Success is a planned event.

Recently, I ventured over to Raleigh to learn from a few of NC’s successful bootstrapper entrepreneurs. The event was part of a series of breakfast panels hosted by Southern Cap Ventures to help educate potential startups on matters like fundraising, operations, marketing, and networking.

The panel consisted of  Joe Colopy from Bronto Sofware,  Kent Hudson from SchoolDude, Jesse Lipson from ShareFile (acquired recently by Citrix), and Troy McConnell from Clever On Demand. These four entrepreneurs founded and built companies without funding from VC or Angel investments. MC-ing the shindig was business reporter, David Ranii. He wrote a great article not too long ago about successful software startups in the Triangle. You can check it out, here.

Business wisdom

Each entrepreneur built their business differently. There wasn’t just a single path to success. However, I did notice two common threads between all of them.

1. All the bootstrappers focused on creating a company culture filled with collective responsibility and growth. None of them hired contractors for anything essential to the business.  Instead, they focused on hiring people as excited about the venture as they were. This way, they could create a team atmosphere and keep the creative energy in-house.

2. They possessed business owner mentality and were extremely organized. It wasn’t luck or by accident that they succeeded. They knew what they were trying to accomplish and executed a preconceived plan while keeping a pulse on product development, cash flow, operations, and customer satisfaction.

I am sure their are more things they had in common. Passion, grit, and hard work was surely evident in their stories. But these were the two that stood out.

If you are searching for more, here is a great website dedicated to sharing entrepreneurial wisdom.

It’s your turn

What have you learned from successful boostrappers?

photo credit: atomicShed

I stepped onto the plane and looked down both sides in hopes to find an isle seat. Sure enough, every isle seat and window seat was taken. Every middle seat, was open. They were the only open ones left. Accepting my fate, I proceeded to take a seat, overcoming the always uncomfortable “excuse me”, between two people already settled.

It became so clear to me right then. NO ONE WANTS THE MIDDLE SEAT. ever! It provides neither the scenery and glamor of the window seat nor the convenience and comfort of the isle seat.

The choice of our seat is ours to make unless we don’t choose at all. That is also a choice. By not making a choice, you choose the middle seat.

This observation caused me to ask myself these questions which I will ask to you.

Am I sitting in the middle seat in any area of my life? Career? Relationships? Impact on my community? Etc?

If so, get UP and grab an isle seat or a window seat and enjoy the journey of your life.

Everyday opportunities are hidden in plain site all around us. Like being in the Matrix, the passing parade of humanity glides through life in a conscious coma of mediocrity. Only those who challenge the status quo and battle the enemy of average will have the veil of ordinary lifted.

The other day I was reminded of a story about Marty and Chris, two young entrepreneurs, who decided lemonade stands reminded them too much of archaic outdated business models that made average homogeneous products (Ok, this is my version of the story). But they did want to do something different from every other kid in the neighborhood. I mean, how much better can you make lemonade than Molly or Jimmy down the street. Each of the last two summers they had a lemonade stand which was mildly profitable. Only problem was that each summer new stands were going up. The James twins now had a lemonade stand, and so did the Thompson kid, not to mention the youths three streets down sold pink and regular lemonade. Sure, they lived in a populous neighborhood, on one of the connecting streets between main roads that brought many prospective clients by. Unfortunately, this summer’s business was slow, it was almost as if they became invisible to the drivers-by passing from Market to Oak streets. This year, rarely did their pitcher of tart nectar quench the thirst of anyone but the police officer that emerged twice a day from a canopy of pines and elms which stretched their arms at the sun providing him shade and stealth. This gave Chris and Marty an idea.

The following day as Brad White was running late to a lunch appointment and hurriedly driving down the cut through street he saw a boy sitting in a lounge chair, under an umbrella, sipping lemonade, and holding a sign that read SLOW DOWN!! COP WITH RADAR ½ A MILE AHEAD.” Faithfully, Brad’s foot compressed the brake pedal and the car’s speed dropped just below the speed limit as he noticed a police car crouched in the tree line like a Lion lying in wait for unknowing prey along the Sarengeti. “That was close” Brad mused. About a mile down from the radar wielding officer was another boy, fashioned much like the first, with a sign which read “TIPS PLEASE.” Brad pulled over next to where the boy sat holding a stack of greenbacks, and tossed him a $10 bill.

When we step away from the masses our creativity gains strength, no longer drained by the kryptonite of the mundane, and we can see the opportunities to contribute in ways others haven’t. The greater our contribution to our community and marketplace the greater the rewards we reap. We must continue to cast off restraints and free our creative minds. Then we will have the vision to see the opportunities that lie invisible to the crowd.

photo credit: Gabe Mulley