This is a collection of thoughts and ideas about entrepreneurship and running a business.
It also serves as a Twitter thread. If you don’t follow me on Twitter you’re welcome to do so. I tweet daily thoughts @bhfralick
- The customer is usually wrong. They think they know what they need but don’t. It is your job to guide them into decisions that help them the most.
- Sustainability is crucial. If it’s not sustainable — it won’t work in the long run.
- Perception is reality. It’s the customer’s perception of your products, services, and brand that matters. Think Apple.
- The internet has made the cost of entry into entrepreneurship low — and in some cases, the quality.
- Entrepreneurship is a lonely career choice. Understand that you’ll be on an island.
- Scalability is an overrated buzzword. More and bigger isn’t always better.
- An employee will never love your business as much as you do, and that’s okay. A daycare provider will never love your child as much as you do either.
- Partnerships rarely work in the long run.
- Every customer isn’t worth fighting for — some of them should be fired.
- Build a business that fits your lifestyle. Ask yourself: is this for me?
- You can’t be everything to everyone. Some people will never be happy and no amount of ‘free stuff’ is going to keep them from trashing your reputation — move on.
- There’s no such thing as ‘making it up on volume’. If you sell a product or service at $1 and make $0 profit, selling it 1000 times won’t change your profit margin. Make money on every sale.
- You’ll never receive the accolades you think you deserve. It’s not that you don’t deserve them, it’s that people never see the hard work and personal torture you’ve endured to get where you are. Accept it.
- Slow sustainable growth is better than fast uncontrollable growth. Like the Navy SEALS say: “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.”
- Pareto’s law [The 80/20 Rule] — 80% of your returns will come from 20% of your inputs. Work on the things that matter.
- A clever accountant is worth 10 times the amount he or she charges.
- On marketing. People won’t talk about good or great. What makes people talk is going above and beyond their expectations. Serve them in a way they never imagined being served.
- Entrepreneurship isn’t linear. Careers can be pivoted and new projects created. Your current set of skills does not have to define you.
- The best way to learn is by making mistakes. Cash is king because the more of it you have, the more mistakes you can make.
- Simplify first, not last. Complex systems create short-term rewards but cause negative outcomes in the long run. Simplify the procedure and then simplify it some more.
- Let people know what they’re getting. Always make it clear and obvious what’s included in your offer.
- The goal of a business should be to make money but also, to create freedom.
- There are no excuses. Everything starts and ends with you and your effort. If you’re not making things happen there is no one to blame but yourself.
- There are times it’s necessary to work in your business but most of the time you should be working on your business.
- Hire slow and fire fast. Doing the opposite is much more expensive.
- I’ve learned, the more I know, the more I don’t know.
- The idea of never quitting is ludicrous. If something’s not working and isn’t going to work, quit and quit fast. Move onto a project that has promise.
- Lean is always better.
- There are only 3 things in business. Fast, good, and cheap. You can only pick 2 — you can’t be all 3. Fast and cheap isn’t good and good and cheap isn’t fast. I prefer fast and good — let someone else take care of being cheap.
- Always start before you’re ready. If you wait until you’re ready, you’ll never start.
Bonus Thoughts
- It’s easier to keep an existing customer than it is to gain a new one. On the same note — customers die — always work on getting new ones.
- Always give extra value that wasn’t expected — like a bonus tip.
- Then go beyond that for something extraordinary.