When you are looking at starting a business, everything starts with a problem that needs to be solved, or a solution that has helped somebody do something.
The Problem of The Massive Text
To explore this, let us look at my life. To elaborate, in 2007, I had a family member that was running nightclubs. It was their job to create the VIP list, fill it up, and get the “who’s who” in Minneapolis to come out and get them in the doors each night.
Their idea was to send text messages to these people to get them to come out, and they said it worked really, really well. That said, they couldn’t figure out how to send a mass text message to everybody at one time.
The first attempt was to try sending text messages by purchasing many mobile phones to connect to a special modem (remember the old modems that people used to use when “dial-up” was used for internet access?
The idea/problem: They needed more people to come out to the nightclubs so they could have more sales.
The attempted solution: Sending text messages which got a reply and got people there.
How to Start A Business
That is how you start a business. Just try to apply the simple ideas. You need to get up and start thinking, “There’s got to be a better way,” “there’s got to be an easier way,” or “there’s got to be a more efficient way” if you don’t ask that question every single day.
Back to the story, in the summer of 2007, when he said, “we’ve got to start sending text messages to increase business”, I asked him if he would like help getting that up and running and if I could take a crack at it. He said sure. After a year, our company uses opt to send messages to people. We still own that business now (part of it).
Take whatever problem you see or that you may have that you want to fix and send that over to us. Send us an email. We can help you dive into your idea. We will give you suggestions and help design a workflow on getting your project online.
Win $1000 Now
I will give$1,000 to anyone that submits a good idea we want to partner on. Half the money has to be invested in the company. The other half is just a reward to the person.) So take a look around! What problem can you solve?
I have helped a number of people start a number of business. With a lot of them I become a partner in the project/business; Some are part cash and part equity and others are paid consulting work for me. My love and passion is taking an idea that a client has and helping them start that business. So, what do I actually mean by, “do you have what it takes to start a business?” I’ll give you a couple examples of how a few ventures have gone.
Example Number One
Two women approached me that were very, very good physical therapists and speech therapists. They loved what they were doing, but they thought that the activities that the students had were very “blah”. Whether this was in a rehab facility, at home for the parents to use, or at school for the teachers to use. They thought, “what if we could create the activities, give them how-to-guides and package new items every month. This could really help the kids, the parents and be a game changer.” The idea was to create a monthly subscription service with three categories, for teachers, parents and rehab staff and create a new box every month.
Take It To The Next Level: Creating A Business
I know nothing about the therapy world but I do know how to start a business. I helped them take it from an idea to “startup stage”. We create a name, create a logo, create a brand, create a marketing plan, create a business plan (I hate that phrase of business plan, it was more of a road map).
The business plan wasn’t the 30-100 page, it was a road map that included a break even on the monthly costs, how much each box could cost and at what point the business would be profitable. The business plans I find valuable include what we want to do, the goals we want to hit, the reason why we are in business, our revenue model and the steps we need to take for each item this will allow a road map for our MVP – Minimal Viable Product.
From Zero To Sixty In 6 Months: Build Your Base
The first step was to get the business established, the EIN set-up . We set up the website and the eCommerce platform from WordPress and we used Hostgator and for credit card payment processing Stripe.
With this entity, we had turned it into a monthly subscription model where we would drop-ship “kits”. The kits included new exercises that the therapist could do to help their clients. It did not matter whether this was in a school setting or in facilities or to parents at home).
We would drop-ship them a new kit every month, with fresh ideas!! I even helped them get into a trade show; we got a backdrop, we had T-Shirts made, business cards and demo boxes (before we sold anything). We created a form for clients to register online while at the show and if they did not buy at the show we got them to give us there email for a chance to win a 12 month free subscription.
It was a great way to build a base of followers. We rocked it out, we got 10 sign ups at the show which reinforced that they had a great idea. We went from zero to sixty in six months to get this idea up and running and off the ground.
Gaining Momentum: Stay On Board
About 3-4 months into it, we had 20+ clients, we were building monthly boxes, working with vendors to get free products and started to help clients in Canada. We had everything moving forward, and then – one of the partners said that they didn’t have enough “family time”.
They said that they were spending all of their evenings on the business – shopping for the products and putting together the boxes. I replied, “Yes, yes you are and you’ll also probably also be spending all day Saturday.” This is how it goes when you start a business and you should be ready for that for 2-3 years of massive action and staying busy!! After three-year if you’re not making money, it’s probably a good time to throw in the towel.
Be Willing Sacrifice
She wasn’t willing to make the sacrifices that is needed when starting a business.
Some people just do not quite understand what it will take – they like the idea of starting a business, they like the idea of getting enough income to quit their job, they like the idea of creating something and watching it grow but when it comes down to it, they just don’t have the kahunas to make it happen or the timing is not right. In this case it was the timing, she has the motivation and kahunas to do it, it was just bad timing. I am sure this person will try it again when their spouse is more behind them.
Before you start a business and before you decide to quit your job – you should really take a “gut check” to be sure this is something you absolutely want to do. That this is something that you have time to do and something that you want to make time to do.
I Am Here To Help
If it is a direction that you want to move forward in, you can always email us with your idea . I’m here to help you get something off the ground. We’re happy to help! Everyone is looking for motivation. I highly recommend the “Every Day is Saturday” podcast. This will help you get motivated to see if it would be the right fit for you.
What ended up happening in this business is that the one women, the third partner, decided she had to go back to focusing on her family. The other women has now taken it, adjusted a little bit, changed the company name and is now loving every single part. She is very thankful that I was able to help her get this business running and off the ground. That I was able to push her towards accomplishing her dream.
Example Number Two
My second example involves creating an online directory for the wedding industry. A husband and wife couple approached me and said “we know our market (the wedding industry) very, very well”. They described how they buy leads and buy ads from these two mega directories, but that those are our only two options. That all of their friends that are in the industry only have those two options.
After about 6-months of speaking back and forth about what this would look like, what the workflow was going to be, how this was going to operate – we got the site established and up and running. We got a logo made, the company name created (if you need to set up an LLC or Corporation these guys are great). They opened up a business checking account and established the EIN.
Work Hard: Make the Sacrifices
After three months of working on the business side and getting things going, they got busy and decided to put the project on hold. This was 9-12 months in, they were to particular on how the site would look and the colors that they wanted. For a startup idea, just get it out there and see if people will use it. We hired an SEO company, two of them to be exact, spent close to $5,000 for everything (outside of my fees) and then………………… They then took a vacation and when they got back told me that they had decided their life was very full with their other business. Consequently they didn’t want to rock the boat. Furthermore, they didn’t want to put more time into anything else. They are very happy with where they were with their other business and they decided to totally abandon the project.
To recap, $5,000 in hard costs, 12 months and countless hours and my time and they decided to stop. Interesting…..
We Are Your Resource
When you get an idea and you think it’s something you want to get going, please use us a sounding board and we can talk through your idea, I will give you a free 30 minutes of time. Just email us and in the subject line put “SOUNDBOARD”.
Maybe we have tried the business in the past, maybe we know somebody that has a business exactly like what you are starting or maybe you will get some great ideas, either way it will be well worth your time.
What Is Your Special Sauce?
A friend of mine came to me and said, “I know you help people start businesses, and I’ve got this idea. I’ve been wrestling with it for two and a half years now…” His idea was centered around people not drinking and driving.
What he wanted to do was create an app. People would request someone to drive their own car home from the bar. He would show up on a scooter, fold up the scooter and put it in the trunk of their car and then drive the customer, andtheir car home.
He’d then get out, get onto his scooter and go on to his next call. He is telling me all this and explains it in about fifteen minutes. At the end of the 15-minutes I told him that already exists. Somebody’s already tried that. Which is okay. I love doing something that somebody else has already done. BUT what makes you and your idea different? What is your special sauce? How are you going to do it better?
Consider Me Your Mentor
For those who has an idea we take a 30 min consultation. Please ask us any questions that you want. My experience ranges wildly, from starting a real estate company, to starting a software as a service entity. From directories, to starting a monthly subscription box business. From restaurants, to financial services. I’ve even helped in starting a marketing company. The list goes on and on.
Do you have what it takes? We look forward to hearing from you!
I took an exercise class with my wife, a class that she takes a few times a week. The class was a Tabata class. It was the first time that I have taken a class like this. For anyone that does not understand Tabata – you business exercise for a period of time, “You do 20 seconds of any high-intensity exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest, for 8 rounds (4 minutes total)” and then you have a minute off. Then you do 4-5 sets of these 4-minute rounds. You use dumbbell weights, and risers – it is a high, high-intensity workout.
Never Rest
What I noticed is that there are some people who decided during the in-between (the 1-minute rest) of exercise intervals, the “moment off”, that they would rest. Then there are other people, who instead of resting, opted to continue their workouts in various manners. This was fascinating to me and is a lot like business. There are people that will do just the bare minimum needed in order to get by, who take every single break that they can possibly have – they get excited for the next break, instead of excited for the next job.
Those Who Rest Vs. Those Who Don’t Stop
I found it interesting to look around the room and see the type of people that decided to not work through their break compared to the people that decided to work through their break. In the Tabata exercise, there are people that held the plank position (if you know what that is – it works your core) when other people rested.
I tried to hold the plank a few times and then collapsed, but it was the choice to try and push myself. There are other people that decided to start the next exercise early, or continue the last exercise longer through the “minute break”. You can guess, the type of people, and the physical fitness levels of those people, that decided to take a rest and the ones that kept working during their break – was a night and day difference. That is a lot like business.
Be Too Excited To Take Breaks!
I see a lot of people just moping around, that is slow, that is excited about the wrong things- to take lunch – excited to gossip around the water cooler. They are choosing not to be happy with where they are, and what they are doing. Then I see other clients who are extremely excited, who are very passionate, who are fired up, and who are doing extremely well.
These winners are crushing it in business, and they don’t take breaks. These people can’t even find time to go to the bathroom. These guys will sit at their desks. They’ll run around and meet with people for four straight hours before they will even take a breath.
Choose your Time Wisely: Be A Winner
So, just like in Tabata, there is a night and day difference between the winners and losers. Winners are people who choose to take on more. They’re the people who choose to expand their brains, their knowledge base, and their comfort zone. Conversely, there are people who choose to find time to take breaks. They actually look forward to how much less they can do.
What direction do you go? Do you rest in the middle of Tabata? Or do you push forward and take it as a challenge to hold the plank position?
Last week I was listening to a podcast on my way to giving a seminar in Charlotte and Raleigh in North Carolina. I was reviewing my presentation, and going over my opening lines. To start, I planned to compare a financial product to Vegas. I then would explain how certain parts of finance are like Vegas and gambling . It was going to be edgy, I thought. This presentation was going to be different.
During my drive, I was listening to an audio book that is called Fascinate Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation. In a section of the book, the she said, “You don’t have to be great. You just have to be different”. And so I thought, “what can I do that is totally different than what they are used to?”. Yes, I am going to have my PowerPoint. I am going to preform. I am going to communicate. But what can I do that is remarkable? I needed something that would stick in their minds and get their attention.
What Can I do To Stick In their Minds?
As I was driving, I was brainstorming what this “different” will look like. I started to sketch on my notepad how my idea was going to unfold. Its going to work like this, and I am going to do that, and I want to talk about this and am going to pause here…. I decided to go to the bank and pull out $250 in cash to be “different”. I used this money to illustrate investments going up and down. It was a lot to do on my drive in. Why not just stick with what I created and be happy with all my weekend work? Why make changes last minute and stress myself out?
I literally pull up in front of where I was going to be giving the presentation, open the laptop, spent twenty minutes cranking out the new slide.
Catching My Audiences Attention
Luckily, I double checked all my numbers and I got them all right, but I went in, I did the presentation the but my hands were a little e shaky handing out that money. At one point I did hand out the wrong change and the audience was laughing and joking around but I tried to stay focused. The second day in Raleigh, North Carolina was much easier. I did the whole thing, I learned where I messed up and that I should count and organize the money ahead of time, continuous improvement (in japanese it’s called Kazen) 🙂 by the end of the second day the compliments started to flow. It wasn’t great but it was different.
So, from a personal challenge, what can I do that is different then than everybody else in my industry?
What can you do that is different in your industry? What can you do to differ from everybody else? Is it a better quality of service? Perhaps a different type of service? Are you letting your passion out more? Make sure you’re getting excited!
Do something different than everyone else, as soon as you see/hear “normal” that should be a trigger to stop and put some brain power into changing it!
I had a meeting earlier this week with a potential client. When I walked into his office for Work, our conversation went like this:
I asked him, “How’s it going?”
He said, “Busy.”
I said, “That’s great, better than being slow.”
He replied, “Yes, that is very true.”
I responded, “Other than you need some time to get caught up.”
He looked at me and smirked. He said, “You don’t get paid to catch up.”
You Don’t Get Paid To Catch Up
I said that was so true and I asked him if I could steal his phrase. “You don’t get paid to catch up”. If you think about that, he is 100% right. What are you doing today to be as productive as you possibly can? There are 168 hours of Work in a week. What are you doing with that time? Yes, you have to sleep, so we can subtract 58 hours for sleeping, and you are left with 112 hours.
How are you going to make those 112 hours the most productive time that you possibly can, again, just as my prospect – who will hopefully become a client – said, “you don’t get paid to catch up”.
Your Competition Is Passing You By
If you want to get caught up, get through your inbox, and try to go to “inbox zero”. Try to get caught up with all the work that you have to do, on your to-do list (Check out this article on the new to-do list- A New Take on the To-Do List) – are you working at night? Are you working on Saturday? Are you working on Sunday? If not, you are getting passed. Whoever your competition is, they are passing you by.
So, what are you doing in those 112 hours to be the most productive that you possibly can?
I Don’t Have Enough Time vs. That’s Not A Priority For Me
I just read an article that was very insightful. The author wrote, “I hear the phrase all the time: I don’t have enough time.” Instead of saying, “I don’t have enough time,” the author suggests that you say instead, “That’s not a priority for me”.
Wow just take a minute and think about that, I was almost offended when I heard that.
Then I thought, that is awesome! Here are a couple of examples that he sites:
Instead of saying, “I don’t have time to exercise 30 minutes a day”, you should switch that to, “my health is not a priority for me.”
I don’t have thirty minutes to learn something new today; to dive into how to flip houses, to dive into how to make a podcast, to dive into how to do better in my job. You should re-phrase that and say, “learning something new is not a priority for me.” “Getting better at my job is not a priority for me.” “Creating a podcast is not a priority for me.” And that’s okay if it’s not – that is totally fine. Then just don’t say you don’t have time.
As a takeaway; focus on the items that are a priority by switching your brain and stating “that is not a priority to me”, that will help your brain stop and think and say, wait that is a priority to me”.
Make the most of the 112 hours you have, and get fired up!
I was into residential real estate back in the mid-2000s until I got crushed. Part of my goal was to flip enough houses to save up $200,000 so I could buy a triple-net lease investment property. It never happened then, at least not yet 🙂
What Is A Triple Net Lease
What is a triple-net lease property? A few examples you may know are stand-alone Starbucks; stand-alone Dollar General; stand-alone Walgreens; any stand-alone retail store(s) that are backed by corporate names. The reason why you would want to buy something like that is that you could put your $200,000 down on a million-dollar property and Dollar General or Walgreens would give you a 15-year, 20-year, or sometimes even a 30-year lease. Starbucks was always an 8 to 10-year, or 12- or 15-year lease. There were a few Walgreens, depending on the location, that would give you a 30-year lease as well.
Wikipedia defines Triple Net as “A triple net lease (Net–Net–Net or NNN) is a lease agreement on a property. The tenant or lessee agrees to pay all real estate taxes, building insurance, and maintenance (the three “Nets”) on the property. Additionally, they agree to any normal fees that are expected under the agreement (rent, utilities, etc.).”
Are You Ok With Putting All Your Eggs In One Basket?
This means that the investor signs the lease. The tenant, not the owner, is responsible for the taxes, insurance, and maintenance for the duration of the lease. When looking at real estate and having a hands-off approach, there is nothing better than having a corporate tenant that will guarantee the lease and pay all the carrying costs.
That is if you are OK with putting all your eggs in one basket. I would argue that this is just a piece of your investment strategy. Meaning, if you are looking for monthly income, this is one spot out of five or ten.
Diversification On Location
Diversification on location and corporate client is very important. This post stems from a conversation that I had with my Aunt. I had to write about it. My Aunt has a theory that everything is moving online. Amazon, or the Amazon of the world, is crushing individual retailers.
Take a look at your buying habits. Who remembers Sam Goddy or Radio Shack? What happened? iTunes and Amazon. How is Amazon changing Home goods? Is Amazon changing Best Buy? Do you feel that Amazon is changing Walmart and Walgreens?
Old Habits Diehard
My Aunt’s theory is that she believes in the old school shopping malls. The malls where all the stores are under one roof. Where everything is facing inward and you remember walking around them as a teen and “hanging out”. Most have a central hallway of sorts, either one story or two. She believes these types of properties are going away.
The structures will stay, but their existing function of retail space will be replaced by a new, “micro-manufacturing community”. Multiple storefronts will turn into small manufacturing facilities, or storage units, for individual companies who want to have a retail and shipping location but also could double as a storefront. They have a parking lot for the trucks. The buildings have the warehouse docs for the distributions. The property even has individual gates that can be blocked in order to store products. I think she is on to something.
DIY Spaces Where People Can Gather to Create, Invent & Learn
If you look at the maker space movement, defined here: “Makerspaces, sometimes also referred to as hackerspaces, hackspaces, and fablabs are creative, DIY spaces where people can gather to create, invent, and learn. In libraries, they often have 3D printers, software, electronics, craft and hardware supplies, and tools, and more”, which would allow for a transformation of this old-dead type of real estate.
I speak around the United States and I talk about how we are in the “McDonald’s economy”. Everybody wants everything now, now, now, now. When we buy things on Amazon in many cities, you can get your purchase that day or the next day. Even if you are in a rural area, you can get it in 2 days.
Look at the long-term view of the triple net lease of a brick-and-mortar store. I think the only survivors in that space are going to be the ones that offer services. For example doctors’ offices, dentists, and gyms. The spaces where people need to go to see somebody or physically do something, and not simply purchase products.
As you look at building out your real estate portfolio, you may want to consider this.
In August, REITs real estate will be the 11th sector to be included in the S&P 500
What is a REIT according to Wikipedia? “A real estate investment trust is a company that owns, and in most cases operates, income-producing real estate. REITs own many types of commercial real estate. Ranging from office and apartment buildings to warehouses, hospitals, shopping centers, hotels, and even timberlands. Furthermore, some REITs also engage in financing real estate.”
REIT Stocks: Higher Dividends
I met with a client this past week. He brought to my attention that he was looking at REIT stocks. I asked him why and dug a little more. I’m a dork about learning new information. REITs pay out higher dividends and by law have to pay out 90% of their earnings. Wikipedia explains this here. “REITs are strong income vehicles because to legally avoid paying U.S. Federal income tax, REITs generally must pay out at least 90 percent of their taxable income in the form of dividends to shareholders”
In conclusion, my client was only looking at this from the standpoint that if he owned index funds and mutual funds for that matter, those funds would have to now buy/hold. I was looking at it from a point of view that now all the “Index funds” are forced to buy into the REITs. That said, the theory is that there are REITs that will become the 11th sector in the S&P 500.
Let’s go back to simple economics; supply and demand. There are a limited number of shares so if demand is forced to increase, then they will drive the price of all 25 stocks up. Time will tell.
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. In a section of the book, the she said, “You don’t have to be great. You just have to be different”. And so I thought, “what can I do that is totally different than what they are used to?”. Yes, I am going to have my PowerPoint. I am going to preform. I am going to communicate. But what can I do that is remarkable? I needed something that would stick in their minds and get their attention.
