My Own Last Lecture

Well, here it is, my final blog post. I've now gone through 14 weeks in this business class. It has been a great journey and I've learned a lot through the course of this class. In my final blog posts for this class I've been asked to give my last lecture. This is kind of a summary of what I would say if this was indeed the last lecture I was allowed to give.

So, what if I learned from this journey? I know I have said this a lot in this blog, but the most critical thing I've learned is to have integrity. No matter what we do in this life, no matter what we do in business, we must always make sure that we are not only honest to ourselves and others, but also to our Father in Heaven. My advice to anyone who wants to be an entrepreneur or start their own business is to first start reflecting on that aspect of themselves. Are you honest, are you true, are you the type of person that you would want to work with? After you can answer that question, you can look at other aspects of yourself. You must have passion, you must be driven, you must want it.

In a world of billions of people, we must stand out. Hard work and dedication will put you very far in life, it will help you move ahead of the pack. If you combine that with passion, integrity, intelligence, and a love of learning you will further yourself ahead of those around you.

Business is about creating relationships. We must create relationships that last and that are mutually beneficial. I absolutely love the principle that Stephen R Covey shares in his highly effective habits about how a win-win situation is best for everyone. If we could look at situations with our colleagues, business partners, vendors, customers and see that we can not only benefit ourselves to benefit them as well, we will come out so much further ahead.

Not everyone is going to be the next Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg, but we can make a difference in this world. To make a difference we must change the way we look at people and at business. Perhaps our change will be through our products or our services, or maybe our change will come in the way we treat our employees our business partners, or those we serve. I know that as we serve those around us and work with those who also have integrity, we can and will change this world.

The End is Near

No, I’m not talking about the apocalypse, I’m talking about the eventual end of my Business 283 class through BYU-I.  It has been a great journey filled with a lot of lessons and some exciting opportunity. 

First, I would like to give a final run down on my business.  The Stickr Company did very well and I was able to make a $135 worth of profit after my initial invest costs of $20.  I was able to learn lessons from bootstrapping a business from the ground up.  It goes to show how with a little effort we can do great things.  I know $135 doesn’t sound like much, but it felt great.  And then to be able to give that profit back to someone who needs it in order to start their own dreams is amazing.  It really put my life and what I’m doing in perspective.

I also learned many things about persistence and hard work through this class.  I am currently working full time and a new job, sold my business, umpiring baseball and softball, going to school full time, being the president of the baseball and softball association, and being a husband and father of four.  It is a busy time in my life, but through hard work, planning and dedication, I know we can all do the things we set our minds to!

Family Business

This week has been a good one.  The snow is melting and this semester is coming to a close.  My $100 business challenge goal has been reached and studying is going well.  This week we focused on buying business and we had a focus on family businesses.  Although I think family businesses can be interesting, I struggle on putting tender relationships on the line with a family business.  I think if I were to venture into having a business with other family members, having a written plan before hand and proper ownership, liability, and roles on paper before getting into business would be key.  Making sure everyone was on the same page beforehand to minimize the likely hood of problems moving forward.  As we know, problems will arise, but I think this kind of documentation can really help.

We also looked into purchasing businesses.  I think this could be an interesting part of being a business owner.  The idea of instead of being creative and trying to think of a new idea or business, it would be great to take a business that is underachieving and coming in and making it profitable.  I think this would be exciting and something I could be good at.

11 is Heaven

So here we are in week 11 of my business class.  It has been extremely satisfying so far and I'm extremely glad I have been able to learn so much.
A small update on my $100 challenge.  Things have been going well so far, but I have run into a bit of a snag.  It has really slowed down as I have gotten busy with my new job, but I think it is something I can easily fix with another push.
This week we focused on franchising.  It is an interesting concept that I don't think I would personally do unless the perfect opportunity fell into my lap.  Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't turn down the right deal, but I think building a business and learning how to do it well is all part of the thrill. Although franchises can reduce risk, give all the stuff you need to you, there is also a big cost as well as other fees associated with it.  I would much rather plan and make money on my own. I would prefer to be my own boss, or even working with a team were my opinions matter and I have control over my own destiny.  That is the power in business ownership and taking the risks that needed to be taken.

Burt's Bees

This week has been a rollercoaster in my life.  I had surgery this week and I’ve been recovering ever since.  As they say though, the show must go on.  This week in class we focused on process improvement and production, operation, and location. 

This week we also did a case study on Roxanne Quimby, one of the founders of Burt’s Bees.  It was an interesting story about how finding a business and doing well isn’t the end.  Quimby had made a great business making natural, handmade products out of beeswax and other natural products from Burt’s beehives.  She had grown it naturally and organically.  She used inexpensive local labor, and really had a love and a passion for what they did.  They were also growing at a steady rate, but it wasn’t enough.  She saw the writing on the wall and knew they couldn’t keep growing where they were.  She had to make a hard choice and move the company.  Was it the right decision?  What was the future of the company?  Many people in our class discussed how moving and changing what they made wasn’t in line with the vision of the company.  I disagreed.  Too often people think a company’s vision is what they make.  I think a company has to have a bigger vision than that.  A vision is about helping the customer, changing the world, and I think Burt’s Bees’ stayed to their vision and continued to be a successful company after the move.

Finding The Right People

This week in my small business creations class we focused on how to hire the right people and even how to get rid of the wrong people when needed.  We talked about going through the hiring process and what is important in that process.  We discussed the idea of hire slow and fire fast.  This talked about how we need to take our time in the hiring process, from the initial question of do we even need to hire someone.  In that process of hiring someone, take your time in the interview process, get to know the person and make sure they fit into the company.  It's okay to have more than one interview and look for the potential and their talents.  When the decision has been made, make sure we spend the time to train the new hire and that they know what they need to do.

On the other side of that, if someone doesn't fit, take care of it quickly.  Make sure it isn't just a need to move them to a better position.  If that isn't the issue, get with the program and let them move on.  It is not fair to waste the businesses time, or that person's time.  Do it swiftly.

Enchantment

This week has been a bit of a blur, but it's been a good one. In our readings and videos, I listened to a great talk from Guy Kawasaki talking about his new book and the way of enchanting others.  This talk was given in 2011 to a group of students at Stanford and gave some pretty good advice.  In his talk, he went over many aspects of working with others and how we can engage others.  One of the most basic things he talked about that I loved was having a genuine smile.  He talked about smiling with the eyes.  Being genuine.  That part, although extremely simple, really struck a chord with me in how something so simple can be such a huge part of how people see and view us.

The $100 challenge has been going well. I have made my first sales and I am on my way to reaching the goal of gaining at least $100 in profit.  People seem to like the idea of customized stickers and they have loved the idea it also supports a good cause.  People want to show their support for their kid's teams, their kids, and the added bonus of helping others with the proceeds helps as well.  It is looking very positive going forward.

Here is some cash, now get lost!

The $100 challenge is going along well.  I have created my first designs, and I hope to be able to start advertising this week or next.  I’m getting excited to see what The Stickr Company can do.  I have high hopes and really think this concept can generate the revenue and profit I need in order to get a good grade in this class and help others in need.  I am going to be pushing that the profits go to a good cause in hopes that it will help motivate others in their purchase.

This week in class we learned about how Zappos would offer their new hires $2000 to leave the company during training.  They wanted only people who were motivated to stay with the company in their ranks.  I was blown away with how few took the money.  This was for entry level jobs in Las Vegas, and that money was no drop in the bucket for these people.  In the video, they talked about how the company culture was so important and that customer service was a companywide trait.  They wanted to make sure that everyone felt the same way about their company and that they could keep morale high and turnover low. I think this is a good example of planning with the end in mind.

Elevator Pitch

So this week in my business class we have been focused on marketing and building our brands.  I really enjoyed one of our videos this week by Guy Kawasaki.  In it, he points out how we need to be unique and bring value to our customers.  It is in that sweet spot where greatness can be born.  You can see the video here.

This week I also had to create an elevator pitch for my $100 challenge company.  It was great getting feedback from classmates and going back and refining what I would say if I met an investor in an elevator.  It helped me really drill down on my concept and make sure I could quickly and clearly explain what I was trying to do, who I was trying to sell it to, how we would make money, and why it would be exciting.  It's a great way to look at a company and get down to the roots of what it is and how it will bring value to the customer, owner and investors.  I know that my company will do this in my area.  Here is my video of my elevator pitch.  I hope you enjoy it, and feel free to leave comments or suggestions.

Starting a New Business

Another week has passed, and move decisions have been made.  I'm excited to say that I have narrowed down my business for the $100 challenge to The Stickr Company.  With this company, I plan on selling vinyl stickers that people can put on car windows, walls, binders, or really anything they want.  I plan on focusing on local teams (high school, club, etc) and even have some upsell items like custom numbers, names, or other things to make their sticker unique.  Through that, I know that I can make a good amount of profit so I can be able to give through Kiva.org.

This week we learned about raising funds and being able to either bootstrap a business or looking for funds through a VC or other funding.  Although many businesses will never be able to get VC funding, I find it an interesting problem.  In one of our videos, they discussed how you must ask for money to make it a possibility.  It seems like a simple thing.  Just ask, right?  Well, it is the first step and it is part of the selling process.  If we don't make that step, it doesn't require the other party to answer.

Finally,  I just want to share a great part in my personal business life.  My personal IT company was purchased this week and I am now working for a new company, Integrated Technologies.  I'm excited about the new opportunities it can bring and we hope that this risk will be a good one.

The Lean Startup

The week has been a stressful but fulfilling one.  First, I'm grateful for modern medicine.  We spent most of the last weekend in doctor's offices and the ER twice as our oldest son had a blood infection of strep and went septic.  I'm so glad we have modern medicine and he is now doing well.

The rest of the week I have been able to work on my new small business trying to raise over $100 to help other in need.  I have now shifted from doing custom t-shirts to doing custom vinyl stickers and logos.  This will make my overhead much lower and be able to customize either without having the cost of different size and color shirts.

I was also able to listen to a great video called The Lean Startup by Eric Ries.  In this small clip, he talks about what he calls the small dollhouse myth.  In this myth, people think that startups and small businesses should just be smaller versions of big companies, and this just isn't true.  He focuses on being lean and making sure we are efficient in making, what he calls, pivots, in our companies.  I feel I did just that when pivoting from shirts to stickers and logos.  It was an important move in my company without having to deal with things like a marketing division or talk to R&D.

Creativity

In my business class this week we focus on creativity and the creative process.  How as a manager, business owner, or entrepreneur can we help foster creativity in those we work with and lead?  In one of our videos we watched this week, Marissa Mayer of Google talked about how if we foster an environment of ideas in our businesses, ideas can come from anywhere.  It doesn’t always have to be top down.  Bringing together those with different backgrounds and expertise can help with this creative processes.  No matter what business we are in, ideas are still important and can help keep the business afloat for years to come.  Things change, and we need to be ready with new ideas, products, and services to stay ahead.

Also, I’m pretty sure I have narrowed down my business idea for the $100 challenge. I was thinking of doing baseball training, but instead, I’m going to do some custom shirts and go from there.  I plan on focusing on local events and sports related apparel.  I will start small and reinvest in inventory as money comes in.  I plan on getting to the $100 pretty easy, but hope to get well beyond that so I can really benefit others and help those in need.

A New Beginning

Well, here I am again.  It is a new semester at BYU-Idaho and I have started a few new courses.  One of those is Business 283.  In this class, I have been asked to keep this online journal/blog.  I'm excited for this opportunity to continue sharing my experiences and insights.  I'm really looking forward to some excellent projects in this class including the $100 challenge.  In this project, I need to make a new company with a maximum of $20 seed money and after all is said and done make at least $100 profit. The other great part of this is that my profits will all be donated to someone in need through the site Kiva.org.  This is a great chance to learn and give back.

I have also really enjoyed this weeks' lessons on finding good business blogs.  I have decided to follow the blog,  The Entrepreneurial Mind  I hope following it will help give me insight and ideas for my own career and businesses. I know that as I explore new ideas and learn lessons from other business owners, it will help me in my passions and pursuits.

This week I also learned about Corey Bell.  He is a man who saw how his life wasn't going to get him to the place he wanted to be in 15-20 years.  So instead of feeling down and defeated, he decided to do something about it.  It pushed him into being an entrepreneur and work for himself.  I loved his attitude about always doing his best and never using the word can't.  When challenges come, we must find a way to overcome!