Sometimes you have to smell your own feet
Six months ago, I set out to create an assessment tool in order to gain some insights that could help me help more businesses. I wanted to see what businesses were (and weren't) measuring, how they viewed the importance of process in their business, and how they made decisions about what to work on and improve.
Recently, I sat down to take a look at what the past six months of data showed. I was curious if there would be a pattern or narrative that emerged that would tell me something about how business owners grow and operate their businesses.
There was. And surprisingly enough, the pattern emerged in the first five questions…
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Shopping for Business Software Sucks
Here’s how to do it the right way
Imagine this.
You walk into a grocery store on a mission to hunt for a better breakfast. You’re looking for something healthy, affordable, and substantial enough to keep you going through your morning Zoom meetings.
But in this grocery store, every brand name is foreign to you. It’s like you’re grocery shopping for the very first time.
As you walk down the breakfast aisle, you’re overwhelmed by the dizzying array of options stacked on either side of you. There’s granola and grits. Muffins and muesli. Jams, jellies, and marmalades (what’s even the difference?). And more than two dozen peanut butters that come in every variety imaginable.
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Three ways to look beyond ROI and make better decisions
“How is the guy who is all about systems and data looking at this decision on the basis of whether it will be fun?”
I was recently chatting with a colleague when she asked me this question about a meeting we had with a fellow operations consultant. The three of us were batting around the idea of collaborating together on a podcast or some other way to jointly promote our services.
I let out a small chuckle. Her question caught me by surprise. For a moment, I too was surprised by the words that had come out of my mouth. Was I really assessing the potential of a new marketing strategy through a lens of enjoyment rather than some calculus of return on investment?
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When that "oh sh*t moment" turns into the highlight of your week
“Hi Brad,
This is Andrew from the Workato Customer Success Team. We wanted to inform you that your currently active automations may be hugely impacted due to an update on the Google Sheets API which will occur in January. To avoid huge disruptions, you will need to implement workarounds in your automations. Can we schedule a call to discuss?”
This was how my morning started last Thursday…
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Creating Genuine Connections in a Virtual World
It’s been so easy over these past nine months to fall into the monotony of everyday life. I once took for granted how the ability to meet someone for coffee or go to an event breaks up the work week and puts you in a different state of mind.
So when I had the opportunity earlier this week to be on a podcast, the experience refreshed me and gave me an energy that’s lasted all week. It’s what got me out of bed this morning excited to share it with you!
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I spent months creating a new free offer. Here’s what I learned.
At the beginning of this year, I set a goal for myself that I wanted to share the knowledge and methodology behind my work with more people. I’ve seen how Lean has transformed the businesses I’ve worked with, and I want others to be able to achieve the same. So over the past few months, I’ve been working to make that happen.
I’m thrilled to have recently released the BE Lean Assessment - a free tool to give business owners expert insight into whether they have the systems, structure, and culture in place to achieve sustainable growth.
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Beating Imposter Syndrome
By revisiting the worst week of my career
It was 8pm on December 12, 2016. After three hours of tense back and forth discussion, we had just decided to fold our company. Just five days later, December 16th, was greeNEWit’s last day in business.
I’ve thought a lot about this moment in the time that’s passed since. The failure of greeNEWit after nine years in business is what motivated me to start my own company, BE Lean. I’ve been driven by the desire to prevent other businesses from ending with the same fate. To help others achieve what greeNEWit never could: a sustainable business model.
And while greeNEWit’s failure inspired me to start my company, it’s also held me back. If I’m brutally honest, since the moment I started BE Lean, I haven’t been able to shake the imposter syndrome whispering in my ear, “If you couldn’t make greeNEWit succeed, what makes you think you can help others succeed?”
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Behind Every Business Is a Story
Over the past year, I’ve had some truly meaningful and inspiring conversations with small business owners and entrepreneurs for this blog. I call it Entrepreneurship In Real Life because I believe it’s important to share authentic stories about the people behind businesses.
These individuals have affirmed for me how passionate I am about helping small businesses and startups fulfill their visions, but they’ve also taught me some important lessons that have altered the way I think about my own career and my business.
But there’s another story I haven’t yet told. My story.
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How We Should Have Done It
Two energy startups. One succeeded. One Failed. This is what I learned.
I recently got to know Zack Moore and Shannon Sentman of Sol Vista in their office around the block from me in the Silver Spring Innovation Center (SSIC). As they told me their story, I was struck by how uncannily similar it was to my last company, greeNEWit.
Both companies started with the same vision of unlocking the potential trapped inside of buildings in the form of energy costs. Both raised capital to develop software products. Both faced similar setbacks and market challenges.
Yet ten years later, Sol Vista is a market leader with a bright future while greeNEWit closed its doors days shy of its ninth year in business.
I couldn’t help but walk away from my time spent with the Sol Vista guys wondering, what could we have done differently…?
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The Definition of Success Belongs to You
“Scale thoughtfully. Source locally.”
My ears perked up.
I had just finished listening to an episode of The Tidbit on Full Service Radio hosted by Kim Bryer, Founder and CEO of Cureate. The show discusses tidbits of knowledge around starting and running small businesses with a food and beverage lens.
The outro Kim uses to sign off from each episode reverberated through my mind.
Scale thoughtfully...
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Why People Quit Their Job to Become Entrepreneurs
How Quick Base gave this entrepreneur the platform to pursue her dream
When Sharon Faust was 5 years old, she knew she wanted to be an entrepreneur.
She looked up to her mom and watched as she crafted the life that she wanted with her own hands and spirit. A true creative, Sharon’s mom was an artist and entrepreneur who started a graphic design firm and opened a store that sold local crafts and artwork.
Sharon’s mother wasn’t the only source of inspiration in her life. Her grandmother ran a real estate business, and her father grew up on a family-owned farm.
These examples instilled in Sharon a deep desire to create something of her own one day. She wanted that life of independence and fulfillment she admired so much about her role models.
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Making the Most of Capital
A not yet true story of how Lean helped one startup
Tucked within the walls of an inconspicuous building off of Liberty Heights Avenue in Baltimore lives a true gem of Maryland’s entrepreneurship community. Conscious Venture Lab runs an accelerator program here for purpose-driven startups who epitomize the principles of conscious capitalism.
It was here that I had the pleasure of reconnecting with my former coworkers, Josh Massey and Gabe Bustos, to learn about their company, Ortus Academy. Ortus teaches money management and financial intelligence to 5th-12th grade students with a proprietary and hands-on money game they call NumisMatters.
In the days that followed my conversation with Gabe and Josh, I couldn’t help but wonder what I would do if I were in their shoes. I imagined what it might look like if Lean principles were used to address the challenges that Ortus now faces. What the story could be if I sat down with Josh and Gabe in a year to do a follow up interview.
What follows is the not yet true story that they shared with me one year from today.
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Purpose and Profit
Let’s move the conversation beyond compromise
In early 2014, my last company, greeNEWit, was in crisis.
We had just lost our most lucrative contract implementing one of Baltimore Gas and Electric’s largest energy efficiency programs. It was worth over $1 Million.
Layoffs were inevitable. We had to part with nearly half of our staff to survive.
Nobody felt less secure than Josh Massey and Gabe Bustos, Co-Directors of greeNEWit’s OUR Schools Program. OUR Schools was a social program that supported greeNEWit’s mission by teaching Maryland elementary students the importance of sustainability and the environment in an exciting assembly style presentation.
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Replacing Hustle with Humanity
Hustle has Eroded Workplace Culture. Let’s Fix That.
“Excellent post, Brad! We absolutely should be having deeper conversations about what it takes to start and operate a successful business, regardless of industry or size. Thanks for bringing a little light to this!”
I lit up with excitement, my pride beaming momentarily, after receiving this message on LinkedIn in response to an article I had published on rethinking what it means to be an entrepreneur. This was exactly the sort of engagement I was hoping for. I didn’t skip a beat and replied back, hoping to solicit an interview for a new post in my “Entrepreneurship In Real Life” series.
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What My First Business Taught Me About Failure
It was just one step on a longer journey
When I was a junior at the University of Maryland in 2007, I took a class that altered the course my life.
I was majoring in mechanical engineering, destined for a career in project management when a business professor opened the door to an alternative choice. He told me and my classmates that life is not about following a path. It’s about creating one.
That moment set into motion a story line in my life that lead to my first business, a passion and career in entrepreneurship, and the confidence and skills to create agency and purpose in my life.
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Entrepreneurship In Real Life
When you think of an entrepreneur, what image comes to mind?
Is it someone like Steve Jobs, or Mark Zuckerberg, or Elon Musk? If so, you’re not alone.
When I typed the word “entrepreneur” into a Google Image search, this was the result…
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What is Lean?
Lean means a lot of things to a lot of people. To some, “running lean” means cost cutting to the bare minimum. To others, Lean Manufacturing is all about reducing waste without sacrificing quality or productivity. In the world of entrepreneurship, the Lean Startup methodology offers an approach to building business through practices of experimentation, iterative development, and validated learning.
To me, the most important principle of lean is this:
Focus the precious time and resources you have on the right things, and don’t waste or invest new resources on the wrong things.
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The Importance of Actionable Metrics
In an era defined by big data, metrics have too often become overused and misunderstood. There’s a desire among many business leaders to collect every piece of data that they possibly can about their business to arm them with information that can give them a leg up.
Then again, just as often there are those who feel overwhelmed by the very notion of data and instead look at simple markers like revenue, production, or even instinct to tell them how the business is doing.
Either way, the result can be detrimental. Too much information can leave you swimming in a sea of dirty or segregated data, not being able to see the forest through the trees. Too little and there’s a complete lack of visibility between your top and bottom lines, leaving you charging full steam ahead not knowing where you’re headed.
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Fix the Weakest Link First
With an understanding of the business model and our most important markers of progress, the fun can begin! It’s time to dig in and figure out how to move the business forward.
So where do we start? We start with the weakest link.
Think of your customer life cycle and operating model not a one giant process, but rather as a system of interconnected processes. A series of links in one chain. If you apply stress to a chain, the entire chain won’t fall apart. It will always break in one place - the weakest link. Trying to strengthen all the links at once or reinforcing former weakest links is the very definition of waste.
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Invest in Growth with Insights and Efficiency
When I was the COO of an energy efficiency company called greeNEWit, using data and efficiency to invest in growth was particularly important for us. Having scaled the business incredibly quickly, there were seemingly an infinite amount of links in our chain that needed fixing. The problem was that our staff was already stretched thin, we had maxed out our credit lines, and we weren’t in a position where it was advantageous to raise capital.
So how could we invest in improvement with the resources we had? We invested with insights, and we invested with efficiency.
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