The Number 1 Rule for Entrepreneurship
A few years ago, I interviewed at Google. The interview process was lengthy and had a very corporate feel. I interviewed with everyone on the team, typical corporate stuff. Then the divisions heads came in and asked the hard questions.
A fews year prior, I had tried my stint at Wantrepreneurship. A friend and I had written a business plan, drafted a product document, and started pitching a business. There’s a huge difference from pitching a business and running a business. I think one of us even called ourselves CEO. At the Google interview, someone asked me what my greatest lesson from running a business was. I stumbled a bit and gave a half hearted answer because I didn’t have a good answer. I hadn’t run a real business.
What I know now from running my own business for three years is: the most important lesson is to get up every day, push aside all the distractions, and move the goddamn business forward, every single day. Do something, make a call, send an email, make a connection, send a pitch, follow up with prospects that guarantees you’ll be in business in a day, a month, a year. How do you know what to do? Tim Ferriss’ approach is to do the three things you most don’t want to do, first thing in the AM before doing anything else. Those tend to be some of the most important tasks. Everything else is secondary. Do it whichever way you can. It doesn’t have to be pretty, it doesn’t have to happen at 9 AM, you don’t have to play any politics and the best part is you don’t have to ask anyone’s permission. Just get it done.
You’ll find someone to take care of the accounting, the website is good enough for now, you can blog when you’ve closed more deals this month, put aside the potential pretty sounding business partnership, stop tweaking the business model and pitch deck and get some customers! You want to impress investors, get someone to pay for what services or platform you provide. Lose track of this rule, and you will get swamped in the incidentals that you might confuse as essentials. Do it enough days in a row, and you’ll be risking the business.
As Mark Cuban says, “Sales solves all problems.” Get out and sell like your life (or business) depends on it. It does. If you take that attitude, you’ll find a way to drive in revenue. If you’re not careful, busy work and distractions will suck up your life and destroy your business. If you don’t run a business, taking this approach will help drive your career forward as well.
What is the most effective yet efficient way to get rich? I read your answer on quora its best. I want know which books you read. Please share
Thanks, Rupesh. I’ll be posting this week about the best books for entrepreneurship and business. Sign up for my email list and you’ll get notified!
Hey, just posted the first a few posts on the best books on entrepreneurship and business. If you like the post, share it! Hope you enjoy!
Your blog is very inspirational and insightful. It is so easy to get bogged down in monotonous tasks that do not help whatsoever in the progression of daily, monthly or yearly goals. I look forward to future posts.
Thanks, Jeremy! Appreciate the feedback. My focus is create great insightful and original content. I read a lot of similar crap out there about business and entrepreneurship. Cutting to the chase with this blog!
Your blog is very helpful.
Read your answer on Quora on effective and efficient ways to get rich.Awesome post by the way.
Just subscribed to your newsletters.
Thanks for sharing
Mr. Evan, I’m looking for seed funding to roll out http://www.Entrepreneurs.co.in – A Career Network that connects you with the Indian Startup Community with Jobs, Co-founders, Mentors, Incubators, Accelerators and Investors and Startup Organisations.
Please connect if you would like to angel invest or can get me introduced to people who might.
have your own rules and lessons of entrepreneurship? If so, please share them in the comment section below. I know we have other readers who would love to hear your thoughts.