Tech Cocktail DC Winter 2011 DSC_7095
Image by TechCocktail
Tech Cocktail DC Winter 2011
Like us on Facebook:
facebook.com/TechCocktail
Follow us on Twitter @TechCocktail
twitter.com/TechCocktail
Photos by Jeff Tong Photography
facebook.com/JeffTongPhotography
Executive Summary
So you have graduated college, got your safe, corporate job where you have been climbing the latter to the top for years. You have your big fancy house, nice car, and big pay check, but every morning you wake up hating your job! All you can think about is escaping the cubical nation, but how? This book is a great place to start. Pamela Slim is one of the “recovering” corporate workers, as she likes to call them. She knows firsthand the fear and anxiety that can go into making the leap from employee to entrepreneur. In this book she helps you realize where your fears are really coming from. She gives you tips on how to deal with your family, friends, and society’s idea of success. Not only does she help you realize your own fears, but she shares with you her own funny stories of failures and anxieties she has had in the past.
This book is not only over flowing with information and other references on the “how-to” of starting a business, but Slim also does a great job at making this book very readable. There are plenty of bold headings and bulleted information that makes it easy to pull out the information that is relevant to you. Escape from Cubical Nation also has a way of inspiring you to make changes. It shakes up the way you have always thought about life, about happiness, and about what success is. She reminds us that passion is a good thing and that it will take you far in your business ventures.
The Ten Things Entrepreneurs Need to Know fromEscape from Cubical Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur
1. You are not crazy for hating your corporate job. Not everyone is meant to have a boss.
2. Don’t let irrational fears like “living in a van down by the river” stop you from starting your business.
3. Get to know yourself, what makes you excited, and what you’re passionate about before you begin looking for specific business ideas. The more passionate you are about a project the more likely you will WANT to work on it.
4. Hating your current corporate prison is not a business plan! You must get proactive to start planning a business.
5. “You must study business models, learn to work on your business, not in it, and develop specific skills to run your business.” Michael Gerber; The E-Myth Revisited
6. Look for problems in everyday situations to hunt for a business idea. Things that spark your interest should guide the places you look for business opportunity.
7. Networking is extremely important in the business world, but be sure to always surround yourself with people who you can trust, encourage you, and can possibly help you in your business ventures.
8. Business planning is a necessity! Spending time planning your business, defining your market, and setting up regular marketing activities is time very well spent.
9. Be sure to clearly define the spirit of your brand. Remember you can’t please everyone, so gear your brand toward your specific market.
10. Always have plans B, C, and D ready. Even the best planned business ventures by the most passionate entrepreneurs are not always successful. Be ready if this happens.
Full Summary of Escape from Cubical Nation
Section 1: Opening Up to the Opportunities
I Have a Fancy Title, Steady Paycheck, and Good Benefits. Why am I so Miserable?
Through out most of our lives we are told that being successful means having a big house, fancy car, important job title, and a hefty pay-check to boot. So why do so many smart, creative corporate employees feel so miserable in their current job situation? There could be any number of reasons for this feeling of despair. Pamela Slim, author of Escaping Cubical Nation, reminds us first that we are not crazy for feeling this way! Many corporate employees are drowning in a pool of trends, programs, and processes due to a constantly changing environment. These constant changes can lead to confusion and even resentment. Slim also points out that the issue could be with faulty management. Today many leaders forget to think about their employees. And sometimes at the end of the day, people just were not cut out for the corporate world. She compares it to trying to make a shoe fit that is 2 sizes too small. Just go find another pair!
If It is So Bad, Then Why Am I Afraid to Leave?
There are many things that may hold an unhappy corporate worker back from making the leap to entrepreneur. The biggest fear that Slim heard from her bloggers was “I am 35, divorced, and living in a van down by the river”. This pretty much sums up the fear that most people have before starting a business and that is failing miserably and losing everything, including friends, family, and partners. She refers to these fears as “Lizard Fears”. This just means that our deepest levels of our brains tell us to stay fed and avoid danger. Sometimes these fears can get out of hand and be extremely disproportional to your level of risk involved. Slim advises new entrepreneurs to realize when it’s a lizard fear and if it is not, facing them and finding out the root of the fear.
Detox from Corporate Life
Much trough out our lives we are told that our passions are not “appropriate” or see others around us conforming to a safe cookie-cutter life. This ultimately causes us to chain up our “inner tiger”. Slim believes that we are each born with a strong, creative spirit that wants to learn and grow, but because of what society deems appropriate we keep it chained up. This can be counterproductive for someone who wants to start a business. Slim says that you must first thaw out your soul to get the creative juices flowing again. She suggests clearing your busy time schedule so that you can allow yourself more time to work on your new venture. This could mean cutting volunteer time or less kids’ activities. We also tend to think we know it all and this can cause us to miss out on a ton of new and interesting information. Slim talks about resetting your mind to “beginner”; this means looking at things with an open, nonjudgmental mind. Once you have done this you are ready to open the flood gates so to speak. Find out what moves you. Try new things, start exercising, take a vacation.
What’s Really Involved in Moving from Employee to Entrepreneur?
Slim uses a great analogy of the move from employee to entrepreneur; she compares the move to jumping off of a cliff. This is where a lot of our extreme fears stem from. To ease this feeling and help dissipate some of these fears Slim shares some typical steps she has found in her own experiences:
First there is the moment of reckoning. This can be physical signs from one’s body or from a child’s fear of losing you. Whatever it is you must feel deep inside that it’s worth the time.
Next, find out what makes you purr. Find your sweet spot: what will people pay you to do, that which you have great passion for, that which you are genetically encoded to do.
Creating a picture of your ideal life will also help give you direction in your ventures. You can create a life plan at http://www.escapefromcubicalnation.com/book
Find your business needle in the haystack and don’t be plagued by negative thoughts.
Figure out your money. This is where you will insure you don’t end up in that van down by the river! Two good tips are to have six to twelve months of living expenses saved and conserve money like crazy in the beginning.
Creating your brand. Never be afraid to stand out among your competitors. Generic brands are boring and often over looked.
Develop your network or “recruiting your tribe” as Slim refers to it.
Is your idea worth quitting your job for? Only one way to find out, test and prototype the heck out of it! Remember this doesn’t have to be on a huge scale either. Want to sell cookies? Put a sign on your lawn “fresh cookies for 50 cents” and see what happens.
Finally, to leap or not to leap? Make your decision and if you do decide to start a new business venture go the distance. Don’t do it half way.
Section II: The Reality of Entrepreneurship
What are All the Ways to be Self-Employed?
First and foremost, whatever you choose to do you must be deeply invested in and passion about it. The good way to figure out your ideal business venture is by looking at key components of your business model:
What do you do? Coaching, training, teaching, cooking, etc.
Why do you do it? Do you do it to help people get over mental blocks? Maybe it is to teach them how to make quick healthy meals.
How do you do it? Do you operate your business: via the Web, in person, over the phone?
Where do you do it?
Whom do you do it with? This refers to identifying your ideal client.
Besides looking at the business model there are also ways to sprinkle extra money into your business. Think “would you like fries with that?”; this is the idea of adding extras to your product/service for a small price.
How do I Choose a Good Business Idea?
Slim starts by reminding us that passion for something and a viable business model are not the same! Even people who are passionate
