Tag: entrepreneurship - Page 5

Startups are hard work, require a lot of resilience and often are flawed with the fact that many are not adequately funded to a) hire the right people b) to marketing the business c) to have the infrastructure in place for growth.

Last night I attended an event just for an hour or so that my friend was hosting. I caught up with a few people and without realizing it, had to take a few steps back.

The reason being is sometimes things are best left in the past, especially people, and who wants to know what someone else is doing? I certainly don't.

I'm sitting at the Qantas Lounge at the Melbourne International Airport ready to board another flight to Los Angeles. I am a tad tired. 2.15am wakeup wasn't my best work, but sometimes excitement does get the best of me. Travelling for me, is exciting and part of the bigger adventure. I get to meet people that inspire me, shock me and sometimes join me on my journey as a friend, client or person "I just know".

Meeting people when you are an introvert is completely and utterly out of your comfort zone, and I know the value of being outside your comfort zone. It's one of the best things that can happen, especially if you are an entrepreneur.

It's been a hectic few months and this week has been no different. 

With the weekend upon us, I can safely say that the next few months I am only focused on Marketing Eye, technology development and the people who have already been in the incubator and need my support. It's time to pass on the baton for all the things I have become so passionately involved with, and focus on my own backyard - so to speak.

Jack Ma's speech at the World Economic Forum struck a raw and real note with me. He is more successful than I would ever be even if that was my pursuit in life, but we do have some similarities and that is based on a view of the world we live in and our roles in making it a better place.

Talking to my sister-in-law today, we discussed how I could sell up my home in Melbourne and move to the Fraser Coast and live on the beach in a brand new house, designed by me, for less than $800,000. Imagine that? When you live in the city, you soon realise that $800,000 buys you very little, but in some of the most beautiful places in the world, it brings you a lot. Imagine what I could do with the leftovers. Retire? Do more for the community and causes in which I support? Change people's lives and outcomes? It really is endless. I was born with a brain and it works just as well outside the constraints of business. What if I used it more on a fulltime basis to improve our world? 

You are never as good as you want to be unless of course you are a narcassist and you think you know it all, and that your s*** doesn't stink.

The reality is for anyone who wants to improve their status quo, grow and be the best they possibly can, you have to be ready to put in the hard yards, take the set-backs on the chin, and move forward with purpose.

Marketing Eye continues to grow and with that we take an approach that is innovative and collaborative. I've never been one to make decisions without consulting others, and mostly that has kept me in good stead. When we second guess things, that's when it goes pear shaped. 

If you look at Wikipedia, you can read his profile, and although it has some inaccuracies, it gives you a good understanding of the background of the person who I am about to write on, Jack Cowin.

I am in a privileged position to be mentored by Jack Cowin, and I don't say that lightly, as I know what an honour it is to have someone with his pedigree giving me important lessons and advice on business and life. However, the honour is not about who he is to the outside world that don't know him, as quite frankly, I couldn't give a 'rats ass' as to how wealthy he is or how much money he has made - and that is what most people tend to attach to his name. Those things lack importance in my life, and to his. I am certain that he would not care about how much money he makes, instead he is more interested in the journey and never having to work a day in his life. He genuinely loves what he does, and as a man in his seventies, to still love what you do is quite special.

Never want to work a day in your life, then speak with a passionate entrepreneur and you will fast realise that this is very possible.

Entrepreneurship may not be for the faint-hearted, but it certainly has a lot of pros and not as many cons.

I came to work today realising just how extraordinary we all are as human beings particularly when we need to draw upon parts of ourselves that we didn't know exist.

Stress has never been my strength. I have never been able to handle it as well as I would have liked. I prefer to hide when I am stressed than to actually manage what I am going through. Life has many twists and turns and each of them has a lesson for us to learn. Sometimes, we don't want to learn that lesson, but don't have a choice. 

I cannot say that I am not nervous about the upcoming North Queensland Entrepreneurs Conference. Of course I am! It's going to be awesome. Without sounding Trump-ish, "Let's make North Queensland Great Again".