Mediocrity is the cousin of relativism.“We’re not the fastest, but we’re not the slowest.”“We don’t have the best service, but we’re better than most.”“We’re not the market leaders, but at least we’re not last.”“I’m not the best dad in the world, but I’m not the worst.”Relativism is the crutch that mediocre people use to get…
Loyalty. A simple word.What is loyalty? It is having your partner’s back. Always.It is going into battle knowing that the man on your right and the man on your left are with you. You can move forward without fear of being stabbed from behind.How do you earn loyalty?Not through talking. Words are wind. Action is…
Sometimes it seems you simply can’t get to everything. There just are not enough hours in the day, not enough days in the week, not enough months in the year.You find yourself whining about how busy you are.Stop.There’s no point complaining. No one said starting a company would be easy.Suck it up and use the following…
Entrepreneurs take risks. And when it doesn’t worked out, they dust themselves off and try again.You will never know whether you’re an entrepreneur until you’ve picked yourself up.Some people never take risks, and so they never fail.Other people are so smart and talented that their bets always pay off, and so they never fail.These people may…
Nassim Taleb’s book, Antifragile, is a bible for entrepreneurs.The theory is to set up your life in such a way that not only are you resilient to shocks, you actually benefit when adversity strikes.One of the best examples he uses is debt. Debt makes you fragile. If interest rates go up or the bank calls in the loan,…
The world is full of people that will try make you feel like a fool for being yourself.They want you to conform. They want you to be like all the other kids in school. They want you to be cool.Ignore them. The only way to be an entrepreneur is to follow your own path. Sometimes…
In Anti-fragile, Nassim Taleb talks about our tendency to find multiple reasons to justify our actions.He argues that one reason is enough. If you need more that one reason, you’re lying to yourself.Why do you want to start a company?Can’t get a job? Want to get rich? Want to build a big company? Have a great…
Many people use scenario planning as a tool for ensuring they are prepared for all eventualities. No doubt it is valuable in this manner, but there are two even bigger benefits of considering scenarios that are unthinkable:1. Losing the fear of deathIn business we mostly steer clear of consciously thinking through the consequences of total failure….
I once had a setback in business.I felt hurt and betrayed. “Woe is me” was written across my forehead.Whilst I was regrouping, I took the opportunity to speak to older, wiser entrepreneurs.One of these was Denis O’Brien, an Irish billionaire introduced via a mutual friend. We met in New York for a coffee.After hearing out my sad story Denis…
Some people preach the importance of fighting fair. Be noble. Stick to the rules.These people are not entrepreneurs.An entrepreneur knows there is no such thing as a fair fight. If you don’t go in with the upper hand, you will lose.Entrepreneurs don’t fight to lose.Entrepreneurs fight to win.Knife fight? Take a gun.Don’t go into battle without…
If you want to know what your strengths are, you need to start with learning what your weaknesses are.What are you not good at. What don’t you know. What don’t you have experience in.Sometimes success leads to an over-inflated estimation of your abilities.Sometimes the culprit is just plan lack of self-awareness.That’s why being humble and…
You must be yourself. You can only be yourself if you know yourself.You can only know yourself if you keep pushing your limits, keep taking risks, keep falling and getting up again.Most people know how to handle good times. The trick is knowing how to handle bad times.More important than how you handle adversity, how…