Social Physics

Why Do You Want To Be An Entrepreneur?

Posted on July 4, 2015 by Kim Patrick

Why? Why in the world would you – give up a paycheck, career, time, energy, friends for an uncertainty – a belief, a hunch, a quest that an idea, a conceptual product, just might succeed – and that you are going to be THE lucky one to execute business formation, build a team, educate a market, distribute and sell a product, secure partners, raise money all on time exactly when the market demands it – even if the market has no idea that it even needs your product? Why would you do that?

Intellectual Honesty.

Many early stage entrepreneurs never answer this most basic question. And it gets them in trouble. Being honest with yourself is the first step in entrepreneurial success. If you can’t be honest with yourself – how can you be honest with anyone else?

Intellectual honesty demands that you acknowledge that the chances of success are long (95% of all early stage businesses fail). Intellectual honesty means that you acknowledge that if you are thinking about incremental innovation, someone else, somewhere is likely to as well – you are not the only one with a claim on “the truth” and “market insight”.

Intellectually honesty requires that you answer: Are you running towards something – a higher purpose – or away from something – a dissatisfactory first career? Do you really think that entrepreneurs financially succeed – and you could be one of them – if only you had control? (Financial success happens rarely).

An honest self-examination might mean that you simply admit that you are on a mission of self – discovery, and that you really don’t know why you are compelled to be an entrepreneur. At least that is an honest answer.

My story.

When I decided to give up a first career – the practice of law in Naples, Florida – to “do” a technology start-up called Neighborhood America, my motivation was a little of both. I passionately believed that the Internet was going to be a business medium (1998), and even more passionately, that it would one day enable people to meaningfully participate in their governance. I also passionately understood and believed that when government processes work better – business is more efficient.

But I was also moving away from something – a first career in law that I had invested thousands of hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars in. Though successful, I was unfulfilled – the law often being a never ending zone of conflict, confrontation and manipulation of arbitrary man-made rules. It wasn’t for me. The fact that you are good at doing something doesn’t mean that you should be doing it.

Making that choice took me down an uncertain difficult path – a 14 year journey. But along the way, it enabled an experience with game changing social projects that made a difference in both government and business – building global communities for the World Trade Center (Imagine New York), Statue of Liberty, Flight 93, major media, and some of the largest B2B communities then on the Web. It also exposed me to some of the finest teams and people in the world. It gave me an entrepreneurial and business education that I could not have imagined.

Why you? – Why you as an entrepreneur?

Before business plans are written, products are conceptualized, and financing is secured – your first question has to be why do you want to be an entrepreneur – founder? What is driving you?

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Purpose and Passion – Why Do You Want To Be An Entrepreneur?

Posted on July 4, 2015 by Kim Patrick

Entrepreneurs are motivated by belief and emotion – intensely held and fervently expressed. But intensity alone doesn’t win. Sacrifice alone doesn’t win. It takes more. Belief has to be backed up by reason. Emotion has to be more than energy – it has to enhance focus. Getting the mix right is harder than it might seem.

Purpose and passion are close cousins. They are both grounded in belief. And they come together to build expectations – for investors, employees, your family, customers, and colleagues – all members of successful teams. And it is a tricky balance.

All who believe in you expect and understand that you must have passion. However, if passion overtakes reason, you will seem inauthentic and slide into the abyss of failed expectations. Do it often enough and you will lose the confidence of your team, investors, family and all others.

What is the purpose of your company? What do you stand for? Is it merely to make money? Or is it a belief that something in the world that you uniquely understand should be different – and better?

And how strongly is the belief held? Is it held so strongly that you are willing to ignore all contrarian evidence? Being laser focused? Or are you willing and capable of being an active listener that changes frame when the market is speaking to you.

Having a clearly understood “purpose” is different from having a “sense of purpose.” That is where passion comes in. It binds the two.

Establishing balance between purpose and passion is key. Clear purpose, authentically expressed will build confidence. Showing passion will foster belief, and will encourage others to share that belief. Taken too far – passion can be perceived as overcoming good common sense.

One way to think about it: “Excite, but don’t ignite.”

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Healthy Entrepreneurs: The Heart of “The Soft Stuff”

Posted on July 3, 2015 by Kim Patrick

If you want to get the soft stuff right, you have to start with good health.

Superior health gives entrepreneurs a meaningful advantage. And by solid health I mean enduring, self-aware commitment to achieving and keeping health in balance. It is a life-style choice in the same way that being an entrepreneur is a lifestyle choice.

Many entrepreneurs are willing to mortgage their personal health for a business goal that they passionately believe in. It’s a mistake. Superior health provides sustainable advantage.

Here is my personal experience.

In 2008-2010 I had a ton of stress in my life (as CEO responsible for leading an enterprise software company through the depths of the US economic collapse). I weighed 230 pounds to start the period. I have little idea what my blood pressure was. And I know that I was glued to a computer screen most of the time answering emails, doing Web research, and trying to act strategically. Selling product and raising money in the depths of the depression was a bear.

I was also logging over 150,000 domestic miles per year and another 150-200 hotel room nights to match. Maintaining diet on the road was almost impossible. To make matters worse when on the road doing business development or deal formation, customers and business professionals often required social commitments.

Then early in 2010, my wife and I had a baby girl (now 5 years old). And it made me start taking the state of my health more seriously. I started questioning whether I was really helping the company and myself by giving everything to the detriment of my health. What message was I sending to employees? Was I being a good example? Was my health helping me make the best decisions? How did customers and significant stakeholders perceive me? Was I an overweight, stressed executive, or was I a vital and creative team member and leader? Perception makes a difference.

Right Track, Wrong Track?

A 235 pound stressed out executive with a beautiful wife.

A 235 pound stressed out executive with a healthy, beautiful wife.

My personal conclusion was that I was not on the right track. When I think about the most successful executives who I have worked with – they get the health part right. They commit to family. They exercise routinely. And they move throughout the day. They don’t drink and over-socialize. They send strong positive health signals.[1]

In contrast, entrepreneurs are often guilty of neglect, instead showing that they are willing to commit everything to the cause. Wrong message.

Adjustment

So I decided to recommit to having not just good, but superior health. And then I threw myself into understanding just what that would take – which meant new learning and a lot of adjustment.

Achieving superior health probably means something a little different for everyone. For me it meant bringing wearable devices into my life. I got myself into the gym a couple of times a week. I run 20 kilometers a week. I get up and move during the day and don’t stay at my desk for more than an hour. I started tracking weight and body mass with a Withings wi-fi scale (and now have a 4 year history). And bottom line – I never let myself “off of the hook.” Accountability is key.

Diet was probably the hardest part. But that too had to be addressed. I adopted something pretty close to a plant-based diet. Eliminated the sugars, processed food, and most meat. And I committed to eating on a well – defined time schedule-early rather than late. The fact that my wife Amy is health focused (a Pilates instructor) helped immensely.

And I started getting sleep. I stopped obsessing over things that I could not control. And I started focusing on those things that I could. That made a difference.

And I maintain the life-style when on the road. I find and map out good health choices near wherever I stay – the nearest Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s or health store. I pack my own nutrition for the plane. I gave up coffee and substituted tea (you have no idea how hard that was but it worked). I always try to map out a run or two ahead of a trip. And I cut the socializing and get my sleep.

What happened?

At 180 pounds, more vital, and still have the beautiful wife – and a 5 year old daughter!

Between April of 2011 and today, I lost 25 pounds (55 in total from my 2008 highs). My body fat dropped from 26% to 23%. My blood pressure dropped by 30 points in both measurements to under 120 over 70. In my experience the transformation was spectacular. I am sharper. Happier. I leverage my skills better. Things fit together better. Different friends. Different business goals. My brain is healthier.

And the business results are important. People respond to me better. I am perceived more positively. And I am more in control with a higher quality of life.

As an Entrepreneur.

Knowing what I know now, I would never consider doing a start up or tackling any demanding business enterprise without being equally and 100% committed to maintaining the best possible health. You will send the right signals to everyone in your networks That includes your family, employees, partners – and yes, investors too!
Your heart is connected to your brain. You can’t get “The Soft Stuff” right, if you don’t get the health equation right. Good health is a necessary first step in being an exceptional entrepreneur!

Credit Neurological Foundation of New Zeeland

[ 1] See Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman. Chapter 3. Kahneman’s point is that mild physical arousal – something as simple as a walk- will enhance mental alertness.

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The Soft Stuff ™

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Kim Patrick

A corporate CEO once said to me – “I don’t do the soft stuff”-“I just do the hard stuff.” In other words he was most comfortable performing the financial engineering and the command and control functions. The tools of that trade are the spreadsheets, power points, personnel manuals, and lengthy company and product narratives, leading board meetings etc.

Doing “the soft stuff” just did not come as easy. It was not as important. The intangibles of communicating vision, motivating a staff, customers, and partners, showing empathy, learning and active listening – in other words sustaining all of the human, emotional energy that it takes to propel a company forward – those are the skills of “the soft stuff.”

Doing “the soft stuff” means asking for “buy-in” and being a good steward of people’s careers and customers’ business. It isn’t about command and control.

At the time I thought to myself, “” The “soft stuff is the hard stuff”. Getting “the soft stuff” right is at the heart of entrepreneurial success. You can learn or commission, or salary people who can do the hard stuff. You can’t teach people how to do “the soft stuff” – to have empathy and compassion, and to try to help everyone win. You have it or you don’t. You think that it is important or you don’t.

As Daniel Pink[1] and Daniel Ariely[2] are helping us to understand, intrinsic motivations are the heart and soul of modern behavior. As an entrepreneur – that makes the “soft stuff” the most important stuff.

In this section I am going to share a few of the behaviors that I have learned to get “the soft stuff” right.

[1] See Daniel H. Pink, Drive, The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.

[2] See Daniel Ariely, The Upside of Irrationality

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What Do You (We) Stand For?

Posted on June 27, 2015 by Kim Patrick

Is there a cause? Is there a reason for being? And what is yours? Do you stand for advancing “The Technium”[1] to help humans live better, more enriched lives?
Do you stand for building a great, enduring, successful company? Do you stand for doing something special – that makes a difference? And do you stand for “doing the right thing”.

Or do you stand for “doing a deal” – one where everyone gets “rich”. Do you stand for “winning at all costs?” Do you stand for getting your “piece of the pie”? Do you stand for just being smarter than everyone else?

Great leaders and great companies stand for something. And what you stand for is often how you will be remembered – in success or failure.

[1] See What Technology Wants, by Kevin Kelley.

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“It Takes a Network” – All of Our Networks Working Together!

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Kim Patrick

For all of us – it takes a network. Networks built on social communication make possible virtually everything that we do. The question is which one – or one(s) and for what purpose? And when we need multiple networks, working together, how do accomplish that – especially in today’s world of multiple online social networks?

The paradigm of electronically enabled social networks is relatively young – no more than 15 years old. But already, established social networks are adopting an unsustainable “moat ethos” that promises to force another evolution in how social networks work – and how consumers work with them. Here is why.

As humans we share our thoughts and experiences with different groups for different reasons. Said another way, the networks in our lives are shaped by our needs. It is well accepted that our network of close confidants is on average 4-6 people. Our support networks of family and friends are about 50 people. Communities – our “Dunbar number” are comprised of about 150 people. Opportunity networks of second-degree relationships – “friends of friends”- can consist of up to 500 people. And for discovery, weak ties and dormant networks, we can be connected up to 2,000 people.

The key is that in many of our life processes, or interests, we use combinations of all of our types of networks working together – our confidants, our support networks, our opportunity networks and those which are a source of discovery.

Take the example of a wedding. In our weddings we confide in a close few. We invite the participation of those who support us – our friends and family. We often discover in preparation for the event – sometimes in preparation through researching others’ experience. And we share the experience in our community with different levels of intimacy. There are many different roles that social interactions play across the wedding life cycle. Weddings, like many life events, bring many, if not all, of our networks into play at different points in time.

There is a direct analog in our social networks. For instance, Facebook and Instagram are often comprised of networks of close friends – our support groups (50 people). They often extend to 150 people – our community. Linked In helps us to identify opportunities – often from people who we may not know that well – our opportunity, or networks of second degree (up to 500). And Twitter is more often our source of discovery for people and information that we may not know – up to 2,000 follows.

The challenge for users is that in many processes – whether building relationships, doing personal product research, entertainment, business and/or professional development – it takes all networks working together at different times to be most effective. This is the key.

We have interests with inputs that span across many networks. But under existing social network structures we are forced to consume information – often unrelated and/or disruptive – by each individual social network. And that information doesn’t stick around for long. This isn’t how humans work.

We organize our thoughts, and experience by our interests – family and friends, sports, our favorite teams, favorite authors, music, brands, nutrition and health, or something similar. We all have different interests. And we organize our inputs in different ways. That is what makes us human! We are unique and complex at the same time.

Change is undoubtedly coming. After all – it takes a network!

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How Much Do You Really Have to Know?

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Kim Patrick

When you start your company – how much do you really have to know? Good question. Some entrepreneurs err on the side of trying to know everything. Others – don’t know nearly enough.

Think about the challenge this way: With standard physics – including the laws of relativity, knowledge of the elements and particles, laws of motion and gravity – we have put a man in the moon, satellites into space, landing vehicles on Mars, built mammoth sky-scrapers and dams, and pretty much everything else that we see today. The engineers knew just enough.

We did not know about much about nano-particles or dark matter, equally powerful and perhaps more pervasive. However, we did not need to. We knew enough to get the job done.

That is the entrepreneurial challenge. We need to know enough about our industry, invention, and idea to be successful. But we do not need to know so much that we end up in decision paralysis.

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What Is In The Way?

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Kim Patrick

Sometimes we get so focused on execution, that we don’t allocate attention to the obvious big picture questions. We get more focused on the drama than the solution. When you are thinking about how to move forward ask the most basic question: What is in the way? If you could change one thing that would make you go faster, better, what would it be? Then deal with it. Make it happen. Or you become the answer to your own question. You may be What is in the Way!

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“Gotta Ask”

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Kim Patrick

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to stop and reflect.” Mark Twain.

In my experience, these are some of the most important questions entrepreneurs should ask themselves to “stay on the rails”. Repeatedly. And best case – you, and your team, can answer them honestly. (edit)

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If We Failed – Why?

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Kim Patrick

This question was shared with me by the former head of a multi-national engineering firm. The way that he framed it was this. “Say that we are sitting right here, at this conference table, one year from now – and we have failed. Why did we fail?

The power in this question is that: (1) it evokes fear without the immediate consequence which sharpens focus; (2) it triggers visualization of an outcome that is presumably avoidable; and (3) it validates doubt that counters group-think.[1] When you answer this question honestly – it helps you to be objective in your assessments and to prioritize risk.

[1] See Daniel Kahneman, who refers to this practice as a “pre-mortem” in his well known work Thinking Fast and Slow.

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Why Do You Want To Be An Entrepreneur?

Intellectual Honesty.

My story.

Why you? – Why you as an entrepreneur?

Purpose and Passion – Why Do You Want To Be An Entrepreneur?