10 lessons from a millennial
- People are most important, you must believe in them and they must believe in you
It goes without saying that the people who you surround yourself with, will dictate your success. For me, that means not only picking a team that have a high level of subject expertise but also people who are direct, dynamic and cope with a fast paced, quick decision making environment.
- Do what you love and love what you do
It’s a privilege spending each day loving what you do and working alongside people who you value and respect. Without this I wouldn’t get out of bed in the morning.
- Find a way of saying yes – rather than a reason to say no
No gets you nowhere. I believe that an idea or suggestion comes from a good place and while it may take further thought to make it work – learning to say YES is the hardest but also the most pivotal part.
- Accelerate to survive
While failing fast is a popular motto – sometimes you have to accelerate to survive. That might mean taking more risk or changing something significant to stay afloat.
- On that note – Fail fast
If it smells like shit and looks like shit – it probably is shit. Have the conviction and courage to quickly pull the plug when something isn’t working.
- Just do it
Bin the hierarchy, roll your sleeves up and truly become part of your team. At the same time – small business owners often feel the need to do everything themselves. To be truly successful you must be able to relinquish control to fully realise not only your – but your team’s potential. Just doing it doesn’t always mean doing it yourself.
- BELIEVE, because if you don’t – no one else will
Before success translates to your P&L you’ve got to sell the sizzle and believe that you will make it. Essentially – fake it until you make it. Ultimately your belief will become infectious and from your belief you will create a movement of people who truly believe.
- Paralysis by analysis
This is a real phenomenon and I believe if you did autopsies for good ideas – this would be the leading cause of death. There is a fine balance between valuable re-search and overanalysing a situation.
- Know your risk profile and that of your business partners
As an entrepreneur I love risk and I thrive of it. However, over the years I’ve learnt the importance of taking calculated risks. I’ve also learnt how important it is to understand the risk profile of your business partners as this can either accelerate your success or potentially stifle it!
- Make the world a better place through changing lives
Running a dating website for married people or selling cigarettes isn’t up my ally. I love the fact that what we do positively changes the lives of our My Food Bag foodies every day.
