NetwebTV [episode #4] with Richard Mulholland

In this episode we went out to Thunk and chatted with Richard Mulholland, the co-founder. He is also the founder of Missing Link. What strikes me most about Richard is his ability to always transcend his past achievements and rewrite the game, which is what led to this interview.

Whenever you are at Missing Link, you realize how the thinking continually evolves and grows which is what makes these guys leaders in presentation strategy. They also happen to be the largest presentation strategists this side of the equator. They also look good naked, according to them.

If staying ahead is your thing then this video and audio are for you.

Agency of the week

Last week, the awesome guys from the digital edge featured me for in an interview. At the time it was just an interview, but little did I know they were featuring me as their agency of the week. They have relevant content and continually improve on it, not that they need to.

I personally don't listen to that many social media podcasts, so much of the same thing it gets redundant after a few. Saul rises above the general social discourse, well worth a follow and subscription.

Here's the interview, please share.

Back to the Brickyard with Howard Mann in Johannesburg

Howard Mann, the author of Your Business Brickyard, arrived in Johannesburg yesterday for some talks he'll be doing. His 54 page book, which can be read in no more than 4 hours, has concepts that are relevant in many levels of business.



Capitalist Punks referred to it as : "a business book that other business books wish they were", but it's a bit more than just a business book. When I read it the first time; it was the cause for radical change in our company, led to developments we implemented but now it's way of measuring progress.

"Anyone can write a book, but business is different, another set of dynamics apply here", was my first thought. But after being at one of his of his talks that perception changed. No wonder he was featured by Tom Peters as one of their cool friends.


He will also be giving a talk at the Netweb Event in Johannesburg, for entrepreneurs and professionals on the 8th of July.





Before his talk I asked the following questions about his book:


Q : The Business Brickyard, for me, focuses on what makes all businesses similar and as you say in the book, “85% of all Business is the same”. So you can focus on the 15% that makes your business truly unique. How do you get that 85% locked in so you can focus on the 15%?

A : Everyone gets caught up thinking their business is unique and, therefore, what works for most businesses will not work for them. But every business has customers that need attention, has bills to pay, invoices to send out, has money to collect, etc… Those commoditized processes should be worked until they as automatic as possible until they are delivered perfectly every time. Once that is in place then you are clear to spend MUCH more time on the aspects of your product or service that truly is unique. You now have time to let the personality of your business express itself so it will be feel special to your customers. To spend more time learning from your customers and your team. The more time you spend on that which makes you unique the more unique you will truly be.

Q: For you, what separates an entrepreneur from a person who just owns a business and in essence is self-employed?

A : "Entrepreneur" has become a loaded word as it now equates to a risk taker that is “betting it all” or a gambler of some sort. To me, if you are driving to build a business that is fueled by a true sense of purpose you are an entrepreneur. Just because a Venture Capital firm gave you X millions of Rands does not make you an entrepreneur. If you take that money and hire 50 people, you are not an entrepreneur. If you build a business that can endure in every way, with or without an infusion of capital, and is loved by its market then you are truly an entrepreneur.

Q : Most entrepreneurs struggle with putting systems in place for their businesses to run. How would you suggest they do this?

A : Some people are just not into the details it takes to put together systems. We are all wired differently and what comes easy for some is impossible for others. The sooner you get clear about the aspects of running a business that simply do not suit who you are the sooner you can take action to bring in people (or find partners) that get tremendous satisfaction out of doing that same stuff.
So if financial work is not your thing then you need to add financial expertise to your team.
If managing the day to day of operations makes you go numb then you need to find someone that loves getting up each day to dig deep into operational detail.
There are people that were born to do systems. They do it and do not find it difficult.
Bring in people in to help put those systems in place or hire a leader to help you do it. But, if you are stuck getting your basics locked in, raise your hand and ask/get some help or outside perspective. You will find that asking for help turns out to be the hardest part.

Q : Among the many things I found in the book one was reconnecting with your purpose. How can one know when they start losing sight of their purpose?

A : When business becomes something you do to pay the bills. Or worse, you find yourself wondering why you do what you do every day. We all spend the bulk of our time in work mode so you need to demand that it is fulfilling. Now, there will always be days when work just, for lack of a better word, sucks. It could be weeks at a time. But when you are connected to a purpose or your business exists to make a difference then the lows will never feel too low. You will be able to constantly remind yourself why you do what you do and that answer will drive you. That purpose could be that you make money to fuel a different dream or feed your family. That is a purpose. You don’t need to change the world but just working to make money for no reason at all except to keep up with your friends gets very old very quickly.

Q : “Define your business with NO” is one of the chapters. What have you seen in most businesses which diverts them from the ability to say “No”?

A : It is a slippery slope. As your business grows you find you need to take on any and all customers or clients to help keep everyone busy and keep the growth going. In that chase to grow comes compromise about the type of work you take, how long people can take to pay you, how much debt you take on and more. So when it comes time to say “No” there are too many rationalisations that push you to say yes. Eventually, you have a business that is consumed with dealing with customers that are a pain in the ass.
How many people like to say that all or most of their customers are a pain? It is not possible that every customer is a pain or that you happen to find them all. If all of your customers are a pain, the only thing they have in common is YOU. That is what is true. From that truth, you have to figure out what you are doing that is making them a pain or what behavior you are allowing that is making them a pain. If you can come to terms with what you are doing wrong, exactly how you can change it then you can have some heart to heart chats with your customers where you are willing to say goodbye to those that will not behave in a way that honors the work you do for them. It is FAR from easy and I struggle with it all of the time. But, as I say in the book, you will define what your business is about by who and what you say no to.

Q : In the chapter titled “Fit your business on a single page” you talk about being able to know how your business is doing from reading a single page. What key things should we know every day that tell us we are still on course?

A : The short answer is that it is different for every business but every business needs to figure out a way to glance at a dashboard while it races down the road. The point of this 1 page “dashboard” is to create a document that a business owner can scan each day in 1-2 minutes so they have a grasp over how the key metrics that matter to the health of their business are doing.
In my freight business our “product” was a shipment file. It was the best way we could measure if business was growing or shrinking. My report told me how many shipment files each office opened that day, week and month. Read that every day for a week or two and you will immediately know when a number seems high or low and you can go find out why. Typically, some measure how busy or slow your business is and where it stands financially (What you owe and how much is owed to you) are good places to start.

Q : Why are the Brickyard talks relevant in business today?

A : Business has become too complex and it does not need to be. In the midst of this complexity the basics that make businesses run have been lost.
We are bombarded with information, opportunities, competition etc. . and all it does is create paralysis. Business is supposed to be fun and owning a business is one of the greatest professional freedoms I can think of.

Q : Why are so many business owners not having fun running their businesses?

A : Most business owners just try to get through the day. They are overwhelmed by their email inbox, meetings, customer complaints and the like. They are consumed with their competitors and stressed over things that are not in their control. In all of this stress and complexity we are not collecting our bills timely, we are not really listening to our customers, we are not taking time to find ways to make our companies truly great.
I think we are all longing for simpler times. And those simpler times can be found by getting back to the simple basics that have always made the great businesses great. I do not tell anyone anything new in my talks. But, I do remind them of the basics they knew when they got started and then lost under all of that stress and complexity. I give them some specific things they can do that day to start to get back to those basics.

Think about the businesses and brands you love or admire. I’ll bet they work hard to do all the little things right. I want to help create more of them and help business be as much fun to run as it is supposed to be.

How fun is your business to run?

Root for the underdog

It has been quite a week. Bafana made it to the semi finals, gave Brazil a literal run for their money and this morning brought with it the sad news about Michael Jackson.

The general perception among many entrepreneurs is that, once you go mainstream you've sold out. Most people rooot for the underdog and that was the case on Twitter last night during the Bafana game. The University of South Florida also proved it a in a study they did. In business it's difficult to get your foot through the door if no one knows you from a bar of soap. Once you have, then relationships need to be built.

Michael Jackson on the hand is proof that mainstream can be far more ruthless and anticipate perfection from you. It's not enough to kick you while you are down, but they might even wipe you off the radar.

So, while you develop your business model don't be of the misconception that it becomes easier once you've made it.

Define your game : Always

It's been a frantic few weeks. We were almost wiped out, but learned a few things from this experience which I'd like to share with you.
Your past victories don't define you

• People don't really know what you are capable of, neither do you, until you do.
• The things you have accomplished as a business or individual in the past, don't apply anymore
• The hype surrounding you is based on past victories, that is also threatens to divert your focus.
  

Comfort will wipe you out

You were willing to rewrite the game that, if anything, is what you knew when you started. It was enough. You knew a change was needed, but you somehow you lost the plot. Somewhere in your path, you started thinking "I'm the best there is". But there is someone younger, hungrier, more innovative and they are watching you.

Be prepared to redifine your own rules

The hardest thing is realizing - what you used to know is no longer true. Companies and people that are making it constantly re-write the rules.

Don't wait to get wiped out, your game was great yesterday and doesn't necessarily need fixing. You should keep doing it.

How are you redefining the laws in your industry?

NetwebTV [episode #3 Mp3] with Gareth Knight

The 3rd episode of NetwebTV on audio. He's also known as @oneafrikan and well worth a follow.

NetwebTV [episode #3]

In this episode I had a chat with Gareth Knight, the co-founder of Kindo a social network for the family, which was sold to MyHeritage.

My fascination has always been around how startups are acquired and the process behind these transactions. Gareth simplifies it. Guys in the office even referred to him as a "regular guy" with innovative ideas. That has nothing to do with fibre-intake-regular.

Watch the video below, for the interview.

Nedbankers: Ask 10 times

So this morning, I woke up 45 minutes later than usual with the intention of going to Nedbank.

First there was a long queue outside the branch, with staff doing their own thing inside. The teller said my card had been destroyed. I then realized it had been close to a year since applying for it.

I gave their contact centre a call when I got to the office, who assured me that the problem was resolved and I now only had to go the nearest branch.

The next teller typed things onto her pc then said all was good “please go make a deposit sir and you’ll be issued with a card”.

I then went to a teller by the name of Ruth who requested me to call the contact centre again. By now, my patience was extremely thin. It turns out they had to do the whole thing at the first branch within 15 minutes.

That is branding to me, it’s how they’ve branded themselves.

So much for their “ask once” slogan. I asked about 10 times and it cost half my day.

NetwebTV [episode #2] with Eve Dmochowska

I had a chat with Eve Dmochowska, for NetwebTV, more popularly known as EveD. She is a Web Strategist, author, blogger and the founder of Idea Bank. She also just recently started MyZone, which consolidates your online presence to one website.

Here are some of her views on the importance of not only web presence, but the significance of web strategy, for both companies and individuals.

There's also an audio version on NetwebTV.

29 page call to action

This past Saturday, I read a book on dominating the world by Chris Guillebeau. What got my attention, among many other concepts, was “recruiting your small army” which could be very significant in these economic times.

A brief guide to world domination is small - 29 page – book loaded with insight. It’s the kind of read I cannot remain the same after. Or even think of returning to mediocrity afterward.

You can keep up with him and his travels around the world here.

A call to action that’s well worth a read, go get it and invade the world. Or a small country.