this way.

Do not be afraid to think in decades. There is a well-known saying that we overestimate what we can achieve in day, but underestimate what can be achieved in a year. Think about where you could be ten years from now.

No one is going to hand you development opportunities on a plate. You need to seek them out proactively.

Consider devoting 20% of your time to explore new areas. That’s enough time to get a good sense of whether you will enjoy something and whether it has the potential to get you where you want to be. But not so much of an investment that it would ruin you if it did not work out.

The best time to start something new is when you are in a strong position. Do not wait until you are in trouble to look for the next thing – begin planning now. ​ Tags: How to grow a business, achieve business success, employee individualism, self-assessment, motivation, the successful entrepreneur, business common mistakes small business start-up; avoid these common mistakes; IBGR.network, Jeremy Gray, Practical Solutions to Difficult Problems

Episode 34 To find success, learn the power of no.

When Nancy Reagan, wife of then President Ronald Reagan was visiting a primary school in California she told the kids “Just say no” to drugs. This was later used as a slogan in the campaign against drugs in the US during the early 1980s. But as we know many people have difficulty saying no to drugs, and many entrepreneurs have difficulty saying no to requests for meetings, to speak at events, to write a guest blog, anything to raise their profile.

Why is it hard to say no? It is flattering to be asked to speak at a conference, even more flattering to be asked back again. We get a sense of pride from being asked to meet up with someone, to be in demand. And there is that nagging doubt if I turn down this invitation will I be missing out on a plum assignment or opportunity. FOMO: Fear of missing out.

You will have no problem turning down obvious time wasters, or saying yes to clear opportunities, would you like to speak at our conference? We will pay first class flights, five star hotel and $20,000 for the day. It’s in the middle that we can get into trouble. The offer to speak without pay at a high profile conference where potential clients may be present, doing a podcast for an internationally recognized company, doing a favor for a colleague who may be able to help you out later.

Knowing it is hard to say no to such requests, set some rules for yourself. Do not rearrange your schedule to accommodate the meeting, insist on a time and location that is convenient for you. If they are that anxious to meet you they will be to accept this arrangement Do not meet people just because they ask. Insist on knowing why they want to meet, what is their objective for the meeting. And then decide if it is worth your time. Asking for additional information will weed out a lot of requests, you will find once they have to do some work, i.e. take the time to explain the purpose of the meeting, a lot of folks lose interest. Unless you are wildly enthusiastic about a pro bono opportunity, asked to get paid. Your time is one of your most valuable assets, why give it away?

Choose what you are bad at.

As a startup or newbie solopreneur there is a strong temptation to be all things to all potential clients, this is the path to mediocracy. No one wants to admit they are bad at anything within their area of competency but by consciously choosing what you are bad at will, paradoxically increase your chances of success.

An example provided in Dorie Clark’s book is of a bank that decided to commit itself to be open at hours convenient to its customers. This is an expensive undertaking. How did the bank achieve its goal, it chose to be abysmal at paying interest on deposit accounts. If asked, would you like lousy returns on your investments, most investors would say no. But to the customer segment served by the bank, convenient hours more than outweighed the lack of return on their money.

Being focused is the key to success to any business or solo entrepreneur. Saying yes to everything means being average at everything. What are you going to chose to be bad at? What are you going to say no to?

Use a checklist

Check lists work, they are mandatory for pilots or doctors preparing for an operation. When evaluating whether to say no Dorie Clark suggest you ask the following four questions:

What is the total time commitment? What is the opportunity cost? What is the physical and emotional cost? Would I feel bad in a year if I did not do this? ​ Jeff Bezos had an excellent position and outstanding career prospects when he quit his job to found Amazon. He knew if he did not try to launch his business he would always regret it. Even though he only estimated his chances of success at 30%. But most opportunities you are offered, if you do not accept them, a year from now you will likely not even remember them.

Episode 33 Are you too busy to be successful?

Rejection is part of every entrepreneur’s life. The proposal that is not accepted, the call that is not returned, the blog does not instantly go viral, the client who terminates a contract. But if you believe social media, stories in the press, courses that offer instant income, you could feel that everyone else has the secret to success figured out and only you are struggling to gain traction.

Maybe you tell yourself that you need to work harder, put in longer hours, expand your social media presence, start podcasting, writing a blog. These take time, as it is likely you are hustling as hard and as fast as you possibly can. You do not have time to breathe let alone think. Even though you know it's not right you focus on execution and the short term.

What can you do about it? Dorie Clark suggests you adopt strategic patience. Strategic patience is the ability to do the work without any guarantee of success, to toil without accolades, or recognition. To accept that things will take longer than you expect. It is writing that blog when no one reads it, to test your ideas and eventually develop a following. You will not be able to see progress on a weekly, monthly, or maybe even on a yearly basis. Big goals are not achievable in the short term. But most things can be achieved in the long term and your efforts will not be incremental, eventually they will be exponential.

The first step is clear the decks and create White Space for yourself.

Ask yourself

David Allen, author of the well-recognized productivity guide, “Getting Things Done” says “You do not need time to have a good idea, you need space. And you cannot think appropriately if you do not have space in your head”

Episode 32 What skills are needed for an innovative entrepreneur? Part 2

5 Strategic Thinking Strategic thinking encompasses any skills that enable you to use critical thinking to solve complex problems and plan for the future. These skills are essential to accomplish business objectives, overcome obstacles, and address challenges—particularly if they’re projected to take weeks, months, or even years to achieve. Strategic thinking skills include:

• Analytical skills: To ideate a strategy that helps your organization reach its objectives, you must be capable of analyzing a variety of inputs—from financial statements and KPIs, to market conditions, emerging business trends, and internal resource allocation. • Communication skills: Putting a strategy into place for your company, regardless of its size, requires solid communication skills. The ability to communicate complex ideas, collaborate with internal and external stakeholders, build consensus, and ensure everyone is aligned and working toward shared goals are all central to strategic thinking. • Problem-solving skills: Strategic planning is often used to solve problems or address challenges, such as missed financial targets, inefficient workflows, or an emerging competitor. Implementing a strategy that addresses the central challenge you face requires you to first understand its scope and potential solutions. From there, you can craft a strategy that solves it. • Planning and management skills: Strategy isn’t just about thinking of a solution— it involves implementation, too. Once data has been analyzed, the problem is understood, and a solution has been identified, you need strong planning and management skills to bring everything together. The advantage of having a strategic mindset is learning how to think rather than what to think. Although you might not always have the right answers, strategic thinking skills can enable you to spot new opportunities, address emerging challenges, and plan for success. 6. Negotiation Building a company requires engaging in negotiation with potential investors, early employees, and prospective partners. As you work to get your business off the ground, it’s vital to know how to create value and overcome differences to form lasting partnerships.

The entrepreneurs behind Unshrinkit, a product that unshrinks wool garments, recount how they used negotiation skills to close a deal with their supplier Sourcentra. After reaching an oral agreement, Sourcentra sent Unshrinkit a written contract with modified terms because its CEO felt his company was assuming too much risk.

Instead of taking a contentious approach and bargaining over contractual obligations, Unshrinkit’s founders focused on the CEO’s motivations to salvage the deal. They emphasized how the partnership would allow them to grow their company, which spoke to the CEO’s entrepreneurial background and desire to help small business owners. By appealing to the CEO’s emotions, the team was able to convince him to proceed with the partnership and reach a favorable agreement.

How to Create Value in a Negotiation 1. Build Trust Trust is a foundational component of any effective negotiation strategy. Deal-making comes with an inherent level of risk, making it vital to build a rapport with the other party.

2. Find Uncommon Ground Value creation requires focusing on areas where you and the other party have different interests and perceptions, rather than commonalities.

“It’s not a matter necessarily of finding things you agree on but things that you disagree about,” says HBS Professor Mike Wheeler, who teaches Negotiation Mastery, in an HBS Online video. “That could be the value of something. You might treasure something you own, but somebody else is just nuts about it. You ought to be able to make a swap there.”

3. Be Agile Being a successful negotiator involves knowing how to think on your feet and be agile.

Episode 31 What skills are needed for an innovative entrepreneur? Part 1

1. Basic Financial Skills

It’s also imperative to know how to read and prepare financial statements. Aside from being required for reporting and tax purposes, these documents help you track performance, make future projections, and manage expenses. They can also be useful to investors and banks considering funding your startup because they show your business’s financial progress.

2. Networking

• Co-workers

Identify and reach out to people who can guide you in your entrepreneurial journey and inform your decision-making. Ask them about their business, how long they’ve been in their industry, and lessons they’ve learned from successes and failures. Perhaps they’ve started several companies and can offer valuable advice about raising funds, developing products, and building a client base. They may even be able to connect you to professionals in their networks whose work aligns with yours.

In addition to leveraging your network, expand it. You can do so by signing up for networking events or using LinkedIn to find professionals with whom you have shared connections, similar interests, and job titles.

3. The Ability to Accept and Act on Feedback

One way to gather feedback is by conducting interviews with potential customers from your target market segment. These interviews

can validate your business idea and provide constructive criticism regarding your product, proposed business model, or assumptions you’ve made about users.

You may also receive feedback from investors, more experienced entrepreneurs, and friends and family. Some of it may be unsolicited. You’re not required to implement all of their advice, but it’s beneficial to consider it. Would their suggestion increase the quality, value, or user experience of your product? If the answer is yes, take steps to make those improvements.

Don’t Fool Yourself

He points out that willful blindness to customers’ negative feedback can lead to costly mistakes.

“If an entrepreneur puts truth first, they’ll always find a way to solve the problem,” Osher says. “Putting your personal feelings and passion for the product ahead of the truth is a recipe for failure.”

Episode 30 Deciding to pursue entrepreneurship

1. Is Now the Right Time to Start a Business? Your idea may never take off if you try to start your business at an inopportune time. Are you currently in a position to pursue entrepreneurship? Consider your relationships, financial well-being, and physical health.

On the flip side, perhaps you’ve recently been laid off from your role in corporate finance. This turn of events could spark an ambition that can be poured into starting your new venture, backed by your professional experience.

Also, consider if the timing is right in the broader economy and the specific market you want to enter. You should ensure your offering meets a current need.

2. Do You Have a Business Idea, and Is That Idea an Opportunity? When starting your business, you need to know what you plan to sell. If you haven’t fleshed out those details yet, brainstorm using the following prompts:

• Why does it take so long to? • Why does cost so much? • Can I deliver with a new business model? • What can I change about to improve it?

Your idea doesn’t need to be a new invention—it simply needs to fill an unmet need. If you have an idea for an original product, that’s great, but an improvement to an existing product’s cost, production, functionality, or accessibility can go a long way.

You should also determine whether your business idea is a viable opportunity. Opportunity is defined as “a proposed venture to sell a product or service for which customers are willing to pay more than the required investments and operating costs.”

To find out if your idea is an opportunity, first come up with a hypothesis. Next, test your hypothesis by conducting market research.

Sahlman recommends reaching out to strangers from your target market segment, rather than friends, family, and colleagues, who may sing false praises. The feedback you receive can inform if your hypothesis was correct or whether you need to test other ideas.

3. Are You Prepared to Pivot and Adapt? Entrepreneurship is an iterative process. If you know that absorbing new information and pivoting when ideas fall flat aren’t your strengths, develop those abilities before becoming an entrepreneur.

Say you produce pull-up bars, and 75 percent of the people you interview aren’t willing to pay $80 for your product. Given this information, you need to adapt.

You test further hypotheses and discover the majority of your target segment is willing to pay the original $80 if the equipment is both high-quality and easy to install. This leads you to develop a new prototype, reassess manufacturing costs, and conduct another round of testing.

Your ability to frequently adapt—especially in the early stages of your business—is essential. 4. Do You Have a Strong Team, or the Ability to Form One? No successful entrepreneur got to where they are by themselves. “All great companies, even those with iconic entrepreneurs, had many other people who were involved and, without whom, the company might not have made it so big,”.

Apple is used to illustrate the power a team can have when growing a business. Co-founder Steve Wozniak was the mind behind the company’s early products and, shortly after its incorporation, Mike Markkula and Mike Scott joined as seasoned executives who proved themselves essential to the company’s growth. Co-founder Steve Jobs, who had previously been forced out of the company, returned when it was on the verge of failure and revitalized its products. Without each of them, and countless others, Apple wouldn’t be where it is today.

Keep in mind that successful business owners know when to ask for help and delegate tasks. Whether that means starting your business with a partner or two, building a strong team as you grow, or simply accepting any help and advice you can, know that your potential success relies on the strength of the people around you.