From Self-Employed to Entrepreneur…Getting a Business Off the GroundMitch Stoller, Co-Founder, Group SJRAugust 13, 2009

Nature vs. Nurture Are people born entrepreneurs? Do they become entrepreneurs? Or, put another way, can you learn to do what it takes?

What Happened to Me After 10 years in PR, market research, plus a little bit of advertising, I lost my job in the 2001 recession Told myself I never wanted to work in the business again So, I did something very original…

Hollywood—Don’t Do It! I decided to become a screenwriter (okay, I’d already written a bad script or three) What a terrible career choice! Only about 10,000 people write scripts for free every year* --*In greater Los Angeles alone

School for Entrepreneurs But screenwriting is a tremendous school for entrepreneurs… --You’re on your own to come up with ideas --You’ve got to hook your audience in two lines or less (Logline: At the height of the Cold War, a female archeologist discovers the Garden of Eden and its secret to ultimate power) --You must accept rejection (ever try to get an agent?)

Good News, Bad News You also learn how to handle good news and bad news Cliché alert:“If you can meet with triumph and disaster. And treat those two imposters just the same,” Kipling

You’ve Got to Have Fun Screenwriting blows (cutthroat, lonely, waiting for phone to ring) It taught me to appreciate what I had before So, when as a freelance PR/researcher (you’ve got to eat), my friend and old colleague referred me a big account…

Back in the Game I was legitimately self-employed I was flying back and forth to Venezuela I had to learn….the boring stuff

Small Biz BasicsWhat you must do: --Fund your expenses --Track and report income and expenses --Contribute to Social Security and Medicare --Pay income taxes on your profit --Pay taxes at least 4x per year --Track and report any payments to contractors

Money In…Money Out Get paid quickly (means do a good job) --Use free/low cost online tools to invoice and track time (ever heard of Outright!) --Use Paypal to get paid (if appropriate) Stay on top of it --Use a separate checking account for bills (preferably one with free online bill pay) --Get a separate credit card for purchases

Keep it SimpleUse “cash” method--How much did you earn? --How much did you spend?

Self Employed to… When my colleague and old friend left his job, suddenly it was time to… …Do what we’d now been talking about for over a year Launch a new agency

The Basic Qs --Pick a name --Incorporate or not? (Yes)--Lease space or virtual? (sublet LA, nothing NYC) --Business cards? (only later) --Titles? (none for SJR)

What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School*The conventional wisdom will only serve you so well past the basics You need to find your own path What works for you and your business *Read Mark McCormack’s book

Some TipsIgnore the 80/20 ruleBuild relationships, build contacts --Every conversation sets a chain of events in motionGive back through a good service at a fair priceNeither a borrower nor a lender be

Lead the Way If you’re out there talking to people, things will happen, opportunities will arise Sometimes you won’t get a clear sense what a potential client or biz partner wants* Always come back with a clear, well-defined bid *According to our research, 86.35 % of the time

Sell, Sell, Sell We live in a process-heavy society (any recovering lawyers here?) It can blind us to simple facts about human interaction You need to sell yourself and your service --Think LogLine vs. Flow charts

What to Sell You don’t need to tell everybody everything You need to talk to people about what matters to them—not you Understand what makes you different (if you’re not, why your offer is the better deal)

Hanging on to Clients? If you work with clients (and I bet a lot people here do)… …Never think there’s something you shouldn’t do You must offer the best possible service, plus strategy, plus creativity, plus execution Think Four Seasons Meets Idea Lab Meets Bob the Builder (Yes We Can!) …

No Exit Lots and lots of people start something looking to get rich quick It’s not going to happen You know you’re a real entrepreneur when you want to be the best at what you do* *Official Group SJR definition

Back to the Good + Bad“Victory is never final, defeat is never fatal. What counts is courage.” Churchill “Success is never final and failure never fatal. It’s courage that counts.” George F. Tilton* *Who the hell is George Tilton?