Derek Euale

You're not falling behind. It's literally just you...on a treadmill. Keep going.

I learned more in the first six months of starting my first business than I did in 4 years of college. (not to mention I made more money than I did in all the years of the previous decade combined) Here's the 12 biggest lessons: 1. Actions move the needle, not intentions. A bias towards action solves most problems. 2. The most important metrics in life (and business) can't be measured on a spreadsheet. Return on Time Return on Love Return on Karma Return on Impact Don't undervalue a thing just because you can't measure it. 3. Very little of what you do actually matters. Unfortunately, it's not always clear which parts matter and which parts don't. The only way to solve for this is to: A) Try a whole lot of stuff B) Iterate until you find signal C) Amplify once found 4. Success comes to those who are too stupid to quit. Surprising revelation: Most successful people I've met have no clue what they're doing. They were just too stupid to quit. 5. A happy customer is the best form of marketing. Don't run ads to a shitty product. You're just spreading the word that you suck. First, make something people want... Then make it something they love. Only then should you promote. 6. Referrals are worth more than sales. We've raised $30M over the past 3 years leveraging a simple concept: Ask for the referral, not the sale. This does two things: 1. Turns one potential customer into two 2. Often turns the referrer into a customer, too To accomplish this in real time: Deliver insane amounts of FREE value to build good-will with both prospective and past customers... Then ask: Do you know anybody else who you think we might be able to serve? Then shut up and wait for an answer. 7. Use discounts to increase the lifetime value of customers... not to get them in the door. Using discounts to get customers in the door is a surefire way to find yourself in a race to the bottom. Instead, use discounts to retain customers and increase lifetime value. For instance: Instead of giving a discount to get a customer in the door. Give a discount on the next job if they book NOW. 8. Some costs are unavoidable. It's almost always best to just pay the cost of doing business and move on. 9. The best businesses are lucky. The amount of serendipity you'll experience is directly proportional to how much you do the thing combined with the total number of people to whom this is communicated. So, to increase our Surface Area of Luck, we can either: - Do the thing more - Tell more people 10. Speed results from Clarity The more clearly you can see the target... The more quickly you can move towards it. 11. Growth results from repeatedly identifying and then removing the biggest contraint in the system. Spoiler Alert: YOU as the founder and operator will almost always be the biggest constraint. No business that is reliant on the founder... will outgrow the founder. Your goal should be to remove yourself from being necessary as quickly as possible. 12. Do Less, but Better Working on fewer things for longer is the best recipe for success. Yo! If you enjoyed this and want more business, investing, and self-mastery content, give me a follow @AnthonyVicino .