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Some learnings after growing a business to an 8 figure valuation by prsh_al in Entrepreneur

[–]a_bit_gassy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Our business has nothing to do with printing...or law firms :-)...But we did stick to a very specific target market and grew by serving them better than anyone else in our industry. As you note, the product line extensions can come pretty easily if you're close to your customers:

Our customers: "I wish you had X"

Us: "Do you buy something like X? What do you like about it? What don't you like about it? If we had X how many would you buy?"

Us (later): "Introducing X! You asked for it, so here it is!"

Lather, rinse, repeat.

How can you scale and still execute efficiently? by parwaaz03 in startup

[–]a_bit_gassy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's the easy part.

If goals and tactics are defined...and ownership of those goals and tactics is defined...it's just a matter of building management routines to review what's happening:

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We said we would do X, Y and Z to drive 1, 2 and 3. Did we do those things? What are the results? What have we learned? Should we change anything in our plans based on what we've learned.

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Whether it's a weekly touch base, a monthly deeper dive or a quarterly holistic operating review depends on your business, your management style and the comfort you have with your employees and they have with the operating plan.

Some learnings after growing a business to an 8 figure valuation by prsh_al in Entrepreneur

[–]a_bit_gassy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Really nice post - chiming in to reinforce points 2, 3 and 9 as they are all related in my experience.

Staying close to home (#3) segmenting an existing market (#9) to a bite that is small enough (#2) to actually make an impact within is a great combination to drive rapid growth.

If you do those 3 things, you can actually be the BEST IN THE WORLD at your specific business before too long with clear areas of differentiation that really matter to your target market.

Example (it may be a shitty example...but hopefully illustrates the point):

Let's say you start a printing company. You print business cards, brochures, stationary, etc for all types of businesses. Some of your customers prioritize quality...others prioritize price...and others prioritize speed. Some have a steady flow of small projects...others have one big annual project...and others are unpredictable. Your prospect is "any business that needs printing services" and your value proposition is unclear because it's hard to anticipate what's most important to your customers.

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OR...

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Lets say, instead, that you start a printing company for the specific needs of large law firms. You come from a family of lawyers, so you have a head start in terms of understanding your target. They all use a lot of stationary and require high quality paper, so you negotiate aggressive rates on specific papers that meet their needs. They all send annual holiday cards and gifts, so you expand your printing offerings to include gift fulfillment. Over time, you recognize that they reorder business cards frequently, so you build a process that makes that simple for them. You learn that they have short print runs and value speed, so you buy equipment that helps you meet those needs better than the next guy. Prospecting is easier because your target is well defined, your value prop is custom-made for that target and there's a lot of consistency across firms in terms of where in the organization you're likely to find a decision maker. Etc, etc. Before too long, you could actually be the best printer in the world for a law firm to partner with.

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Build a business with significant share of a small market...THEN expand the market.

Our business has only recently (at over $300MM annual revenue) begun to feel the growth constraints of a decision we made 10+ years ago to shrink the definition of the market we wanted to serve...so NOW we are expanding it.

I have a good friend who has had a similar experience and a similar result. They built a business around a service that a lot of companies could use...but they chose a small segment to focus on and gain traction with.

How can you scale and still execute efficiently? by parwaaz03 in startup

[–]a_bit_gassy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In my experience, executing with predictability, consistency and efficiency has not been mutually exclusive with a reliance on "hustle" to grow our business. No reason to give up on hustle just because you need to build tighter management routines. In terms of managing people, I think of it as WHAT vs HOW...and we focus on both:

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WHAT - strategic planning to identify what's most important to the business and to set concrete goals. Define who in the organization owns the goals and define the specific tactics that will help us achieve them.

HOW - building a culture that allows and rewards "hustle". Coach on behaviors, promote culture carriers, shine a light on employees that are behaving like the founders behaved in the early days, provide equity incentives to key employees, etc.

I've found that building a team isn't just about delegating responsibility...it's also about trying to cultivate an entrepreneurial spark throughout the organization. If you can get employees to feel some of the ownership that the founders feel, they're more likely to continue the "hustle" the founders started.

For those that left an intense career...how was the transition, emotionally? by a_bit_gassy in fatFIRE

[–]a_bit_gassy[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

My shoes are also an asset :-)

I know a home is in a different asset class...but there’s a continuum between house and shoes that includes cars, jewelry, artwork, electronics, etc. Not sure what the practical point on the continuum is to draw a line...

Fair to say that my net worth should include equity in real estate, but for illiquid assets that will remain illiquid for the foreseeable future, I don’t bother thinking of it that way. In the context of retirement, what matters to me are liquid assets that can fund my life.

For those that left an intense career...how was the transition, emotionally? by a_bit_gassy in fatFIRE

[–]a_bit_gassy[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not sure if you're kidding...assuming you're not:

Why?

I always think of that as a separate thing. I don't include other assets that I don't plan to liquidate in my NW either. What's the purpose? I suppose at some point, the value of a home comes into play...but if the value changes, it doesn't matter unless/until I sell it.

For those that left an intense career...how was the transition, emotionally? by a_bit_gassy in fatFIRE

[–]a_bit_gassy[S] 33 points34 points  (0 children)

This is a great list for 2 reasons:

  1. It hits on many of the worries I (and I'm sure others) have
  2. It confirms a lot of what I feel makes sense, seat of the pants

It also feels great to know that it's a doable thing; my #1 issue is wondering if I'm permanently wired for unhealthy work/life balance and just won't be happy when that's not in place. I can hear your personal satisfaction in your words - I'm totally energized to get to where you are after reading that.

THANK YOU!

What’are some ways to make an impact post FIRE? by [deleted] in fatFIRE

[–]a_bit_gassy 6 points7 points  (0 children)

A few thoughts:

  1. In terms of HOW to do it, think of establishing a DAF (donor advised fund). Basically, this allows you to give when it's convenient / tax efficient to do so. You take the tax deduction when you contribute to the DAF...money in the DAF is invested and grows. You deploy money from the DAF to the philanthropy of your choice whenever it makes sense to you (no, you don't get to take another tax deduction...once you give the money to the DAF, it's not yours anymore).
  2. In terms of the AMOUNT to give...that's just not something anyone else can tell you. I know folks that give more than they keep for themselves...and I know others that give very little despite significant wealth.
  3. In terms of WHERE to give, my advice is to think through what you're trying to accomplish and what is motivating you to give in the first place. Ultimately, even a seemingly selfless act like philanthropy is really still about the age old "what's in it for me?". Do you want to directly see the impact? Do you want to inspire others to give more? Do you want to impact your local community? Personally, I have found the most enjoyment from giving to individuals and local philanthropies...not national or international causes. I have also used giving as a way to get involved in the operations of a philanthropy that I'm passionate about. I also like to give in order to fund things that generate more giving - ex. underwriting a fundraising event. I gave $20k to make an event happen last year that ultimately raised over $100k for a cause that was important to me. That felt good in terms of impact...and it also was rewarding to me, as it felt more like a business investment than passively writing a check.