Building A Business For Financial Independence

Business Planning

Reflection of the Week

Building A Business For Financial Independence

Hey all…happy Friday!

I’m having a lot of conversations about building the business of your dreams. And they made me think a lot about my MDB conversation last year with LaSean Smith.

LaSean is a software developer and business creator on a mission to help businesses and business owners succeed. He spent more than a decade as a software executive at Amazon and Microsoft, where he uncovered patterns of using processes as tools to win in business more often. He now uses those insights to help entrepreneurs launch and sustain bootstrapped businesses.

So, I wanted to send this episode to you all again as a reminder of the importance of building a values-based business and how to do it. LaSean digs deep into what it means to have a values-based business and why owning a business is the most predictable way to achieve financial independence. He also outlines the three-step process that can help any business serving a healthy market to reach $2 million in revenue in five years.

Episode Highlights

Mission-driven businesses are values-based businesses.

LaSean believes that values are the foundation of a successful business. Mission-driven businesses don’t just identify their values, but they also live and breathe them even when times get tough.

“Increasingly, customers are seeking out companies that stand for something,” LaSean said. “If you really want to be a values-driven business, you have to be willing to go out of business to protect those values.”

Move fast or rescope.

How fast you iterate is requisite for building a business, according to LaSean. While big businesses move in months and medium-sized businesses move in weeks, a budding entrepreneur needs to move in a matter of hours. If you can’t break the process down and move that quickly, rescope and reconsider how you’re tackling your problems.

“You have to move that fast because you’re trying to compound faster than anyone else,” LaSean said. “Your doubling rate is critical when you’re starting a business.”

Find your audience first.

Rather than starting a business by building a product, LaSean first recommends focusing on your audience. By talking to 100 potential customers upfront, you can gain valuable insights from those who will ultimately buy your product or service.

“A market requires that you have an audience of people who have a shared problem that is urgent, that is painful and reoccurring, and they have the willingness to find the means to financially pay to solve that problem,” he said.

Audit your life’s minutes.

For more than two years, LaSean has journaled his life through a calendar. Three times per day, he inputs what he’s done so far that day into his digital calendar as an exercise to be more intentional with his time. He challenges others to do the same exercise for 30 days.

“Challenge yourself for 30 days to journal and see how you are spending your time,” he said. “Audit the books of your life minutes and see if there’s a disconnect between where you say you want to go and how you’re actually spending those minutes.”

You can learn more about LaSean and topics in our discussion at the links below.

 

Questions of the Week 

  • Are you willing to go out of business for your values?
  • What process can you move faster on?
  • Have you talked to 100 people about your business or idea?

Tool of the Week

Remember, you can build whatever you want. Try using the Life Map to help build the business of your dreams.

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