Here’s why.  Let’s look at the skills you need to start a business.  You need to:
- Think unconventionally (to create new ways to add value and make money)
- Have great confidence in your ideas (to bet on starting a business in the first place)
- Take charge (or nothing gets done)
- Be detail-oriented (or you do things sloppily)

In contrast, what a good employee needs are the freedom and trust to find the best way to do the job - and start doing things you hadn’t thought to ask of her.  As U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt said, “The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it”.  Think about it; doesn’t it drive you crazy when someone hovers over your shoulder and nitpicks?

If you’re not careful, the traits that helped you launch your business can twist into habits that cripple your employees’ ability to contribute.  You’re so used to sticking by your ideas, managing everything yourself, and making sure everything is just how you want it that you might have trouble listening to others, trusting their work, and letting them solve problems another way.  You’ve turned into that nitpicker.

At this point, your employees learn that what you really want is just a mindless drone.  They turn off their brains.  You continue to micromanage everything until the business gets big and complex enough that you can’t really handle it all anymore, and the company stagnates.  This is the Entrepreneur’s Rut.

To get through this rut, you need to change your mindset a little.  Instead of always thinking about how you can improve your business operations, think about how to nurture people so that they can improve the business.  Sometimes, this might mean biting your tongue when someone does things differently from how you would’ve to avoid stifling her.  Adding too much value can take away from an employee’s energy and initiative.

Once you’ve mastered shutting up when appropriate, start thinking about ways to actively help your employees grow and attract more talented people.  People will be more loyal, productive, and capable when they can sense you genuinely care about them.  Make sure they have the best tools for the job, and pay for books or training courses to help them develop.

It might seem counterintuitive that to grow your business, you need to focus on your employees’ growth, but you need more than one person pushing to get through the Entrepreneur’s Rut.

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The software has currently gone through the 2nd phase of our 3-phase internal testing.  Once it passes the 3rd phase in a few weeks, we will be ready for the beta-testing period.  If everything goes smoothly during beta-testing, the new version will be released to the public.  Again, the reason why we don’t give out a definite release date is because we want to make sure the quality is top-notch before giving it to you.

And remember, this upgrade will be completely free to all customers with the Standard Edition, even if you purchased over a year ago.  

Thank you once again for all for your support and feedback!

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You see, even though I’m heavily immersed in technology, I still just prefer to read on plain ol’ paper a lot of the time.  I can carry a book or magazine with me to the kitchen, or sit snuggled in a blanket in bed reading under a lamp.  Even if it sounds silly, I just know that having that paper copy will make me more likely to read and thus learn more.

Now here’s the interesting part.  When trying to justify the cost, I asked myself, what are the odds that learning more about world trends will help me generate $1,000 in value over the next ten years?  I thought the odds were pretty good.  Maybe with some more cultural awareness I’ll be able to help one more Guatemalan entrepreneur find and buy inFlow every year.  Maybe there’s a 1% chance that some trend I picked up on will help lead to a million dollar idea.  This way, everybody wins.  More people benefit from our work, I’m supporting great journalism, and it’s a good financial investment for me.

What really makes this possible though is being in an environment where creating more value can reward me financially.  This is typical for entrepreneurs, but it’s also possible elsewhere, like jobs that are commission-based.  In a typical salaried job though, this type of logic just doesn’t work.  Maybe you can get a raise if contribute some great ideas, but don’t count on it.  All you can really do to have more money available is to pinch pennies.

So that’s why as I’ve shifted from a fixed-income mindset to this variable-income mindset, it’s encouraged me to do more to invest in my own capabilities.  This is incredibly liberating, and yet another reason why I encourage everyone with small business ambitions to go for it!

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It’s important to listen to your experienced customers and keep them happy.  Everybody knows this, and almost everybody does a good job with this.  After all, it’s easy.  You’ve already built up a relationship with them and have a basic understanding of each other.  On the other hand, you will need to appeal to new customers to grow your business.

Talking with new customers is much harder because they don’t know anything about your business.  You might both have different assumptions, like what your product does, how to use it, or how it can help them.  Even worse, once you finally understand each other, your customer is no longer a new customer.  He has permanently lost something precious:  his ignorance.

You need to seek out people with this ignorance about your business, because that’s the only way to find out how to make it easier and more attractive for other new and potential customers.  For example, inFlow is often praised for being easy to use, but we still hear from people confused about how to do things like set up inventory for the first time.  This confusion is precious, because it points out where we can make improvements.

When somebody asks you a question out of ignorance, think about how to prevent future new customers from getting confused.

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Most software tries to be either easy-to-use OR powerful. With inFlow, we’re not satisfied unless we get the best of both worlds. In another couple weeks, we’ll show you a second preview video that focuses on some of the more powerful features that’ll be added to Version 2.

We keep being asked, “this looks great, but when is it going to be released?” Well, when it’s ready. Instead of promising a date and rushing things out, we want to make sure everything is top-notch quality.

This upgrade will be free for ALL existing customers who have purchased inFlow Standard Edition, even if it was over a year ago!

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A book that teaches you how to get rich is flash. A book that teaches you the inner workings of the financial system is substance.

A handbag that has the logo of a company printed all over it is flash. A handbag that lasts for 20 years and remains aesthetically pleasing is substance.

A customer support service that uses sophisticated phone and computer systems is flash. A customer support service that solves customer’s problems with speed and courtesy is substance.


Does your business focus on flash? Or on substance?

Are you sure?

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If you set the bar too high, it’s unrealistic.

If you set the bar comfortably where people know they can do it, it becomes a mundane chore.

If you set the bar uncomfortably high where people believe they can do it with some hard work and faith, then it becomes an invigorating challenge.

This is the sweet spot to target for yourself and others.


Bonus: The more you stretch, the better you become.

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When they cut the soap in half, repackage it, and call it a “Traveller’s Pack”, they have their 2nd product.

When they cut the soap into the shape of little animals and call it a “Kid’s Fun Size”, they have their 3rd product.

When they put different types of soap together, put them into a nice basket, and call it a “Gift Basket”, they have their 4th product.

When they package a few bars of the same soap together, lower the total price a bit, and call it a “Family Value Pack”, they have their 5th product.

Same soap, but five different products serving five different needs.

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Starbucks doesn’t sell coffee.  It sells a little indulgence in your busy life.

State Farm doesn’t sell insurance.  It sells the comfort of knowing that you and your loved ones are covered.


Don’t sell stuff.  Sell aspirations.

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How is art important to your business?

If you ask this question to most business people, chances are you’ll be given a blank look.

What is art anyways?  From Wikipedia, “art is the process or product of deliberately arranging elements in a way that appeals to the senses or emotions.”  The critical piece here is targetting the senses or emotions.

In this day and age, customers have hundreds or thousands of selections to choose from.  This is especially true with the proliferation of the internet, where people are no longer bounded by local choices.  Products that were once rare and expensive are becoming cheaper and more accessible.  Old competitive advantages such as price, features, and services are being narrowed.  If you go to Walmart to buy a blender, you will find many with the similar low prices, similar sets of features, and similar after-sale services.

How else can you make your products and services stand out from wave after wave of competing offerings?

The conventional wisdom is to “make it cheaper, cram in more features, and give better service”.  But this is exactly what’s everyone else is thinking.

Another approach is to turn your product or service into something that “appeals to the senses or emotions.”  Like how the iPod transformed from an electronic gadget into a fashionable accessory.  Like how the Toyota Prius appeals to our environmental conscience.  Like how Best Buy’s Geek Squad captivates our hope to be saved from technical headaches.

Elevate your products into an art piece, and you win.  How?  I’ll leave that for you to figure out.

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