Writing is like good design. It shouldn’t contain unnecessary extras. In other words, ideally, it’s so clear and concise that if you remove one element, it no longer makes sense.
How many challenges can you identify in your company that (some) people are somewhat aware of but have never been written down?
A problem, well-defined, is half-solved.
Knowing too much is dangerous because you stop asking questions.
When you visit a city for the fifth time, it’s hard to relive the wonder you experienced when you first arrived.
Professionally, it’s definitely worthwhile to keep asking questions. Approach work as if it’s the first time. A fresh perspective can work wonders.
How can we improve professional human behavior and interaction when we can’t decide on a term and clear definition of those skills?
Maybe we should forget about semantics and do it anyway? Improve on the above-mentioned skills and make the best of them. What’s in a name, after all… Then again, which other domains have made significant progress without an unambiguous definition? Without the ability to measure, there is no before and after.
We live in an interesting time where professional human behavior and interaction are still a bit of a black box.
Please join me on my journey this year, demystifying these principles.
There is but one guarantee in entrepreneurship. It’s hard.
It’s not personal Sonny. It’s strictly business. One of Al Pacino’s perhaps most famous lines from The Godfather.
The statement is both true and false.
The goal of a business is to form a legal entity around a model that creates value and profits. Naturally, everything that occurs to the company doesn’t happen to you personally. Therefore, snarky comments made at your business should glide right off you.
On the other hand, what’s really at stake without any personal involvement whatsoever? A deep and thorough empathic understanding of your customer’s problem is needed.
Don’t take it personally, Sonny, but do get personally involved. That’s my take.
Basketball teams who are trailing by halftime with one point are more likely to win than teams who are leading with one point.
Never underestimate a hungry underdog.
Either the person you are selling to has a need, can clearly vocalize that need, and actively seeks a solution. Or, doesn’t know she has a need, and needs to be convinced first.
In the first scenario, you can enter in sales-mode.
In the second scenario, you have to go in, in evangelism-mode. Meaning, a whole lot of convincing has to take place for the lead to convert into a paying customer.
When your lead isn’t ready to buy (at all), consider leaving it there. You can always reiterate in a year or so.
No is better than maybe.
“Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced,” wrote James Baldwin.
In startup entrepreneurship, you have to face everything all at once. Only to suffer from stress because it’s hard to do everything by yourself.
Prioritize what to face first. Better yet, have the market and your customers prioritize it for you. Whatever they feel the strongest about, that’s the challenge you’ll face first.
Successful companies are the result of amazing customer care.
Take Coolblue, for instance. They came up, very successfully, against all odds. In an era where the electronics retailer market was already very saturated.
You know how the edge of your lips curls up when you bring about a satisfied smile? That’s what they obsess over. Their motto; everything for a smile.
Companies are a byproduct of startups obsessing over customer satisfaction.
What does adding a new feature solve? Products, digital and analog add features all the time. Driven by a vision, but even more so, driven by customer feedback and market demand.
With every new bell and whistle added, ask the same question repeatedly. What problem is this solving?
All (new) features should cluster around solving the same solution to the problem your customer is experiencing. If they don’t, reconsider.