Posted originally on mrp as part of 60 DOD.

TLDR: Lots of words here.

Death. While it is inevitable - its mystery vast, like the deepest reaches of the universe - its dark presence cast a long, darker shadow over me….

Hah, just kidding.

I can write engagingly about things not related to death. I'll show you.

But first, to make for some smooth, easy reading, here's a table of contents:

Part 1…

  • Introduction.
  • Strengths and Weaknesses.
  • Your Mindset.
  • Starting a Business.
  • The Mechanics, Part 1.
  • Good Resources.
  • $1,000, What Would I Do?
  • Some Additional Pointers.

Part 2...

  • The Mechanics (And Perhaps Tools), Part 2.
  • A Content Business in 2020.
  • An Internet Business in 2020.
  • Auditing, Measuring, Understanding.
  • Scaling Your Business.
  • Quality Assurance - So Important.
  • Failing (Boo-hoo).
  • Succeeding.

Introduction

I would like to tell you that owning a business, or even owning businesses, and succeeding, is the most rewarding thing in the world and so, so much better than working a job, for someone else.

The only reason I can't tell you that is because I never experienced the latter. I've been my "own man" since day one. With that said, I can tell you that being a founder, a CEO, and starting, failing, succeeding, and running the show is an amazing experience. It's a great adventure, and you're the writer, producer, director, and star.

If you love what you do, if you love being in the trenches, then there's nothing better: getting paid, perhaps even handsomely, to do what you love and getting to do it your own way.

This is intended to be a very hands-on guide, with examples, and in part 2, if there's interest, actual tools and documents we use.

What's more, to facilitate your own business building, I will walk you through some of the things you should be aware of. Perhaps then you can avoid the multitude of mistakes and failures I did not avoid. Maybe you can do it bigger, better, and faster.

That's a beautiful thing.

Understanding Your Strengths and Weaknesses and Why It Matters

Spend time learning about your strengths and weaknesses. As MRP suggests, be honest and objective. Now is not the time for delusion. I'd get others' perspectives to answer these question for you, as well. In order to succeed, you must be honest with yourself, you must "lose the ego" as every tom, dick, and harry has already told you, and you must intimately understand what you're actually good at and what you're actually not good at.

Are you a sales guy? A problem-solver? A leader? A good manager? A critical thinker? A product guy?

Importantly, what aren't you?

Journal this a bit for a few reasons: first, you'll better determine where your focus should be; second, you'll understand where you need help; third, you'll have your first glimpse of insight regarding how you'll (potentially) sell yourself in the future, to investors, should you choose that road, or that road choose you.

What were my strengths in the beginning?

  • Highly motivational.
  • Strong problem-solving skills.
  • Natural sales.
  • Inspiring leadership.
  • I was willing to put everything into it.
  • I simply would not give up.

What were my weaknesses then?

  • Lack of discipline.
  • Self-delusion.
  • I was a stubborn mother-fucker.
  • Shitty manager.
  • No understanding of business fundamentals.
  • Missed deadlines often.

How have I progressed? Slowly.

Today, I still excel where I once did, but I am now the most disciplined mother-fucker out there, and while I may still have an outsized perspective of self, at least I'm aware of it, and more importantly, I'm aware of the downside and potential to be blindsided by such strong self-belief. What's more, I'm no longer so stubborn unless my gut tells me to be so, and I have a vast understanding of the fundamentals of business. I'm a very good manager, and profoundly obsessed with getting better every day, and I'd rather my wife chew off one of my testicles than miss a deadline.

Some of my inherent strengths have helped me immensely, though be aware that your greatest strengths can sometimes paradoxically be your most impactful weaknesses challenges. Perhaps the nickname I had, "David Koresh" indicated that I truly was a great motivator, inspiring leadership, and someone who'd never give up. Or perhaps, as one CTO told me, it simply meant that I was a "monster" and a "tyrant." I recently saw the documentary about Waco and I'm not so sure which is true.

My 25-year year education occurred not in a classroom, but in the real-world of founding, building, growing, failing, and succeeding with businesses multiple times. There are pros and cons to that. What I learned has been astounding: the depth, the broad strokes, the specific skills, all of it. That said, I wish, for instance, that I had taken, say, one business class, ever. I wish, too, I had learned earlier that the fastest way to get from one room to another is not to run charging with your head down to blow open the door, but instead, to simply turn the handle and walk through the doorway.

Wishes notwithstanding, I have no regrets. Nor should you. Regret is for assholes.

But it's important to know your actual strengths and weaknesses. I never went thought this exercise in the beginning and as a result, I did not play to my strengths and work on my weaknesses. Instead, I stubbornly "walked my own path" when there were plenty of better, smarter, more efficient paths to walk. What took six years - my first monumental failure - could have taken one.

How you can progress, much faster: Do this exercise, plan accordingly, and hire so that you can focus your efforts where they belong, avoid focusing your skills in the wrong area, and (1) automate or (2) delegate literally everything else.

Your Mindset

Do you want investors? Or do you want to "make a nice little business" or perhaps "have a side gig"? It doesn’t matter, the plan should be the same.

I'd encourage you to think that your primary goal is to sell your company within 36 months, for a lot of fucking money, and that it will require (and benefit from) investors along the way. Why? Because most businesses fail. If I recall correctly, for every one business that works, four don't. And I'm not talking about Teslas, Microsofts, and Googles. I'm talking about landscaping companies, consultants, mechanics, coffee shops, and the like. Your chances of failing are greater than your chances of succeeding. It's that simple. That's why you should be "into it" from the very beginning; no half measures and no half-assing it. Once you let half measures and half-assing into the equation, you're chances of failing some time grow that much bigger.

  • If you can pass muster at shark tank, your chances of succeeding are better.
  • If you can get an A-round in the door, your chances of succeeding are better.
  • If you can convince five smart guys to be on your board, your chances of succeeding are better.
  • If you sell your company, your chances of succeeding are better.

Why? (And this will sound a little familiar.)

Because…

  • You've put in the work.
  • You've addressed the fundamentals.
  • You have a good plan.
  • You (ideally) have traction.
  • You have a vision.

If you're in a position to (1) use your experience, (2) share your solid business plan, (3) show traction, and (4) convince others - then you already have some key foundational strategies built. You're one step closer to achieving your goals and building or selling your business, even if you never do have investors or actually sell.

Those "fundamentals" that savvy, accredited investors require are required for a reason, and no business should ignore them.

In my strong opinion, the single best resource out there for how best to get this right can be found by googling the brief for investors - find the N-F-X site - and paying particular attention to the section regarding traction.

By getting these strategies - to land money and sell - just right - you are in the right mindset - again, even if you don't get investors or sell yourself ever.

Ten years ago I would have told you that the mindset was (1) you have it, (2) you know you have it, (3) no one else does, and (4) that you were going to win, period. I still believe it and think it helps - I feel this way all the time - but that's not the right strategy for everyone, and further, I'm in my 40's now and understand that I can leverage that feeling while integrating sound fundamentals. If you have to pick one versus the other, sound fundamentals will always prevail.

I think you should go into things with a sober perspective. Of course, if you're in a really competitive, cut-throat environment, like I am, then you do need a big bite along with that bark. And the reality is, every business, no matter size, is in a competitive environment, and as the pandemic continues to unfold, automation keeps taking hold, and machine learning expands, the competition everywhere will get that much harder.

That said, I believe now is the best possible time to start a business. So much change, so much opportunity. It's a brave new world, and that world needs new ideas, new strategies, new services, and new products.

Starting a Business.

Starting a business can be fun, exciting, and adventurous. At the same time, it can be born of necessity, the outcome of negative circumstances, or - perhaps like many now face - the only chance you believe you have left since the job market is in deep shit.

From my experience, the starting phrase is highly rewarding, whether you succeed or fail. Most of my fondest memories come from this phase, the most memorable of all from this phase for those companies I founded, that failed.

Go forth with the following in mind…

  • Build your own "brief" as outlined above, focused on traction, and actually create every one of those items. Give yourself a whole quarter if you need to; skip the fucking pressure. Contrary to what every newb founder believes, no one's about to launch your product or steal your idea, and if they actually are, then you're ten-steps behind anyway.

  • Watch every single investor video at the brief site. Those are real-world investors telling you exactly what they look for. Don't build your company around what you look for, build it around what they look for.

  • If you rely on a paycheck, don't jump too soon. Put together a plan, implement a smart strategy, and test - before you go elsewhere. The "test" is the most important damn thing because it moves you from fantasy land - what you believe - to reality - what customers will pay for.

  • Read "Nail it Then Scale It" - while there are others of the same ilk - this is the best of them. Learn and understand and become intimately acquainted with its concepts, especially when it comes to that test I mentioned.

  • Find that minimum viable product (MVP) fast. The fastest, most cost-efficient, minimum product you can sell and succeed with. If it will take time to build, then simply create the messaging around it.

  • If it's a service and you can roll your MVP out the door tomorrow, examine the competition, and find your competitive edge. What differentiates you versus them? Build around that competitive edge.

  • Address the pain points the industry has. Even if your market is saturated, that does not mean that customers within the market are satisfied. Chances are they're not. Conceptualize your product, or build your messaging, or massage your service to play to those needs, those pain points, and those gaps in the market.

  • Test your MVP. Google AdWords is essentially the greatest vehicle for testing the world has ever seen.

  • Don't even have a product? Even better, because that means as a startup dude, you didn't fall in love with your product, didn't spend a fortune on it, and didn't end up frittering away time and money only to learn that no one else likes your stupid fucking product. Still test, just test a fake product, one that happens to not yet exist, and track your performance carefully through Google AdWords.

  • Don't skimp on Google AdWords and don't do it yourself. Get someone to help. That someone can be relatively inexpensive and found online, think upwork, fivver, etc.

  • Don't fall in love with your product. Your product is probably not even what you think your product is. Just ask Stewart Butterfield. He loves video games but I imagine he loves being a billionaire more. Twice. (And he's a Canadian like stoney, how 'bout them apples.)

  • Don't fear "your idea getting out." That fear is very common. It inflicted me early on. You lose much, much more than you gain by keeping things (painfully) close to the vest. Most of all, you lose perspective. Valuable perspective. Real-world perspective. Perspective that is not your own fucking perspective. Perhaps if you're an executive at google, ready to move to apple, then the advice might be different. But I'm confident you - dear reader - are not an executive at google ready to move to apple.

  • Read "Getting Things Done" while you're at it. The two most effective people I've ever hired both independently recommended the book to me, and while I'd already read it prior to those recommendations, it is still fantastic and something I revisit every few years. Your ability to be a successful manager will help you more than you can ever imagine. Dotting i's and crossing t's, while sounding boring, is the first step toward successfully managing people and projects - and unless you're planning to (1) raise money, (2) steal the money, and (3) abscond to the beaches of mexico - you're going to spend a lot of time managing people and managing projects. This book will help you improve every single day.

  • Focus on learning how to hire well. Hiring is so important it cannot be overstated. The most important part of hiring? Train well and fire fast. So many new business owners and gaytrepeneurs take way too long to let people go. One mistake? No problem. Ten? Well, he'll learn, right? Fuck that. Spell out the rules, and when they're broken, put it in writing. Break 'em three times and they're out the door. Make sure (1) your employment agreement and (2) your employee handbook spell these things out clearly up-front. Be straightforward as fuck with everyone you hire. Do the exact opposite of sugar-coating; in the end, employees will greatly appreciate it.

  • Finally, get everything in writing and be painfully clear up-front about everything. Leave nothing to chance, especially if you're going into business with an associate, a colleague, or a friend, or if you're getting money, or if you're planning to have customers. If you think you're being too clear and straightforward, be even more so. Ambiguity during the startup phase is not your friend, and in so many circumstances, the other side will win when it comes to a lack of clarity.

Avoid the following:

  • Perfectionism.
  • Pedantries.
  • Embellishment.
  • Ambiguity.
  • Self-delusion.
  • Ignoring everything else in life because your identity is now directly tied to the outcome of your business.
  • Incessantly telling everyone, at all times, about your amazing game-changing stupid-ass business.
  • Thinking you are right about everything, because, well, you're fucking not.

With some of the basics covered, things to pursue and things to avoid, it's time to dig into the proper mechanics needed to help your business thrive.

The Mechanics

Do you know how to build a business? Do you know what to measure? Do you know what to pay attention to and what to ignore? Do you know your leading indicators, your trailing indicators?

If you don't, no big deal. I had no fucking idea myself for the first ten-years of my career.

Alas, I'm going to tell you, show you, and give you some fun tools to play with - the latter part contingent upon getting any interest from our dear readers. So if you want hands-on examples of things I'm talking about below, let me know in the comments or by DM and I'll include them in part two.

As you surely know, the main priority of a business is to make money. Everything else is secondary to that, though the secondary elements can be quite important (help the world, feed the poor, produce sustainability, etc.).

But first, you need to make money.

You're going to need the proper tools to maximize your chances:

  • Bookkeeping - Xero is inexpensive and you'll avoid getting caught in the shitty-intuit-software trap.
  • Calendar - Easy - Google calendar or Exchange or whatever works, though it must be shareable.
  • Note taking - I live in the world of note taking. I notate everything, and because ideas can come at different and interesting times, I've setup my system to accommodate my needs. I am hooked on MS Onenote even though from a mobile perspective it is weak compared to evernote or keep, which I also use. And I have Google Homes everywhere - bedroom, office, home office, bathroom, car, etc. - your ability to jot down what you're thinking at any time is important - in this case, simply speaking your mind anywhere and at any time is uber-effective.
  • Basic office - Google Docs - Docs and Sheets - portable, mobile friendly, shareable, API available.
  • Project management - Basecamp, monday, asana, etc.
  • Comms - Something extensible that works everywhere - Slack is good - Microsoft Teams is probably good, too.

With these tools, you need to build the fundamentals, starting with the brief and the deck mentioned above, including financials (and recognizing that if you're a tech startup then they're often nothing more than a shot in the dark, so simply emulate the closest public tech company's numbers, or, even better, find a similar startup's deck online and copy their financials).

Once you have that in place, you need to focus on being organized, punctual, and methodical in your daily behavior and especially in your management.

What will you need?

  1. NDA & non-compete.
  2. Employee handbook.
  3. Employment agreements.
  4. Customer agreements.
  5. Terms of use policy.
  6. Management dashboard.
  7. Vision, mission, plan.
  8. Initiatives tracking.
  9. Agendas.

Those nine items represent the tools I mention above and you can operate a business with these. Be strict in getting everything in writing and make sure all your legalize serves its one purpose: covering your ass. I've spent a goddamn fortune on attorneys and have every damn sentence, paragraph, section, and document running on all cylinders to, simply, cover my ass.

More on the mechanics…

Starting on day one - and I promise this will make you a much better business man for the rest of your life - treat every single task as an opportunity to improve and build your future empire. What's more, allocate 20% to 30% more time to get the task done thoroughly, as opposed to quickly.

Instead of creating a task like this: Create a report.

Do the following instead: Create an AdWords performance report showing traction kpis (5-26-20)

  • Start date: Today.
  • Due date: Six days from now.
  • Description: Create this report to show leads, calls, goals, automatically compared to last week, last month, last quarter, and last year. Integrate between Google AdWords and Google Data Studio.
  • Dependency: Setup Google Data Studio account.
  • Dependency: Screencast in Loom.
  • Observers: Claudia, Tom.
  • Link: Agenda.
  • Tags: reports, adwords, data studio, loom, training, video, management.
  • Estimated time: 7.3 hours.
  • Actual time: TBD.

Why are you doing this as opposed to half-assing it, writing the task as fast as you can to get it done, and then simply launching into it?

Because (1) you need a report so that means you'll almost certainly need the same report in the future, (2) you may need to do this report this time, but you want to delegate it to someone in the future, so the Loom video capturing everything you do is the ultimate training session, and finally, (3) your goal should be to [a] automate and [b] delegate everything - so rather than treating this as a one-off task, treat it as an opportunity to build standard operating procedures (SOP) for the future, for the next time someone who's not you needs to get it done.

This methodical approach to getting things done, memorializing them, converting to training, building SOPs, and thinking ahead will take more time in the here and now, but next month, when you've trained a $5/hour guy to build the next report, follow the same SOP, or do something similar, then you've saved yourself a fuck-ton of time, and, beautifully, you are now scaling aka winning.

In that vein, there are two more important tools:

  • Zoom - for video conferencing - always incorporate video - and recording - to further enable training.
  • Loom - screencasting, to train and help delegate.

These tools help you be more effective and better enable you to focus on growing, reminding you again to (1) automate and (2) delegate everything other than what your company truly needs you to do.

In the next part, I will talk about quality assurance - which is arguably the most important aspect of scaling your company's growth - and how the ideas mentioned above tie into it.

So that' some practical every day advice - I'll go into greater detail on these mechanics (and potentially tools) in part two.

There are a few other things you can learn - I've bolded the really important ones from books and articles I've read over the years.

Books and Articles I've Read

  • Getting Things Done.
  • Nail It Then Scale It.
  • The Lean Startup.
  • Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion.
  • The Feeling Good Handbook. (Especially helpful if you're failing.)
  • Rainmaking Conversations.
  • Influence: Science and Practice.
  • Crossing the Chasm.
  • The Art of Delegation.
  • The Power of Business Process Improvement.
  • Capital in the 21st Century.
  • The Leadership Challenge.
  • Profits Aren't Everything, They're the Only Thing.
  • Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute.
  • Blue Ocean Strategy.
  • Learned Optimism. (Helpful for me when I was tackling anhedonia.)
  • Harvard Business Review. (This has been the most helpful for me.)
  • Agile Methodology. (My companies migrated all departments to agile last year, it's been a significant change.)

While I was a natural salesman, I never learned anything about sales or even business. So I also read scores of sales books from the old gurus like Zig Zigler. In my darkest of days after a business failed I ordered some Tony Robbins stuff, and while there was plenty of gaudy pageantry, it was extraordinarily beneficial. It's also a big part of the reason I believe so much in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and have made its practice a routine, daily, almost instinctive habit.

So with all this knowledge, how would I go about spending that $1,000?

$1,000 in My Pocket, What Do I Do?

Right off the bat, I'm breaking the rules and spending $10,000. But that's okay because my companies have deep pockets and the $1,000-to-$10,000 ratio, if not low, is legitimate and still stands for "spend very little to test and prove."

I don't have to envision a potential scenario because I'm going through this right now. This is precisely what I'm doing.

First, some background: A few years back, for a new company I raised 7-figures on an 8-figure valuation, convinced I could build a 10-figure company, and confident I would build a 9-figure company. Then, the crazy-ass disease I'd been dealing with morphed into damn-near-certain death and things, well, they… delayed… and…. progressed… rather slowly. However, I pivoted and although I was really kind of fucked for damn near three years, I have been turning it around and moving in the right direction with it, as my other companies have done surprisingly well and made insane progress.

Overall though, in every sense of the word, it has been a challenge.

But while doing so, like the aforementioned Stewart Butterfield, I stumbled upon something intriguing. A "business from within a business" - that itself had started from one of my other businesses - in the realm of machine learning, robotic process automation, and AI.

I dug into it, noted no intellectual property issues, no patents. Knew it was a big-deal.

So here is exactly what I'm doing - and I encourage you to copy this - this strategy incorporates 25-years of my experience into one solid play:

  • Building out a quick generically-branded website with a general name (not associated with any other companies I own).
  • Developing two marketing strategies: (1) Going after prospective customers in our industry who'd benefit from this, and (2) going after agencies in general who'd love to leverage what we're doing.
  • Running Google AdWords campaigns for both to prove that people will bite, in the following prioritized way: (1) Pay for something, (2) take the next step (e.g. I want more information), or (3) express interest.
  • Since I don't have a product built yet, and since it's not going to impact my actual companies, my team will simply reach out to buyers (and this is a goddamn great idea so there will be buyers) and tell them we cannot fulfill right now but to stay on our mailing list to be notified when we're ready. Then, these same people will also become my pilots - I'll iteratively build the product around solving their needs.
  • At the same time, develop a feasibility study by hiring a few external specialists to analyze a couple areas of our suggested product that do not yet exist. Four areas exist now, the fifth is not monetized and available only by opensource, the sixth does not exist outside of the original research paper. It's the combination of the six that represents our unique product offering.
  • File a patent application - this is not the balls-to-the-wall version that will cost me $50,000 - not yet justified to spend major dollars to be "real" - but it's holding our place in line.

  • Create a 30-second video showing the "product" in action - and not one of those stupid fucking cartoon character explainer videos. Those are juvenile, ridiculous, and to be avoided.

  • Put together a brief - just like what I referenced above - showing the traction associated with our pilot study campaigns, the results of our feasibility study for integrating all six technology paths, and the intellectual property patent data… and then raise money. (My guess: I'll get 5 million on a 25 million valuation - if the feasibility studies are favorable which may or may not happen.)

Note that I'm spending little money to test something on a small scale. You must get traction and move from "I believe people will buy my product" to "people bought my product" - or at least tried to - regardless of whether you fulfilled or not. You have proven the demand is there and that has extreme value.

Some Final Pointers…

  • Don't tell anyone how much money you make, ever. Except your grandmother. If your grandfather's dead, emigrated here with twenty bucks in his pocket, had a life-long dream, and didn't fulfill it… but you did… then you can tell your grandmother. Thankfully I learned the "don’t tell people how much money you make" mantra early. My family felt strongly that doing so is tacky and in poor taste. It's hard to effectively describe what an enormous downside there is to employees, colleagues, friends, family members, wives, and others, even having an inkling. It’s not good in ways you would never expect.
  • Prioritize your health and fitness first, and bake that into your business strategies and mindset.
  • Never stop learning. While I dropped out of college, the "education" I've had over the years has been more like 10 PHD's, 25 BA's, and 100 more of the BS. The real world, my friends, is where it's at. Avoid the temptation to become an over-educated nerd. Learning does not necessarily equal education.
  • Don't hire your relatives. Even someone like me, who has hired scores of relatives… well, I can tell you that it never turns out well. Sometimes you learn that quickly, sometimes it takes a long-ass time. But in my experience, it's 100% a bad idea.
  • Same thing for friends, and good god did I hire a lot of them. Early on - like dumbshit trump - I thought "loyalty and trust" were paramount - and essentially ignored everything else (e.g. experience, qualifications, expertise, etc.). Just like with family above, 100% of the time it ended poorly. Well, no, that's not true. There's one exception. One of my inhouse attorneys started that way - but what he does is very straightforward.
  • Don't fucking go into business with your wife. Holy hell, if you have done so already, please chime into this thread and tell me about it. I'd rather put a bullet in my brain than endure that torture but it's my understanding that dudes out there actually pursue such a strategy. Sheeit.
  • Don't express your political opinions to your customers, ever. If your customer base is all republicans, or all democrats, then you can make an exception. Otherwise, you'll turn off a significant number of prospective customers with your rhetoric.

  • Don't sleep with or fuck around with your staff, ever. In fact, you'd do well to learn all the goddamn rules about "sensitivity training" in general, especially in the particularly litigious good old USA.

  • Don't disparage your competitors. I can almost assure that you'll be the only one in your entire industry to take such a stance. There's a big group of people who appreciate that.

  • Focus on customer service and transparency. Mastering those two skillsets is better than the most amazing sales and marketing campaign you can create.

  • Be organized and hone your own fantastic management skills. If they're not yet fantastic, make them fantastic. I did. I promise you that being able to "manage" - you, your time, your projects, your tasks, your calendar, your employees, your outsourcers - and doing so with discipline - is vital to your success. And it's all about KPIs - key performance indicators. Remember, by virtue of starting a company you are diving into the CEO role, and a CEO without management skills is basically nothing, or, the wework loser live and in the flesh.

  • Always, always, always do what you say you'll do. Early-on, I didn't. I had my own vision of "time frames" and they were often at odds with reality's own vision of "time frames," usually by about 200%. People in the world of business absolutely love dudes who do what they say they'll do, every time, all the time. Conversely, dudes who don't get a reputation and that reputation is not a good one.

  • Finally, learn to separate up-time from down-time and don't stew over what's happening with your business. Your business is not you. A knock on your product is not a knock on you. And go into it assuming that in the world of business, people are assholes. All the damn time. Because I have spent my entire career working with high-net worth, megalomaniacal assholes, the ages of, say, 27 to 35 were challenging for me. These dudes are tough and I let them negatively impact plenty of weekends, vacations, trips across the world, christmas days, new years eves, and the like. And I took it personally and it really got under my skin. While I've grown out of being bothered by it, you would do well to never be bothered by it at all, from day one, and instead, view it as part of the process of living, growing, and evolving.

So that wraps up part 1.

I'll be posting part 2 in the next couple of days. If you have questions or comments, ask away.

Edit: Brief for investors is at thecompanybrief dot com and can also be found at nfx dot com.