Routine will set you free

Manic entrepreneurs have a hard time focusing. When we do focus, it’s like a laser beam, until our ADD kicks in and pulls us to something else.

How do I work with my ADD and actually get thing accomplished? It’s all about routine baby. If I have a schedule and a list of things to do, it helps tremendously with focus and productivity.

Here are some tips I’ve learned through experience:

Schedule everything. If it’s important, schedule it. I actually even schedule time with my kids in the morning. If I didn’t, it might not happen in the am. My morning schedule looks like this:

5am – 6am: Read, write, improve my Italian with Rosetta Stone and catch up on some work/e-mails. I usually get to two out of these four.

6am – 7am: Exercise (I eat way too much, so if I didn’t do this, my fingers would be too fat to type this blog entry). Plus it helps with mental focus throughout the day.

7am – 7:30: Have breakfast with wife and kids.

By 8:15-8:30, I am at The Next Step Magazine offices.

This morning schedule really works for me, partly because I don’t leave it to fate; I schedule it!

Other tips include meetings. Have them! Have a weekly meeting with your management staff, reports, sales staff, etc… But make them as quick as possible. One hour max… That’s the meeting attention span of any manic entrepreneur anyway. I find more frequent, but shorter meetings to be very effective.

Another one: Check email only 2-3 times a day. It keeps you away from the email-quicksand. Also, the less you respond, the less emails you’ll get back!

Last but not least, be a list taskmaster. I am actually a list freak. I prioritize the things that I need to do, and I don’t start #2 until I finish #1. Otherwise, I’d be working on 10 things at once and nothing would get done.

Employee Carpooling

At Next Step Publishing, we have 13 employees. Our office is in the village of Victor but much of the team is from the west side. We're talkin' Greece, Spencerport, Hilton and even Clarkson!

Needless to say, I am honored that they make the drive every day to Next Step. They are talented people that can certainly find jobs elsewhere, but choose to make the haul and contribute to the magic that is Next Step.

It hasn't been easy with the gas prices of late.

Lately, I am very proud of a decision that three of them made. They have decided to carpool! I love the maturity of this decision. Not only are they saving money and fossil fuels, but they are subtlety telling the rich oil mongers to kiss off! Plus from what I hear, there is some bonding happening in the car too.

This is a great example of what America used to be. We would react and sacrifice in times of trouble. For many years now, most Americans have lived in excess without thoughts of the consequences. We'll, the consequences are here my friend and it's time for us to work together and think. This will involve conservation and sacrifice.

Thanks to Jan, Lisa and Diana for the great example!

Bloggin' for Inc. Magazine!

Yea baby!

The people over at Inc. Magazine liked my blog so much (or was it my dogged/annoying persistence?) that they have chosen my to be a blogger for their site!

So, starting soon, I'll have entries at http://www.inc.com/blogs/ too.

My thanks go out to Bo Burlingham, editor at large at Inc. Magazine. I met Bo last year and we have become friends. He hooked me up the appropriate people there and voila, I'm blogging for Inc. So thanks Bo!

I am really excited. My blog will continue to focus on my experiences as a bootstrapped, grassroots entrepreneur, who has to rely on the creativity, passion and loyalty of a great staff, rather than gobs of investor money.

It’s more fun that way anyway!

Sears - No More in 10 Years

I predict that Sears will no longer exist in 10 years.

Question - have they updated their stores in the last 25 years? I am guessing no. If I ever feel like having a flashback of my Garanimal/Toughskin years of the 70’s, all I need to do is to take a stroll through their isles.

I can almost hear the theme of The Brady Bunch…Oh no wait, that’s The Partridge Family. Sorry.

Anyway, I say this not only because of the polyester plaid pants memories they induce, but because of their lack of customer service. Have you been there lately? Excuse my French, but it sucks! It almost like they don’t care.

The only time I enter Sears is for their portrait studio. Let me rephrase that – The only time I entered Sears was for their portrait studio. I have small kids, and my wife bought one of those “Super Saver” discount cards. Seemed like a good deal at the time…

I dreaded every time it was Sears photo time. They have one static camera bolted to the ground and the photographer is usually someone whose past photography experience is taking a photo of her friends at a recent high school party. I am willing to bet their employment ads say “No Experience Necessary.”

My kids were always a nightmare at the photo shoot because they wouldn’t sit still for their huge, non-moving camera. Ok, you could say this was my fault but doesn’t a talented photographer know how to make kids have fun during the photo session?

I would always bring my rosary beads and pray hard for just one photo to come out acceptable. Most of them usually had my daughter crying while my son was darting out of the photo area because he saw a germ infested teddy bear on the shelf that he wanted to play with.

Many times there would be a good three second period when both kids looked like angels. My wife and I would scream at the “photographer,” “TAKE IT! TAKE IT NOW!”

Inevitably she would be three seconds too late and the great photo turned into my daughter crying and my son darting away.

I used to have to change my cloths upon return home from those sessions because of all the sweat I created. The question always was, “Do I change my clothes before or after the stiff drink?”

Now, let me get back to why I think Sears is going bye-bye. First of all, I can’t understand why someone would go to Sears today instead of Target or Wal-Mart for the department store aspect of it and Home Depot or Lowes, for the home improvement aspect of it. Maybe price? Actually, that’s why we chose the portrait studio. But, people want more than price; they want service too. And they also don’t want to feel like it’s 1977.

Here’s a recent example of Sears pending demise. My wife showed up last week, as a walk-in, to get the kids’ photos taken. Sears says that walk-ins are welcome, so my wife actually believed it.

It was 10:45am. The woman apologized and said that she would not be able to take her in because of an 11:30 appointment. That was 45 minutes. More than enough time to endure the torture, right?

Wrong. The woman said that the photos could be taken within that time, but she would need more time to choose the photos and order. My wife said, “Ok, let’s take the photos now and then I’ll come back later to choose and order.”

The minion at the desk apologized again and said that it was not possible. Everything had to be done at once.

Wow, really hungry for that business, eh? These kind of dictates come from the “leaders” above her. And I can tell these “leaders” are really in touch with their customers. So accommodating…NOT. They might want to send their resumes to North Korea after Sears closes. I am sure Kim Jong needs some mindless, emotionless enforcers for his regime.

So, did my wife get mad? More like happy. You know why? Because after she stormed out of there, she walked around the mall and found a place called Portrait Simple. She walked-in and they were happy to see her. They kindly invited her in, made the kids smile and immediately started taking awesome photos. The photographer was a pro, not only in photography, but in customer service.

My wife said the kids actually had fun.

And the photographer did not have a camera bolted to the ground; rather a camera that she held, so was therefore able to move around and take tons of photos at will. The photos turned out great. We walked in yesterday to take more; as a family.

Portrait Simple is true to their name. The actually should be called Portrait Simple, Fun and Great Service.

They have new customers called the Mammano Family.

At Sears, you HAVE to take six different poses, otherwise they won’t sell you anything. I have a friend whose child is autistic, and wouldn’t sit still for the six Sears shots. The kid ran out after the third. Guess what? The mother was not allowed to buy ANY of the shots because her child did not complete the six poses. So instead of selling a mother lots of great shots from the first (only) three, she was forced to storm out, empty handed and massively upset.

Now this is just plain stupidity. When people are trying to give a company money and they won’t take it, well, that’s usually the beginning of the end.

Guess how may poses Portrait Simple requires you to take. None. It’s like they studied what Sears has been doing wrong in their portrait studio and decided to do the exact opposite.

I think Richard Warren Sears, founder of Sears must be shedding a tear.

Employee Volunteering

At the beginning of this year, I asked myself, "How can I support the Rochester community better and also support my employees’ desire to get involved."

The answer was simple. Pay for them to volunteer!

In today's nutty world, it's hard to find/make time to volunteer. So my thought was that my team works during the day anyway and since these hours are already accounted for, why not let them use this time to give back if they want to.

So I gave everyone a paid week per year to go and volunteer in our community.

It doesn't have to be a week in a row nor do they have to use the whole week. They don't even have to do it at all. It's all up to them.

But at least I support it if they want to.

It's been quite the success so far. Some of our employees signed up for Junior Achievement, others are helping at Camp Good Days and Special Times, Literacy Volunteers and Rotary Sunshine Camp.

The benefits are tremendous. The organization in need is helped by our volunteers, the volunteering Next Stepper feels great to give back and I am pumped that I get to do this for everyone! We set up a volunteer wall in our office and post opportunities to get involved. Plus we encourage our team to post photos of their experience.

The world needs a lot of help but it's all starts right here in our own back yard. As the old Indian proverb says, "A thousand mile journey begins with one step."

Do you have a protégé?

You have spent years following your dream and now you have created an awesome reality for yourself and others to enjoy. You also made some mistakes along the way too...

Why not share your past experiences and current knowledge with a protégé?

There are millions of dreamers starting a new journey today down an unknown path. The first steps are always filled with excitement but laced with fear and anxiety. Will the next step be on solid ground or a hole? Or a cliff?!

This journey is especially dangerous for a first time entrepreneur. Approximately 75% of new businesses fail their first year. It's a tough gig to create revenue, cash flow, sales, a new product, manage employees, regulations, taxes, etc... And if you have no experience with these things, it's easy to drown quickly.

Have you made it through this storm and lived to see year two? Year five? More?
Are you sharing this experience with a protégé?

I have been blessed. I have made it to year 13 so far.

Am I a genius? Far from... Someday I'll share my SAT scores for proof.

I was a B student but had a good work ethic. I always say I’m not that smart, I just work my tail off.

So how did I make it? It was a variety of things. A good idea, my dogged persistence, my sales ability but most of all, I have an uncanny ability to hire well. I surround myself with A players who complement or enhance my abilities.

Was it always smooth sailing? Yea, right. Of course not. Birthing a baby is not always pretty and either is birthing a business. You pray for beauty but it starts out messy!

It still gets messy but it's easier with a great team and 13 years of experience and momentum behind me.

Here's my point - I have learned a ton.

I have learned from my successes and my mistakes.

In my opinion, it would be a sin if I did not share these experiences with new entrepreneurs. If my experiences can help an entrepreneur create something beautiful, why wouldn't I try to help?

Recently I have taken this responsibility to a new level - commitment. I now view helping new entrepreneurs as a duty to give back. I have been blessed with a great business and an incredible work family. So, I have decided to add structure to my commitment to give back. Yes structure. That's a hard word for an entrepreneur to swallow, but in this case it's easy.

You see, I get something from helping them too - energy!

I have made myself available to four young entrepreneurs. They all know they can meet, call or email me anytime and I will be there to listen. I actually have a scheduled weekly call with one of them. She provides the agenda in advance and we go through it together.

Here is my current protégé line-up:

Marita Greenidge - a U of R Simon School student from Barbados who is launching a Barbados business magazine when she graduates. Marita and I have the weekly call together.

Joe Norman - graduating from SUNY Geneseo this month and is the Co-Founder and Editor in Chief of The VIP Profiles - http://notableandnewsworthy.blogspot.com/. He has some big ideas for the future that I am helping him cultivate.

Maria Pascucci - President & Founder of Campus Calm - http://www.campuscalm.com/ Maria is an incredible young entrepreneur and is helping young people in college manage stress.

Brenda (last name withheld) - Brenda still has her "real" job so she can't go public with her idea just yet. I am helping her develop a great idea for a new magazine. She has discovered a niche that is not yet being covered. That's hard to do these days!

And I talk to many others randomly per month.

I make time for these people. Yes, I am crazy busy but like I said, I view it as my duty to share my blessings. I have intellectual venture capital to invest!

Plus the more I give of myself, the more I get. I feel incredibly energized and jazzed after talking with these new journey takers!

Now I ask you. Who are you going to help today?

Be on the cover of a national magazine!

Next Step Magazine, a Rochester, NY-based national college-planning magazine for high school students, is looking for cover model volunteers. Think you've got what it takes? Send a head shot, name and age to Laura at editor@nextSTEPmag.com by MAY 2. We're looking for all types of looks, so don't hesitate to apply!

Or do you know someone that should apply? Pass this message on to them!