Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2022

In fact, I have found from personal experience and mentoring that both of these are necessary, but not sufficient, for building a business. There is more and more evidence that a more human-centered or heart-centered leadership yields the best results with your team and with customers in the long run.

Training 142

Training Coach Startup Entrepreneur 142

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

Almost every entrepreneur and new business owner I mentor is certain that his/her idea has a very high probability of success, and all find it hard to believe that ninety percent of startups ultimately fail. Look for validation from your mainstream customers. Even non-profits need income to run a business.

Technical Review 131

Technical Review Case Study Mentor Software Review 131

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2023

Yet I find in my mentoring practice that more and more team members prefer the human-centered approach and respond with more engagement and commitment. Start by getting people comfortable with what they don’t know, showing them you are open to new ideas, and don’t demand perfection in all deliverables.

Case Study 112

Case Study Study Startup Examples 112

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 2, 2022

They are not having the impact they expected, and they are not feeling the personal satisfaction they need for next level motivation. This is a tough challenge for every coach and mentor. Your team will quickly sense your insights and sincerity , leading to greater impact and satisfaction by everyone.

Entrepreneur 90

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Coach Mentor 90

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. Direct customer-facing non-technical roles should be the last ones outsourced.

Outsource 123

Outsource Startup Technical Review Training 123

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 11, 2021

You can learn to be an entrepreneur by working in a startup, talking to peers, and mentoring. In reality, every startup brings new unknowns, new people, new competitors, and new customers. Markets, customers, and competitors evolve, and you must continually update the business to stay ahead.

Entrepreneur 171

Entrepreneur Ideas Examples Satisfaction 171

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 5, 2014

In fact, I have found from personal experience and mentoring that both of these are necessary, but not sufficient, for building a business. There is more and more evidence that a more human-centered or heart-centered leadership yields the best results with your team and with customers in the long run.

Demand 92

Demand Entrepreneur Startup Training 92

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 12, 2023

As an angel investor and a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I’m always disappointed to see founders who seem stressed out most of the time, and more annoyed than energized by the abundance of challenges they see in building their startup. Don’t demand or expect immediate gratification.

Entrepreneur 70

Entrepreneur Startup Activity Ideas 70

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 27, 2019

As a mentor to entrepreneurs, I often get asked for the magic that has made Amazon the world's most valuable brand , from a total unknown only twenty years ago. My simple answer is that they keep their focus on customers, rather than technology. Jeff Bezos has kept his focus on customers.

Marketing 123

Marketing Technical Review Customer Custom 123

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 19, 2020

In my business of mentoring new entrepreneurs and advising small company owners, I recognize that most don’t start as experienced leaders, and most don’t realize that people leadership is a primary key to their future success. Building a business is not a one-person job, and leading by edict rarely works today.

Develop 124

Develop Development Technical Advisors Satisfaction 124

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 21, 2019

In fact, I have found from personal experience and mentoring that both of these are necessary, but not sufficient, for building a business. There is more and more evidence that a more human-centered or heart-centered leadership yields the best results with your team and with customers in the long run.

Training 123

Training Coach Startup Entrepreneur 123

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 10, 2018

Most entrepreneurs see their new venture as a fun adventure, until the pressures of a cash flow crisis, or a manufacturing quality problem, or a major customer satisfaction problem hits. Even with all my years of experience mentoring in business, I can’t predict how you will prepare for and react to pressure situations.

Startup 82

Startup Satisfaction Entrepreneur Mentor 82

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2015

Does it mean the right thing from a customer perspective, societal impact, maximizing business returns or personal benefit? Another article indicates that 80 percent of customers continue to base some portion of their buying decisions on their perceptions of the company’s ethics. You must be the model of the culture you want.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Training Demand Customer 102

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2019

A common request I get while mentoring entrepreneurs is for a copy of the startup checklist they need to follow, in order to build a successful new business. The challenge is that every new business needs to be innovative and different, in order to rise above the crowd, bring real change to the world, and give you the satisfaction you seek.

Technology 86

Technology Cloud Computing Social Media Networking 86

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2019

Today, customers and future managers put a higher value on relationships, and expect to know you from industry conferences, social media, or recommendations from peers. Use blogging, outside publication, and speaking or mentoring opportunities to establish credibility and stand out above peers. Walk away from a bad role or customer.

Startup 98

Startup Outsource Development Competition Social Media 98

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 28, 2015

A common request I get while mentoring entrepreneurs is for a copy of the startup checklist they need to follow, in order to build a successful new business. The challenge is that every new business needs to be innovative and different, in order to rise above the crowd, bring real change to the world, and give you the satisfaction you seek.

Startup 107

Startup Cloud Computing Social Media Entrepreneur 107

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2012

But very quickly, it is becoming obvious to startups that the value and satisfaction exceeds the costs. Even without B-Corp status, entrepreneurs are speaking out more on the positives to support business models that benefit not just shareholders, but customers, workforce, the environment, and the greater community.

Startup 100

Startup Organization Customer Custom 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 18, 2017

A common request I get while mentoring entrepreneurs is for a copy of the startup checklist they need to follow, in order to build a successful new business. The challenge is that every new business needs to be innovative and different, in order to rise above the crowd, bring real change to the world, and give you the satisfaction you seek.

Cloud Computing 61

Cloud Computing Startup Social Media Networking 61

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 2, 2014

A common request I get while mentoring entrepreneurs is for a copy of the startup checklist they need to follow, in order to build a successful new business. The challenge is that every new business needs to be innovative and different, in order to rise above the crowd, bring real change to the world, and give you the satisfaction you seek.

Cloud Computing 99

Cloud Computing Social Media Entrepreneur Networking 99

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 15, 2015

In fact, I have found from personal experience and mentoring that both of these are necessary, but not sufficient, for building a business. There is more and more evidence that a more human-centered or heart-centered leadership yields the best results with your team and with customers in the long run.

Startup 103

Startup Training Coach Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 4, 2018

In fact, I have found from personal experience and mentoring that both of these are necessary, but not sufficient, for building a business. There is more and more evidence that a more human-centered or heart-centered leadership yields the best results with your team and with customers in the long run.

Training 55

Training Coach Startup Entrepreneur 55

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 22, 2012

Being authentic and genuine makes you attractive to your customers, respected by your team, and effective as a leader. Startup businesses are very demanding. This will reduce stress and increase satisfaction. Individuality is the hallmark of a successful and strong entrepreneur.

Entrepreneur 97

Entrepreneur Demand Outsource Satisfaction 97

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 10, 2011

Being authentic and genuine makes you attractive to your customers, respected by your team, and effective as a leader. Startup businesses are very demanding. This will reduce stress and increase satisfaction. The recent economic disaster demands a transformation of business processes and cultures, beginning at the startup level.

Entrepreneur 93

Entrepreneur Demand Outsource Satisfaction 93

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 12, 2010

Being authentic and genuine makes you attractive to your customers, respected by your team, and effective as a leader. Startup businesses are very demanding. This will reduce stress and increase satisfaction. The recent economic crisis demands a transformation of business processes and cultures, beginning at the startup level.

Entrepreneur 48

Entrepreneur Demand Outsource Satisfaction 48

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2021

Every new business I know dreams of building momentum in their business, where growth continues to increase, customers become your best advocates, and employee motivation is high. Unfortunately, with limited resources, this isn’t possible, and it frustrates customers and the team. Focus first on finding more of the right customers.

Technical Review 160

Technical Review Technical Advisors Startup Mentor 160

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 9, 2022

In other words, how do you recognize the challenges that really need your leadership , versus the less critical demands that seem to always bubble to the top? Customer feedback in the form of online reviews and poor customer service is often rationalized as unreasonable expectations or one or two crazy individuals.

Coach 120

Coach Satisfaction Customer Custom 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 17, 2022

Passion is great, but it must be backed by data, confirming a real problem and customers willing and able to pay for your solution. Too many business people let the daily challenges cause them to revert to emotional and autocratic demands, failure to communicate, and inability to coach and mentor team members.

Startup 143

Startup Competition Coach Satisfaction 143