With one of my businesses I was struggling to close deals. The sales cycle was long, it was difficult to get to the top of the buyer’s priority list, and initial excitement faded to unresponsiveness. This was somewhat of a niche industry and I did not have colleagues to turn to for support. What I… Continue reading Three ways to connect with your industry peers
Category: Business
Use the five whys to get to your value proposition
For one of my products I was getting getting polite interest but not turning any leads into customers. That is a recipe for a failed business. I knew that the product was a good one that would allow the leads to make a huge jump with their business in terms of retaining existing customers and… Continue reading Use the five whys to get to your value proposition
Consume less. Create more.
Today is the first day of National Novel Writing Month which is where thousands of people set a goal to write a novel during the month of November. How you get there is up to you but many set a goal of writing at least 1,000 words a day. I fully intend to take part… Continue reading Consume less. Create more.
Network up. Niche down.
I love podcasts and one of my three favorites is the Tropical MBA podcast. (In case you were wondering my other two favorites are Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders and Startups for the Rest of Us.) In one of their episodes they said something that has stuck with me for years: Network up. Niche down. I love… Continue reading Network up. Niche down.
Developing an idea for a business
Often wanna-be entrepreneurs place too much emphasis on the idea and not enough on the hard work that follows. However the idea is not to be discounted. It is the zygote that grows into your business. I specifically used the word “developing” in the title of this post rather than “finding”, “thinking of”, or “creating”.… Continue reading Developing an idea for a business
Three places clutter kills concentration
I’m pretty sure that people universally despise clutter yet almost all of us let it invade most parts of our life. (My brother-in-law is one exception as he keeps the cleanest house you have ever seen which is quite a feat with two children.) There is always something more urgent to do than cleaning. But… Continue reading Three places clutter kills concentration
Talk about your idea as much as possible
Creating something from nothing is a special process. Inspiration becomes an idea. An idea gets refined, work is put in, and eventually out comes something that creates value for yourself or others. Whether you are creating something for others or something just for yourself, I strongly urge you to talk to as many people as… Continue reading Talk about your idea as much as possible
The Worst Product Meeting Ever
The title might be some hyperbole but a while ago I listened in on a product meeting that was eye opening in the sense that the bureaucracy explains why the product is in the state it is in after investing substantial amount of time in developing it. It was also a cautionary tale for every… Continue reading The Worst Product Meeting Ever
How to set business goals for the new year
It is the time of year to set goals for your business. Some people are not the type to actually set goals. They have “wants” but those are different than goals. Wants typically are uninspired and very unactionable whereas goals are concrete and can be measured. You are a business superhero so you produce results… Continue reading How to set business goals for the new year
Building a Product vs. Building a Business
Today is the launch day of StartOpz (!) which is my new app that adds premade processes to business tasks such as expense reports, time off management, and invoicing. I hope to grow it into a sustainable business. I had some thoughts on that process that I am sharing here along with the wisdom of… Continue reading Building a Product vs. Building a Business