Monday, October 22, 2018

Ten Characteristics of Great Entrepreneurs

Lovingly borrowed from Howard Schultz and Dan Levitan of Maveron, for a recent presentation in Ottawa.


Thursday, July 19, 2018

What’s Your Mission? Your Personal Mission Statement

Every day you are missing key chances to sell yourself and your business better.

Whenever someone asks you, “What do you do?”, you are being handed a golden opportunity to build your brand. 

But most people answer that question modestly, almost reluctantly. “I’m in insurance,” they say, or “I work with a tech startup.” Unsure whether the other person is truly interested, most people respond as tersely and noncommittally as possible.

The inevitable result: having received such a dull, unimaginative response, most people promptly lose all interest in what you do. Congratulations! You just blew a chance to acquire a new customer, partner, fan or friend.

If you care about what you do, be enthusiastic about it. And make other people feel just as excited as you are.

So when someone asks you what you do, instead of mumbling the simplest, blandest answer you can, respond with something bolder, more personal, and more memorable!

I remember asking the question of one entrepreneur, who were applied very boldly,” I’m the second biggest steel fabricator in the Ottawa Valley.” It was brash, it was memorable, and it sparked a great conversation. Who knows how many steel fabricators there are in the Ottawa Valley? Doesn’t matter. That hint of verve and audacity was the cue that this person was worth talking to.

There’s a school of thought that says your opening line should be a short commercial, such as: “I sell payment solutions for e-commerce companies.” That’s clear and concise, but it’s not very personal, or likely to grab the interest of anyone who is not entrenched in e-commerce.

Remember the medieval stonecutter, who when asked what he was doing, answered with great pride: “I’m building a cathedral.” Why not, then, say, “I’m involved with a company that’s reinventing e-commerce.” That sounds a lot less like a commercial, and more like a great cause that many people would be interested in learning more about. That’s how you start a great conversation.

I call these Personal Mission Statements. As a business person, you should prepare identifying statements and other talking points that demonstrate why you’re an interesting person creating new value in this sorry world.

Again, these are NOT commercials. Few new acquaintances give a fig about your “value proposition.” No one wants to be propositioned without permission. But everyone is interested in hearing innovative stories about people doing important and interesting work.

How do you create value for the world? Are you an inventor, are you a pioneer, are you working on leading-edge projects? Do you have a track record of helping people solve problems? Are you on the lookout for potential partners, allies, referrals, resources?

Think through all the interesting things you do, or you’re trying to do. Pick out the best parts and incorporate them into the opening sentences of any business- or career-related conversations. Don’t try to sell yourself; get people interested in your vision, your projects, and your dreams. Once they're intrigued, a fruitful conversation can begin. Afterwards you can decide if they're possible prospects, or, more likely, potential partners, resources or allies.

So many people struggle with their "opening line." Don't think of it as a marketing trick. Just share your light with the world.

Don’t hide that light under a bushel. If you’re doing interesting stuff, it’s a crime that more people don’t know about it.


Exercise: Just Three Questions

1. What are the most interesting things you’re working on right now?
2. Why should any of this matter to other people?
3. How can you convey your vision and mission to other people in just one sentence (your Personal Mission Statement) that will whet their appetites to learn more?


Monday, May 14, 2018

Meet the world's top social entrepreneurs

This year's Skoll World Forum for social entrepreneurs took place in Oxford, UK, April 10-13. Sadly, it marked the conference’s first year without founder Jeff Skoll, the Canadian-born engineer who became the first president of eBay. Now virtually the patron saint of social entrepreneurs, Jeff stayed home in California to recover from back surgery.

Jimmy Carter acceptance speech
But 1300 people showed up to the conference, making it the largest Skoll World ever. They presented a “Global Treasure” award to Jimmy Carter, and explored issues such as improving global healthcare, sustainable economic development, preserving indigenous cultures, enhancing agriculture in Africa, and fighting indentured slavery. 

After the 2017 conference, which was still reeling in shock from the election of Trump and his band of narcissistic nationalists, the world’s best social entrepreneurs proved this year that they're back in fighting form and ready to move forward again with their innovative, inspiring agendas for improving the human condition.

Dinner at Oxford's 600-year-old Divinity School
I wrote three stories on the Skoll conference. Here’s a quick summary.

“Proximity triggers empathy.” 
My first story for the Financial Post explored the conference’s surprising but very meaningful theme, “The Power of Proximity.” As I wrote, in phrasing that gained some Twitter traction, “Yes, this sounds like the business bromide ‘Get closer to your customer.’ But Skoll’s adoption of this theme demonstrated that this advice applies to any entrepreneur — especially when times are tough. It’s so easy to neglect your mission amid the day-to-day struggle to survive. As a leader, you have to stay focused on relationships even when things are so hard and complex that you feel you’ll never get home for dinner again.”

Jehiel Oliver of Hello Tractor
The story explored “proximity” through the case study of a social venture called “Hello Tractor.” U.S. founder Jehiel Oliver confessed that his initial plan to disrupt African agriculture by getting affordable tractors in the hands of small landholders failed because he didn't wasn’t close enough to the market. “We tried to do it the Silicon Valley way,” says Oliver. “But we had to do it the community way instead.”

"To whom much is given, much is required." 
My second Post story zoomed in on a key challenge for social entrepreneurs and the world: how to make governments more efficient. As I wrote, “Government waste breeds cynicism, inequality and despair. The entrepreneurs tackling this intractable problem could spur new efficiencies around the world.”

2018 Skoll Award winners
I looked at two ventures that this year received Skoll Awards, which are given annually to promising social ventures whose innovations have already had significant, proven impact on some of the world’s most pressing problems.

Code for America trains tech-savvy “fellows” to improve the ways governments offer services, by embracing concepts such as design thinking and iterative, user-centered approaches. According to founder Jennifer Pahlka, CFA now has 70 local “brigades” whose work has helped more than 500,000 people. 

Just as important, she says CFA’s efforts are firing up public servants. “The people we call bureaucrats are actually a massive force for good, who are just hungry for the tools and approaches that will let them effectively help their fellow citizens. And we, the people, can help them unlock that enormous potential.” 
(There's now also a Code for Canada, doing similar work. Visit https://codefor.ca/)

The second winner was Barbara Bush, the daughter of former U.S. president George H.W. Bush, co-founder of New York City-based GlobalHealth Corps. “Our ‘big idea’ was – and still is – that great ideas don’t change the world, great people do,” Bush told me in an interview by email. GHC has now trained and placed 1,000 “fellows” under the age of 30 in medical facilities and governments in the U.S., Rwanda, Uganda, Malawi and Zambia. They are young, educated and committed catalysts for change, says Bush:

“We realized that there was a major implementation gap in global health. Millions were dying from treatable illnesses because they weren’t being reached with the incredible life-saving tools and information we have. On the flip side, we saw a huge supply of passionate, talented young leaders who wanted to change the world.  So we set out to maximize this interest by recruiting and training a new generation of leaders to ensure people can live full, healthy lives. We are seeding the global health field with incredible talent who will effect change throughout their careers.”



"You are a barrier against disinformation, duplicity and destruction.”
My third story was written for Corporate Knights magazine (the issue will be out in June, but it was posted online last week.) It’s a collection of highlights from the whole Skoll event – from Jimmy Carter’s acceptance speech to an Indian lawyer’s story of his journey out of slavery.

Gwynne Shotwell of Space X
I also couldn't resist quoting Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX, on how to create bold, successful change:

  • Execute missions that seem impossible.
  • Relentless focus on progress and improving every cycle.
  • Drive feedback to ensure we learn and fix quickly.
  • Superior staff is the only way to achieve great things.

(Sorry about that downer ending. But the best way to create social justice is to recognize inequality in your own backyard.)


Saturday, April 07, 2018

Lessons from Canada's most aspiring entrepreneurs

Oops. I meant to share this with you weeks ago.

For my first column of 2018, I went back and contacted a few of the ambitious entrepreneurs whose businesses I had profiled in the first half of 2017. An editor of mine long ago said, "You can't do enough follow-ups," so I followed up to see how they're faring and what they learned over the past year.

In my experience, you can learn a lot from other entrepreneurs. Our journeys are all different, but many of the obstacles are common ones.

You can read the story at the Post website here:
http://business.financialpost.com/entrepreneur/0104-biz-rs-spence-review-fpe

What did they learn?

Here are a few examples of the lessons 2017 dealt out:

“I had a birdie chirping in my head that it might not work out. Now I know what that sounds like, so I am going to listen to that bird in future.”
Erika Mozes

“We learned that you need to understand what other market pressures and priorities your customers may be facing, and work with that challenge to demonstrate your value proposition to get to the top of their priority list.”

“Be totally forthright with potential competition, even when you’re not sure how they may react to your vision.”

“Understanding your customer is the most important thing you can do as a business."

“I learned that nothing is done in business until it’s done.” 

“Things only work out if you make them work out.”

Now go back and read the full story. 

http://business.financialpost.com/entrepreneur/0104-biz-rs-spence-review-fpe

I'd love to know what lessons you're learning. 

Leave a comment or email me at rick@rickspence.ca if you'd like to share your thoughts on how to deal with the hard knocks of business. And please let me know if I can use your comments in a future column.

Wednesday, March 07, 2018

Auditioning for Dragons' Den

Dragons' Den auditions continue across Canada this month. Why not step into the Den with your invention, product or business idea?

I just received a request for audition advice from a startup entrepreneur I know in Western Canada. I'm excited that she has registered, and as you'll see, I think she has a good shot at getting on the show. And of getting an offer.


I used to help the CBC Toronto crew with Dragons' Den auditions, years ago, when they were under-resourced. So I have some insight into what the producers (and the Dragons) are looking for. But I've been out of that loop for a few years now, so take the following for what it's worth.   

Here, with a few edits to retain confidentiality, are my comments to this entrepreneur. 

She asked what time she should show up: "You don't need to get there early; that's usually a busy time. I suggest you go 1-2 hours before they close. By that time the producers are tired, their expectations are low, and you will blow them away."
She asked whether the fact that her product's sales have been slow will be a problem. Hell, no! 

"The fact that you are in stores and making sales is a big plus. You are way ahead of most people auditioning, because most of them don't have a product, and most of those who do are still looking for distribution. The audition judges (and the dragons) know sales success is as much a factor of promotion dollars as of product quality, so I doubt they would hold a slow start against you.

"Remember: above all they are looking for a good, upbeat story. And you have it.

"You saw personally a gap in a growing market. You looked for solutions and couldn't find one, so you designed one yourself and then hired a factory to produce them! Plus, you didn't want to risk your savings (the Dragons hate it when people do that - it's a sign of very bad judgment). So you looked for financial help. And after being turned down by a few sources, you found some additional capital (so there's a great lesson there about persistence). 

"Keep your story simple. (Sometimes entrepreneurs get too immersed in their own  stories and go on too long. Practice telling your story as simply and as briefly as you can.

"One other thought. Think of a customer success story. It could be anything positive that a retailer or retail customer has said or done. Did a customer provide amazing feedback on the product, fit, convenience, etc? Did a retailer hunt you down and beg you to supply them? One or two quick, casual anecdotes like those will help position you as a winner."

The annual Dragons' Den audition tour began in February and continues across Canada until April 7.  Upcoming locations include BC, Alberta, Whitehorse, Newfoundland, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, Quebec and Ontario. Click here for dates, locations, and other useful information.

Go ahead. Own the Den!

Friday, February 23, 2018

How would you answer these tricky questions about your business?

This week's FP Entrepreneur column came out of a recent event I attended: the Toronto round of a 15-city “Open Innovation” competition run by Japan’s NTT Data, a US$16-billion-a-year software giant looking for creative partners and technologies.
The Event Organizers
Pitch competitions are the new Tupperware parties, so I attend a lot of them. But it's hard to get a good story out of them, even when the companies pitching on-stage are outstanding (as they were at this tech-focused event). There's little journalistic fodder in these raw. 5-minute pitches, even though the companies may be interesting (and I will be writing about a few of them in the weeks to come).

At the NTT Data event, however, the questions asked by the judges seemed newsworthy to me. Every entrepreneur, every executive, every salesperson, is always pitching their business or their products and services to everybody they meet. Sadly, most people don't do a very good job of it.

The judges at this event, however, had a rare knack for spotting the soft spots in people's presentations: especially for things they said that didn't quite make sense, and for the important things the presenters didn't say. I took careful note of the questions they asked, because these are the same questions people will ask themselves when they hear YOU pitch.

The Presenters
Being polite, or shy, or time-pressed, the people you meet may never ask these questions out loud - but they're definitely thinking them. To improve your daily pitches and formal presentations, you need to understand these questions so you can answer them before they're even asked

Here are a few of those key questions:

* “Do you have any success stories you can share?” (The entrepreneur who was asked this forgot to tell one. Even after being asked!)

* “How did your company get into 65 countries?” (Any time you make a big, impressive-sounding claim, such as your business operating in 65 countries, people will ask themselves how you managed that. Was it strategy, or just luck? Make sure you're boasting about the right things.)

* “When selling to customers, what benefits do you lead with?” (That was just another way of asking the two Big Question in business: How do you create value, and what makes you different?)

This is the sort of basic, useful story that people used to tear out of the newspaper and save for future reading. You can just click this link:
http://business.financialpost.com/entrepreneur/the-hell-that-is-an-entrepreneurs-pitch-competition-and-how-to-survive-it

Friday, January 05, 2018

A do-it-yourself Happy New Year

In January we're all filled with good intentions for self-improvement: ending bad habits, losing weight, spending more time with family. Laudable as these goals are, they are often hard to achieve. And they rarely make a dent on how happy your New Year will really be.

So here is my simple, DIY proposal for creating what my friend Jennifer Green calls "an amazing 2018!"

Forget resolutions.

Just write out 3 goals for 2018. And commit to spending 15 minutes every day to move those goals forward.

(Including weekends, if possible. It's all about momentum.)

Three simple, meaningful goals. In a business sense, they may involve refining your strategy, engaging with new technology, exploring social media, or getting better at new product development. You can also include personal goals in your agenda for change: getting better at follow-ups, for instance, or praising employees, or abolishing procrastination.

Business owners are lucky. Change is hard, but they don't have to do it alone. Pick a few plucky staff members who have spare capacity or want more involvement with the business. Deputize them to work with you (or by themselves, if that's easier) on one of the three new initiatives you've just prioritized. Give them your full support, a bit of a budget, and a deadline, and ask them to come up with a plan.

Delegating is good for both the delagater and the delegatee. So share the challenge, the workload, and the opportunity to make a difference. Here in the bleak midwinter, you'll kindle hope and light in your business, and optimism for the future.

Get out your daytimer and schedule in 15 minutes a day for moving three priorities forward. If you miss a day, spend 30 minutes the next day. Keep things moving!

A Happy New Year? It's in your hands.