Tag: entrepreneur

Need and Demand

It took me some time (probably more than I care to admit) to realize that to move things you must have need and demand, in-order to create a successful venture that changes the world. I would add scarcity too.

I know n America there is no shortage of life coaches, leadership gurus, management consultants, and the like. The question remains; has the needle moved? Is there evidence of strong ROI? The measurements and data tell a story. This article is one vivid example.

We'd be wiser to put our money somewhere else or change the machine. I write all of this knowing I am a part of the many. The many who have a sign on the door saying "open for business." My reform has begun.

The problem is we've come to this very dangerous place where many individuals and organizations say they need help/direction, but don't have the will to have the demand that produces change. Our government's treatment of our debt crisis is an appropriate portrait. Most politicians would say we have a debt problem, but haven't moved to a place of demand to fix it. Sadly, I fear we've come to the point of no return. I hope I'm wrong.

The reality is the same for those in business to help people move to breakthrough. An entrepreneur may have a thriving practice with many clients, but if the clients are circling the airport, it doesn't mean you have value. It just means your getting paid and they're circling the airport. And getting paid is sometimes the problem. Money often likes things to say just as they are. I tell every client that if we don't see change, they need to fire me.

Sticking yourself inside of the arena of change is dangerous, and most do not like danger. That's one reason the status quo is so appealing. Are you willing to ask yourself if the needle is moving, if change is occurring? Not change where you just move the furniture around, but where you go deep and examine everything to the foundation.

And you thought the big part was building a career.

The Life and Work Awaiting

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I've always been a persevering type of human being. That has served me well in the dark times and in the times where a vision was in sight. Today, I have found myself in that place where a new life and work are awaiting me.

Anna Farmery once said to not keep your struggles a secret from your audience. I admired her for stating that, while not sure if it fit me. But of course, those who've followed my blog know about my father, my former life in corporate America and my spiritual side. In some ways I gave you a glimpse. I just never gave you a view of my business model struggles, except the somewhat vague challenges I faced as an entrepreneur.

Now is the time for you to get a deeper view into my current state.

2011 was a year that I needed to see great business/revenue success. After being on my own for 5 years, it was clear financially that a rising tide was needed. Bluntly, I had no more money and enough clients to sustain Epic Living beyond another year.

Last year did not unfold the way I'd hoped.  

As 2011 came to an end, I made plans with my wife to look at other roads to change the state of things. I am in the midst of that now. What will it look like? I don't know for sure, but whatever it is it will have to do 2 things. One, be sustainable from an income/revenue perspective. Two, be something that requires me to show up. That's my prayer anyway.

To you the reader, I want to be clear on a front not easy to write about. I've always been the type, for better or worse, of entrepreneur that believed great work was the best cure for financial needs. Indeed, that is true, and it took me a long time to learn that marketing and sales can be a help if not left to run amok on their own. If you expected me to be more aggressive in selling Epic Living or being more vocal in letting you know that things were rough, I'm sorry.

The life and work awaiting me is a bloom formed out of my experiences from the last 6 years. But that does not mean an ending. It will just look different than today, so I do intend to continue to write in this blog and offer my expertise where appropriate. The other Epic Living services will go quiet in the coming weeks.

As always, you can contact me directly if you want to know more this transition or to pass on some wise input. Thanks for joining me on the Epic Living journey.

The Idea and Reality of Self-Employment

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I never became self-employed because of some ache to be my own boss or the next producer of a killer app.  Far from it, I had a mission and corporate America had no interest or desire to fund it.

Most people I know who are great at entrepreneur pursuits have a mission.  I mean they have this burning in them that won't go away.  Even after trying to kill it, they continue onto the unknown, scary and sometimes insane world that is the mission.

So in the end self-employment is merely a vehicle.

This past week two big things came down the pike for me.  First, Steve Jobs stepped down as CEO of Apple and Andy Frank thanked me for some unintentional advice.  Andy's thank you was the bigger of the two.  Andy is working on his "thing" and was lamenting the process of incorporating.  I told him that only a mission could make it worth the price paid.  It was like holding up a mirror to my own face.  A gut check with gusto.

I am on a mission.

For clarity, let me explain my thoughts on the difference between the idea and the reality of self-employment:

  1. Everyone's self-employed.  The gal working at the bank, the guy serving the latte and the partners waiting for their first round of funding.  If you haven't noticed we live in a self-directed world. It's scary ironic that more don't get this.
  2. What you do for money can and will vary.  The world of going to one place and doing one job are gone.  It's our freaking obsession with comfort that has us unwilling to give up that life.  Our work and life will morph and contract in different ways.  This is especially true in an ever-changing global economy.
  3. Infatuation with output is killing us.  We see the car, the press release on the millions in funding and we want it!  Funny how we choose to ignore the near-collapse experiences of most entrepreneurs.  Quite frankly, I don't think I could trust someone who hasn't lost big.  Losing big is, or should be, a refining fire.
  4. Self-employment should produce humility.  That's all that needs to be said.
  5. Our (America) economic woes would be lessened, if not cured, by putting more emphasis on helping entrepreneurs versus the bloated manipulators.  Ever notice how many of the big boys manipulate things like lay-offs, write-offs and revenue to produce a shiny result for a group of people they hate.  That's not growth, that's Vegas.