The Entrepreneur Forum | Financial Freedom | Starting a Business | Motivation | Money | Success

Welcome to the only entrepreneur forum dedicated to building life-changing wealth.

Build a Fastlane business. Earn real financial freedom. Join free.

Join over 80,000 entrepreneurs who have rejected the paradigm of mediocrity and said "NO!" to underpaid jobs, ascetic frugality, and suffocating savings rituals— learn how to build a Fastlane business that pays both freedom and lifestyle affluence.

Free registration at the forum removes this block.

Has anyone studied high performing entrepreneurs like they study high performing athletes?

Anything related to matters of the mind

ycee

Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
137%
Sep 22, 2019
38
52
How’s someone (like say Alex Hormozi) able to make $100M before 35 vs. other founders in similar markets only net a few mil every year. Both great outcomes, but one is levels above the other.

IK this is like asking what sets Kobe/Jordan apart from others but for the business world.

Obviously everyone at that level is working hard and doing the necessary base-level activities.

Is it simply opportunity vehicle? obsession? unreasonable sacrifice most aren't willing to do?
Anyone else think about this?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

BizyDad

Keep going. Keep growing.
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
416%
Oct 7, 2019
2,885
11,990
Phoenix AZ
How’s someone (like say Alex Hormozi) able to make $100M before 35 vs. other founders in similar markets only net a few mil every year. Both great outcomes, but one is levels above the other.

IK this is like asking what sets Kobe/Jordan apart from others but for the business world.

Obviously everyone at that level is working hard and doing the necessary base-level activities.

Is it simply opportunity vehicle? obsession? unreasonable sacrifice most aren't willing to do?
Anyone else think about this?
Developing the ability to lead larger teams.

Or, more precisely, the ability to lead leaders who are leading larger teams.

There is only so far can you go if you fill your team with "yes men" and you are the one basically making every decision.
 

fastlane_dad

8 Figure Fastlane Graduate
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
636%
Jun 20, 2017
413
2,626
41
Scottsdale, AZ
How’s someone (like say Alex Hormozi) able to make $100M before 35 vs. other founders in similar markets only net a few mil every year. Both great outcomes, but one is levels above the other.

IK this is like asking what sets Kobe/Jordan apart from others but for the business world.

Obviously everyone at that level is working hard and doing the necessary base-level activities.

Is it simply opportunity vehicle? obsession? unreasonable sacrifice most aren't willing to do?
Anyone else think about this?
Many times that part comes down to a multitude of combination of factors - sometimes unknowing to you on the outcome. It's not a linear science. You can have perfect execution, be in the right vehicle, adhere to CENTS, etc - and ultimately end up 10X more or 10X less - then somebody doing the exact same work, but with a slightly different product / industry or different set of circumstances.

That's the risk and reward of entrepreneurship you are discussing - where the downside is fairly limited, but the upside can be as high as the sky.

@NeoDialectic and I discussed this topic in detail, and ultimately concluded that - yes up to a certain point effort / reward can be fairly linear. BUT outside of some minimal baseline - how it scales and the success that develops out of it can many times be attributed to some version of (I hate to say it) 'luck' or certain lucky breaks (that effort and execution definitely produces).
 

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland
Anyone else think about this?
No. I don't think about it at all.

Stuff I think about: What's the next steps for my business? Who am I helping? How can I help them better? How can I help more people? How can I get paid doing so? Should I get a video editor? How can I get faster creating content? What lead magnet can I create? What can I NOT do? What strengths am I not leveraging? What am I doing that I shouldn't be doing? What am I not doing that I should be doing? Should I even be selling courses, or just focus on client work? What habits can I do daily that I'll still be doing in a decade? What will I wish I'd started today when I look back on today in a year's time?

Man... so much crap in my head to figure out and/or jettison so I can be more agile and move faster.

I think I'm overthinking at the moment, and it bothers me. I'd like more clarity, not less. I think my head is flappy from consuming on social media lately to try and get my head round it.

Studying other entrepreneurs seems like it would reduce rather than improve clarity, for me at least.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
How’s someone (like say Alex Hormozi) able to make $100M before 35 vs. other founders in similar markets only net a few mil every year. Both great outcomes, but one is levels above the other.

IK this is like asking what sets Kobe/Jordan apart from others but for the business world.

Obviously everyone at that level is working hard and doing the necessary base-level activities.

Is it simply opportunity vehicle? obsession? unreasonable sacrifice most aren't willing to do?
Anyone else think about this?
I listened to two episodes of @Kak radio show today that made me have an epiphany about this. He talks about how the productivity and results of a TEAM is more important than the productivity for one person. He mentions how since Jeff Bezos has 750,000 employees, there's 30,000,000 hours works under Jeff's name per week, and that's how these people get so rich while simultaneously not having much to do.

The name of the episodes were

Episode 47 - The 1,000 Hour Work Week
Episode 278 - The UNDENIABLE Secret to Immense Productivity

Found this super interesting!
 

Kak

Legendary Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
493%
Jan 23, 2011
9,679
47,670
34
Texas
@mikecarlooch

Thanks for posting up. Yes, Jeff Bezos might just be the most productive man alive… Even if he does nothing that day. Your true productivity isn’t what you do, it’s what you make happen.
 
G

Guest-5ty5s4

Guest
How’s someone (like say Alex Hormozi) able to make $100M before 35 vs. other founders in similar markets only net a few mil every year. Both great outcomes, but one is levels above the other.

IK this is like asking what sets Kobe/Jordan apart from others but for the business world.

Obviously everyone at that level is working hard and doing the necessary base-level activities.

Is it simply opportunity vehicle? obsession? unreasonable sacrifice most aren't willing to do?
Anyone else think about this?
Have you listened to the interviews with the Hormozis about their businesses?

One word: leverage.

The amount of leverage they have used versus other business owners is dramatically different...

Here are some levels of leverage to give you an idea, from no leverage, to some leverage, to a lot of leverage, to insane leverage:
- employee
- freelancer / personal trainer
- fitness blog / website owner
- standalone gym
- multi-unit gym chain
- media brand
- Private Equity firm or conglomerate (invests in and owns other businesses, CEOS working for you)

Obviously Alex Hormozi didn't wake up one day and start building a Private Equity firm. It took him a lot of steps to get there. I know I'm oversimplifying, but this is a rough outline of the type of leverage that separates $100,000 to $1 million to $1 BILLION businesses...

Edit: also I might have the order wrong. Website probably has more leverage than a single brick and mortar location. But lots of B&M locations make more $ than websites just because they require actual commitment
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.
Last edited by a moderator:

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland
Your true productivity isn’t what you do, it’s what you make happen.
^^^

You reminded me of something Blaise Brosnan said once (and I paraphrase):

"Our job is to ask better questions, get them answered, then arrange for it to be done."

He didn't say "then do it".
 

MTF

Never give up
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
455%
May 1, 2011
7,560
34,431
I listened to two episodes of @Kak radio show today that made me have an epiphany about this. He talks about how the productivity and results of a TEAM is more important than the productivity for one person. He mentions how since Jeff Bezos has 750,000 employees, there's 30,000,000 hours works under Jeff's name per week, and that's how these people get so rich while simultaneously not having much to do.

Damn that's such a brilliant way to put this. I'll give these podcasts a listen.

@mikecarlooch

Thanks for posting up. Yes, Jeff Bezos might just be the most productive man alive… Even if he does nothing that day. Your true productivity isn’t what you do, it’s what you make happen.

You and I have different views on business but that last sentence is awesome. You know that I heavily lean toward the solopreneur/one-man end of the spectrum but that quote made me think.

Even if I can do the greatest job in the world, there comes a point where having, say, 10 people do a slightly worse job still provides more value. I actually had an interesting conversation with someone recently about it that made me think as well.
 

Antifragile

Progress not perfection
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
454%
Mar 15, 2018
3,709
16,822
Damn that's such a brilliant way to put this. I'll give these podcasts a listen.

The man has more great episodes that are worth a listen, a few hundred in fact ;)
 

MTF

Never give up
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
455%
May 1, 2011
7,560
34,431

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland
My brain hurts watching this style of video. It's so extremely distracting I watched it for a couple of minutes and got almost nothing out of it. I don't know what's up with these videos but I can't stomach this new Gen Z style of teaching.

Meanwhile, I read that one sentence by @Kak and my mind is seeing the world in a different perspective.
I think they're just a flavour of the month style. I can't watch them either. I wouldn't be surpised if they go out of fashion soon enough.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

BizyDad

Keep going. Keep growing.
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
416%
Oct 7, 2019
2,885
11,990
Phoenix AZ
What am I doing that I shouldn't be doing?
^^^

You reminded me of something Blaise Brosnan said once (and I paraphrase):

"Our job is to ask better questions, get them answered, then arrange for it to be done."

He didn't say "then do it".

So did you answer your own question here?
 

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
So did you answer your own question here?
After listening to Kyles episodes I still have one question for you and others. do you think that for example before going and delegating, putting together a team, that you need to do all of the things yourself? Like should you go through 1000 sales calls yourself before hiring a sales guy, make the product yourself before hiring people to create it, do a ton of marketing before bringing on a marketing guy, or is it better to just be a leader to all of these people right off the bat?
 

Antifragile

Progress not perfection
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
454%
Mar 15, 2018
3,709
16,822
After listening to Kyles episodes I still have one question for you and others. do you think that for example before going and delegating, putting together a team, that you need to do all of the things yourself? Like should you go through 1000 sales calls yourself before hiring a sales guy, make the product yourself before hiring people to create it, do a ton of marketing before bringing on a marketing guy, or is it better to just be a leader to all of these people right off the bat?
Mike,
What do you think? Share your thoughts here first. Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.
 

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
Mike,
What do you think? Share your thoughts here first. Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.
The reason I don’t really voice my opinions here much yet is because if I’m being honest I’m at the beginning stages where I’m just trying to navigate through a sea of confusion, sometimes feeling paralyzed by not knowing what to do, and I try to learn from those who’ve already done it.

I just don’t think I can speak on something I haven’t done myself yet at a larger scale. I may be going about that wrong, but that’s the reason I ask a lot more questions than give opinions
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Antifragile

Progress not perfection
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
454%
Mar 15, 2018
3,709
16,822
The reason I don’t really voice my opinions here much yet is because if I’m being honest I’m at the beginning stages where I’m just trying to navigate through a sea of confusion, sometimes feeling paralyzed by not knowing what to do, and I try to learn from those who’ve already done it.

I just don’t think I can speak on something I haven’t done myself yet at a larger scale. I may be going about that wrong, but that’s the reason I ask a lot more questions than give opinions
I appreciate that, that’s a wise decision. I’m not asking you to tell people what to do, only share what you think within your own posts / questions.

I do this with my team all the time. Ask me questions but when you do, come prepared with:
1. Here is what I think
2. Here is why I think this way
3. My question is…

It’s a great way to learn. It forces you to form an opinion first. Even if wrong, it’s better than a bare question.
 

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
I appreciate that, that’s a wise decision. I’m not asking you to tell people what to do, only share what you think within your own posts / questions.

I do this with my team all the time. Ask me questions but when you do, come prepared with:
1. Here is what I think
2. Here is why I think this way
3. My question is…

It’s a great way to learn. It forces you to form an opinion first. Even if wrong, it’s better than a bare question.
This actually helps a lot, I see exactly what you mean.

Voice an opinion and let others deconstruct it and tell you what’s right about it and what’s wrong.

Thanks!

To answer the above question of what I think, I think maybe it’s a good idea to have some skill doing all the things, but then when you figure out what comes most naturally to you, and what frustrates you to even think about, those are the things that should be hired out quick
 

xShepherdx

Silver Contributor
FASTLANE INSIDER
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
356%
Apr 11, 2022
206
733
Idaho
Your true productivity isn’t what you do, it’s what you make happen.
Damn. I've been thinking a lot about productivity, working harder, etc. and this hit me like a ton of bricks.

What a great quote, thanks for sharing! :smile:
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland

BizyDad

Keep going. Keep growing.
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
416%
Oct 7, 2019
2,885
11,990
Phoenix AZ
After listening to Kyles episodes I still have one question for you and others. do you think that for example before going and delegating, putting together a team, that you need to do all of the things yourself? Like should you go through 1000 sales calls yourself before hiring a sales guy, make the product yourself before hiring people to create it, do a ton of marketing before bringing on a marketing guy, or is it better to just be a leader to all of these people right off the bat?
Mike,
What do you think? Share your thoughts here first. Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.

There is no "right" answer. For example, Andy keeps his biz smaller by design. He outsources very little (relatively speaking) and as far as I know has no employees (but his boys are getting older, am I right?)

Kyle is the other end of the spectrum. His big hit came from partnering and managing the managers. Not to put words in his mouth, but I think he'll always espouse thinking bigger and jump before you feel you are ready.

Me? I'm a control freak. I don't like Ready Fire Aim tactics. I used to run my agency like Andy, but I found myself wanting more. I'll credit Kyle for convincing me to think a little bigger after his talk at the last conference. In contrast, I highly doubt I'll take the big swings like was Kyle has taken. I know my personality and I believe I'd stress too much, not be able to sleep, and generally be a monster to be around.

Now I am finding joy in building small teams and launching/acquiring small companies. I've got my agency, an ecom store, a couple websites for revenue, and am in discussions with potential partners on a 3rd venture. I definitely started my journey by reading "too much" (no such thing imo), asking "too many questions", and trying to learn everything on my own first. My process works for me, and usually that is what I tell others, especially as it relates to marketing tasks. If you learn some of it yourself, it is less likely you will be taken advantage of, and more likely that you'll be an effective manager with proper expectations of the team. Everything I learned while I was "taking to long to get started" comes into play now when I pull this deals together.

3 examples. None are wrong. But to echo Antifagile, what do YOU think? You have to chart your own course through the wilderness of business. Sure, others have trodden paths, and you can learn from that, but they are not you. It really is your opinion, nay, your decisions, that will matter most.

And you're doing fine so far. Keep learning what you think you should learn and don't be afraid to make mistakes. Mistakes happen. Learn from them too. Hth.
 

Antifragile

Progress not perfection
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
454%
Mar 15, 2018
3,709
16,822
To answer the above question of what I think, I think maybe it’s a good idea to have some skill doing all the things, but then when you figure out what comes most naturally to you, and what frustrates you to even think about, those are the things that should be hired out quick

The first step on the road to success is knowing what you want. Otherwise, how would you know when you get there?

Say you want a 9-figure exit, that means at least a $100M valuation for your company. To do that you need to scale and plug-in support where you need it most.

But you also need to have a good handle on all aspects of the business, so you're not being taken advantage of by "articulate optimists". These are the people who can make you feel safe in hiring them, but then they screw up. You need to be familiar enough with all areas of the business that you can see through their false promises.

For example, you might hire a bookkeeper to do the entries, but you should still be managing your cash flow.

On the other side, if you are only interested in making enough for a comfortable living, being a solo entrepreneur will mean you must do everything yourself (by definition, except tax/accounting stuff which I assume most will hire others to complete). And then there is everything in between, a small team where you are involved in 90% of your business.

I am more like @Kak, I believe every business must function without me, so I chose to partner with and hire people immediately.

The bottom line is this: to build a successful business, you need to know what you want, and you need to be able to spot the people who will help you get there. With those two things in place, you're well on your way to success.

What does success look like to you, Mike?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland
Andy keeps his biz smaller by design. He outsources very little (relatively speaking) and as far as I know has no employees (but his boys are getting older, am I right?)
I'll flesh this out a bit...

I've had one full-time software developer for over 7 years, doing the stuff I'm not great at and don't want to do (building landing pages and mini-sites, and setting up conversion tracking).

One of our sons now does the weekly client reports every Monday.

I build and manage the Google Ads campaigns for clients, manage the client relationships, jump on client calls, hop on podcasts, and post to social media.

I'm the one who bounces around in forums and Facebook groups making friends, building relationships, and creating win-wins.

Because I'm a practitioner I can show prospects on calls where they're bleeding money, and I can create courses about how to do Google Ads and build a business around a skill.

I'm not ruling out hiring more people in future. I just think there's many ways to skin a cat.

As @Antifragile already mentioned, figure out what your goals are and what type of business you'd like to grow. You don't need to know before you start btw. You can figure it out as you go along.


Back to the original question. I'm sure folks have studied successful entrepreneurs, but I don't plan on reading those studies. I may get round to reading autobiographies one day, but it's not a priority for me right now.
 

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
There is no "right" answer. For example, Andy keeps his biz smaller by design. He outsources very little (relatively speaking) and as far as I know has no employees (but his boys are getting older, am I right?)

Kyle is the other end of the spectrum. His big hit came from partnering and managing the managers. Not to put words in his mouth, but I think he'll always espouse thinking bigger and jump before you feel you are ready.

Me? I'm a control freak. I don't like Ready Fire Aim tactics. I used to run my agency like Andy, but I found myself wanting more. I'll credit Kyle for convincing me to think a little bigger after his talk at the last conference. In contrast, I highly doubt I'll take the big swings like was Kyle has taken. I know my personality and I believe I'd stress too much, not be able to sleep, and generally be a monster to be around.

Now I am finding joy in building small teams and launching/acquiring small companies. I've got my agency, an ecom store, a couple websites for revenue, and am in discussions with potential partners on a 3rd venture. I definitely started my journey by reading "too much" (no such thing imo), asking "too many questions", and trying to learn everything on my own first. My process works for me, and usually that is what I tell others, especially as it relates to marketing tasks. If you learn some of it yourself, it is less likely you will be taken advantage of, and more likely that you'll be an effective manager with proper expectations of the team. Everything I learned while I was "taking to long to get started" comes into play now when I pull this deals together.

3 examples. None are wrong. But to echo Antifagile, what do YOU think? You have to chart your own course through the wilderness of business. Sure, others have trodden paths, and you can learn from that, but they are not you. It really is your opinion, nay, your decisions, that will matter most.

And you're doing fine so far. Keep learning what you think you should learn and don't be afraid to make mistakes. Mistakes happen. Learn from them too. Hth.
Thanks so much.

The more people I ask questions like this the more I have to stop denying that there's no real known path besides the framework of delegation & scale.

I guess my problem really is just that I'm afraid to lose money and fail. The randomness of doing things that might not work and may just burn a hole in my pocket is what scares me.

Spending time on the wrong things also scares me.

But spending time thinking about spending time on the wrong things is wasting time..

So I guess doing things that I think are right that may turn out to be completely wrong and big mistakes is the path required..

It's a realization I knew deep down but didn't really have the courage to admit that it's true and no one has the answer for me.

There is no path... and that is the biggest answer to my problems..
 

Andy Black

Help people. Get paid. Help more people.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
370%
May 20, 2014
18,568
68,703
Ireland
Thanks so much.

The more people I ask questions like this the more I have to stop denying that there's no real known path besides the framework of delegation & scale.

I guess my problem really is just that I'm afraid to lose money and fail. The randomness of doing things that might not work and may just burn a hole in my pocket is what scares me.

Spending time on the wrong things also scares me.

But spending time thinking about spending time on the wrong things is wasting time..

So I guess doing things that I think are right that may turn out to be completely wrong and big mistakes is the path required..

It's a realization I knew deep down but didn't really have the courage to admit that it's true and no one has the answer for me.

There is no path... and that is the biggest answer to my problems..
There is no path.

How cool is that?
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

mikecarlooch

Apprentice & Student Of The Game
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
343%
Jan 28, 2022
888
3,049
Florida
The first step on the road to success is knowing what you want. Otherwise, how would you know when you get there?

Say you want a 9-figure exit, that means at least a $100M valuation for your company. To do that you need to scale and plug-in support where you need it most.

But you also need to have a good handle on all aspects of the business, so you're not being taken advantage of by "articulate optimists". These are the people who can make you feel safe in hiring them, but then they screw up. You need to be familiar enough with all areas of the business that you can see through their false promises.

For example, you might hire a bookkeeper to do the entries, but you should still be managing your cash flow.

On the other side, if you are only interested in making enough for a comfortable living, being a solo entrepreneur will mean you must do everything yourself (by definition, except tax/accounting stuff which I assume most will hire others to complete). And then there is everything in between, a small team where you are involved in 90% of your business.

I am more like @Kak, I believe every business must function without me, so I chose to partner with and hire people immediately.

The bottom line is this: to build a successful business, you need to know what you want, and you need to be able to spot the people who will help you get there. With those two things in place, you're well on your way to success.
Thank you for this.. this answers my question very well.
What does success look like to you, Mike?
I'm not going to sugar coat it, I'm in the same boat as you and Kyle.

One goal I have written down and committed to mind like the back of my hand is a 9-figure exit. Specifically, $176m. Why? long story. (i know.. i know it's like someone coming on the forum saying "I'm gonna be a billionaire", but this is just what I want in life and more)

It seems crazy for me to say it out loud here, since I am not even at the $100k mark yet, but that is what success looks like to me.

I also had a realization recently that money really is the wrong metric to chase though (@Andy Black and Darren Hardy - The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster), and that "people helped" is a better metric, so helping a lot of people with a large amount of money being a byproduct of it, is my definition of success.
 

Post New Topic

Please SEARCH before posting.
Please select the BEST category.

Post new topic

Guest post submissions offered HERE.

New Topics

Fastlane Insiders

View the forum AD FREE.
Private, unindexed content
Detailed process/execution threads
Ideas needing execution, more!

Join Fastlane Insiders.

Top