Entrepreneurs: Wise Advice
by Miki SaxonThe end of the year is always a time for reflection. I can only hope that you take all these words and concepts to heart.
You will be a better person and have a better 2016 if you do.
From Jessica Herrin, founder/CEO of Stella & Dot
Making decisions: What/which has the greater upside? What’s the downside, and is it worth the risk?”
Learning: I had that typical early-entrepreneur hero complex, where it was about how well I did versus how well I helped other people do the work. Then a mentor told me that if I ever want to run a large company, I should go work at one. So I got a job as a middle manager at Dell, and I had to develop skills as a leader. I also got pregnant with my first child, and I was always sick and tired, so I had to become far more focused in how I was spending my time. I learned to focus on what really matters.
Stella & Dot: Our revenue is around $300 million, and we have over 400 people in the home office and about 50,000 independent business owners in six countries.
Culture: I wanted to hire missionaries, not mercenaries. The challenge, especially when you’re growing fast, is to be incredibly fierce about your hiring filters. You have to commit to caring for the culture more than the quarter.
From Jon Olinto, co-founder of b. good restaurants
Goal: to build a community around the idea of “real fast food”—made by people, not factories—and the team felt like one big family, all working toward that goal.
Sustainability: You just have to look for and seize every opportunity to make your people feel valued and purposeful in their work.
Engagement: we incorporated features to reflect our family culture [on new mobile app], the app has also boosted staff engagement in a way we never even expected.
Finally, life advice from teen Jake Baily.
Jake Bailey found out he had Burkitt Lymphoma just one week before he was due to speak at a prize giving ceremony at his school. As senior monitor, it was his duty to represent the class. In the midst of intensive chemotherapy, Jake was permitted to leave the hospital for a brief period to deliver his speech.
