We are pleased to report that we are back into our season of assisting new entrepreneurs in getting started. Please contact Peter if you are interested.
Peter@itariusgroup.com
Scam notice! /
For those of you opening new companies, please be advised of a scam called the Corporate Compliance Center.
These guys will basically troll for new companies and send "bills" to unwitting owners asking for a fee to file annual minutes. While it might look official, it's absolutely anything but.
Watch for this in the mail- and shred it when you get it.
Scam asking for money.
Ideation /
I'd like to share one of the tidbits of learning from my entrepreneurial studies at Pepperdine University. It was from one of my favorite professors, Dr. Kyle Murphy, who has extensive experience in turn-arounds and multiple ventures.
Today's idea is about making the idea itself - that is, ideation.
When people dream up ideas, oftentimes, they end up stifling their creativity by second-guessing themselves, or garnering criticism too early in the process. I've seen too many good ideas, and probably haven't seen enough good ideas be able to materialize because they asked the wrong person about what they thought about their idea way too early. And God knows we're a society of critics!
So here's a few takeaways from what my prof taught us about ideation, the process of actually forming a viable business idea. There are 4 primary steps:
1) IDEATION - Throw up any and all of the ideas you have on the whiteboard or piece of paper. It is VERY critical that at this stage, you do not invite ANY criticism or judgment into the process. The creative brain must operate freely and openly, and not be afraid to realize its full vision. It's typically in this stage that ideas are stifled and shot down before they even have a chance to take off. Think of it as a baby that must be coddled in order for it to be able to grow up. I cannot stress how important it is to have an open mind about your ideas at this early stage. Once you've gathered about 10-12 ideas, clearly articulate them, put them on the board on sticky notes or in an organization of your choice.
2) EVALUATION - ONLY after you have gathered ALL of your ideas will you proceed with this stage - and here is where a completely different part of your brain kicks in- the analytical side that generates judgment and criticism. Gather your critics, your friends, family, anyone who you care to in a room, and explain each idea to them all thoroughly. Give them each a pen, and ask them to go up to your board and rank their own top 3 ideas on the board. Ask them also to provide feedback on their 3- what they like, don't like, what they'd change, etc.
At the end of this exercise, you will tally up the votes and stack rank them, along with all of the gathered feedback. Incorporate the feedback into these ideas. Thank everyone for their time.
3) FEASIBILITY - Now that you know what a small sample population thinks of your ideas, it's time to see if what you can actually do. Here is where you do your homework on what it takes- the how of what it will take to successfully accomplish their winning idea. Then, depending on your resources, you move ahead with a decision.
4) PLANNING & EXECUTION - There's a thousand ways to peel an onion, and so there is with planning out how you will accomplish your idea. Here you employ a different skillset - being organized while maintaining discipline around your approach. This is where many ideas sadly die, so don't be lazy about making a good idea come true.
And that's it! keep it simple. :)
END OF YEAR CORPORATE TAX PLANNING /
For our distinguished partners, we will be facilitating an end-of-year tax planning session with our CPA at the GRAND HAVANA CIGAR CLUB.
Details will be sent privately as to the time and location of this meeting.
Thank you for all of your support this year.
Your Notebook is More Important Than You Might Think /
You may not realize this, but the notebook you are bringing into your meetings tells everyone these two things:
1) How important you are in the company (e.g. your rank in the food chain)
2) What kind of personality you have
You'd be surprised. Before you dismiss what seems like shallowness, let me explain.
My old b-school economics professor made a profound statement one day in class. He said that back in the 60's, people in the workplace were more direct - they told you what was REALLY on their mind. This was long before people became super litigious, and there was a lawsuit for every action under the sun at the office. It was back then that a boss could pull aside a subordinate, and directly quip, "Hey, you're dressed like shit, go home and change. And brush up on your public speaking, ok? That presentation was horrible." Now somewhere mixed up in the caustic language was a set of amicably good intentions and a genuine sense of watching out for their colleagues.
Nowadays, these good intentions are out the window.
Gone are the days when a coworker can be direct with someone without fear of a lawsuit - and constructive criticism happens at best in 1:1 meetings behind closed doors, or the boilerplate annual review. Even then, language is tempered and real points have to be sensed "through the ether," as my old prof would say. These days, workers are silently censored in the name of professionalism and decency. As a consequence, books about "emotional intelligence" or EQ are all modern excuses for guides to navigate this mysterious "ethosphere" where the real thoughts, opinions, and key points reside. It's in this place that decisions about promotions, demotions, layoffs, or even significant capital projects are made. You'd be surprised how much "shooting from the hip" happens in the absence of hard, solid facts. Most of the times, it's difficult to get these facts - and sometimes even illegal. But here we are, in today's modern workforce, and managers at all levels are forced to let their primitive brains feel through their careers.
So today, I want to talk about one key item that is so underwhelming, so overlooked, yet has such a big impact on the primitive brains around us. It's the simplest thing, yet we often don't put much thought into it.
It's the pen & paper notebook you bring into every meeting.
Now, you may think that in our digital age - who carries around paper notebooks? Well, if you're talking about productivity and having a working session, sure, computers are the way to go. However, I'm talking about the vast swath of in-person meetings where there are obvious reasons for a group of people to come together, take time out of their day, and have a verbal and physical interaction with each other.
It's in these meetings that you want to be present and engaged. But even more than this, the items you bring into the meeting say a great deal about you and your intentions. It's more than just a fashion statement - it's communicating in a very subtle way that you are here to do business. Moreover, writing things down does a few things for you: 1) it commits important information to your brain (way better than typing it does), 2) the act of writing something down in front of someone conveys to your audience that you value their information so much that you need to physically write it down, and 3) you show respect for their time by ensuring that you're paying attention instead of having your eyes glued to a glowing screen.
As one climbs the echelons of corporate life, one may notice a peculiar thing about these notebooks. For one, the more executive one becomes, the less digital hardware they need to carry around. Do you see any CEO's lugging laptops into meeting rooms? As one advances in their career, the computers, tablets, and other accessories get smaller and smaller, and the notebook is all you've got left. After all, leave it to the analysts and secretaries to take the notes for you. Your assets are your presence, your brain, and your notebook.
The notebook's size is also important. A good rule of thumb is a 5" X 8.5" clean leather notebook with ruled or unruled paper. Any larger and you risk becoming perceived as a junior level employee, any smaller and you may not be able to take any effective notes.
Also keep in mind the style of notebook is important as well. Find a notebook that may convey your personality without seeming too flashy. It is a very subtle effect you are portraying upon your meeting audience. Some people will opt for a colorful notebook or one with a theme, but I would recommend against that to be on the conservative side.
It's the small things at the end of the day that matter. As in marketing, you must know that you are your own brand. Whether you know it or not, you make people feel a certain way simply by your presence. In a professional setting, the notebook adds to your ensemble to help control how you want others to feel about you.
These are, after all, things no one will ever tell you.
Before you dismiss the importance of the right notebook, look around you the next time you're in a meeting and give it a try.
The Most Important Sentence for All Entrepreneurs /
No matter what your business idea is, it has to do at least one of these 2 things:
1) solve a painful problem that a lot of people have in common
2) be very entertaining
If you do both then you're awesome. If you do neither, your idea is probably worthless. As for the vast majority of us entrepreneurs, we are trying to accomplish goal #1 above. If that is what your business idea is trying to do, there is one sentence that you must be able to complete with confidence. Here it is:
FOR <A SPECIFIC GROUP OF PEOPLE>,
WHO SUFFER FROM <A SPECIFIC KIND OF PAINFUL PROBLEM THAT HURTS A LOT> ,
MY SOLUTION IS <A SPECIFIC THING>
THAT SOLVES THIS PAINFUL PROBLEM <BY TAKING A SPECIFIC ACTION OR BY MAKING THE PROBLEM GO AWAY>.
You'd be SURPRISED how many people I've met along the way who believe that their idea is the next best thing since sliced bread and can't even complete this sentence! Among our clients, we've come across many budding entrepreneurs who forgot to ever think about this simple sentence, and then tried to reverse-engineer their solution to fit a target customer audience with a specific problem. Usually this results in added time, effort, and cost. Sure, this kind of failure has been euphemized as a "pivot" in startup parlance - but make no mistake about it - failure without effective learning is simply a waste of time and opportunity.
If you think you've got a brilliant idea that can be monetized, do yourself a favor and finish that sentence with confidence! We require all our clients to start with this. Trust me, it's better to get this straight up front rather than spend time "fixing" your idea after it's way too late.
Launch Celebration 2/27 /
Update: our launch celebration is now on 2/27/15. This event is courtesy of ITARIUS Group in thanks for your belief in our success.
We plan to present our financial results to date, and we believe you will be quite pleased.
Details will be forthcoming to each of you personally.
Launch Celebration Update /
Due to conflicts, we've moved the launch party into late February. Investors can expect to receive invitations in coming weeks.
Thanks for your understanding.
Happy New Year! /
To all of our investors and partners, we at Itarius Group wish you a fun-filled, safe, and memorable holiday season with your loved ones.
We hope for 2015 to bring great fortune and wealth in all aspects of your life.
Happy New Year!