PROVIDE A SOLUTION
I am on my soapbox today, so here goes one of my pet peeves. I enjoy hearing successful people tell about what they did wrong and what they did right to make their business grow. Often, however, the statements are conclusory and do not give any real guidance on how to avoid the same mistake, or achieve the same positive results. "My advice to you today is to start a successful business, run it at optimal capacity and sell it for loads of cash."
I was recently at a luncheon where a panel of 5 successful entrepreneurs discussed their ventures. The moderator asked each where they had made mistakes. Four of the five indicated that they had spent too much time chasing "the wrong kind of funding." I was determined that if I ever started a company that needed outside funds, I would not waste time chasing the wrong type of funding. The only problem is that the comments gave no guidance on idea how to determine what the wrong kind of funding is. Thus, I will not know how to avoid making the same mistake until after I have already made it. A few examples or an advice on picking the right funding would have been helpful.
In contrast to the funding comments, one of the panelist provided an interesting solution to his company's problem of hiring mistakes. He indicated that he had made several hires where the employee's skill set did not match their resumes. The problem was resolved by creating a testing protocol to ensure people had the right skill set and having one of the women at the company interview the candidate. Experience had shown that the female employees were better able to get a feel for the person and were less swayed by an impressive (potentially padded) resume. The proposed solution got me thinking. How can I be more effective in the hiring process. Don't be surprised if all of your job interviews are conducted by women in the near future.
To successful entrepreneurs who are asked to speak - when you tell of challenges you faced in your business, give of examples of what you did (wrong or right) to correct the problems, and give suggestions on how up and comings can avoid making the same mistakes.
I was recently at a luncheon where a panel of 5 successful entrepreneurs discussed their ventures. The moderator asked each where they had made mistakes. Four of the five indicated that they had spent too much time chasing "the wrong kind of funding." I was determined that if I ever started a company that needed outside funds, I would not waste time chasing the wrong type of funding. The only problem is that the comments gave no guidance on idea how to determine what the wrong kind of funding is. Thus, I will not know how to avoid making the same mistake until after I have already made it. A few examples or an advice on picking the right funding would have been helpful.
In contrast to the funding comments, one of the panelist provided an interesting solution to his company's problem of hiring mistakes. He indicated that he had made several hires where the employee's skill set did not match their resumes. The problem was resolved by creating a testing protocol to ensure people had the right skill set and having one of the women at the company interview the candidate. Experience had shown that the female employees were better able to get a feel for the person and were less swayed by an impressive (potentially padded) resume. The proposed solution got me thinking. How can I be more effective in the hiring process. Don't be surprised if all of your job interviews are conducted by women in the near future.
To successful entrepreneurs who are asked to speak - when you tell of challenges you faced in your business, give of examples of what you did (wrong or right) to correct the problems, and give suggestions on how up and comings can avoid making the same mistakes.
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