What does one more deal or one more customer really do for you? You may have been working your job or business for quite a while and are quite good at it. That’s great. The money could be good. It might be worth sitting tight and be a machine. Maybe the next 100 deals orContinue reading “Level Up”
Tag Archives: Entrepreneurship
Get Rid of the One-off Projects
A simple way to think about whether you are growing a business, in addition to productizing your services, is to stay focused on repeatability. There is no end to one-off projects you can likely get involved with and provide solutions for. However, there’s a lot of cost when you work on one-offs: Energy. You haveContinue reading “Get Rid of the One-off Projects”
Productize Your Services so You Can Scale
When you are starting a venture, and you don’t know what people will buy, it is a great strategy to say, “Yes,” to everything. I consider this part of research and development. The cost is that you get spread out and may have to work on projects that extend your energy or cost you inContinue reading “Productize Your Services so You Can Scale”
Optionality
When you have so much uncertainty in your projects, relationships and dealmaking, the fear of loss or desire for perfection can be inhibiting. I find it best to create optionality. Pick the path with the most options and keeping your choices open. This is especially true when it comes to creating opportunities. Choose projects thatContinue reading “Optionality”
You Only Have to be Right Once
Most things don’t work out. And that is the raw reality of business and entrepreneurship. All those people who were excited and did not call you back are just part of the flow of dealmaking. All those promising projects that did not materialize or play out could have been affected by factors outside your control.Continue reading “You Only Have to be Right Once”
Getting the Right Things Done
“I have come to learn that part of the business strategy is to solve the simplest, easiest, and most valuable problem. And actually, in fact, part of doing strategy is to solve the easiest problem, so part of the reason why you work on software and bits is that atoms [physical products] are actually veryContinue reading “Getting the Right Things Done”
Start and Grow a Low Risk Business
I heard from a friend that their big corporation just laid off hundreds of people. It could be from mismanagement, market downturns or simply another industrial age company ending their cash cow ride. It’s easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. If people don’t want what you offer, then your business is going toContinue reading “Start and Grow a Low Risk Business”
Find Businesses That Already Have Demand
It’s far easier to meet demand than create demand. I have been in businesses that are innovative and the proof of concept, go-to-market strategy and target customer all have to be identified. This approach takes a lot of commitment to discovery and gathering feedback. You have to see what sticks and makes sense to aContinue reading “Find Businesses That Already Have Demand”
You Need Strategy
Many times when we are working in the grind we get so busy that we can’t see the forest from the trees. You may be working hard, but your hard work may be on things that don’t contribute to the bigger priorities. It’s why having a regular and focused time for strategy keeps you fromContinue reading “You Need Strategy”
Design for Quick Feedback
“Everyone has a plan ’till they get punched in the mouth” – Mike Tyson The great thing about business is that you can test ideas quickly to see if what you think or want to do is valuable. Small tests done quickly to get feedback from customers will go a long way towards pursuing orContinue reading “Design for Quick Feedback”