When you drive at night on any Indian highway, you’ll see that there are no lights. All you can see is ten feet ahead. But that is enough for you to cover a journey of even a thousand kilometres. In the same way, for your business today, can you see ten days ahead and plan accordingly. So, make that ten-day plan. That will roll into the next ten and so on. One step at a time. (Location 176)
When a problem arises and you are not prepared, you will be surprised how beautifully you tackle it. There is no fear or trembling, because there is no ready-made answer. You are not disturbed. You simply see the problem from all sides and do whatever it takes to solve it. So, go as the king’s cat, and you will catch many rats! CLIMB OUT OF THE IRRATIONAL HELL. (Location 339)
You’ve got to be one of the few who take action, who move, who explore. And survive. (Location 387)
Build a tribe of freelancers for just-in-time use. Pay per project, and as per need only. (Location 471)
repeat, money saved is money earned. (Location 477)
I would rather work at a lower price than do zero work. One big loss is that of revenue. The other bigger loss is that rust settles in. When you don’t exercise, muscle gets replaced by fat. When you don’t work on your core, rust settles in. You may become slower or in the worst case, forget how to do things effectively. So, keep taking on work, keep bettering your skills and your craft. Survive today, to succeed tomorrow. (Location 493)
Use your current clients to get introductions to new prospects. (Location 503)
Surround yourself with your real friends. When you announce that you are writing your first book, check the reaction of those around you. When someone makes fun or ridicules you and discourages you, drop them from your circle. Note those who are positive and encouraging, and who will be ready to break your fall, when required. This small group becomes the people you surround yourself with. (Location 522)
IF IT IS WORKING NOW, ASSUME IT ISN’T. Planning for scenario L, if it isn’t broken, break it anyway. Write down the doomsday scenario. For example: What will you do if your revenue drops to zero? What will you do with the additional staff sitting idle in your company? What if your anchor client and their business are being severely impacted by a crisis? This note is to goad you to assume the worst, write it down as scenarios and plan for it. Yes, the plan may not work just the way you write it down. But you will know how to react and what to do. This has been thought through, by you and your team. It is clear what needs to be done. (Location 542)
IDENTIFY What is it that you do? For whom? What is the need that you are satisfying? How is the client satisfying that need now? What is your requirement? What is your monthly financial need to break even? Which is the customer segment that is most loyal to you? Which is most profitable? Write it all down, include all data that is available. ASSESS Entrepreneurs who do not understand their customers are “Asses”! The purpose of this section though, is to find out where you are, and what the current need is. Look at the data: Is there a need for your solutions now? If yes, how much? If no, then what are your strengths? What can you use to repurpose for a new client segment? PRICE: How much are they willing to pay? How much are you willing to drop? It is better to drop your rates and keep the clients, than letting another competitor in. When the market is better, the clients will remember your assistance. QUANTIFY: What is the core need of your clients? What is the potential of embraced usage (not just one time)? What is the overall market viability? RESEARCH & IDEATE Form an ideation team and do a virtual meeting. The ideation team has to go beyond friends and family. Get an external moderator to assist unbiased idea sessions and outcomes. State your objective clearly: How can I earn this much per month? This is what I have with me (strength, resources). What can I do? Do I repurpose my solution or design a new one? What are the new client segments I can serve? Why should my solution be of use to them? What can I do to make them aware of my existence? How are they currently using different solutions? How can I generate revenue? New clients, new geographies, new solutions… Make a long list of ideas. Prioritize on the basis of practicality and capability to generate immediate revenues. EXPLORE MICRO-PRODUCTS Whatever your new service or product idea is, can you offer/implement it in smaller circles? Ideation to proof-of-concept to prototype to testing with live clients. Call it agile or quick loops, micro-products are the way to go. It helps you connect with ideal clients/users and co-create your solution. Let’s assume: You have been going behind clients who were paying $100,000 per deal. In a crisis, the appetite is not there anymore. Can your service be broken down to chunks that can be priced at $10,000? In such a case, you need to bring in ten clients. Or You can design a new solution that is priced at a bite-sized level, that fits the need and the paying appetite of your prospects. (Location 605)
You pivot when: a. the traditional revenue stream has dried up. b. competition is heating up, making your solution a commodity. c. when the economy isn’t supporting you. Tick all three for the current climate. (Location 644)
As defined by a book called “The Lean Startup”, a pivot is “A structured course-correction designed to test a new fundamental hypothesis about the product, strategy, and engine of growth.” (Location 654)
If it isn’t working, check what can be tweaked. You have tested it in a small market. Is the idea wrong? Timing wrong? Or the selected client segment wrong? Give the idea some more time before you write it off. If it works, then… (Location 666)
SCALE If it works, check how it can be scaled. One client or one micro- segment at a time. (Location 669)
It’s ok to be wrong. It is not ok to be silent and not do anything. The market needs solutions. You need to be out there providing it (for your client segment). Again, plan for being wrong and write down how you will handle it. Tweak, run the next circle, measure, scale. F A S T. (Location 672)
10 FANS When looking for new clients, look for 10 clients (or less). Go deeper in understanding their needs and building a strong relationship with them. Go micro here. Leave mass marketing for now, however glamourous it may sound. 10 fans. Grow them a little bit more. Deliver awesome service. Make them fall in love with you. Can they be your super fans and extended marketing arms? (Location 867)
A concept from New Zealand, similar to that of jugaad in India. This was brought to my attention by professional speaker and global traveller Kiruba Shankar. An 8mm wire that seems to provide all possible solutions to work and life in general, in New Zealand. Lots has been written about the number 8 solution! From Wikipedia: Number 8 wire was the preferred wire gauge for sheep fencing; so remote farms often had rolls of it on hand, and the wire would often be used inventively to solve mechanical or structural problems. What do I take from the number 8? It’s a mentality. That of an entrepreneurial mind which is honed to find ingenuous solutions to business problems (and every other practical problem, as well). A mentality that identifies the crux of a problem and finds the best possible solution, given all the constraints at hand. What is the relevance to marketing, more so to survival? In the grand scheme of things, the CEO dream and vision, the ambition to rule the world, we forget the small steps that lead to the tall peak. We over-complicate the mission’s objectives and try to bite on a lot more than what we can chew. The solution is already within, or around us! Applying the 8mm rule: Find a need. Solve the problem. Locally. With ingenuity. DO IT NOW! Then build on top of it. And build some more. And sell. And scale. You want a million customers - start with one, ten… there is no quick fix. (Location 883)
By planning for different possible crises, and mentally and physically training for them, we ready ourselves. When we reach a fork in the road, when a decision point comes, when we need to decide whether to go left or right: we know what to do. And we do it! (Location 947)
