WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.500 align:middle line:90% 00:00:00.500 --> 00:00:05.480 align:middle line:84% [SQUEAKING] [RUSTLING] [CLICKING] 00:00:05.480 --> 00:00:11.260 align:middle line:90% 00:00:11.260 --> 00:00:13.800 align:middle line:84% JOSEPH HADZIMA: OK, welcome to the last session 00:00:13.800 --> 00:00:15.760 align:middle line:90% of our six-session journey. 00:00:15.760 --> 00:00:18.500 align:middle line:84% The first part tonight is Bob Jones. 00:00:18.500 --> 00:00:21.268 align:middle line:84% And he's going to talk to us about something 00:00:21.268 --> 00:00:22.560 align:middle line:90% that I raised at the beginning. 00:00:22.560 --> 00:00:26.720 align:middle line:84% In the first session, I had a list of questions 00:00:26.720 --> 00:00:29.920 align:middle line:84% for you to think about if you're going to start a venture. 00:00:29.920 --> 00:00:31.920 align:middle line:84% Most of those were factual things, 00:00:31.920 --> 00:00:34.780 align:middle line:90% like do you need a corporation? 00:00:34.780 --> 00:00:36.420 align:middle line:90% How do you find a customer? 00:00:36.420 --> 00:00:37.720 align:middle line:90% Those sorts of things. 00:00:37.720 --> 00:00:40.940 align:middle line:84% But there was one slide that was about more personal things. 00:00:40.940 --> 00:00:43.680 align:middle line:90% Is this right for you? 00:00:43.680 --> 00:00:45.340 align:middle line:90% What does it mean for you? 00:00:45.340 --> 00:00:49.320 align:middle line:84% Well, Bob is going to explore that in more detail in just 00:00:49.320 --> 00:00:50.060 align:middle line:90% a moment here. 00:00:50.060 --> 00:00:52.460 align:middle line:90% So he doesn't need introduction. 00:00:52.460 --> 00:00:53.840 align:middle line:90% You've seen him before. 00:00:53.840 --> 00:00:55.660 align:middle line:90% And take it away, Bob. 00:00:55.660 --> 00:00:59.160 align:middle line:90% 00:00:59.160 --> 00:01:00.998 align:middle line:90% [APPLAUSE] 00:01:00.998 --> 00:01:03.830 align:middle line:90% 00:01:03.830 --> 00:01:09.110 align:middle line:84% Would you a-- let me get your presentation. 00:01:09.110 --> 00:01:10.590 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: I'm so wired up tonight 00:01:10.590 --> 00:01:13.370 align:middle line:84% that if there's a gravitational wave that comes by, 00:01:13.370 --> 00:01:17.270 align:middle line:84% I'm probably going to burst into flames. 00:01:17.270 --> 00:01:21.830 align:middle line:90% So good evening. 00:01:21.830 --> 00:01:25.150 align:middle line:84% I do have a talk for tonight, but before we 00:01:25.150 --> 00:01:28.742 align:middle line:90% get too far into it-- 00:01:28.742 --> 00:01:29.950 align:middle line:90% JOSEPH HADZIMA: There you go. 00:01:29.950 --> 00:01:33.030 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Thank you. 00:01:33.030 --> 00:01:35.270 align:middle line:84% I'd like to turn that around a little bit 00:01:35.270 --> 00:01:40.070 align:middle line:84% and actually ask you your thoughts about this course, 00:01:40.070 --> 00:01:45.710 align:middle line:84% because we've been doing it for a long time, and I actually, 00:01:45.710 --> 00:01:48.070 align:middle line:84% to considerable extent, redo every one 00:01:48.070 --> 00:01:55.510 align:middle line:84% of my presentations every year, which is probably a sign 00:01:55.510 --> 00:01:57.140 align:middle line:90% that I need medication. 00:01:57.140 --> 00:02:00.560 align:middle line:90% But I want to keep what's good. 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:02.900 align:middle line:90% I want to dump what isn't. 00:02:02.900 --> 00:02:06.220 align:middle line:84% And in the spirit of continuous improvement, 00:02:06.220 --> 00:02:10.259 align:middle line:84% you guys had choices for what you could do during IAP. 00:02:10.259 --> 00:02:14.840 align:middle line:84% And for whatever combination of reasons, you took this course. 00:02:14.840 --> 00:02:18.540 align:middle line:84% So I'd love to hear a few comments from you 00:02:18.540 --> 00:02:22.300 align:middle line:90% as to what did you expect? 00:02:22.300 --> 00:02:23.520 align:middle line:90% What did you get? 00:02:23.520 --> 00:02:25.180 align:middle line:90% How did they compare? 00:02:25.180 --> 00:02:27.820 align:middle line:84% And did you get any value out of this? 00:02:27.820 --> 00:02:30.500 align:middle line:84% Janet, I'm probably going to put you to work 00:02:30.500 --> 00:02:32.300 align:middle line:90% handing out microphones. 00:02:32.300 --> 00:02:34.260 align:middle line:90% But how about it? 00:02:34.260 --> 00:02:37.940 align:middle line:84% Give us a little bit of feedback, please. 00:02:37.940 --> 00:02:42.460 align:middle line:84% You can see why Janet wear sneakers for these things. 00:02:42.460 --> 00:02:44.660 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: I'm a second-year MBA student 00:02:44.660 --> 00:02:47.340 align:middle line:84% and looking into entrepreneurship 00:02:47.340 --> 00:02:48.440 align:middle line:90% for the past two years. 00:02:48.440 --> 00:02:49.898 align:middle line:84% And I think there's something to be 00:02:49.898 --> 00:02:54.020 align:middle line:84% said about distilling all this information into only six 00:02:54.020 --> 00:02:54.560 align:middle line:90% lessons. 00:02:54.560 --> 00:02:56.768 align:middle line:84% And I've actually found a lot of one utility in that. 00:02:56.768 --> 00:03:00.370 align:middle line:84% I can really get into core truths that seemed very useful 00:03:00.370 --> 00:03:02.130 align:middle line:90% just going into the future. 00:03:02.130 --> 00:03:05.210 align:middle line:84% One I think point that really just stuck with me in the course 00:03:05.210 --> 00:03:08.310 align:middle line:84% because everything else has just been at a very high level, 00:03:08.310 --> 00:03:10.035 align:middle line:90% is the negotiation piece. 00:03:10.035 --> 00:03:11.410 align:middle line:84% I just personally wish that there 00:03:11.410 --> 00:03:15.010 align:middle line:84% was a little bit more content, meat on the bones, 00:03:15.010 --> 00:03:17.892 align:middle line:84% as opposed to going through an exercise. 00:03:17.892 --> 00:03:19.850 align:middle line:84% Just saying, like, what are the core principles 00:03:19.850 --> 00:03:24.930 align:middle line:84% of negotiating and getting to mutually beneficial results? 00:03:24.930 --> 00:03:27.650 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Awesome, thank you. 00:03:27.650 --> 00:03:31.410 align:middle line:84% Kurt, for what it's worth, the battery in this gizmo has died. 00:03:31.410 --> 00:03:34.450 align:middle line:84% So if you could do a little surgery, I'd be grateful. 00:03:34.450 --> 00:03:35.130 align:middle line:90% Thank you. 00:03:35.130 --> 00:03:35.630 align:middle line:90% All right. 00:03:35.630 --> 00:03:36.430 align:middle line:90% Someone else? 00:03:36.430 --> 00:03:43.850 align:middle line:90% 00:03:43.850 --> 00:03:47.610 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: So I think a lot of us came with different experiences 00:03:47.610 --> 00:03:49.250 align:middle line:90% into this course. 00:03:49.250 --> 00:03:54.240 align:middle line:84% What I appreciate is I never got any formal training in business. 00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:56.640 align:middle line:90% I've been doing it for 25 years. 00:03:56.640 --> 00:04:03.960 align:middle line:84% And it was enlightening and motivating to see this 00:04:03.960 --> 00:04:07.320 align:middle line:84% and to now really understand some of these things, 00:04:07.320 --> 00:04:09.840 align:middle line:84% so that I can go dig into it a little bit more, 00:04:09.840 --> 00:04:14.800 align:middle line:84% as I'm now embarking on my own entrepreneurial journey. 00:04:14.800 --> 00:04:17.339 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: So let me dig into that a little bit. 00:04:17.339 --> 00:04:20.079 align:middle line:84% Are you saying that there were actually practical lessons 00:04:20.079 --> 00:04:23.520 align:middle line:84% that you got out of this, or that we covered topics that you 00:04:23.520 --> 00:04:26.200 align:middle line:90% had never covered before? 00:04:26.200 --> 00:04:29.880 align:middle line:84% Flesh that out a little bit, please. 00:04:29.880 --> 00:04:32.640 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: I saw some of the reasons 00:04:32.640 --> 00:04:35.800 align:middle line:84% why I was doing some of the things-- some of the things 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:41.820 align:middle line:84% that I had applied, and going through, for example, 00:04:41.820 --> 00:04:47.020 align:middle line:84% financial projections and all that I had to learn on the job. 00:04:47.020 --> 00:04:52.850 align:middle line:84% I never did it before from really the learning perspective, 00:04:52.850 --> 00:04:54.110 align:middle line:90% this type of perspective. 00:04:54.110 --> 00:04:56.890 align:middle line:84% I have to second with regards to negotiations, 00:04:56.890 --> 00:04:59.170 align:middle line:84% just because I've been part of a lot of negotiations, 00:04:59.170 --> 00:05:02.310 align:middle line:84% that it would have been nice to have a little bit more of the-- 00:05:02.310 --> 00:05:03.750 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Brilliant, thank you. 00:05:03.750 --> 00:05:05.417 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: --rather than jumping into it. 00:05:05.417 --> 00:05:08.110 align:middle line:84% But it was a good exercise nonetheless. 00:05:08.110 --> 00:05:09.790 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Well, the point you made, 00:05:09.790 --> 00:05:12.190 align:middle line:84% that people come into this course with vastly 00:05:12.190 --> 00:05:14.990 align:middle line:84% different backgrounds, of course, 00:05:14.990 --> 00:05:18.270 align:middle line:84% makes it challenging for the presenters, 00:05:18.270 --> 00:05:20.670 align:middle line:84% because I've been in these things 00:05:20.670 --> 00:05:24.470 align:middle line:84% where some of the participants were freshmen, 00:05:24.470 --> 00:05:27.870 align:middle line:84% some were faculty members, several had already 00:05:27.870 --> 00:05:33.290 align:middle line:84% had two startups, and a couple who came in and said, 00:05:33.290 --> 00:05:34.810 align:middle line:90% I took the course two years ago. 00:05:34.810 --> 00:05:35.730 align:middle line:90% I had a startup. 00:05:35.730 --> 00:05:37.670 align:middle line:90% It flopped. 00:05:37.670 --> 00:05:41.230 align:middle line:84% I'm back to see what it was I should have paid attention 00:05:41.230 --> 00:05:44.590 align:middle line:90% to and didn't. 00:05:44.590 --> 00:05:45.290 align:middle line:90% All right. 00:05:45.290 --> 00:05:47.170 align:middle line:84% Anyone else want to add something to that? 00:05:47.170 --> 00:05:47.730 align:middle line:90% Yes, sir. 00:05:47.730 --> 00:05:50.100 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: I've got the mic, so I guess I get to go. 00:05:50.100 --> 00:05:52.060 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Congratulations 00:05:52.060 --> 00:05:54.620 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: I mean, I've been through a fair amount 00:05:54.620 --> 00:05:58.860 align:middle line:84% of similar courses with Y Combinator over at MIT 00:05:58.860 --> 00:06:00.820 align:middle line:90% prior to being at Sloan. 00:06:00.820 --> 00:06:05.900 align:middle line:84% I really appreciated how you boiled down to first principles 00:06:05.900 --> 00:06:10.140 align:middle line:84% for the sales side, getting to know your customers. 00:06:10.140 --> 00:06:12.482 align:middle line:84% I think being at MIT and building all these really cool 00:06:12.482 --> 00:06:13.940 align:middle line:84% technologies, it's very easy to get 00:06:13.940 --> 00:06:18.140 align:middle line:84% lost in what you're building in the tech and the product. 00:06:18.140 --> 00:06:22.300 align:middle line:84% It was refreshing to see how you specifically boiled it down 00:06:22.300 --> 00:06:25.277 align:middle line:90% to first order principles-- 00:06:25.277 --> 00:06:26.860 align:middle line:84% building something the customers want, 00:06:26.860 --> 00:06:29.180 align:middle line:84% customer obsession, customer focus. 00:06:29.180 --> 00:06:33.700 align:middle line:84% And regardless of technology, business is business. 00:06:33.700 --> 00:06:35.780 align:middle line:84% It comes in different shapes and forms, 00:06:35.780 --> 00:06:38.406 align:middle line:84% but the principles remain the same, regardless of what 00:06:38.406 --> 00:06:39.340 align:middle line:90% you're building. 00:06:39.340 --> 00:06:41.500 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Well, I think you just 00:06:41.500 --> 00:06:45.660 align:middle line:84% volunteered to teach a session next year, because I think 00:06:45.660 --> 00:06:50.290 align:middle line:84% that's actually kind of the heart of the matter, which 00:06:50.290 --> 00:06:56.010 align:middle line:84% is that we spend a lot of time articulating 00:06:56.010 --> 00:06:59.930 align:middle line:84% high-level principles in our schooling. 00:06:59.930 --> 00:07:07.210 align:middle line:84% And we sometimes trip when those principles collide with reality. 00:07:07.210 --> 00:07:09.705 align:middle line:84% And sometimes I find it very helpful to say, 00:07:09.705 --> 00:07:11.330 align:middle line:84% well, find out what your customers want 00:07:11.330 --> 00:07:12.930 align:middle line:90% and give it to them. 00:07:12.930 --> 00:07:14.170 align:middle line:90% It's like, well, duh. 00:07:14.170 --> 00:07:17.590 align:middle line:84% But it gets overlooked frequently. 00:07:17.590 --> 00:07:18.630 align:middle line:90% So thank you. 00:07:18.630 --> 00:07:19.810 align:middle line:90% That's helpful. 00:07:19.810 --> 00:07:20.750 align:middle line:90% Anyone else? 00:07:20.750 --> 00:07:25.890 align:middle line:90% 00:07:25.890 --> 00:07:29.370 align:middle line:84% And we've got one gentleman here and then we'll close this out. 00:07:29.370 --> 00:07:32.010 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: So thank you for those sessions. 00:07:32.010 --> 00:07:35.070 align:middle line:84% I don't have any entrepreneurial experience, 00:07:35.070 --> 00:07:40.730 align:middle line:84% so each of the sessions was of immense value for me. 00:07:40.730 --> 00:07:44.570 align:middle line:84% One thing that I can think would further help, especially 00:07:44.570 --> 00:07:49.150 align:middle line:84% with the numbers are the pitches, getting access 00:07:49.150 --> 00:07:58.630 align:middle line:84% to existing startups' pitches, or some numbers [INAUDIBLE]. 00:07:58.630 --> 00:08:03.070 align:middle line:84% If you have access to that, I think 00:08:03.070 --> 00:08:05.990 align:middle line:84% it would help us in connecting the points that 00:08:05.990 --> 00:08:11.130 align:middle line:84% OK, if I'm trying to forecast sales, 00:08:11.130 --> 00:08:14.970 align:middle line:84% how would it be [INAUDIBLE] for upcoming years 00:08:14.970 --> 00:08:16.990 align:middle line:90% and stuff like that. 00:08:16.990 --> 00:08:21.950 align:middle line:84% I think if there is a link for some particular pitches 00:08:21.950 --> 00:08:24.530 align:middle line:84% that I think would be really helpful. 00:08:24.530 --> 00:08:27.610 align:middle line:84% But other than that, if you have similar resources, 00:08:27.610 --> 00:08:29.830 align:middle line:90% that would be great. 00:08:29.830 --> 00:08:31.990 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Thank you. 00:08:31.990 --> 00:08:35.309 align:middle line:84% That is a topic that every now and then Joe 00:08:35.309 --> 00:08:37.309 align:middle line:84% and I have knocked around a little bit, which 00:08:37.309 --> 00:08:42.270 align:middle line:84% is we've got a substantial list of people 00:08:42.270 --> 00:08:44.710 align:middle line:84% who've gone through this course over the years. 00:08:44.710 --> 00:08:48.700 align:middle line:84% And we never really have made any effort to try and create 00:08:48.700 --> 00:08:51.420 align:middle line:90% a community out of that. 00:08:51.420 --> 00:08:55.060 align:middle line:84% And yet, I think there's real value in that. 00:08:55.060 --> 00:08:58.760 align:middle line:84% And well, I'm going to elaborate on that in my talk. 00:08:58.760 --> 00:09:03.340 align:middle line:84% Entrepreneurs are weird, and they usually 00:09:03.340 --> 00:09:06.500 align:middle line:90% don't have very many friends. 00:09:06.500 --> 00:09:11.100 align:middle line:84% And a community of people who are weird like you 00:09:11.100 --> 00:09:13.940 align:middle line:84% can be not only useful, but quite comforting. 00:09:13.940 --> 00:09:16.540 align:middle line:90% So we're going to flag that. 00:09:16.540 --> 00:09:18.520 align:middle line:84% We'll have a follow on conversation. 00:09:18.520 --> 00:09:19.900 align:middle line:90% And you have the mic, sir. 00:09:19.900 --> 00:09:22.525 align:middle line:90% Sorry, you're on. 00:09:22.525 --> 00:09:23.900 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Yeah, so as someone who 00:09:23.900 --> 00:09:26.020 align:middle line:84% did university as an undergrad for two years 00:09:26.020 --> 00:09:27.740 align:middle line:84% and decided to drop out because there 00:09:27.740 --> 00:09:29.680 align:middle line:84% was too much of an emphasis on theory, 00:09:29.680 --> 00:09:34.960 align:middle line:84% and I'm a very hands-on person, having to do it from scratch, 00:09:34.960 --> 00:09:39.720 align:middle line:84% I had no formal training in business or anything like that. 00:09:39.720 --> 00:09:42.980 align:middle line:84% This is my first foray into it at all. 00:09:42.980 --> 00:09:44.890 align:middle line:84% And I really, really appreciated how 00:09:44.890 --> 00:09:46.310 align:middle line:84% you guys work with boiling it down 00:09:46.310 --> 00:09:49.587 align:middle line:84% for someone who's never worked in the business at all. 00:09:49.587 --> 00:09:52.170 align:middle line:84% And there was never a moment-- maybe aside from that day where 00:09:52.170 --> 00:09:55.450 align:middle line:84% it was all financial topics and all that-- 00:09:55.450 --> 00:09:57.910 align:middle line:84% where I was like, what are we talking about? 00:09:57.910 --> 00:09:59.430 align:middle line:84% Everything was very straightforward, 00:09:59.430 --> 00:10:00.680 align:middle line:90% and I really appreciated that. 00:10:00.680 --> 00:10:01.347 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Good. 00:10:01.347 --> 00:10:01.910 align:middle line:90% All right. 00:10:01.910 --> 00:10:03.410 align:middle line:90% That's very helpful. 00:10:03.410 --> 00:10:07.810 align:middle line:84% If you think of a major topic that we should have 00:10:07.810 --> 00:10:10.770 align:middle line:84% included but didn't, and we should 00:10:10.770 --> 00:10:17.517 align:middle line:84% build it in for next year, tell Janet and have her-- 00:10:17.517 --> 00:10:19.350 align:middle line:84% do you have a final remark you want to make? 00:10:19.350 --> 00:10:19.790 align:middle line:90% All right, Janet. 00:10:19.790 --> 00:10:21.207 align:middle line:84% We're going to have one more here. 00:10:21.207 --> 00:10:24.030 align:middle line:84% And then I want to get to the subject matter at hand. 00:10:24.030 --> 00:10:25.450 align:middle line:90% Go ahead, ma'am. 00:10:25.450 --> 00:10:28.250 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: I have experience in multinational and global 00:10:28.250 --> 00:10:30.890 align:middle line:90% advisory for public companies. 00:10:30.890 --> 00:10:34.530 align:middle line:84% And I found everything really practical. 00:10:34.530 --> 00:10:37.270 align:middle line:90% That includes [INAUDIBLE]. 00:10:37.270 --> 00:10:41.370 align:middle line:84% Especially the session we had today, which was financial-- 00:10:41.370 --> 00:10:44.720 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Financing sources, yeah. 00:10:44.720 --> 00:10:48.213 align:middle line:90% AUDIENCE: I mean, [INAUDIBLE]. 00:10:48.213 --> 00:10:49.380 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Hold on a second. 00:10:49.380 --> 00:10:51.800 align:middle line:84% Remember what I said about microphones? 00:10:51.800 --> 00:10:55.640 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Hearing it from people who actually invest 00:10:55.640 --> 00:11:00.640 align:middle line:84% in successful businesses and the criteria that they look for, 00:11:00.640 --> 00:11:04.820 align:middle line:90% that was illuminating. 00:11:04.820 --> 00:11:06.400 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: OK. 00:11:06.400 --> 00:11:10.540 align:middle line:84% Find out what your customer wants, give it to them. 00:11:10.540 --> 00:11:11.040 align:middle line:90% Great. 00:11:11.040 --> 00:11:11.620 align:middle line:90% All right. 00:11:11.620 --> 00:11:12.760 align:middle line:90% Thank you very much. 00:11:12.760 --> 00:11:14.340 align:middle line:90% The feedback is valuable. 00:11:14.340 --> 00:11:15.840 align:middle line:84% And I don't know how often you've 00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:18.840 align:middle line:84% had people running courses ask you 00:11:18.840 --> 00:11:21.660 align:middle line:84% what you thought and whether or not it could be made better. 00:11:21.660 --> 00:11:25.880 align:middle line:84% But we're pretty serious about that whole customer discovery 00:11:25.880 --> 00:11:27.240 align:middle line:90% thing. 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:31.265 align:middle line:90% So tonight's agenda-- stories. 00:11:31.265 --> 00:11:33.640 align:middle line:84% And then we're going to talk about some of the hard stuff 00:11:33.640 --> 00:11:38.440 align:middle line:84% about entrepreneurship that rarely gets talked about, 00:11:38.440 --> 00:11:39.500 align:middle line:90% some lessons. 00:11:39.500 --> 00:11:40.620 align:middle line:90% And we'll wrap it up. 00:11:40.620 --> 00:11:43.790 align:middle line:90% 00:11:43.790 --> 00:11:46.670 align:middle line:84% This is kind of obligatory, because these are free standing 00:11:46.670 --> 00:11:48.250 align:middle line:84% and you guys have seen it by now. 00:11:48.250 --> 00:11:50.350 align:middle line:90% So I'll just blast through it. 00:11:50.350 --> 00:11:52.110 align:middle line:90% I started some companies. 00:11:52.110 --> 00:11:53.550 align:middle line:90% I wrote a book. 00:11:53.550 --> 00:11:56.130 align:middle line:90% I had a turnaround job. 00:11:56.130 --> 00:12:00.070 align:middle line:84% I had a couple normal jobs, went to a couple schools. 00:12:00.070 --> 00:12:04.590 align:middle line:90% I'm a working musician. 00:12:04.590 --> 00:12:11.150 align:middle line:84% I'm playing next Saturday in the morning as a solo guitarist 00:12:11.150 --> 00:12:15.190 align:middle line:84% at the Pine Street Women's Shelter for their Valentine's 00:12:15.190 --> 00:12:16.550 align:middle line:90% Day Tea. 00:12:16.550 --> 00:12:19.130 align:middle line:84% And then that evening, in a complete reversal, 00:12:19.130 --> 00:12:24.310 align:middle line:84% I'm playing the blues at a brewery in Marlborough. 00:12:24.310 --> 00:12:28.110 align:middle line:84% And of note, you guys should pay attention 00:12:28.110 --> 00:12:32.270 align:middle line:84% to MIT's Venture Mentoring Service, if you ever pursue this 00:12:32.270 --> 00:12:35.110 align:middle line:84% and anyone in your senior management team 00:12:35.110 --> 00:12:39.820 align:middle line:90% has any affiliation with MIT. 00:12:39.820 --> 00:12:41.180 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:12:41.180 --> 00:12:42.580 align:middle line:84% How many of you guys have already 00:12:42.580 --> 00:12:45.800 align:middle line:84% been through something like Y Combinator or Techstars, 00:12:45.800 --> 00:12:50.300 align:middle line:84% or some of incubator for training? 00:12:50.300 --> 00:12:51.940 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:12:51.940 --> 00:12:53.660 align:middle line:84% Well, we'll get some comments from you 00:12:53.660 --> 00:12:57.060 align:middle line:84% as to how this compares at some point. 00:12:57.060 --> 00:12:59.210 align:middle line:84% Some of the popular myths about startups 00:12:59.210 --> 00:13:01.500 align:middle line:84% is there's a lot of money available. 00:13:01.500 --> 00:13:05.100 align:middle line:84% And if I bring my amazing idea to investors, 00:13:05.100 --> 00:13:09.580 align:middle line:84% they will just shower me with money. 00:13:09.580 --> 00:13:14.700 align:middle line:84% So might there be some part of that that's not true? 00:13:14.700 --> 00:13:16.940 align:middle line:90% Maybe. 00:13:16.940 --> 00:13:21.060 align:middle line:84% And there's also some popular myths about boot camps, 00:13:21.060 --> 00:13:25.340 align:middle line:84% for example, that there is a magic formula for success. 00:13:25.340 --> 00:13:27.980 align:middle line:84% And if you follow the path that we teach you, 00:13:27.980 --> 00:13:31.820 align:middle line:84% you can pretty well be guaranteed that you 00:13:31.820 --> 00:13:34.900 align:middle line:90% will be showered with money. 00:13:34.900 --> 00:13:38.330 align:middle line:84% And there are outfits out there that kind of halfway 00:13:38.330 --> 00:13:39.310 align:middle line:90% promise that. 00:13:39.310 --> 00:13:43.930 align:middle line:90% 00:13:43.930 --> 00:13:47.690 align:middle line:84% This left us with a moral dilemma. 00:13:47.690 --> 00:13:50.610 align:middle line:84% Do we hype it, promote the myths? 00:13:50.610 --> 00:13:53.890 align:middle line:90% Or do we tell you facts? 00:13:53.890 --> 00:14:00.210 align:middle line:84% We voted for facts, because that famous professor Hadzima 00:14:00.210 --> 00:14:05.590 align:middle line:84% articulated an equation for you guys in your very first session. 00:14:05.590 --> 00:14:09.130 align:middle line:84% Happiness is reality divided by expectations. 00:14:09.130 --> 00:14:12.010 align:middle line:84% Tonight we're going to talk a little bit about expectations, 00:14:12.010 --> 00:14:17.850 align:middle line:84% because the facts are, it's hard, and most startups fail. 00:14:17.850 --> 00:14:22.490 align:middle line:84% And most investors believe that you will probably fail. 00:14:22.490 --> 00:14:23.970 align:middle line:90% You may be brilliant. 00:14:23.970 --> 00:14:27.410 align:middle line:84% You may be charming and lovable, kind to animals. 00:14:27.410 --> 00:14:30.250 align:middle line:84% Investors think you're going to fail. 00:14:30.250 --> 00:14:32.490 align:middle line:90% There are lots of entrepreneurs. 00:14:32.490 --> 00:14:35.880 align:middle line:84% There's lots of competition for talent, funding, 00:14:35.880 --> 00:14:37.880 align:middle line:90% and other resources. 00:14:37.880 --> 00:14:43.800 align:middle line:84% And many of the entrepreneurs won't get the money. 00:14:43.800 --> 00:14:45.700 align:middle line:90% So why am I talking about this? 00:14:45.700 --> 00:14:50.120 align:middle line:84% Well, when you decided to come here, or Harvard 00:14:50.120 --> 00:14:52.960 align:middle line:84% or Tufts or Northeastern or Northwestern 00:14:52.960 --> 00:14:55.280 align:middle line:84% or wherever you went, you probably 00:14:55.280 --> 00:14:57.200 align:middle line:84% knew walking in the door that you 00:14:57.200 --> 00:15:00.200 align:middle line:84% were going to take a beating somewhere along the way. 00:15:00.200 --> 00:15:03.080 align:middle line:84% And so you probably didn't realize how much of a beating 00:15:03.080 --> 00:15:06.360 align:middle line:84% you were going to take, but you knew it was going to be hard. 00:15:06.360 --> 00:15:09.060 align:middle line:84% But there are a lot of people who promote entrepreneurship. 00:15:09.060 --> 00:15:14.560 align:middle line:84% And in my opinion, they over-glamorize it and they 00:15:14.560 --> 00:15:16.220 align:middle line:90% don't tell you how hard it is. 00:15:16.220 --> 00:15:20.040 align:middle line:84% So in the spirit of disclosure, tonight I 00:15:20.040 --> 00:15:21.800 align:middle line:84% want to talk a little bit about the fact 00:15:21.800 --> 00:15:23.580 align:middle line:84% that even the smartest ones fail. 00:15:23.580 --> 00:15:26.220 align:middle line:84% And I know a lot of entrepreneurs. 00:15:26.220 --> 00:15:28.400 align:middle line:84% I don't know a single one who got everything right 00:15:28.400 --> 00:15:30.760 align:middle line:90% the first time. 00:15:30.760 --> 00:15:33.950 align:middle line:84% It's going to be important that you know, to this community 00:15:33.950 --> 00:15:37.590 align:middle line:84% question that you brought up, you're not alone. 00:15:37.590 --> 00:15:39.503 align:middle line:84% And there are some resources you can draw on. 00:15:39.503 --> 00:15:41.670 align:middle line:84% And I'm going to talk a little bit about all of that 00:15:41.670 --> 00:15:44.630 align:middle line:90% this evening. 00:15:44.630 --> 00:15:48.390 align:middle line:84% I do think that this is very important. 00:15:48.390 --> 00:15:51.830 align:middle line:90% Entrepreneurs solve problems. 00:15:51.830 --> 00:15:53.750 align:middle line:90% They improve lives. 00:15:53.750 --> 00:15:56.090 align:middle line:84% Your new businesses drive growth, 00:15:56.090 --> 00:16:00.550 align:middle line:84% create jobs, and in some cases, create wealth. 00:16:00.550 --> 00:16:03.110 align:middle line:90% And that's a noble endeavor. 00:16:03.110 --> 00:16:04.790 align:middle line:90% But it's hard. 00:16:04.790 --> 00:16:07.270 align:middle line:84% When I was interviewing some of my friends 00:16:07.270 --> 00:16:10.910 align:middle line:84% who were entrepreneurs for the book I wrote, 00:16:10.910 --> 00:16:17.390 align:middle line:84% one of the people who's in the book failed nine times in a row 00:16:17.390 --> 00:16:22.150 align:middle line:84% before she eventually hit it with number 10. 00:16:22.150 --> 00:16:24.890 align:middle line:84% So that raises a couple of questions, of course. 00:16:24.890 --> 00:16:28.670 align:middle line:84% How on earth do you come back after nine consecutive failures? 00:16:28.670 --> 00:16:31.190 align:middle line:84% And also, what did you do differently 00:16:31.190 --> 00:16:34.820 align:middle line:84% in number 10 that caused this one to succeed? 00:16:34.820 --> 00:16:39.540 align:middle line:84% Which sort of became the paradigm for what I wrote about. 00:16:39.540 --> 00:16:41.420 align:middle line:90% So tonight is less-- 00:16:41.420 --> 00:16:44.420 align:middle line:84% my session tonight is less about the practicum 00:16:44.420 --> 00:16:47.620 align:middle line:90% that you all said you liked. 00:16:47.620 --> 00:16:51.000 align:middle line:84% So I may be making a mistake to deviate from that. 00:16:51.000 --> 00:16:53.020 align:middle line:84% But I want to talk a little bit about things 00:16:53.020 --> 00:16:56.140 align:middle line:90% you may need in the future. 00:16:56.140 --> 00:16:58.260 align:middle line:84% But first, a story that might cause 00:16:58.260 --> 00:17:01.980 align:middle line:84% you to think I accidentally walked into the wrong room, 00:17:01.980 --> 00:17:03.060 align:middle line:90% diving boards. 00:17:03.060 --> 00:17:07.540 align:middle line:84% Until a couple of years ago, I was a pretty serious 00:17:07.540 --> 00:17:09.540 align:middle line:90% springboard diver. 00:17:09.540 --> 00:17:12.380 align:middle line:84% Worked out with a coach and a small group of lunatics 00:17:12.380 --> 00:17:13.880 align:middle line:90% at Boston University. 00:17:13.880 --> 00:17:17.579 align:middle line:84% And I was the guy up on the high board doing stuff 00:17:17.579 --> 00:17:21.940 align:middle line:84% that nobody at my advanced age ought to be doing. 00:17:21.940 --> 00:17:26.420 align:middle line:84% And one summer, I was screwing around 00:17:26.420 --> 00:17:30.050 align:middle line:84% at the outdoor pool in Lexington. 00:17:30.050 --> 00:17:33.850 align:middle line:84% My at the time 14-year-old daughter came up and said, dad, 00:17:33.850 --> 00:17:36.670 align:middle line:84% you know that thing you're doing with a coach at BU? 00:17:36.670 --> 00:17:38.890 align:middle line:90% Will they take kids? 00:17:38.890 --> 00:17:43.000 align:middle line:84% I said, I can probably make that happen. 00:17:43.000 --> 00:17:44.750 align:middle line:84% Do you want to learn how to do this stuff? 00:17:44.750 --> 00:17:47.930 align:middle line:84% Yeah, I want to learn how to do that flippy stuff. 00:17:47.930 --> 00:17:50.630 align:middle line:90% And I said, it's hard. 00:17:50.630 --> 00:17:51.390 align:middle line:90% It's terrifying. 00:17:51.390 --> 00:17:52.515 align:middle line:90% You sure you want to do it? 00:17:52.515 --> 00:17:54.410 align:middle line:90% Yep. 00:17:54.410 --> 00:17:57.890 align:middle line:90% So I said, all right. 00:17:57.890 --> 00:18:06.450 align:middle line:84% And I signed her up, because I knew that most 14-year-old girls 00:18:06.450 --> 00:18:09.370 align:middle line:84% didn't even want to be in the same building with their father, 00:18:09.370 --> 00:18:12.170 align:middle line:84% and I wasn't going to pass this up. 00:18:12.170 --> 00:18:21.810 align:middle line:84% So I knew that there comes a point for most new divers, 00:18:21.810 --> 00:18:24.730 align:middle line:84% you've learned how to work the board. 00:18:24.730 --> 00:18:26.510 align:middle line:90% You've gotten some altitude. 00:18:26.510 --> 00:18:31.080 align:middle line:84% You've learned a little bit of basic gymnastics moves, 00:18:31.080 --> 00:18:33.400 align:middle line:90% and then you flop. 00:18:33.400 --> 00:18:36.040 align:middle line:84% And I knew that she was going to get to that point. 00:18:36.040 --> 00:18:38.800 align:middle line:84% And sure enough, the coach realized she actually 00:18:38.800 --> 00:18:42.600 align:middle line:84% had some athletic ability, sent her up on the high board, 00:18:42.600 --> 00:18:44.520 align:middle line:84% said, walk to the end of the board, 00:18:44.520 --> 00:18:48.560 align:middle line:84% turn around backwards so the water is behind you. 00:18:48.560 --> 00:18:50.960 align:middle line:84% And I want you to pull your knees up close 00:18:50.960 --> 00:18:54.200 align:middle line:84% to your chest, both of them, and balance 00:18:54.200 --> 00:18:56.080 align:middle line:90% on the balls of your feet. 00:18:56.080 --> 00:18:57.560 align:middle line:90% Water's behind you. 00:18:57.560 --> 00:19:00.120 align:middle line:84% And then I want you to fall over backwards. 00:19:00.120 --> 00:19:03.420 align:middle line:84% And when I say hut, I want you to come out of the tuck, 00:19:03.420 --> 00:19:05.900 align:middle line:84% look back for the water, and go in headfirst. 00:19:05.900 --> 00:19:08.640 align:middle line:90% 00:19:08.640 --> 00:19:10.743 align:middle line:84% Now, the second time you do that, you think, well, 00:19:10.743 --> 00:19:11.660 align:middle line:90% what was the big deal? 00:19:11.660 --> 00:19:13.475 align:middle line:90% That wasn't that hard. 00:19:13.475 --> 00:19:15.600 align:middle line:84% The first time you do it, you think, oh my god, I'm 00:19:15.600 --> 00:19:17.480 align:middle line:90% going to die. 00:19:17.480 --> 00:19:20.600 align:middle line:84% And the last thing I will see is the ceiling of this pool 00:19:20.600 --> 00:19:23.000 align:middle line:90% just before I die. 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:26.480 align:middle line:84% And sure enough, she rolled over backwards. 00:19:26.480 --> 00:19:29.310 align:middle line:84% And when the coach said hut, instead of looking back 00:19:29.310 --> 00:19:34.470 align:middle line:84% for the water, she panicked and did a complete backflip 00:19:34.470 --> 00:19:37.350 align:middle line:90% from the high board. 00:19:37.350 --> 00:19:41.630 align:middle line:84% And all five of us-- the rest of us in the class-- 00:19:41.630 --> 00:19:45.670 align:middle line:84% knew exactly what that felt like. 00:19:45.670 --> 00:19:48.370 align:middle line:84% She might have sunk 3 or 4 inches in the water. 00:19:48.370 --> 00:19:55.510 align:middle line:84% Just [CLAPS] tears, bright red back. 00:19:55.510 --> 00:19:57.550 align:middle line:84% Came to the edge of the pool, and we all 00:19:57.550 --> 00:20:02.423 align:middle line:84% comforted her for a minute and then went about our workouts. 00:20:02.423 --> 00:20:04.090 align:middle line:84% Because I'd explained to her in advance. 00:20:04.090 --> 00:20:05.465 align:middle line:84% I said, look, I'm not going to be 00:20:05.465 --> 00:20:09.507 align:middle line:84% one of those tiger dads or helicopter parents or whatever. 00:20:09.507 --> 00:20:11.590 align:middle line:84% You're going to do this because you want to do it. 00:20:11.590 --> 00:20:14.210 align:middle line:84% And p.s., I need the coaching as well. 00:20:14.210 --> 00:20:16.570 align:middle line:84% So for that time that we're on the boards together, 00:20:16.570 --> 00:20:18.470 align:middle line:90% we're just fellow divers. 00:20:18.470 --> 00:20:19.710 align:middle line:90% She said deal. 00:20:19.710 --> 00:20:23.005 align:middle line:84% So I knew she was at a crossroads. 00:20:23.005 --> 00:20:25.130 align:middle line:84% She was either going to decide, this is ridiculous. 00:20:25.130 --> 00:20:26.600 align:middle line:90% I've made a terrible mistake. 00:20:26.600 --> 00:20:27.400 align:middle line:90% That really hurt. 00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:29.700 align:middle line:90% I'm never doing this again. 00:20:29.700 --> 00:20:33.340 align:middle line:90% Or she'd changed her mind. 00:20:33.340 --> 00:20:35.740 align:middle line:90% So I continued diving. 00:20:35.740 --> 00:20:38.020 align:middle line:84% After a couple of minutes, I saw her 00:20:38.020 --> 00:20:41.260 align:middle line:84% sitting there looking up at the platform where 00:20:41.260 --> 00:20:44.083 align:middle line:90% the two high boards were. 00:20:44.083 --> 00:20:45.500 align:middle line:84% And she got up and she walked over 00:20:45.500 --> 00:20:47.595 align:middle line:84% to the stairs up to the high board. 00:20:47.595 --> 00:20:48.720 align:middle line:90% I said, what are you doing? 00:20:48.720 --> 00:20:49.760 align:middle line:84% She said, I'm going to do it again. 00:20:49.760 --> 00:20:51.140 align:middle line:90% I'm going to get it right. 00:20:51.140 --> 00:20:52.980 align:middle line:90% I said, yes. 00:20:52.980 --> 00:20:55.380 align:middle line:90% Her decision, right? 00:20:55.380 --> 00:20:58.780 align:middle line:84% And actually, we continued diving for a couple of years 00:20:58.780 --> 00:21:04.100 align:middle line:84% till she got to high school and discovered boys. 00:21:04.100 --> 00:21:05.940 align:middle line:84% Well, entrepreneurship is a little bit 00:21:05.940 --> 00:21:09.020 align:middle line:84% like that, in that you're trying something 00:21:09.020 --> 00:21:10.600 align:middle line:90% you've not done before. 00:21:10.600 --> 00:21:11.900 align:middle line:90% And it's scary. 00:21:11.900 --> 00:21:15.500 align:middle line:84% And when you flop, it hurts, particularly 00:21:15.500 --> 00:21:17.900 align:middle line:84% if you've led a life of high achievement. 00:21:17.900 --> 00:21:19.420 align:middle line:90% It's painful. 00:21:19.420 --> 00:21:21.200 align:middle line:84% It's not something you're accustomed to. 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:22.940 align:middle line:90% And you come to that crossroads. 00:21:22.940 --> 00:21:24.730 align:middle line:90% Now what? 00:21:24.730 --> 00:21:27.170 align:middle line:84% And a fair number of people say, well, this 00:21:27.170 --> 00:21:28.230 align:middle line:90% was a terrible mistake. 00:21:28.230 --> 00:21:31.490 align:middle line:90% I'm never doing it again. 00:21:31.490 --> 00:21:34.010 align:middle line:90% And that's the majority. 00:21:34.010 --> 00:21:36.730 align:middle line:84% And for them, it's the right decision. 00:21:36.730 --> 00:21:43.690 align:middle line:84% A few of you who have wiring defects say, you know, 00:21:43.690 --> 00:21:45.530 align:middle line:90% that didn't kill me. 00:21:45.530 --> 00:21:48.650 align:middle line:90% I'm going to do it again. 00:21:48.650 --> 00:21:49.870 align:middle line:90% So think about it. 00:21:49.870 --> 00:21:52.550 align:middle line:84% If you're an innovator, what comes with innovation? 00:21:52.550 --> 00:21:54.610 align:middle line:84% Well, you're doing something new. 00:21:54.610 --> 00:21:56.490 align:middle line:90% You may not have done it before. 00:21:56.490 --> 00:21:59.330 align:middle line:90% Maybe nobody's done it before. 00:21:59.330 --> 00:22:01.770 align:middle line:84% There's no established roadmap, which 00:22:01.770 --> 00:22:04.770 align:middle line:84% raises the alarming possibility that you might not 00:22:04.770 --> 00:22:07.810 align:middle line:90% know what you're doing. 00:22:07.810 --> 00:22:12.330 align:middle line:84% Totally forgivable, totally understandable, but many people 00:22:12.330 --> 00:22:16.210 align:middle line:84% find uncertainty to be stressful. 00:22:16.210 --> 00:22:19.810 align:middle line:84% And you have to make decisions-- a lot of decisions. 00:22:19.810 --> 00:22:21.770 align:middle line:84% And some of those decisions are going 00:22:21.770 --> 00:22:25.050 align:middle line:84% to be wrong because you're moving fast, 00:22:25.050 --> 00:22:26.830 align:middle line:84% you don't have enough information, 00:22:26.830 --> 00:22:28.710 align:middle line:90% and you got to make a decision. 00:22:28.710 --> 00:22:30.170 align:middle line:90% Do we raise the price? 00:22:30.170 --> 00:22:32.670 align:middle line:84% Do we sign a contract with this supplier? 00:22:32.670 --> 00:22:34.210 align:middle line:90% Do I hire this guy? 00:22:34.210 --> 00:22:36.870 align:middle line:90% Do I fire this one? 00:22:36.870 --> 00:22:39.210 align:middle line:84% So you have to ask yourself, can you accept that? 00:22:39.210 --> 00:22:43.670 align:middle line:90% 00:22:43.670 --> 00:22:47.030 align:middle line:84% Many people find that one of the appeals of being an entrepreneur 00:22:47.030 --> 00:22:48.490 align:middle line:90% is that you're your own boss. 00:22:48.490 --> 00:22:51.590 align:middle line:90% 00:22:51.590 --> 00:22:53.710 align:middle line:90% Is that true for any of you? 00:22:53.710 --> 00:22:54.490 align:middle line:90% Thinking about it? 00:22:54.490 --> 00:22:54.990 align:middle line:90% Yeah? 00:22:54.990 --> 00:22:55.530 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:22:55.530 --> 00:22:57.030 align:middle line:90% Well, here's the good news. 00:22:57.030 --> 00:22:59.550 align:middle line:84% Nobody's going to tell you what to do. 00:22:59.550 --> 00:23:01.070 align:middle line:90% Here's the bad news. 00:23:01.070 --> 00:23:04.563 align:middle line:84% Nobody's going to tell you what to do. 00:23:04.563 --> 00:23:06.230 align:middle line:84% You'll be in situations where you think, 00:23:06.230 --> 00:23:09.910 align:middle line:90% I don't know what to do. 00:23:09.910 --> 00:23:14.710 align:middle line:84% So let me tell you a couple of stories 00:23:14.710 --> 00:23:20.900 align:middle line:84% that my friends that I interviewed for my book told me. 00:23:20.900 --> 00:23:22.840 align:middle line:90% These are their words, not mine. 00:23:22.840 --> 00:23:25.460 align:middle line:90% Here's Trevor. 00:23:25.460 --> 00:23:29.020 align:middle line:84% Trevor said, well, I became an entrepreneur when I was 26. 00:23:29.020 --> 00:23:31.540 align:middle line:84% I was on the front page of the newspaper. 00:23:31.540 --> 00:23:33.620 align:middle line:90% I had a brand new hot car. 00:23:33.620 --> 00:23:35.980 align:middle line:84% I had a smoking hot girlfriend and I 00:23:35.980 --> 00:23:37.560 align:middle line:90% had the world by the horns. 00:23:37.560 --> 00:23:41.380 align:middle line:90% 00:23:41.380 --> 00:23:44.740 align:middle line:84% One year later, I'd lost everything. 00:23:44.740 --> 00:23:50.740 align:middle line:84% My car was repossessed, meaning somebody showed up and took it. 00:23:50.740 --> 00:23:52.940 align:middle line:84% My girlfriend dumped me and I was 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:57.100 align:middle line:84% living in my parent's basement working as an assistant manager 00:23:57.100 --> 00:23:59.500 align:middle line:90% at RadioShack. 00:23:59.500 --> 00:24:02.860 align:middle line:84% So well, Trevor, how'd you feel about that? 00:24:02.860 --> 00:24:05.660 align:middle line:84% Took me a couple of years to get the taste of failure 00:24:05.660 --> 00:24:06.900 align:middle line:90% out of my mouth. 00:24:06.900 --> 00:24:09.748 align:middle line:84% And I still remember it vividly every day. 00:24:09.748 --> 00:24:11.540 align:middle line:84% I should point out, by the way, that Trevor 00:24:11.540 --> 00:24:14.940 align:middle line:90% is quite successful these days. 00:24:14.940 --> 00:24:17.340 align:middle line:90% But I decided-- 00:24:17.340 --> 00:24:20.730 align:middle line:84% I hope you'll see the analogy to the crossroads decision 00:24:20.730 --> 00:24:22.250 align:middle line:90% my daughter made-- 00:24:22.250 --> 00:24:25.830 align:middle line:90% failure is not fatal experience. 00:24:25.830 --> 00:24:28.530 align:middle line:90% It's a learning experience. 00:24:28.530 --> 00:24:31.010 align:middle line:84% You have to take care of yourself first, 00:24:31.010 --> 00:24:35.210 align:middle line:84% and you have to become a perpetual learner. 00:24:35.210 --> 00:24:39.090 align:middle line:84% And the most important trait for an entrepreneur to be successful 00:24:39.090 --> 00:24:43.370 align:middle line:84% is not intelligence-- please don't burst into tears-- 00:24:43.370 --> 00:24:45.330 align:middle line:90% and it's not creativity. 00:24:45.330 --> 00:24:46.870 align:middle line:90% It's adaptability. 00:24:46.870 --> 00:24:49.970 align:middle line:90% 00:24:49.970 --> 00:24:53.290 align:middle line:90% Here's Laura. 00:24:53.290 --> 00:24:57.810 align:middle line:84% Laura is brassy, kind of profane, 00:24:57.810 --> 00:25:00.650 align:middle line:84% polarizing in that there are people who love her 00:25:00.650 --> 00:25:04.170 align:middle line:84% and people who don't want to be in the same room with her. 00:25:04.170 --> 00:25:06.350 align:middle line:90% I'm in the first category. 00:25:06.350 --> 00:25:08.010 align:middle line:90% I think she's awesome. 00:25:08.010 --> 00:25:11.970 align:middle line:84% But she was managing two big businesses for a big company 00:25:11.970 --> 00:25:13.730 align:middle line:90% and had a big paycheck. 00:25:13.730 --> 00:25:16.190 align:middle line:84% She quit, walked away, went all-in, 00:25:16.190 --> 00:25:18.440 align:middle line:84% joined an entrepreneurial outfit that Joe and I 00:25:18.440 --> 00:25:19.880 align:middle line:90% have done a bit of work with. 00:25:19.880 --> 00:25:22.460 align:middle line:84% And she knew when she walked in-- she just concluded, 00:25:22.460 --> 00:25:24.180 align:middle line:84% I'm the smartest person in the room. 00:25:24.180 --> 00:25:26.920 align:middle line:90% 00:25:26.920 --> 00:25:28.940 align:middle line:84% At 10:30 in the morning on the first day, 00:25:28.940 --> 00:25:33.520 align:middle line:84% she retreated to the ladies room in tears, called her husband. 00:25:33.520 --> 00:25:38.480 align:middle line:84% I had asked her some questions that she found distressing. 00:25:38.480 --> 00:25:39.380 align:middle line:90% Called her husband. 00:25:39.380 --> 00:25:41.160 align:middle line:90% I've made a terrible mistake. 00:25:41.160 --> 00:25:42.220 align:middle line:90% I can't do this. 00:25:42.220 --> 00:25:43.380 align:middle line:90% I'm not cut out for this. 00:25:43.380 --> 00:25:44.740 align:middle line:90% I have to get my job back. 00:25:44.740 --> 00:25:46.140 align:middle line:90% You have to come get me. 00:25:46.140 --> 00:25:49.120 align:middle line:90% 00:25:49.120 --> 00:25:51.200 align:middle line:84% Fortunately, her husband had been married to her 00:25:51.200 --> 00:25:52.880 align:middle line:90% for 19 years. 00:25:52.880 --> 00:25:54.690 align:middle line:90% He said, Laura, knock it off. 00:25:54.690 --> 00:25:56.940 align:middle line:84% This guy just saved you two years and a couple hundred 00:25:56.940 --> 00:26:00.200 align:middle line:84% thousand bucks by showing you that you were going down 00:26:00.200 --> 00:26:00.900 align:middle line:90% the wrong road. 00:26:00.900 --> 00:26:04.160 align:middle line:90% Go have another idea. 00:26:04.160 --> 00:26:05.120 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:26:05.120 --> 00:26:06.520 align:middle line:90% Back in she went. 00:26:06.520 --> 00:26:08.020 align:middle line:90% She did have another idea. 00:26:08.020 --> 00:26:09.680 align:middle line:90% And it wasn't very good either. 00:26:09.680 --> 00:26:12.360 align:middle line:84% She spent a half a million bucks of her own money 00:26:12.360 --> 00:26:14.160 align:middle line:90% and it was a bust. 00:26:14.160 --> 00:26:17.630 align:middle line:90% More tears, more heartache. 00:26:17.630 --> 00:26:20.110 align:middle line:90% So she had another idea. 00:26:20.110 --> 00:26:22.750 align:middle line:84% And in this situation, she ended up having a coffee 00:26:22.750 --> 00:26:25.830 align:middle line:84% one day with a guy that ran a huge real estate firm. 00:26:25.830 --> 00:26:30.710 align:middle line:84% He loved her idea, and big success. 00:26:30.710 --> 00:26:33.790 align:middle line:84% Pulled together a little side hustle which blossomed. 00:26:33.790 --> 00:26:35.830 align:middle line:84% Signed a big contract with Hallmark, the people 00:26:35.830 --> 00:26:38.110 align:middle line:90% who make greeting cards. 00:26:38.110 --> 00:26:41.830 align:middle line:84% All of a sudden everybody says, Laura, you're awesome. 00:26:41.830 --> 00:26:44.030 align:middle line:84% She was always awesome, it just took her a while 00:26:44.030 --> 00:26:45.590 align:middle line:90% to get to the answer. 00:26:45.590 --> 00:26:47.950 align:middle line:84% And she said, you know, Bob, when my second business 00:26:47.950 --> 00:26:51.230 align:middle line:84% was tanking, I remembered your story about the kidney failure 00:26:51.230 --> 00:26:52.010 align:middle line:90% product. 00:26:52.010 --> 00:26:55.910 align:middle line:84% You guys may remember that from our first night together. 00:26:55.910 --> 00:26:58.150 align:middle line:84% And I figured out my prospects are never 00:26:58.150 --> 00:27:01.670 align:middle line:90% going to use my product. 00:27:01.670 --> 00:27:02.710 align:middle line:90% Lesson? 00:27:02.710 --> 00:27:05.450 align:middle line:90% Validate, validate, validate. 00:27:05.450 --> 00:27:08.470 align:middle line:90% Talk to your customers. 00:27:08.470 --> 00:27:12.190 align:middle line:84% If they don't want it, you can't sell it. 00:27:12.190 --> 00:27:15.980 align:middle line:84% And the lessons from talking to the real estate guy-- 00:27:15.980 --> 00:27:17.500 align:middle line:84% she just buttonholed him one day. 00:27:17.500 --> 00:27:21.100 align:middle line:84% Their kids were on the same swim team. 00:27:21.100 --> 00:27:23.515 align:middle line:84% And she didn't even realize what a hot ticket he was. 00:27:23.515 --> 00:27:25.140 align:middle line:84% She said, would you have coffee with me 00:27:25.140 --> 00:27:27.080 align:middle line:84% and help me understand something? 00:27:27.080 --> 00:27:29.460 align:middle line:84% I've got this little business going, and it's taken off 00:27:29.460 --> 00:27:31.013 align:middle line:90% and I don't know why. 00:27:31.013 --> 00:27:33.180 align:middle line:84% And he looked at it and he said, I can tell you why. 00:27:33.180 --> 00:27:35.620 align:middle line:90% I want it for all of my agents. 00:27:35.620 --> 00:27:36.960 align:middle line:90% And she said, OK. 00:27:36.960 --> 00:27:39.320 align:middle line:84% He said, no, I want it for all my agents. 00:27:39.320 --> 00:27:42.420 align:middle line:90% There are 11,000 of them. 00:27:42.420 --> 00:27:45.580 align:middle line:90% Whoa, who is this guy? 00:27:45.580 --> 00:27:47.960 align:middle line:90% Anyway, value of reaching out. 00:27:47.960 --> 00:27:52.680 align:middle line:84% And she had something where they won if she won. 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:55.300 align:middle line:90% 00:27:55.300 --> 00:27:58.000 align:middle line:90% OK, reactions so far? 00:27:58.000 --> 00:27:59.240 align:middle line:90% Any takeaways? 00:27:59.240 --> 00:28:00.998 align:middle line:90% Anything I should know from you? 00:28:00.998 --> 00:28:03.540 align:middle line:84% Some years ago, I figured out when I was interviewing people, 00:28:03.540 --> 00:28:07.180 align:middle line:84% if I found somebody I really liked and wanted to hire them, 00:28:07.180 --> 00:28:08.900 align:middle line:84% I would spend a fair amount of time 00:28:08.900 --> 00:28:11.620 align:middle line:84% explaining to them all the reasons why they should not 00:28:11.620 --> 00:28:13.610 align:middle line:90% take the job. 00:28:13.610 --> 00:28:15.330 align:middle line:90% It can be really hard. 00:28:15.330 --> 00:28:16.750 align:middle line:90% It could be really risky. 00:28:16.750 --> 00:28:18.110 align:middle line:90% We're probably going to fail. 00:28:18.110 --> 00:28:19.510 align:middle line:90% See that curb outside? 00:28:19.510 --> 00:28:22.130 align:middle line:84% You're likely to be sitting out on that curb unemployed 00:28:22.130 --> 00:28:23.810 align:middle line:90% before long. 00:28:23.810 --> 00:28:28.650 align:middle line:84% And if they started grinning, I knew I had the right person. 00:28:28.650 --> 00:28:33.810 align:middle line:84% So if you're grinning, you may be ready for this. 00:28:33.810 --> 00:28:36.850 align:middle line:90% Here's a few of my thoughts. 00:28:36.850 --> 00:28:42.410 align:middle line:84% This is a lonely life, and it's hard to find anybody to talk to. 00:28:42.410 --> 00:28:45.450 align:middle line:84% And what I'm about to tell you is a parable, 00:28:45.450 --> 00:28:47.730 align:middle line:84% but it's based on a lot of stories 00:28:47.730 --> 00:28:52.450 align:middle line:84% from a lot of entrepreneurs that I have distilled. 00:28:52.450 --> 00:28:58.250 align:middle line:84% And forgive me, I'm going to use old school '50s-type dynamics 00:28:58.250 --> 00:28:59.210 align:middle line:90% here. 00:28:59.210 --> 00:29:03.890 align:middle line:84% Jack and Jill were both gainfully employed, accomplished 00:29:03.890 --> 00:29:05.450 align:middle line:90% professionals. 00:29:05.450 --> 00:29:08.650 align:middle line:84% One day they decided to start a family. 00:29:08.650 --> 00:29:11.920 align:middle line:84% They concluded that one of them should stay home and take 00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:14.720 align:middle line:90% care of the kids. 00:29:14.720 --> 00:29:18.140 align:middle line:84% Jack lost the coin toss and he stayed at work. 00:29:18.140 --> 00:29:20.280 align:middle line:90% Jill stayed home. 00:29:20.280 --> 00:29:25.680 align:middle line:84% Jack, after a while, quit his job at Amazon 00:29:25.680 --> 00:29:27.360 align:middle line:90% and joined a startup. 00:29:27.360 --> 00:29:31.320 align:middle line:90% In fact, started a business. 00:29:31.320 --> 00:29:34.320 align:middle line:84% Discovered it was way harder than he thought, 00:29:34.320 --> 00:29:36.360 align:middle line:84% and he was running into situations where he 00:29:36.360 --> 00:29:38.360 align:middle line:90% didn't know how to handle him. 00:29:38.360 --> 00:29:44.360 align:middle line:84% He came home one afternoon and, as some men 00:29:44.360 --> 00:29:48.480 align:middle line:84% I know do, walked in the door, completely oblivious to all that 00:29:48.480 --> 00:29:51.000 align:middle line:84% was going on at home and wanted to immediately start 00:29:51.000 --> 00:29:53.560 align:middle line:90% talking about his day. 00:29:53.560 --> 00:29:58.320 align:middle line:84% And he said, you know, I kind think 00:29:58.320 --> 00:30:00.520 align:middle line:90% I don't know what I'm doing. 00:30:00.520 --> 00:30:04.600 align:middle line:84% And Jill at the moment had just changed two dirty diapers 00:30:04.600 --> 00:30:08.630 align:middle line:84% and mopped up strained carrots from the floor. 00:30:08.630 --> 00:30:10.030 align:middle line:90% And she exploded. 00:30:10.030 --> 00:30:12.530 align:middle line:84% She said, what do you mean you don't know what you're doing? 00:30:12.530 --> 00:30:14.030 align:middle line:84% Do you realize we've got a mortgage? 00:30:14.030 --> 00:30:14.930 align:middle line:90% We've got two kids. 00:30:14.930 --> 00:30:16.450 align:middle line:90% We need to be saving money. 00:30:16.450 --> 00:30:18.230 align:middle line:84% And you took this crazy job, and you're 00:30:18.230 --> 00:30:20.063 align:middle line:84% telling me you don't know what you're doing. 00:30:20.063 --> 00:30:22.830 align:middle line:90% Have you lost your mind? 00:30:22.830 --> 00:30:26.510 align:middle line:84% Which caused two thoughts for Jack. 00:30:26.510 --> 00:30:28.450 align:middle line:90% One was, oh, dear. 00:30:28.450 --> 00:30:30.350 align:middle line:90% She's right. 00:30:30.350 --> 00:30:32.450 align:middle line:84% And the other was, that didn't work very well. 00:30:32.450 --> 00:30:35.990 align:middle line:84% I don't think I'm going to do that anymore. 00:30:35.990 --> 00:30:39.412 align:middle line:84% I think if I have self-doubt, I'll just leave it at work. 00:30:39.412 --> 00:30:41.370 align:middle line:84% But the fact is, if you're going to go do this, 00:30:41.370 --> 00:30:43.550 align:middle line:84% you're going to be rejected constantly. 00:30:43.550 --> 00:30:45.610 align:middle line:84% Potential clients will tell you no. 00:30:45.610 --> 00:30:47.110 align:middle line:90% Partners will tell you no. 00:30:47.110 --> 00:30:49.643 align:middle line:84% People that you want money from, they'll tell you no. 00:30:49.643 --> 00:30:51.310 align:middle line:84% Potential employees, they'll say no, I'm 00:30:51.310 --> 00:30:54.750 align:middle line:84% going to take a job somewhere else. 00:30:54.750 --> 00:30:57.930 align:middle line:84% And it's hard to find a shoulder to cry on. 00:30:57.930 --> 00:31:00.710 align:middle line:90% 00:31:00.710 --> 00:31:03.830 align:middle line:84% And if you have lived a life where you have been accomplished 00:31:03.830 --> 00:31:06.310 align:middle line:84% and you've been rewarded for being smart 00:31:06.310 --> 00:31:14.540 align:middle line:84% and for your awesome work ethic, this will be difficult. 00:31:14.540 --> 00:31:18.500 align:middle line:84% And it is unfortunately true that not everyone has your best 00:31:18.500 --> 00:31:20.420 align:middle line:90% interests at heart. 00:31:20.420 --> 00:31:25.020 align:middle line:84% My friend Glen built a good business. 00:31:25.020 --> 00:31:27.900 align:middle line:84% Over six years, he worked very hard. 00:31:27.900 --> 00:31:31.898 align:middle line:84% One summer, his wife's father said, I've come into some money 00:31:31.898 --> 00:31:33.940 align:middle line:84% and I'm going to take the whole family to Europe. 00:31:33.940 --> 00:31:37.820 align:middle line:84% And I'm paying all the expenses, two weeks vacation. 00:31:37.820 --> 00:31:39.000 align:middle line:90% He said, I can't go. 00:31:39.000 --> 00:31:40.560 align:middle line:90% I have to stay home and work. 00:31:40.560 --> 00:31:46.580 align:middle line:90% 00:31:46.580 --> 00:31:48.340 align:middle line:90% He raised capital. 00:31:48.340 --> 00:31:50.180 align:middle line:90% He secured customers. 00:31:50.180 --> 00:31:52.500 align:middle line:90% His business was growing nicely. 00:31:52.500 --> 00:31:55.160 align:middle line:84% And then his investors stole the company from him. 00:31:55.160 --> 00:32:01.540 align:middle line:90% 00:32:01.540 --> 00:32:05.530 align:middle line:90% He found that to be difficult. 00:32:05.530 --> 00:32:10.090 align:middle line:90% So sidebar, two lessons-- 00:32:10.090 --> 00:32:13.410 align:middle line:84% don't raise money from the wrong people 00:32:13.410 --> 00:32:18.370 align:middle line:84% and protect your intellectual property. 00:32:18.370 --> 00:32:20.370 align:middle line:84% In other words, if you've got a magic algorithm 00:32:20.370 --> 00:32:24.970 align:middle line:84% or secret business formula, protect it. 00:32:24.970 --> 00:32:32.490 align:middle line:84% So at the risk of pushing a few more of you off the cliff, 00:32:32.490 --> 00:32:35.310 align:middle line:84% meet your constant companions-- anxiety, 00:32:35.310 --> 00:32:37.550 align:middle line:90% self-doubt, imposter syndrome. 00:32:37.550 --> 00:32:38.953 align:middle line:90% Let's unpack that a little bit. 00:32:38.953 --> 00:32:40.370 align:middle line:84% If you're running a company, there 00:32:40.370 --> 00:32:42.570 align:middle line:84% are a lot of people that are counting on you-- 00:32:42.570 --> 00:32:47.730 align:middle line:84% your family, your employees, maybe even your customers. 00:32:47.730 --> 00:32:52.430 align:middle line:84% And when you flop, you go home wondering, 00:32:52.430 --> 00:32:55.530 align:middle line:90% maybe I've made a mistake. 00:32:55.530 --> 00:32:59.250 align:middle line:84% How many of you found yourself maybe a month into your freshman 00:32:59.250 --> 00:33:03.250 align:middle line:84% year looking at your genius classmates 00:33:03.250 --> 00:33:07.400 align:middle line:84% and your terrible test scores, and found yourself thinking, 00:33:07.400 --> 00:33:09.400 align:middle line:90% maybe I made a mistake. 00:33:09.400 --> 00:33:14.240 align:middle line:84% Maybe the admissions office made a mistake. 00:33:14.240 --> 00:33:20.100 align:middle line:84% Well, same feeling, grown up, of course. 00:33:20.100 --> 00:33:22.440 align:middle line:84% But you doubt you're the right person for the job. 00:33:22.440 --> 00:33:24.120 align:middle line:84% You have been presenting yourself 00:33:24.120 --> 00:33:26.920 align:middle line:84% as the capable captain of the ship. 00:33:26.920 --> 00:33:31.360 align:middle line:84% But secretly, you worry, maybe you're not. 00:33:31.360 --> 00:33:32.660 align:middle line:90% Maybe you're a fraud. 00:33:32.660 --> 00:33:34.400 align:middle line:90% Maybe you're a poser. 00:33:34.400 --> 00:33:38.520 align:middle line:90% These are disturbing thoughts. 00:33:38.520 --> 00:33:42.180 align:middle line:90% So is there hope for us? 00:33:42.180 --> 00:33:44.840 align:middle line:90% 00:33:44.840 --> 00:33:48.800 align:middle line:84% Well, except up front that normal people can't help you, 00:33:48.800 --> 00:33:52.880 align:middle line:90% because you're not normal. 00:33:52.880 --> 00:34:00.080 align:middle line:84% I mean, serial entrepreneurs are just wired differently. 00:34:00.080 --> 00:34:03.110 align:middle line:84% If you were normal, you'd work for Amazon. 00:34:03.110 --> 00:34:05.430 align:middle line:84% Your normal friends don't understand why 00:34:05.430 --> 00:34:07.050 align:middle line:90% you're not working for Amazon. 00:34:07.050 --> 00:34:10.230 align:middle line:84% You have made life choices that they think are crazy. 00:34:10.230 --> 00:34:13.230 align:middle line:84% And if you come to them wanting to boo-hoo a little bit 00:34:13.230 --> 00:34:15.245 align:middle line:84% because things aren't going well, 00:34:15.245 --> 00:34:17.370 align:middle line:84% they think, well, of course they're not going well. 00:34:17.370 --> 00:34:18.929 align:middle line:84% You're a dumbass for even doing this. 00:34:18.929 --> 00:34:20.710 align:middle line:84% You should be doing this other thing where 00:34:20.710 --> 00:34:23.210 align:middle line:90% you have a nice stable income. 00:34:23.210 --> 00:34:26.830 align:middle line:90% So they can't counsel you. 00:34:26.830 --> 00:34:30.550 align:middle line:84% So the answer-- find a community of people 00:34:30.550 --> 00:34:36.389 align:middle line:84% who are as crazy as you are, which you brought up, 00:34:36.389 --> 00:34:39.989 align:middle line:84% and which we probably need to do more with. 00:34:39.989 --> 00:34:45.710 align:middle line:84% But Joe and I, as mentioned, spent a decade or more working 00:34:45.710 --> 00:34:48.230 align:middle line:84% with a group that works with high growth 00:34:48.230 --> 00:34:49.929 align:middle line:90% entrepreneurs in the Midwest. 00:34:49.929 --> 00:34:52.190 align:middle line:84% And over and over again, they would 00:34:52.190 --> 00:34:56.370 align:middle line:84% meet in Kansas City or Wichita or whatever, 00:34:56.370 --> 00:34:59.190 align:middle line:84% and come into the room and say, I 00:34:59.190 --> 00:35:02.020 align:middle line:84% thought I was the only crazy person out there. 00:35:02.020 --> 00:35:04.160 align:middle line:84% I'm in a room full of people like me. 00:35:04.160 --> 00:35:07.140 align:middle line:90% These are my peeps. 00:35:07.140 --> 00:35:09.665 align:middle line:84% And in short order, like half an hour, 00:35:09.665 --> 00:35:11.040 align:middle line:84% they'd all be sitting at the bar, 00:35:11.040 --> 00:35:14.380 align:middle line:84% swapping all kinds of details about their life stories, 00:35:14.380 --> 00:35:18.380 align:middle line:84% because they were kindred spirits. 00:35:18.380 --> 00:35:20.540 align:middle line:90% So find a group like that. 00:35:20.540 --> 00:35:22.300 align:middle line:90% We may be able to help. 00:35:22.300 --> 00:35:23.820 align:middle line:90% Seek their counsel. 00:35:23.820 --> 00:35:27.620 align:middle line:84% Help them as well, because there will be times when that support 00:35:27.620 --> 00:35:29.920 align:middle line:90% network is a lifeline. 00:35:29.920 --> 00:35:35.420 align:middle line:90% 00:35:35.420 --> 00:35:38.680 align:middle line:84% Shifting gears for a second, I think this is really important. 00:35:38.680 --> 00:35:41.460 align:middle line:90% 00:35:41.460 --> 00:35:47.900 align:middle line:84% There's this word pivot that gets batted around as a synonym 00:35:47.900 --> 00:35:51.100 align:middle line:84% for I didn't know what I was doing, so I changed. 00:35:51.100 --> 00:35:57.300 align:middle line:84% And that's actually OK, because scientists articulate 00:35:57.300 --> 00:36:00.270 align:middle line:90% a hypothesis and test it. 00:36:00.270 --> 00:36:03.130 align:middle line:84% And if the hypothesis proves to be wrong, 00:36:03.130 --> 00:36:07.090 align:middle line:84% they say, well, time for the next hypothesis. 00:36:07.090 --> 00:36:09.450 align:middle line:90% If your business fails-- 00:36:09.450 --> 00:36:13.450 align:middle line:84% in a lot of places in the US, the feeling in the community 00:36:13.450 --> 00:36:19.010 align:middle line:84% is if your business failed, then you're a failure. 00:36:19.010 --> 00:36:22.130 align:middle line:84% Fortunately in places like Boston 00:36:22.130 --> 00:36:27.018 align:middle line:84% and a few places in the West Coast, you'll talk to people. 00:36:27.018 --> 00:36:29.310 align:middle line:84% And you'll after a while say, ugh, my business flopped. 00:36:29.310 --> 00:36:32.110 align:middle line:84% And they say, ah, dude, mine failed three times. 00:36:32.110 --> 00:36:33.330 align:middle line:90% Welcome. 00:36:33.330 --> 00:36:40.090 align:middle line:84% Keep going, because you are testing hypotheses. 00:36:40.090 --> 00:36:43.450 align:middle line:84% This is a re-engineering of your mindset here. 00:36:43.450 --> 00:36:45.270 align:middle line:90% You are testing hypotheses. 00:36:45.270 --> 00:36:49.210 align:middle line:84% And what you did was found one that didn't work. 00:36:49.210 --> 00:36:51.770 align:middle line:90% Time for a new hypothesis. 00:36:51.770 --> 00:36:56.290 align:middle line:84% To use a different analogy, you may be a talented jockey. 00:36:56.290 --> 00:36:59.950 align:middle line:84% You may have just picked the wrong horse. 00:36:59.950 --> 00:37:01.470 align:middle line:90% Shoot it. 00:37:01.470 --> 00:37:02.650 align:middle line:90% Find a new horse. 00:37:02.650 --> 00:37:07.470 align:middle line:90% 00:37:07.470 --> 00:37:09.670 align:middle line:84% One thing you can do-- and I have 00:37:09.670 --> 00:37:11.750 align:middle line:84% found this to be a lifesaver-- is 00:37:11.750 --> 00:37:15.150 align:middle line:90% get a business advisory board. 00:37:15.150 --> 00:37:18.410 align:middle line:84% These are experts who want you to succeed. 00:37:18.410 --> 00:37:20.490 align:middle line:84% They're helping you for mainly-- well, 00:37:20.490 --> 00:37:22.950 align:middle line:84% partly because they like you, you 00:37:22.950 --> 00:37:28.070 align:middle line:84% hope, and mostly because they want to see you succeed. 00:37:28.070 --> 00:37:31.110 align:middle line:84% This is not the same as a board of directors. 00:37:31.110 --> 00:37:33.550 align:middle line:84% A board of directors, as you no doubt 00:37:33.550 --> 00:37:36.310 align:middle line:84% have learned in the course of the past week and a half, 00:37:36.310 --> 00:37:38.750 align:middle line:90% they represent the shareholders. 00:37:38.750 --> 00:37:41.770 align:middle line:84% And they are not only empowered to fire you, 00:37:41.770 --> 00:37:44.190 align:middle line:84% but obligated to fire if they think 00:37:44.190 --> 00:37:46.910 align:middle line:90% you're not the right person. 00:37:46.910 --> 00:37:49.770 align:middle line:84% That's not usually a good place to stand up and say, 00:37:49.770 --> 00:37:52.250 align:middle line:84% I haven't the slightest idea what I'm doing. 00:37:52.250 --> 00:37:55.140 align:middle line:90% 00:37:55.140 --> 00:37:57.540 align:middle line:84% Business advisory board does not have 00:37:57.540 --> 00:38:00.240 align:middle line:84% those fiduciary responsibilities. 00:38:00.240 --> 00:38:02.560 align:middle line:84% It's a great place to stand up and say, 00:38:02.560 --> 00:38:05.580 align:middle line:90% I have no clue what to do next. 00:38:05.580 --> 00:38:06.800 align:middle line:90% Just a quick story. 00:38:06.800 --> 00:38:12.000 align:middle line:84% I at one point, along with one of my genius scientist friends, 00:38:12.000 --> 00:38:16.260 align:middle line:84% had invented a 2.5 ounce drink that 00:38:16.260 --> 00:38:20.660 align:middle line:84% helps you sleep at night based on food ingredients. 00:38:20.660 --> 00:38:23.420 align:middle line:84% And I said, I don't have the slightest idea 00:38:23.420 --> 00:38:28.620 align:middle line:84% how to find a manufacturer who can bottle a beverage like this 00:38:28.620 --> 00:38:32.000 align:middle line:84% in quantities less than 2 million bottles, 00:38:32.000 --> 00:38:33.620 align:middle line:90% which I can't afford. 00:38:33.620 --> 00:38:36.300 align:middle line:84% My friend Noel had recently retired 00:38:36.300 --> 00:38:39.300 align:middle line:84% as senior VP of a lot of stuff, including 00:38:39.300 --> 00:38:42.700 align:middle line:90% manufacturing, at PepsiCo. 00:38:42.700 --> 00:38:45.860 align:middle line:84% He said, let me make a couple phone calls, Bob. 00:38:45.860 --> 00:38:48.660 align:middle line:90% Two days later, problem solved. 00:38:48.660 --> 00:38:51.660 align:middle line:84% So it really helps if you just assemble some people who think, 00:38:51.660 --> 00:38:56.450 align:middle line:84% you might have a big idea, and I know something about this. 00:38:56.450 --> 00:39:01.330 align:middle line:84% I might be able, in this narrow arena, to help you. 00:39:01.330 --> 00:39:04.372 align:middle line:84% Interestingly, about a year into it, 00:39:04.372 --> 00:39:06.830 align:middle line:84% I realized these people have helped me over and over again, 00:39:06.830 --> 00:39:08.470 align:middle line:84% and I've never done a thing for them. 00:39:08.470 --> 00:39:09.383 align:middle line:90% I feel guilty. 00:39:09.383 --> 00:39:10.550 align:middle line:90% I can't give them any money. 00:39:10.550 --> 00:39:11.770 align:middle line:90% I don't have any money. 00:39:11.770 --> 00:39:15.210 align:middle line:84% I should give them equity, some ownership in the company. 00:39:15.210 --> 00:39:18.250 align:middle line:84% And I didn't know how much to give them. 00:39:18.250 --> 00:39:21.130 align:middle line:90% So I asked them. 00:39:21.130 --> 00:39:23.350 align:middle line:84% I said, I'm thinking of giving you guys some equity. 00:39:23.350 --> 00:39:24.910 align:middle line:90% I feel obligated to do that. 00:39:24.910 --> 00:39:26.310 align:middle line:90% And I'm grateful for your help. 00:39:26.310 --> 00:39:28.930 align:middle line:84% And my business would have died six months ago 00:39:28.930 --> 00:39:29.967 align:middle line:90% without your help. 00:39:29.967 --> 00:39:31.550 align:middle line:84% And I don't know how much to give you. 00:39:31.550 --> 00:39:32.710 align:middle line:90% You're my advisors. 00:39:32.710 --> 00:39:33.550 align:middle line:90% Advise me. 00:39:33.550 --> 00:39:36.290 align:middle line:90% 00:39:36.290 --> 00:39:37.670 align:middle line:90% I trusted them, obviously. 00:39:37.670 --> 00:39:41.110 align:middle line:84% I said, I was thinking of giving you a 1 point apiece-- 00:39:41.110 --> 00:39:42.890 align:middle line:90% 1%. 00:39:42.890 --> 00:39:47.090 align:middle line:90% And they said, that's too much. 00:39:47.090 --> 00:39:48.710 align:middle line:90% Give us a half a point apiece. 00:39:48.710 --> 00:39:49.950 align:middle line:90% That's more appropriate. 00:39:49.950 --> 00:39:52.120 align:middle line:84% And when you show your capitalization table 00:39:52.120 --> 00:39:56.080 align:middle line:84% to prospective investors, they will acknowledge 00:39:56.080 --> 00:39:58.320 align:middle line:84% that you made a sophisticated decision, 00:39:58.320 --> 00:40:00.680 align:middle line:84% and it'll help you raise capital. 00:40:00.680 --> 00:40:01.820 align:middle line:90% I love these guys. 00:40:01.820 --> 00:40:04.400 align:middle line:90% 00:40:04.400 --> 00:40:10.400 align:middle line:84% Attitudes that will help, what I found to be the right blend 00:40:10.400 --> 00:40:14.520 align:middle line:84% is if they listen more than they talk. 00:40:14.520 --> 00:40:16.360 align:middle line:84% If their attitude is, I want to show you 00:40:16.360 --> 00:40:17.980 align:middle line:84% that I'm the smartest guy in the room 00:40:17.980 --> 00:40:24.440 align:middle line:84% and I know everything, that's not going to be productive. 00:40:24.440 --> 00:40:28.040 align:middle line:84% Most of them you want to be cheerleaders, 00:40:28.040 --> 00:40:30.540 align:middle line:84% so that you can stand in front of them and say, I fell down. 00:40:30.540 --> 00:40:33.080 align:middle line:84% And they say, don't worry, you'll get up. 00:40:33.080 --> 00:40:35.800 align:middle line:84% But it really helps if you have one or two who'll 00:40:35.800 --> 00:40:39.040 align:middle line:84% give you 10 reasons why your idea or the steps you're 00:40:39.040 --> 00:40:42.120 align:middle line:90% going to take won't work. 00:40:42.120 --> 00:40:43.920 align:middle line:90% I had one of those guys. 00:40:43.920 --> 00:40:45.340 align:middle line:90% He was pretty sophisticated. 00:40:45.340 --> 00:40:48.480 align:middle line:84% Worked at Nestle, had seen all manner of ideas, most of which 00:40:48.480 --> 00:40:49.600 align:middle line:90% didn't work. 00:40:49.600 --> 00:40:55.190 align:middle line:84% And he had a long list of sensible, validated reasons 00:40:55.190 --> 00:40:57.110 align:middle line:90% why things wouldn't work. 00:40:57.110 --> 00:40:59.670 align:middle line:84% And he'd throw out 10 of these things. 00:40:59.670 --> 00:41:01.890 align:middle line:84% And I think, I got you there, here, here. 00:41:01.890 --> 00:41:03.670 align:middle line:90% I had seven of them covered. 00:41:03.670 --> 00:41:08.310 align:middle line:84% Three of them, I would think, oh, god, I didn't think of that. 00:41:08.310 --> 00:41:12.670 align:middle line:84% So I find that to be a useful balance. 00:41:12.670 --> 00:41:14.310 align:middle line:90% You guys OK with this? 00:41:14.310 --> 00:41:14.930 align:middle line:90% Question? 00:41:14.930 --> 00:41:15.550 align:middle line:90% Yes, sir. 00:41:15.550 --> 00:41:22.392 align:middle line:90% 00:41:22.392 --> 00:41:24.350 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Not to dive too much into the details 00:41:24.350 --> 00:41:26.150 align:middle line:84% of the advisory board, but how would you 00:41:26.150 --> 00:41:29.350 align:middle line:84% recommend we structure-- or add some sort of framework 00:41:29.350 --> 00:41:32.930 align:middle line:84% or structure behind their roles and responsibilities? 00:41:32.930 --> 00:41:36.590 align:middle line:84% Is it a document that says, hey, let's meet once a month, 00:41:36.590 --> 00:41:40.870 align:middle line:84% sit down and talk about the business challenges, growth 00:41:40.870 --> 00:41:42.310 align:middle line:90% solutions, all sorts of things. 00:41:42.310 --> 00:41:45.027 align:middle line:90% 00:41:45.027 --> 00:41:46.610 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Thank you for the question. 00:41:46.610 --> 00:41:49.420 align:middle line:90% 00:41:49.420 --> 00:41:55.200 align:middle line:84% I don't have what is considered best practices. 00:41:55.200 --> 00:41:56.100 align:middle line:90% I don't know. 00:41:56.100 --> 00:41:59.080 align:middle line:84% What I did with every time I did one of these-- 00:41:59.080 --> 00:42:02.700 align:middle line:84% because I knew these people and I trusted them-- 00:42:02.700 --> 00:42:05.900 align:middle line:84% I would simply have a call with them and we'd chat. 00:42:05.900 --> 00:42:08.820 align:middle line:84% And I would say, look, I don't want to burden you 00:42:08.820 --> 00:42:12.020 align:middle line:90% with a lot of stuff. 00:42:12.020 --> 00:42:15.420 align:middle line:84% What I want is to be able to call you every now 00:42:15.420 --> 00:42:19.300 align:middle line:84% and then in something that is your area of expertise and not 00:42:19.300 --> 00:42:20.020 align:middle line:90% mine. 00:42:20.020 --> 00:42:23.980 align:middle line:84% And we'll probably have a meeting for two hours 00:42:23.980 --> 00:42:26.500 align:middle line:90% every other month. 00:42:26.500 --> 00:42:31.250 align:middle line:84% And my goal is we take what you know 00:42:31.250 --> 00:42:35.780 align:middle line:84% and what the other advisors know and add it to the little bit 00:42:35.780 --> 00:42:39.900 align:middle line:84% that I know, and we'll build a great company. 00:42:39.900 --> 00:42:45.000 align:middle line:84% And they all said, I've been loving what you're doing. 00:42:45.000 --> 00:42:46.280 align:middle line:90% This idea is cool. 00:42:46.280 --> 00:42:47.530 align:middle line:90% I'm in. 00:42:47.530 --> 00:42:49.330 align:middle line:90% It was that straightforward. 00:42:49.330 --> 00:42:51.530 align:middle line:84% And the only time we put together a document 00:42:51.530 --> 00:42:54.470 align:middle line:84% was when I finally figured out I ought to give them some equity. 00:42:54.470 --> 00:42:56.510 align:middle line:84% And we had to put together something that said, 00:42:56.510 --> 00:42:59.430 align:middle line:84% here are the options and the vesting processes, 00:42:59.430 --> 00:43:02.350 align:middle line:84% and you should file an 83(b) election, and blah, blah, blah. 00:43:02.350 --> 00:43:06.670 align:middle line:84% But prior to that, it was all a handshake. 00:43:06.670 --> 00:43:09.650 align:middle line:90% 00:43:09.650 --> 00:43:10.490 align:middle line:90% Anybody else? 00:43:10.490 --> 00:43:11.150 align:middle line:90% Questions? 00:43:11.150 --> 00:43:14.450 align:middle line:90% Yep, got one behind you, Jan. 00:43:14.450 --> 00:43:16.690 align:middle line:90% Yes, sir. 00:43:16.690 --> 00:43:19.870 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: From a personal standpoint, 00:43:19.870 --> 00:43:23.250 align:middle line:84% would you say that the threshold for having a chance to succeed 00:43:23.250 --> 00:43:27.050 align:middle line:84% from a startup going from 0 to 1, 00:43:27.050 --> 00:43:30.970 align:middle line:84% is that you have to view the idea as something that you 00:43:30.970 --> 00:43:32.630 align:middle line:90% have to attempt? 00:43:32.630 --> 00:43:35.410 align:middle line:90% 00:43:35.410 --> 00:43:40.290 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Are you asking me if the success criterion 00:43:40.290 --> 00:43:43.907 align:middle line:84% is I get so fired up, I think I just have to do this? 00:43:43.907 --> 00:43:46.240 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Yeah, is that like the threshold of commitment 00:43:46.240 --> 00:43:47.060 align:middle line:90% to have a chance? 00:43:47.060 --> 00:43:50.320 align:middle line:90% 00:43:50.320 --> 00:43:59.960 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: I think that is a double-edged sword in that 00:43:59.960 --> 00:44:02.160 align:middle line:84% the right level of passion will cause you to think, 00:44:02.160 --> 00:44:04.560 align:middle line:84% I might work on Saturday and every now and then 00:44:04.560 --> 00:44:06.200 align:middle line:90% and get something done. 00:44:06.200 --> 00:44:09.280 align:middle line:84% And I'm going to get back up after I've been knocked down. 00:44:09.280 --> 00:44:13.280 align:middle line:84% Too much passion blinds you to the obvious. 00:44:13.280 --> 00:44:18.140 align:middle line:84% And I think if you meter into that, yeah, 00:44:18.140 --> 00:44:22.640 align:middle line:84% but I also got to make a living, and I got to deal with my family 00:44:22.640 --> 00:44:23.820 align:middle line:90% and support them. 00:44:23.820 --> 00:44:26.205 align:middle line:84% And on a good day, I actually like my children. 00:44:26.205 --> 00:44:28.080 align:middle line:84% I wouldn't mind spending some time with them, 00:44:28.080 --> 00:44:31.440 align:middle line:90% and having some balance. 00:44:31.440 --> 00:44:38.260 align:middle line:84% So I think Tuesday night when we talked about pitching, 00:44:38.260 --> 00:44:41.680 align:middle line:90% I said deploy passion wisely. 00:44:41.680 --> 00:44:44.070 align:middle line:84% Because if your pitch is so passionate 00:44:44.070 --> 00:44:47.630 align:middle line:84% that they fear you're just going to have a seizure or something, 00:44:47.630 --> 00:44:50.210 align:middle line:84% then you're unlikely to attract investment. 00:44:50.210 --> 00:44:52.070 align:middle line:84% And I think similarly, when you're 00:44:52.070 --> 00:44:54.870 align:middle line:84% looking to start something, if it really gets you fired up 00:44:54.870 --> 00:44:57.430 align:middle line:84% and you think, god, I would love to do this, 00:44:57.430 --> 00:44:59.270 align:middle line:90% that's a really good sign. 00:44:59.270 --> 00:45:01.110 align:middle line:84% If you think, well, I'm just not going 00:45:01.110 --> 00:45:07.230 align:middle line:84% to eat or sleep or shower or see anybody, that's not a good sign. 00:45:07.230 --> 00:45:08.228 align:middle line:90% Reasonable answer? 00:45:08.228 --> 00:45:09.270 align:middle line:90% AUDIENCE: Yes, thank you. 00:45:09.270 --> 00:45:11.310 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: You're welcome. 00:45:11.310 --> 00:45:11.870 align:middle line:90% OK. 00:45:11.870 --> 00:45:15.750 align:middle line:90% 00:45:15.750 --> 00:45:16.610 align:middle line:90% Oh, backed up. 00:45:16.610 --> 00:45:17.290 align:middle line:90% I'm sorry. 00:45:17.290 --> 00:45:19.090 align:middle line:84% There is something that I left off here. 00:45:19.090 --> 00:45:21.310 align:middle line:90% There are resources around. 00:45:21.310 --> 00:45:23.510 align:middle line:90% Harvard's got the i-Lab. 00:45:23.510 --> 00:45:26.170 align:middle line:84% MIT's got Venture Mentoring Service. 00:45:26.170 --> 00:45:28.590 align:middle line:84% Most of the schools have discovered 00:45:28.590 --> 00:45:31.950 align:middle line:84% that there is an appetite for entrepreneurship 00:45:31.950 --> 00:45:36.510 align:middle line:84% amongst their constituency, and they have responded. 00:45:36.510 --> 00:45:39.730 align:middle line:84% So find those resources and avail yourself of them. 00:45:39.730 --> 00:45:43.100 align:middle line:90% 00:45:43.100 --> 00:45:47.460 align:middle line:84% This is an elaboration on the question that you just asked me, 00:45:47.460 --> 00:45:50.580 align:middle line:84% but an awful lot of entrepreneurs also think that 00:45:50.580 --> 00:45:53.460 align:middle line:84% they really can't do anything else 24/7 but work 00:45:53.460 --> 00:45:54.660 align:middle line:90% on their business. 00:45:54.660 --> 00:45:58.660 align:middle line:84% And I think that's a really bad idea, because you 00:45:58.660 --> 00:46:01.060 align:middle line:90% have to make good decisions. 00:46:01.060 --> 00:46:03.160 align:middle line:84% And it doesn't matter how smart you are, 00:46:03.160 --> 00:46:04.880 align:middle line:90% how strong your work ethic is. 00:46:04.880 --> 00:46:09.900 align:middle line:84% There are 168 hours in the week, no matter who you are. 00:46:09.900 --> 00:46:13.200 align:middle line:84% And if you spend every one of them working on your business, 00:46:13.200 --> 00:46:17.940 align:middle line:84% there will come a point when you will self-destruct. 00:46:17.940 --> 00:46:22.460 align:middle line:84% So not to sound like your grandmother, 00:46:22.460 --> 00:46:26.360 align:middle line:84% but there are some obvious steps which are frequently ignored. 00:46:26.360 --> 00:46:28.900 align:middle line:90% 00:46:28.900 --> 00:46:30.800 align:middle line:84% Enough with the carry-out pizzas. 00:46:30.800 --> 00:46:34.540 align:middle line:90% Eat a decent meal now and then. 00:46:34.540 --> 00:46:35.960 align:middle line:90% Get some exercise. 00:46:35.960 --> 00:46:38.660 align:middle line:84% It's incredible for helping you manage stress. 00:46:38.660 --> 00:46:40.450 align:middle line:84% There's a lot of literature out there 00:46:40.450 --> 00:46:45.090 align:middle line:84% that says a five-minute walk has extraordinary benefits 00:46:45.090 --> 00:46:49.330 align:middle line:90% in reducing your stress levels. 00:46:49.330 --> 00:46:52.070 align:middle line:84% And because I was in the sleep business for a while, 00:46:52.070 --> 00:46:55.570 align:middle line:84% I ran across a bunch of statistics to the effect 00:46:55.570 --> 00:47:01.050 align:middle line:84% that sleeping only five hours a night 00:47:01.050 --> 00:47:05.450 align:middle line:84% causes the same impairment to your cognitive abilities 00:47:05.450 --> 00:47:09.010 align:middle line:90% as three drinks. 00:47:09.010 --> 00:47:14.170 align:middle line:84% So you're operating probably beyond the legal level 00:47:14.170 --> 00:47:18.130 align:middle line:84% for intoxication most of the time. 00:47:18.130 --> 00:47:21.970 align:middle line:84% Ask yourself, are you making the best decisions 00:47:21.970 --> 00:47:24.050 align:middle line:90% for you and your company? 00:47:24.050 --> 00:47:26.250 align:middle line:90% Get some sleep. 00:47:26.250 --> 00:47:28.650 align:middle line:90% Go home. 00:47:28.650 --> 00:47:31.010 align:middle line:84% Take care of your loved ones, because they're 00:47:31.010 --> 00:47:34.730 align:middle line:84% going to be important to you long after your business has 00:47:34.730 --> 00:47:39.040 align:middle line:90% failed or succeeded. 00:47:39.040 --> 00:47:43.480 align:middle line:84% There was one year when I missed Halloween with my kids, who 00:47:43.480 --> 00:47:45.960 align:middle line:84% wanted to walk around in costumes 00:47:45.960 --> 00:47:48.080 align:middle line:90% and have me take them with them. 00:47:48.080 --> 00:47:52.320 align:middle line:84% And they remembered that I missed their Halloween 00:47:52.320 --> 00:47:56.560 align:middle line:84% long after I remembered why I'd missed their Halloween. 00:47:56.560 --> 00:47:59.480 align:middle line:84% And when that happened, I said, OK, new rules. 00:47:59.480 --> 00:48:02.440 align:middle line:90% I'm not doing that anymore. 00:48:02.440 --> 00:48:06.680 align:middle line:84% The business issues will be there in the morning. 00:48:06.680 --> 00:48:08.340 align:middle line:84% You need to recharge your batteries. 00:48:08.340 --> 00:48:09.400 align:middle line:90% This is hard. 00:48:09.400 --> 00:48:10.800 align:middle line:90% It drains you. 00:48:10.800 --> 00:48:13.000 align:middle line:90% Do stuff you love. 00:48:13.000 --> 00:48:14.020 align:middle line:90% Some of you run. 00:48:14.020 --> 00:48:15.540 align:middle line:90% Some of you climb rocks. 00:48:15.540 --> 00:48:18.400 align:middle line:84% Some of you are artistically gifted. 00:48:18.400 --> 00:48:21.020 align:middle line:84% Some of us blunder our way into playing music. 00:48:21.020 --> 00:48:24.760 align:middle line:84% Whatever it is, do stuff that recharges your battery. 00:48:24.760 --> 00:48:27.460 align:middle line:84% Your business will be better off and so will you. 00:48:27.460 --> 00:48:31.840 align:middle line:90% 00:48:31.840 --> 00:48:36.950 align:middle line:84% I had a party when I launched my book. 00:48:36.950 --> 00:48:40.270 align:middle line:84% Picked up a lovely place on the seaport. 00:48:40.270 --> 00:48:45.190 align:middle line:84% I had a whole bunch of lunatic entrepreneur friends from Kansas 00:48:45.190 --> 00:48:49.710 align:middle line:84% and Nebraska and Oklahoma who flew in on their own dime 00:48:49.710 --> 00:48:53.050 align:middle line:84% to come, and a bunch of people here in Boston to come. 00:48:53.050 --> 00:48:54.690 align:middle line:90% And it was kind of exciting. 00:48:54.690 --> 00:48:57.470 align:middle line:84% Writing a book was extraordinarily harder 00:48:57.470 --> 00:48:59.050 align:middle line:90% than I expected it to be. 00:48:59.050 --> 00:49:01.507 align:middle line:84% And after a lot of false starts, I 00:49:01.507 --> 00:49:03.590 align:middle line:84% had ended up with something I was kind of proud of 00:49:03.590 --> 00:49:06.230 align:middle line:84% and I thought it was kind of cool to have a launch party. 00:49:06.230 --> 00:49:09.730 align:middle line:84% And I didn't want it just to be cocktails and hors d'oeuvres. 00:49:09.730 --> 00:49:12.570 align:middle line:84% I wanted to have a little bit of a panel discussion, 00:49:12.570 --> 00:49:15.430 align:middle line:84% talking a little bit about entrepreneurship. 00:49:15.430 --> 00:49:19.790 align:middle line:84% And so I snagged three of the entrepreneurs. 00:49:19.790 --> 00:49:22.530 align:middle line:84% And I had them sit at little stools up front. 00:49:22.530 --> 00:49:24.510 align:middle line:90% Each of them had a microphone. 00:49:24.510 --> 00:49:28.630 align:middle line:90% And I asked them a question. 00:49:28.630 --> 00:49:30.350 align:middle line:84% I said, you're in a room full of people 00:49:30.350 --> 00:49:33.110 align:middle line:84% who either are entrepreneurs or are thinking 00:49:33.110 --> 00:49:36.860 align:middle line:90% of being entrepreneurs. 00:49:36.860 --> 00:49:40.700 align:middle line:84% What's the most important piece of advice you could give them? 00:49:40.700 --> 00:49:45.020 align:middle line:84% Just like that, with no coordination whatsoever, 00:49:45.020 --> 00:49:47.120 align:middle line:84% all three of them said, don't do it. 00:49:47.120 --> 00:49:50.620 align:middle line:90% 00:49:50.620 --> 00:49:52.120 align:middle line:90% Whoa. 00:49:52.120 --> 00:49:56.020 align:middle line:84% This sort of underscores the lawyer's maxim, 00:49:56.020 --> 00:49:58.940 align:middle line:84% don't ask a question you don't know the answer to. 00:49:58.940 --> 00:50:00.980 align:middle line:90% I thought, oops. 00:50:00.980 --> 00:50:03.980 align:middle line:90% But it did raise two questions. 00:50:03.980 --> 00:50:06.540 align:middle line:90% Why on earth would you say that? 00:50:06.540 --> 00:50:09.700 align:middle line:84% And given that all three of you are running 00:50:09.700 --> 00:50:13.020 align:middle line:84% startups now, some of you for the second or third time, 00:50:13.020 --> 00:50:17.660 align:middle line:84% why are you ignoring your own advice? 00:50:17.660 --> 00:50:20.200 align:middle line:84% So a provocative discussion followed. 00:50:20.200 --> 00:50:23.420 align:middle line:90% 00:50:23.420 --> 00:50:25.500 align:middle line:84% And to that extent, a question you 00:50:25.500 --> 00:50:28.380 align:middle line:84% may be asking yourself right now is, why on earth 00:50:28.380 --> 00:50:30.860 align:middle line:90% would anybody do this? 00:50:30.860 --> 00:50:34.010 align:middle line:84% If it's as difficult and maybe even dreary 00:50:34.010 --> 00:50:37.370 align:middle line:84% as I'm describing it, why would you do it? 00:50:37.370 --> 00:50:42.210 align:middle line:84% Well, some of their answers, you have to. 00:50:42.210 --> 00:50:45.730 align:middle line:84% This piggybacks on your question. 00:50:45.730 --> 00:50:51.722 align:middle line:84% You feel a real drive to create something that's better. 00:50:51.722 --> 00:50:53.930 align:middle line:84% You want to be your own boss, even to the point where 00:50:53.930 --> 00:50:55.630 align:middle line:90% you'll take a pay cut to do it. 00:50:55.630 --> 00:50:58.650 align:middle line:90% 00:50:58.650 --> 00:51:04.570 align:middle line:84% Maybe you're just too weird to do anything else. 00:51:04.570 --> 00:51:08.130 align:middle line:84% You found that that corporate culture 00:51:08.130 --> 00:51:12.170 align:middle line:84% was a lot like that pair of shoes 00:51:12.170 --> 00:51:14.030 align:middle line:90% that looked great on the shelf. 00:51:14.030 --> 00:51:16.330 align:middle line:84% But when you walked around in them for a while, 00:51:16.330 --> 00:51:18.050 align:middle line:84% you found yourself thinking, I can't wait 00:51:18.050 --> 00:51:19.650 align:middle line:90% to get out of these things. 00:51:19.650 --> 00:51:21.190 align:middle line:90% They just don't fit me. 00:51:21.190 --> 00:51:24.170 align:middle line:90% 00:51:24.170 --> 00:51:28.870 align:middle line:84% Maybe you want to improve the quality of life for others. 00:51:28.870 --> 00:51:33.440 align:middle line:84% I had an entrepreneur who had a pretty successful business going 00:51:33.440 --> 00:51:35.430 align:middle line:90% in St. Louis. 00:51:35.430 --> 00:51:38.860 align:middle line:84% Health care software, pretty cool. 00:51:38.860 --> 00:51:40.610 align:middle line:84% And he called me up one day and said, Bob, 00:51:40.610 --> 00:51:42.550 align:middle line:84% you told me to find my customers. 00:51:42.550 --> 00:51:44.290 align:middle line:90% I found more than I expected. 00:51:44.290 --> 00:51:46.710 align:middle line:84% I don't know how to select where I ought to go. 00:51:46.710 --> 00:51:48.710 align:middle line:90% Can I spend a day with you? 00:51:48.710 --> 00:51:50.990 align:middle line:84% Stand at a whiteboard and smoke my way through this 00:51:50.990 --> 00:51:52.370 align:middle line:90% and help me make some choices. 00:51:52.370 --> 00:51:54.970 align:middle line:84% I said, yeah, come on into town the night before. 00:51:54.970 --> 00:51:57.690 align:middle line:84% I'll take you to a sleazy seafood restaurant, 00:51:57.690 --> 00:52:00.210 align:middle line:84% and we might have an adult beverage or two, 00:52:00.210 --> 00:52:02.350 align:middle line:84% and then we'll work all day the next day. 00:52:02.350 --> 00:52:04.330 align:middle line:90% And we did and he did. 00:52:04.330 --> 00:52:10.030 align:middle line:84% And I was operating under the assumption 00:52:10.030 --> 00:52:13.350 align:middle line:84% that what he wanted to do was grow this company to the point 00:52:13.350 --> 00:52:16.390 align:middle line:84% where somebody came along and bought it, 00:52:16.390 --> 00:52:20.510 align:middle line:84% enjoy his wealth for a year or two, go do another one. 00:52:20.510 --> 00:52:23.030 align:middle line:84% And he would say, yes, yes, that's right. 00:52:23.030 --> 00:52:31.980 align:middle line:84% But when we talked about that, he was engaged but not animated. 00:52:31.980 --> 00:52:34.300 align:middle line:84% And when you're having dinner with somebody 00:52:34.300 --> 00:52:36.980 align:middle line:84% and maybe enjoying a beverage or two, 00:52:36.980 --> 00:52:39.540 align:middle line:84% conversations tend to drift a little bit. 00:52:39.540 --> 00:52:44.020 align:middle line:84% And he started talking about this orphanage in Venezuela 00:52:44.020 --> 00:52:48.180 align:middle line:84% that he was sending money to and sending resources to 00:52:48.180 --> 00:52:49.400 align:middle line:90% and was supporting. 00:52:49.400 --> 00:52:52.660 align:middle line:84% And when he described that, he would light up 00:52:52.660 --> 00:52:57.220 align:middle line:84% like the Christmas tree in Times Square. 00:52:57.220 --> 00:52:59.480 align:middle line:84% And about midway through the next morning, 00:52:59.480 --> 00:53:03.580 align:middle line:84% as we were working through all of these triage exercises, 00:53:03.580 --> 00:53:08.540 align:middle line:84% I said, you know, I don't think you're 00:53:08.540 --> 00:53:11.900 align:middle line:84% looking at this the way you should be looking at it. 00:53:11.900 --> 00:53:15.500 align:middle line:84% I don't think you want to go hell bent on growing 00:53:15.500 --> 00:53:17.560 align:middle line:84% a company that investors will love, 00:53:17.560 --> 00:53:19.840 align:middle line:84% and someone will come along and acquire it. 00:53:19.840 --> 00:53:22.820 align:middle line:84% I think what you want to do is legitimately 00:53:22.820 --> 00:53:24.120 align:middle line:90% build a great company. 00:53:24.120 --> 00:53:25.580 align:middle line:84% And if somebody comes along someday 00:53:25.580 --> 00:53:28.870 align:middle line:84% and says I'd like to buy it, you'll have the conversation. 00:53:28.870 --> 00:53:31.490 align:middle line:84% But what you want to do is build a great company 00:53:31.490 --> 00:53:34.450 align:middle line:84% that allows you to spend some time 00:53:34.450 --> 00:53:37.550 align:middle line:84% on these philanthropic efforts that you really like. 00:53:37.550 --> 00:53:40.170 align:middle line:90% 00:53:40.170 --> 00:53:44.930 align:middle line:84% And he stood there for 30 or 40 seconds. 00:53:44.930 --> 00:53:50.815 align:middle line:84% And then he went, I feel so much better. 00:53:50.815 --> 00:53:52.190 align:middle line:84% He says, you're absolutely right. 00:53:52.190 --> 00:53:54.850 align:middle line:84% I've been going down the wrong road all this time. 00:53:54.850 --> 00:53:57.450 align:middle line:84% So maybe you want to improve the quality of life 00:53:57.450 --> 00:54:00.690 align:middle line:90% for other people. 00:54:00.690 --> 00:54:03.490 align:middle line:90% One more story like this. 00:54:03.490 --> 00:54:05.770 align:middle line:84% Another of the entrepreneurs was involved 00:54:05.770 --> 00:54:09.530 align:middle line:84% in the business of bringing internet access to sections 00:54:09.530 --> 00:54:12.850 align:middle line:90% of rural Nebraska. 00:54:12.850 --> 00:54:16.930 align:middle line:84% I thought, well, that doesn't sound very glamorous. 00:54:16.930 --> 00:54:18.370 align:middle line:90% Why are you doing it? 00:54:18.370 --> 00:54:21.730 align:middle line:84% And he said, I'll give you an example of why I'm doing it. 00:54:21.730 --> 00:54:23.830 align:middle line:90% There's a woman out there. 00:54:23.830 --> 00:54:26.040 align:middle line:90% Call her Carol. 00:54:26.040 --> 00:54:28.240 align:middle line:84% Carol doesn't have internet access. 00:54:28.240 --> 00:54:31.880 align:middle line:84% All her kids get their homework assigned online. 00:54:31.880 --> 00:54:35.080 align:middle line:84% And what she has been doing for the last couple of years 00:54:35.080 --> 00:54:39.800 align:middle line:84% is leaving work at 2 o'clock, picks her kids up from school, 00:54:39.800 --> 00:54:42.480 align:middle line:84% and parks the car outside the library 00:54:42.480 --> 00:54:46.140 align:middle line:84% so the kids can piggyback on the Wi-Fi from the library. 00:54:46.140 --> 00:54:48.240 align:middle line:84% They can get their homework assignments 00:54:48.240 --> 00:54:50.040 align:middle line:90% and they can do their homework. 00:54:50.040 --> 00:54:52.440 align:middle line:84% And then she takes them home, points them 00:54:52.440 --> 00:54:55.820 align:middle line:84% toward the prepared meal that she's left for them, 00:54:55.820 --> 00:54:58.440 align:middle line:90% and goes back to work. 00:54:58.440 --> 00:55:01.680 align:middle line:84% And when the day came that we put internet access 00:55:01.680 --> 00:55:05.780 align:middle line:84% in her place, he said, yeah, I'm the CEO of the company. 00:55:05.780 --> 00:55:08.300 align:middle line:84% But I was doing the install along with the rest of my guys. 00:55:08.300 --> 00:55:11.360 align:middle line:84% I'm just wearing a shirt that says Mike. 00:55:11.360 --> 00:55:12.860 align:middle line:84% And she came up to me and she says, 00:55:12.860 --> 00:55:14.680 align:middle line:84% you're running this outfit, aren't you? 00:55:14.680 --> 00:55:18.700 align:middle line:90% And he said, well, yes, ma'am. 00:55:18.700 --> 00:55:20.020 align:middle line:90% But that doesn't really matter. 00:55:20.020 --> 00:55:21.880 align:middle line:84% She said, let me show you something. 00:55:21.880 --> 00:55:23.020 align:middle line:90% She says, come in here. 00:55:23.020 --> 00:55:24.910 align:middle line:84% She says, you see that bag of groceries 00:55:24.910 --> 00:55:27.790 align:middle line:90% on the table in the kitchen? 00:55:27.790 --> 00:55:30.750 align:middle line:84% Tonight will be the first night in four years 00:55:30.750 --> 00:55:33.430 align:middle line:84% that I have been able to cook dinner and have 00:55:33.430 --> 00:55:35.750 align:middle line:90% dinner with my children. 00:55:35.750 --> 00:55:38.670 align:middle line:84% And tomorrow I will be able to work normal hours 00:55:38.670 --> 00:55:42.870 align:middle line:84% and come home because my kids finally have internet access. 00:55:42.870 --> 00:55:45.410 align:middle line:84% He said, that's why I'm doing it. 00:55:45.410 --> 00:55:48.270 align:middle line:90% 00:55:48.270 --> 00:55:49.410 align:middle line:90% Great story or what, right? 00:55:49.410 --> 00:55:53.642 align:middle line:84% So you want to correct something that needs to be fixed, 00:55:53.642 --> 00:55:55.350 align:middle line:84% which was one of the things you mentioned 00:55:55.350 --> 00:55:57.910 align:middle line:90% in our very first session. 00:55:57.910 --> 00:56:00.850 align:middle line:84% There's a few more answers, all of them legitimate. 00:56:00.850 --> 00:56:03.550 align:middle line:84% Maybe you like the idea of creating wealth for your family 00:56:03.550 --> 00:56:05.150 align:middle line:90% and for yourself. 00:56:05.150 --> 00:56:11.990 align:middle line:84% Build it, sell it, build some wealth, spend a year in the Alps 00:56:11.990 --> 00:56:18.030 align:middle line:84% or sailing your yacht, and then do it again. 00:56:18.030 --> 00:56:20.070 align:middle line:90% Maybe you love the buzz. 00:56:20.070 --> 00:56:23.740 align:middle line:84% You get really worked up over cool technologies 00:56:23.740 --> 00:56:26.560 align:middle line:84% that can solve problems that you're interested in. 00:56:26.560 --> 00:56:29.700 align:middle line:90% 00:56:29.700 --> 00:56:31.960 align:middle line:84% And forgive me if I'm thinking like a musician, 00:56:31.960 --> 00:56:34.020 align:middle line:84% but to be a decent musician, you need 00:56:34.020 --> 00:56:38.180 align:middle line:84% to have an odd blend of creativity and discipline. 00:56:38.180 --> 00:56:41.740 align:middle line:84% If I remember right, you know a bit about this. 00:56:41.740 --> 00:56:44.860 align:middle line:84% You've got family members and you're a player, et cetera. 00:56:44.860 --> 00:56:46.360 align:middle line:90% You need to know your scales. 00:56:46.360 --> 00:56:47.680 align:middle line:90% You need to know the modes. 00:56:47.680 --> 00:56:49.360 align:middle line:84% You need to understand the framework. 00:56:49.360 --> 00:56:52.600 align:middle line:84% You need to know the difference between 3/4 time and 4/4 time. 00:56:52.600 --> 00:56:55.940 align:middle line:84% But then you have to have something creative going on. 00:56:55.940 --> 00:56:59.340 align:middle line:84% And being a good entrepreneur is a bit like that. 00:56:59.340 --> 00:57:03.300 align:middle line:84% You need lots of creativity, but you need lots of discipline. 00:57:03.300 --> 00:57:08.460 align:middle line:90% So your reaction so far? 00:57:08.460 --> 00:57:09.440 align:middle line:90% Your thoughts? 00:57:09.440 --> 00:57:11.380 align:middle line:90% Any of this sinking in? 00:57:11.380 --> 00:57:15.300 align:middle line:84% You have questions or comments you'd care to offer? 00:57:15.300 --> 00:57:15.820 align:middle line:90% Janet? 00:57:15.820 --> 00:57:19.245 align:middle line:90% 00:57:19.245 --> 00:57:20.620 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Yeah, there's one thing 00:57:20.620 --> 00:57:26.050 align:middle line:84% you said that struck me as wrapping up the whole six 00:57:26.050 --> 00:57:28.410 align:middle line:84% sessions or five and a half sessions, 00:57:28.410 --> 00:57:31.690 align:middle line:84% and that was the take care of yourself. 00:57:31.690 --> 00:57:34.690 align:middle line:84% I've been riding a motorcycle since before most 00:57:34.690 --> 00:57:36.930 align:middle line:84% of the other people in this room were born. 00:57:36.930 --> 00:57:40.610 align:middle line:84% And after riding for 25 years, I took the motorcycle safety 00:57:40.610 --> 00:57:42.093 align:middle line:90% course. 00:57:42.093 --> 00:57:44.010 align:middle line:84% At the time, I was teaching at the grad school 00:57:44.010 --> 00:57:48.570 align:middle line:84% at Bentley, teaching insurance, financial planning, and risk 00:57:48.570 --> 00:57:50.570 align:middle line:90% management. 00:57:50.570 --> 00:57:55.050 align:middle line:84% And the guy who got up in front of this motorcycle training 00:57:55.050 --> 00:57:58.090 align:middle line:84% course, I could have plucked him out of there 00:57:58.090 --> 00:57:59.610 align:middle line:84% and stuck it in front of my class. 00:57:59.610 --> 00:58:02.130 align:middle line:84% Because he said, the first thing you have to understand 00:58:02.130 --> 00:58:06.090 align:middle line:84% is what can kill you when you're riding a motorcycle, 00:58:06.090 --> 00:58:08.370 align:middle line:84% and to use the exact same example 00:58:08.370 --> 00:58:13.070 align:middle line:84% that you did about sleep, and mentioned a few other things. 00:58:13.070 --> 00:58:18.370 align:middle line:84% So at the core of anything we do is, who's doing it? 00:58:18.370 --> 00:58:20.560 align:middle line:90% Why are we doing it? 00:58:20.560 --> 00:58:23.040 align:middle line:84% the stories you've been telling the last 20 00:58:23.040 --> 00:58:26.240 align:middle line:84% minutes and a half hour are just exceptional. 00:58:26.240 --> 00:58:31.660 align:middle line:84% In my past businesses, as I said, 00:58:31.660 --> 00:58:33.600 align:middle line:90% I talk about people's money. 00:58:33.600 --> 00:58:34.772 align:middle line:90% And they tell me-- 00:58:34.772 --> 00:58:36.980 align:middle line:84% and I ask them what they want to do with their lives. 00:58:36.980 --> 00:58:38.950 align:middle line:84% They say, well, I want to earn x, y z money 00:58:38.950 --> 00:58:40.920 align:middle line:90% and I need to do this. 00:58:40.920 --> 00:58:41.540 align:middle line:90% For what? 00:58:41.540 --> 00:58:42.915 align:middle line:84% What are you going to do with it? 00:58:42.915 --> 00:58:44.780 align:middle line:84% I don't care that you want to earn money. 00:58:44.780 --> 00:58:47.000 align:middle line:84% What do you want to do with your money? 00:58:47.000 --> 00:58:49.360 align:middle line:84% And until they can articulate that, 00:58:49.360 --> 00:58:52.453 align:middle line:84% it makes no sense to plan for it. 00:58:52.453 --> 00:58:53.120 align:middle line:90% BOB JONES: Wooh. 00:58:53.120 --> 00:58:56.600 align:middle line:90% 00:58:56.600 --> 00:58:58.320 align:middle line:90% All right. 00:58:58.320 --> 00:59:00.260 align:middle line:84% We may have to have a longer conversation. 00:59:00.260 --> 00:59:05.000 align:middle line:84% I'm currently on my 12th motorcycle and took that 00:59:05.000 --> 00:59:09.120 align:middle line:84% motorcycle safety foundation course for advanced riders out 00:59:09.120 --> 00:59:13.760 align:middle line:90% on the tarmac at Hanscom Field. 00:59:13.760 --> 00:59:17.260 align:middle line:84% Got a bit over 100,000 miles of motorcycling under me, 00:59:17.260 --> 00:59:21.950 align:middle line:84% probably 30,000 of them in the rain. 00:59:21.950 --> 00:59:25.930 align:middle line:84% Got in sideways on black ice in Chicago, et cetera, et cetera. 00:59:25.930 --> 00:59:31.630 align:middle line:84% So it is important to identify that it's just not 00:59:31.630 --> 00:59:36.870 align:middle line:84% smart to do that if you are in an impaired state. 00:59:36.870 --> 00:59:40.490 align:middle line:84% Well, sleepy, or maybe these guys that get off work, 00:59:40.490 --> 00:59:42.770 align:middle line:84% put their helmet on, go three blocks to the bar, 00:59:42.770 --> 00:59:45.130 align:middle line:84% drink five beers, and then get on their motorcycle. 00:59:45.130 --> 00:59:47.550 align:middle line:90% They're called organ donors. 00:59:47.550 --> 00:59:52.150 align:middle line:84% So entrepreneurship is usually not quite that dramatic. 00:59:52.150 --> 00:59:56.710 align:middle line:84% But frizzed-out entrepreneurs make bad decisions. 00:59:56.710 --> 01:00:00.830 align:middle line:84% And you might not die, but your business probably will. 01:00:00.830 --> 01:00:01.610 align:middle line:90% Thank you. 01:00:01.610 --> 01:00:04.230 align:middle line:90% 01:00:04.230 --> 01:00:12.790 align:middle line:84% OK, I'm going to give you the results of a year of research 01:00:12.790 --> 01:00:15.170 align:middle line:90% in probably two bullet points. 01:00:15.170 --> 01:00:18.100 align:middle line:90% 01:00:18.100 --> 01:00:20.200 align:middle line:84% you've heard this statistic a few times, 01:00:20.200 --> 01:00:24.060 align:middle line:84% and they vary according to definitions of what is success. 01:00:24.060 --> 01:00:26.000 align:middle line:84% In the food industry, they ask the question, 01:00:26.000 --> 01:00:29.660 align:middle line:84% is your product still on the shelf two years later? 01:00:29.660 --> 01:00:32.240 align:middle line:84% And other industries use different metrics, 01:00:32.240 --> 01:00:34.060 align:middle line:84% but you almost can't get away from the fact 01:00:34.060 --> 01:00:37.360 align:middle line:84% that eight or nine out of 10 startups fail. 01:00:37.360 --> 01:00:41.740 align:middle line:90% 01:00:41.740 --> 01:00:43.860 align:middle line:84% And I'm going to horribly oversimplify 01:00:43.860 --> 01:00:46.300 align:middle line:90% a lot of complex stuff. 01:00:46.300 --> 01:00:48.380 align:middle line:84% But I think it kind of boils down to, 01:00:48.380 --> 01:00:52.540 align:middle line:84% you're missing skills you didn't know you needed. 01:00:52.540 --> 01:00:54.720 align:middle line:84% If you've never launched a marketing campaign, 01:00:54.720 --> 01:00:56.440 align:middle line:84% you've never done packaging design, 01:00:56.440 --> 01:00:58.440 align:middle line:84% you've never had to fire anybody, 01:00:58.440 --> 01:01:00.900 align:middle line:84% you've never raised capital, you have never 01:01:00.900 --> 01:01:02.660 align:middle line:84% had to motivate a group of people 01:01:02.660 --> 01:01:06.060 align:middle line:84% after you just lost your shorts in the marketplace, et cetera, 01:01:06.060 --> 01:01:09.780 align:middle line:84% there's a whole set of skills you may not realize you need 01:01:09.780 --> 01:01:12.340 align:middle line:90% and you don't have them. 01:01:12.340 --> 01:01:19.010 align:middle line:84% And also, as per tonight, you have to think like a scientist 01:01:19.010 --> 01:01:23.050 align:middle line:84% and say, well, that hypothesis didn't quite work. 01:01:23.050 --> 01:01:27.690 align:middle line:84% So the previous sessions, the nuts and bolts 01:01:27.690 --> 01:01:29.890 align:middle line:84% have been talking about the skills 01:01:29.890 --> 01:01:33.690 align:middle line:84% that you may not know you needed. 01:01:33.690 --> 01:01:35.690 align:middle line:84% Tonight we're talking a little bit 01:01:35.690 --> 01:01:38.810 align:middle line:90% about thinking like a scientist. 01:01:38.810 --> 01:01:42.970 align:middle line:84% But I've found that when I examined-- 01:01:42.970 --> 01:01:46.670 align:middle line:84% and this wasn't a rigorous analysis, 01:01:46.670 --> 01:01:49.370 align:middle line:84% but I spent a lot of time talking to entrepreneurs 01:01:49.370 --> 01:01:51.250 align:middle line:84% that I've worked with, some of whom 01:01:51.250 --> 01:01:53.930 align:middle line:84% have had conspicuous successes, some of whom 01:01:53.930 --> 01:01:56.610 align:middle line:90% have had epic failures. 01:01:56.610 --> 01:01:59.030 align:middle line:90% This is the two-bullet summary. 01:01:59.030 --> 01:02:04.370 align:middle line:90% 01:02:04.370 --> 01:02:08.450 align:middle line:84% I'm going to make some closing remarks, 01:02:08.450 --> 01:02:11.250 align:middle line:84% and we may actually end a couple minutes early. 01:02:11.250 --> 01:02:14.080 align:middle line:84% But I'm going to open it up to you guys now. 01:02:14.080 --> 01:02:17.280 align:middle line:84% Are there questions that I should 01:02:17.280 --> 01:02:21.080 align:middle line:84% have asked you or things that I should have talked to you about? 01:02:21.080 --> 01:02:24.200 align:middle line:84% This is the only session in Nuts and Bolts 01:02:24.200 --> 01:02:27.760 align:middle line:84% where we actually dive into these human questions, 01:02:27.760 --> 01:02:32.760 align:middle line:84% and then the wrap-up session will be a success story 01:02:32.760 --> 01:02:34.640 align:middle line:90% that Marina has. 01:02:34.640 --> 01:02:36.680 align:middle line:90% Send you out with the buzz. 01:02:36.680 --> 01:02:38.840 align:middle line:90% It's a great story. 01:02:38.840 --> 01:02:40.240 align:middle line:90% You will enjoy it. 01:02:40.240 --> 01:02:43.000 align:middle line:90% You will find it enlightening. 01:02:43.000 --> 01:02:44.920 align:middle line:90% You're welcome. 01:02:44.920 --> 01:02:50.280 align:middle line:84% But first, do you have any final questions, comments, thoughts 01:02:50.280 --> 01:02:51.720 align:middle line:90% that you'd like to pursue? 01:02:51.720 --> 01:02:52.220 align:middle line:90% Yes, sir. 01:02:52.220 --> 01:02:52.860 align:middle line:90% Go ahead. 01:02:52.860 --> 01:02:56.600 align:middle line:90% 01:02:56.600 --> 01:03:00.320 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: So assuming that you need three, four, nine attempts 01:03:00.320 --> 01:03:05.680 align:middle line:84% to make something of value, what are some best practices to give 01:03:05.680 --> 01:03:07.700 align:middle line:90% yourself that kind of runway? 01:03:07.700 --> 01:03:12.230 align:middle line:90% 01:03:12.230 --> 01:03:16.630 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: Well, there's a couple of answers for that. 01:03:16.630 --> 01:03:20.590 align:middle line:84% Many people who become entrepreneurs 01:03:20.590 --> 01:03:24.670 align:middle line:84% fear that they are unemployable afterwards, 01:03:24.670 --> 01:03:26.370 align:middle line:84% and that if you go down this road, 01:03:26.370 --> 01:03:28.870 align:middle line:90% you'll never get a normal job. 01:03:28.870 --> 01:03:32.590 align:middle line:84% I have found that to be not true. 01:03:32.590 --> 01:03:34.870 align:middle line:84% What I have found, in fact, is that there 01:03:34.870 --> 01:03:39.910 align:middle line:84% are companies out there who want what they call change agents. 01:03:39.910 --> 01:03:43.590 align:middle line:84% That means you're not afraid of a blank sheet of paper and that 01:03:43.590 --> 01:03:46.150 align:middle line:84% you might be able to contribute some creative, 01:03:46.150 --> 01:03:50.510 align:middle line:84% out-of-the-box thinking that they are lacking. 01:03:50.510 --> 01:03:54.030 align:middle line:84% And so one answer, one I have employed a few times, 01:03:54.030 --> 01:03:56.830 align:middle line:90% is to weave in and out. 01:03:56.830 --> 01:04:00.130 align:middle line:84% Go get a normal job is a translation of all that. 01:04:00.130 --> 01:04:03.050 align:middle line:84% And after about two years, I ended up thinking, god, 01:04:03.050 --> 01:04:05.470 align:middle line:90% I'm bored. 01:04:05.470 --> 01:04:07.590 align:middle line:84% And to the dismay of my family, I think, 01:04:07.590 --> 01:04:10.220 align:middle line:84% I just got to go start another company. 01:04:10.220 --> 01:04:14.940 align:middle line:84% And another is, well, of course, the happy answer 01:04:14.940 --> 01:04:17.340 align:middle line:84% is your business succeeded and you've got some runway 01:04:17.340 --> 01:04:19.780 align:middle line:84% because you just put some money in the bank 01:04:19.780 --> 01:04:21.460 align:middle line:90% and you have some credibility. 01:04:21.460 --> 01:04:24.400 align:middle line:84% But again, if you go to the right places-- 01:04:24.400 --> 01:04:28.180 align:middle line:84% I actually know a couple of investors who straightforwardly 01:04:28.180 --> 01:04:30.660 align:middle line:84% say, Bob, I just don't want to screw around 01:04:30.660 --> 01:04:33.700 align:middle line:84% with anybody who hasn't already had a failure. 01:04:33.700 --> 01:04:35.100 align:middle line:90% And there's two reasons. 01:04:35.100 --> 01:04:37.080 align:middle line:84% One is they don't know they can fail. 01:04:37.080 --> 01:04:39.860 align:middle line:90% 01:04:39.860 --> 01:04:40.580 align:middle line:90% Oops. 01:04:40.580 --> 01:04:42.500 align:middle line:84% And the other is they've not shown me 01:04:42.500 --> 01:04:46.780 align:middle line:84% that they have the resilience that's required to succeed. 01:04:46.780 --> 01:04:51.460 align:middle line:84% So in an odd way, if you go to the right people and say, 01:04:51.460 --> 01:04:54.240 align:middle line:84% I made an effort here, I did a lot of good things. 01:04:54.240 --> 01:04:55.960 align:middle line:84% The end result was not successful. 01:04:55.960 --> 01:04:57.160 align:middle line:90% Boy, did I learn a lot. 01:04:57.160 --> 01:05:01.740 align:middle line:84% I want to bring what I learned on somebody else's nickel 01:05:01.740 --> 01:05:05.780 align:middle line:90% to you, it's not a bad pitch. 01:05:05.780 --> 01:05:10.570 align:middle line:84% So the two ways are, if you could pick yourself 01:05:10.570 --> 01:05:12.650 align:middle line:84% up and go right back to it, you won't 01:05:12.650 --> 01:05:14.690 align:middle line:90% be unappealing to everybody. 01:05:14.690 --> 01:05:17.610 align:middle line:84% People will not regard you as having the plague 01:05:17.610 --> 01:05:19.450 align:middle line:90% if you go to the right places. 01:05:19.450 --> 01:05:22.050 align:middle line:84% And the other is, well, sometimes you just think, 01:05:22.050 --> 01:05:24.650 align:middle line:84% all right, I should weave back into the corporate world 01:05:24.650 --> 01:05:26.270 align:middle line:90% and see what's going on there. 01:05:26.270 --> 01:05:27.510 align:middle line:90% Maybe I can add something. 01:05:27.510 --> 01:05:29.090 align:middle line:90% Maybe I can learn something. 01:05:29.090 --> 01:05:31.610 align:middle line:84% Maybe I can make my family calm down 01:05:31.610 --> 01:05:34.490 align:middle line:84% a little bit because I have a steady paycheck, which 01:05:34.490 --> 01:05:37.450 align:middle line:90% is a novelty. 01:05:37.450 --> 01:05:38.870 align:middle line:90% So good question. 01:05:38.870 --> 01:05:39.650 align:middle line:90% Thank you. 01:05:39.650 --> 01:05:41.490 align:middle line:90% And would you pass the mic? 01:05:41.490 --> 01:05:43.490 align:middle line:90% Thank you. 01:05:43.490 --> 01:05:48.010 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: What are your thoughts on when to start a business? 01:05:48.010 --> 01:05:50.450 align:middle line:84% Trying to do a day job, get it to a point 01:05:50.450 --> 01:05:53.130 align:middle line:84% where it looks like it might be feasible, and then flip 01:05:53.130 --> 01:05:54.590 align:middle line:90% the switch and go full time? 01:05:54.590 --> 01:05:58.210 align:middle line:84% Or go all the way in and actually spend 01:05:58.210 --> 01:06:00.010 align:middle line:90% some of your effort to do that? 01:06:00.010 --> 01:06:02.150 align:middle line:84% I think that's a tough call, probably depends. 01:06:02.150 --> 01:06:04.450 align:middle line:84% But just based on your experience with what 01:06:04.450 --> 01:06:05.490 align:middle line:90% have you seen. 01:06:05.490 --> 01:06:07.570 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: That's a really good question. 01:06:07.570 --> 01:06:17.990 align:middle line:90% 01:06:17.990 --> 01:06:20.370 align:middle line:84% In the first session that we had, 01:06:20.370 --> 01:06:25.670 align:middle line:84% I walked you guys through a back-of-an-envelope analysis. 01:06:25.670 --> 01:06:28.430 align:middle line:84% How much money do I need to make? 01:06:28.430 --> 01:06:30.370 align:middle line:90% How much is a customer worth? 01:06:30.370 --> 01:06:32.470 align:middle line:90% How many customers do I need? 01:06:32.470 --> 01:06:34.590 align:middle line:90% Can I do that? 01:06:34.590 --> 01:06:40.830 align:middle line:84% And I would argue against going all-in 01:06:40.830 --> 01:06:44.790 align:middle line:84% until you have done at least some of that kind of analysis. 01:06:44.790 --> 01:06:51.950 align:middle line:84% I think people get swept away by their passions. 01:06:51.950 --> 01:06:55.610 align:middle line:84% This is such exciting technology and it's moving so rapidly. 01:06:55.610 --> 01:06:58.070 align:middle line:84% I have got to get in on this and grab my spot 01:06:58.070 --> 01:07:00.150 align:middle line:90% at the front of the line. 01:07:00.150 --> 01:07:03.190 align:middle line:84% But pioneers have arrows in their backs. 01:07:03.190 --> 01:07:05.700 align:middle line:90% 01:07:05.700 --> 01:07:11.060 align:middle line:84% So I would say, if you have assessed the market a little bit 01:07:11.060 --> 01:07:13.740 align:middle line:84% and you think realistically that you 01:07:13.740 --> 01:07:19.940 align:middle line:84% could make enough money to have a sustainable business, then-- 01:07:19.940 --> 01:07:20.440 align:middle line:90% back up. 01:07:20.440 --> 01:07:23.660 align:middle line:84% If you've not done those things, it is not the right time. 01:07:23.660 --> 01:07:27.540 align:middle line:84% If you have done those things, it might be the right time. 01:07:27.540 --> 01:07:30.560 align:middle line:84% A lot of people are arguing these days-- 01:07:30.560 --> 01:07:32.100 align:middle line:84% and I think there's wisdom here-- 01:07:32.100 --> 01:07:36.900 align:middle line:84% into doing it in small steps is almost like a side hustle. 01:07:36.900 --> 01:07:38.700 align:middle line:84% That's easier with a service business 01:07:38.700 --> 01:07:41.580 align:middle line:90% than with the product business. 01:07:41.580 --> 01:07:44.860 align:middle line:84% But go out there and make some mistakes while you still 01:07:44.860 --> 01:07:46.580 align:middle line:90% have your steady paycheck. 01:07:46.580 --> 01:07:49.120 align:middle line:90% Validate, validate, validate. 01:07:49.120 --> 01:07:52.100 align:middle line:84% And then when you're ready, you can go forward to others 01:07:52.100 --> 01:07:54.940 align:middle line:84% and say, I've already done all this validation. 01:07:54.940 --> 01:07:57.878 align:middle line:84% Now I'm going full time and I'm seeking investment. 01:07:57.878 --> 01:07:58.920 align:middle line:90% Here's what I've learned. 01:07:58.920 --> 01:08:01.100 align:middle line:84% Here's what I want to use the money for. 01:08:01.100 --> 01:08:04.450 align:middle line:90% It's a much more solid pitch. 01:08:04.450 --> 01:08:07.250 align:middle line:90% Deploy passion wisely, I guess. 01:08:07.250 --> 01:08:10.110 align:middle line:90% Thank you for the question. 01:08:10.110 --> 01:08:11.530 align:middle line:90% It's a good question. 01:08:11.530 --> 01:08:12.558 align:middle line:90% Yes, sir. 01:08:12.558 --> 01:08:14.850 align:middle line:84% AUDIENCE: Thank you for an interesting series of talks. 01:08:14.850 --> 01:08:17.370 align:middle line:84% With the exception of your book, what 01:08:17.370 --> 01:08:20.229 align:middle line:84% are the books that you think are essential for the entrepreneurs? 01:08:20.229 --> 01:08:23.582 align:middle line:90% 01:08:23.582 --> 01:08:25.290 align:middle line:84% BOB JONES: I have sort of a rule of thumb 01:08:25.290 --> 01:08:30.529 align:middle line:84% when I'm looking at business books, which is that I like 01:08:30.529 --> 01:08:32.109 align:middle line:90% the one that's the shortest. 01:08:32.109 --> 01:08:34.970 align:middle line:90% 01:08:34.970 --> 01:08:38.050 align:middle line:84% Because having been in the publishing business a little 01:08:38.050 --> 01:08:47.970 align:middle line:84% bit, I know that most 200-page books would make a great 50-page 01:08:47.970 --> 01:08:49.770 align:middle line:90% book. 01:08:49.770 --> 01:08:55.050 align:middle line:84% But the publisher says, Bob, I can't sell a 50-page book 01:08:55.050 --> 01:08:56.649 align:middle line:90% for $30. 01:08:56.649 --> 01:08:59.850 align:middle line:84% Say the same thing four times over. 01:08:59.850 --> 01:09:03.439 align:middle line:90% And then I can sell it. 01:09:03.439 --> 01:09:05.540 align:middle line:90% Again, I'm oversimplifying. 01:09:05.540 --> 01:09:11.640 align:middle line:84% But if you read a lot of business books, [SNORES]. 01:09:11.640 --> 01:09:16.680 align:middle line:84% So with that as preamble, I like The Lean Startup, which I think 01:09:16.680 --> 01:09:19.240 align:middle line:90% is useful. 01:09:19.240 --> 01:09:22.460 align:middle line:84% And though it's not specifically about entrepreneurship, 01:09:22.460 --> 01:09:26.620 align:middle line:84% there's an absolutely awesome book simply titled Leaders. 01:09:26.620 --> 01:09:30.960 align:middle line:90% 01:09:30.960 --> 01:09:36.359 align:middle line:84% And I'm sorry, I cannot remember the names of the authors, 01:09:36.359 --> 01:09:38.160 align:middle line:90% but there's two of them. 01:09:38.160 --> 01:09:41.340 align:middle line:90% Warren Biehn, B-I-E-H-N maybe? 01:09:41.340 --> 01:09:42.800 align:middle line:90% I'm not sure. 01:09:42.800 --> 01:09:46.319 align:middle line:84% And I pull it out every couple of years 01:09:46.319 --> 01:09:52.020 align:middle line:84% because they talk about what leadership is really all about. 01:09:52.020 --> 01:09:54.880 align:middle line:90% And it's very short. 01:09:54.880 --> 01:09:57.300 align:middle line:90% So I think it's an awesome book. 01:09:57.300 --> 01:09:58.220 align:middle line:90% It's brief. 01:09:58.220 --> 01:10:03.030 align:middle line:84% And boy, it really hits home on some important points. 01:10:03.030 --> 01:10:06.390 align:middle line:84% When I wrote my book a couple years ago, 01:10:06.390 --> 01:10:09.610 align:middle line:84% people were starting to be asked to go back to the office. 01:10:09.610 --> 01:10:10.850 align:middle line:90% They were rebelling. 01:10:10.850 --> 01:10:14.390 align:middle line:84% There were phrases popping up everywhere, like quiet quitting, 01:10:14.390 --> 01:10:17.030 align:middle line:84% the great resignation, et cetera. 01:10:17.030 --> 01:10:20.070 align:middle line:84% And the thrust of my book at that time 01:10:20.070 --> 01:10:24.030 align:middle line:84% was, how do you start a company, at least as a starter kit? 01:10:24.030 --> 01:10:25.990 align:middle line:84% So I touch on questions like, how 01:10:25.990 --> 01:10:27.910 align:middle line:84% do you interview to figure out you're 01:10:27.910 --> 01:10:29.910 align:middle line:90% looking at the right person? 01:10:29.910 --> 01:10:32.310 align:middle line:84% And if you've made a hiring mistake-- 01:10:32.310 --> 01:10:35.230 align:middle line:84% and if you hire enough people, you'll make mistakes-- 01:10:35.230 --> 01:10:37.870 align:middle line:84% how do you determine that it's time to fire them? 01:10:37.870 --> 01:10:41.470 align:middle line:84% And how do you actually do that without laying waste 01:10:41.470 --> 01:10:43.570 align:middle line:84% to the morale of everybody else in your company? 01:10:43.570 --> 01:10:47.230 align:middle line:84% So there's a lot of practical stuff. 01:10:47.230 --> 01:10:51.990 align:middle line:84% And almost as a lark, I started interviewing other entrepreneurs 01:10:51.990 --> 01:10:55.670 align:middle line:84% who almost immediately started telling me about the failures 01:10:55.670 --> 01:10:58.160 align:middle line:84% they'd had and what they learned from it 01:10:58.160 --> 01:11:01.160 align:middle line:84% and how they felt about it and how they are now succeeding. 01:11:01.160 --> 01:11:04.760 align:middle line:84% And I thought, oh my goodness, this is valuable substance. 01:11:04.760 --> 01:11:08.860 align:middle line:84% I got to rewrite the whole book, which I did. 01:11:08.860 --> 01:11:11.900 align:middle line:84% And so it's got a somewhat different thrust 01:11:11.900 --> 01:11:13.320 align:middle line:90% from some of the others. 01:11:13.320 --> 01:11:14.600 align:middle line:90% But I like The Lean Startup. 01:11:14.600 --> 01:11:16.540 align:middle line:90% I love this book, Leaders. 01:11:16.540 --> 01:11:19.300 align:middle line:84% It's more useful as a management guide than as 01:11:19.300 --> 01:11:22.900 align:middle line:84% an entrepreneurship guide, but valuable nevertheless. 01:11:22.900 --> 01:11:28.640 align:middle line:84% So anyone else before I pull the plug on tonight's talk? 01:11:28.640 --> 01:11:31.180 align:middle line:90% 01:11:31.180 --> 01:11:33.280 align:middle line:84% OK, thank you for your questions. 01:11:33.280 --> 01:11:34.900 align:middle line:90% [APPLAUSE] 01:11:34.900 --> 01:11:36.820 align:middle line:90% Oh, yeah. 01:11:36.820 --> 01:11:40.900 align:middle line:84% And by the way, if you haven't chosen to stay in touch, 01:11:40.900 --> 01:11:42.660 align:middle line:90% scan that QR code. 01:11:42.660 --> 01:11:45.020 align:middle line:90% OK, wrapping it up. 01:11:45.020 --> 01:11:47.620 align:middle line:84% Three things I want you to remember. 01:11:47.620 --> 01:11:54.980 align:middle line:84% Entrepreneurship has many rewards for certain people, 01:11:54.980 --> 01:11:57.330 align:middle line:90% but it's not for everyone. 01:11:57.330 --> 01:12:01.370 align:middle line:84% If it's not for you, in many ways, you should be glad. 01:12:01.370 --> 01:12:06.130 align:middle line:84% It means you have a chance of having a normal life. 01:12:06.130 --> 01:12:11.130 align:middle line:84% Support, adaptability, and resilience 01:12:11.130 --> 01:12:15.570 align:middle line:84% are critical to getting through the hard times. 01:12:15.570 --> 01:12:19.090 align:middle line:84% Tonight's talk was in case you do run into hard times. 01:12:19.090 --> 01:12:23.250 align:middle line:84% Realistically, I hope you never need this stuff. 01:12:23.250 --> 01:12:26.370 align:middle line:84% But if you do, maybe one day you'll look back 01:12:26.370 --> 01:12:30.770 align:middle line:84% and say, oh yeah, Bob said this would happen. 01:12:30.770 --> 01:12:32.030 align:middle line:90% Go get some support. 01:12:32.030 --> 01:12:33.790 align:middle line:90% You'll grow your adaptability. 01:12:33.790 --> 01:12:35.230 align:middle line:90% You'll grow your resilience. 01:12:35.230 --> 01:12:37.170 align:middle line:84% And one day you'll have your success. 01:12:37.170 --> 01:12:39.170 align:middle line:90% So thank you very much. 01:12:39.170 --> 01:12:40.930 align:middle line:90% [APPLAUSE] 01:12:40.930 --> 01:12:42.760 align:middle line:90% Thank you. 01:12:42.760 --> 01:12:55.000 align:middle line:90%