Yesterday, I had the pleasure to meet with Mike Subelsky over a cup of coffee in Dupont Circle. Mike, who goes by “Hacker & Improvisor” in his email signature, has has been involved in quite a few interesting start ups including OtherInbox.com, Subelsky.com, IgniteBaltimore.com and BigImprov.org. The purpose of our meeting was just to kickback and discuss different entrepreneur stories and strategies. After the meeting, I felt real good about some of my contributions to the conversation and thought I should share them.
Some of these points, I’ve learned from mistakes on my own, some from industry colleagues and some just from being in the industry over 10 years.
- I consider myself to be a dreamer and visionary. My main problem is that I am always trying to solve problems Google hasn’t even solved. I’m not saying you shouldn’t set high goals or achievements but just remember, sometimes a few singles and doubles can make you just as much money as a grand slam.
- The perfectionist in you, might be the end of you. In the past, I’ve struggled with launching web applications because I get so focused on perfecting it, I end up loosing market share due to a later release. I learned this while working with another agency on one of my start ups, SmoothStart.com. Get your product to market as quickly as possible and then make improvements as you go. You’ll also realize that maybe your vision changes along the way based on customer feedback.
- Something I preach, stay away from sexy businesses. Go after the less desirable business opportunities. There is less competition and greater chance of success. (i.e. RushMyPassport.com)
- As a technology enthusiast and guru, I occasionally find myself pondering over forming a joint venture with a brick and mortar outfit to serve as their marketing arm for a larger piece of the pie. It’s natural to think that’s the long sighted approach. Well, brace yourself, the other side will eventually have a change of heart when success comes and they’ll try to figure out how to do it themselves so they can eat the whole pie. Greed is unfortunately an inherit human trait. Make sure you have an iron clad agreement and understand the operations end of things too.
- Partners – if you don’t absolutely need one, do it yourself. It’s difficult as it is to start a business – why complicate things even further? There’s a natural desire to share success but there’s a price you have to pay for that. My most recent partnership has been great but I’ve had partnerships in the past that haven’t gone so great. Looking back, I don’t hold any grudges and everybody that I have ever done business with has been great on a personal level but it’s about it’s all about corporate culture. You and your partner might have the same end goal, but getting there… that’s a whole different animal. The only advice that I can give you is to clearly define your roles and objectives. And lastly, treat your operations agreement as a prenuptial agreement because the only time you’ll ever see that document again is when you run into problems.
- Lastly, bootstrap as much as you can and no matter how great your business is doing, always be prepared for the worst. Every business, every industry can have a turn for the worst.
I hope these tips can be of help. If you have any other tips please comment below, I would love to hear your thoughts!
