What do you wish you had known 10 years ago?
The real value of money and how it actually works. Most people don’t really understand how money works and why. Learning the difference between $100 when you’re just starting out with no money in the bank and $1M when you’re an enterprise company is critical. You’ll be a better sales-person, marketer, programmer, mentor, and leader.
What shift in perspective has allowed you to see things differently?
Understanding that you cannot control the decisions other people make, you can only influence and inform them. Not every deal or decision will go your way and this mindset helps avoid self-loathing, anger, and depression.
What should leaders understand about their own role and responsibility?
Figure out your strengths and do those things. Outsource or hire for the rest. This will ensure you stay happy, but also produce awesome results across the board.
What’s your favorite ritual or meeting in your team?
Avoid meetings at all costs. Meetings are the black hole of success and happiness, so just stop having them. They consume countless hours of people’s time with very little measurable benefit. Instead, have working sessions, brainstorming meetings, and async collaboration where you actually get things done.
What book do you recommend the most?
“Start with No” by Jim Camp. The simplest way to get over obstacles is to get someone to say “no.” This is the best place to start a real conversation and ask them “why?”
What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
My dad, mother and both grandfathers were all entrepreneurs. It runs in the family and I grew up hearing about companies, businesses, and building something from nothing. I tried working at large companies for a while, but it sucked, so I started my own thing.
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Here’s More, From Other Founders Around the World
What’s an important guiding principle that informs the way you build and run your business?
One of our core values is experimentation. Rather than get stuck in arguing about what solution may best solve a problem or play to our ego, we focus on the smallest step we could possibly take to learn whether that’s true. It moves our minds away from thinking too big without sweating the small stuff and from getting stuck in discussions rather than actually doing something to understand the possible solutions better.
What should leaders understand about their own role and responsibility?
Your own time and energy is the most precious resource you have. Use it wisely, and learn what gives you energy, and what saps you. In the early years of building something, you need to throw a huge amount of time at it - and do many things you perhaps don’t like doing. But as you scale, it’s vital to take a step back and build a business that can grow rapidly beyond the time you put into it.
What shift in perspective has allowed you to see things differently?
It may sound simple, but realizing and truly understanding that we are all different and driven by different things has made a significant impact on me. This insight has changed the way I approach relationships and leadership.
What’s a guiding principle that informs the way you build and run your business?
One of our core values at Cozero is radical candor. It is the idea that the willingness to repeatedly enter uncomfortable situations to speak the truth benefits everyone in the long run. We believe that in order to grow and improve as an organization, we need to create an environment where our team is not afraid to challenge processes and decisions. Making this a core value guides us in difficult situations when it’s not clear which road to take.