“If you don’t take that step, you’re never going to be able to do it.”
In the 42nd episode of the Inspiring Innovation Podcast, we are joined by Cahill Puil, an entrepreneur and a fitness buff, who shares with us his eCommerce success story — from the initial idea, to making it a life changing reality that’s making an approximate $250,000 in annual revenue.
But before anything else, what’s the product?
LapDawg is a mini laptop table that is adjustable and can be used on a couch, on your bed or when you are lying down somewhere. It is designed to keep your laptop in a specific angle that will help you use it even when you’re forced to lie down while you’re sick and have to check your emails or even watch a movie.
“We came up with an idea from a situation. I think that’s the way most ideas happen.”
Cahill Puil
Cahill talks about how they did the research online through various websites, looking for a product similar to what they had in mind, finding none with all the specifics they wanted and eventually going to the Canton Fair in China, the biggest trade fair in the world, to find a manufacturer that can make their idea for LapDawg into a reality.
During the interview, he shares the process of creating a product from the ground up. He talks about how long LapDawg had been running, how long it took from an idea to become a tangible product, and the meticulous process it goes through before the product is ready to hit the market.
He also went on to share what he learned regarding manufacturing and how finally putting the product out in the market actually scared him.
“It’s okay to not know. It’s okay to be a little bit scared and nervous about it”
Just like most entrepreneurs that are beset with fears, Cahill shares his experience in overcoming his fears in launching a new product into the market, as well as the pains and efforts he took in making sure the product is as he and his partners thought it would be.
He pointed out the importance of knowing your product from the inside out and testing it, which will help market it with confidence. He also added that it’s alright to diversify and not to limit yourself to just one niche once you’ve already figured out the process of going from idea to manufacturing it.
Overestimate. Diversify. Reassess. Test.
By travelling numerous times to China and the South East, outsourcing and importing products for his e-commerce project and small businesses, Cahill and his partners have accumulated quite an extensive knowledge in manufacturing and project management. They learned how to create safe and realistic expectations — expecting 4-12 months in order to break-even before profiting — and having a very conservative estimate to alleviate disappointments and frustrations.
Listen to today’s episode for the full story – only on Inspiring Innovation; your backstage pass to success.
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Just a year ago I met Jared at Pat Flynn’s meetup in Vegas. A year later – he hosts the podcasting sensation, ‘Starve The Doubts‘, where he already featured amazing guests (like Seth Godin) and now – he’s an NMX speaker!
The Answers!
What are the must-read books for entrepreneurs in 2014?
Srini: I recommend Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries by Peter Sims. It’s all about how doing small things can lead to bigger things; taking affordable loses (things that won’t bankrupt you or leave you destitute) approach to the risk and innovation. Anybody who does creative work should have this book in their arsenal.
Meron: I recommend The Pumpkin Plan: A Simple Strategy to Grow a Remarkable Business In Any Field of Mike Michalowicz, which tells the concept of kicking out the ‘best practice’ – of trying to get tons of customers, and realizing that you don’t need tons; you just need the right customers that are like you. You want only the customers that you understand, and understand you. That’s how you make a business that makes you happy and not just makes you money.
What podcasts should an entrepreneur follow in 2014?
Srini: I recommend Off Camera by Sam Jones; Jones interviews comedians, musicians, filmmakers and people like Tony Hawk and Stacy Peralta — a bizarre mix of people you don’t typically find in the online world.
Meron: Mixergy, a must-listen podcast for any entrepreneur.
What’s one thing that really worked for you in 2013, that entrepreneurs should try in order to make 2014 work for them?
Jared: First is the simple act of doing. Go ahead and take that step because no one wins by sitting on the sidelines; you have to get in the game. You may not have all the answers but just thinking about your current job or business, you didn’t have the answers when you first started that. You were either mentored or asked questions to people who knew and you learned. As you learned, you get to be competent; you’ll figure things out and you shift and pivot along the way.
Second, Consider being the “noticer“. If you can first notice other people, there’s a likelihood that those people will begin to notice what you’re doing, and the law of reciprocity will eventually kick in. So, for people who are trying to build an audience or trying to grow their brand, consider ways that you can notice your prospect first and that will have a powerful opportunity to build up into a rapport-building relationship which can then grow to be a client or customer.
David: Get a business coach or get someone to mentor you, especially if you feel a bit stuck, not quite sure, you’ve been trying and been going at it for awhile, but things haven’t been quite fallen into place, I think sometimes you need a bit of outside perspective that can help get you on track.
Srini: Write a thousand words a day. It’s done wonders for me. Don’t think of it as a task or a to-do, think of it as a habit. To learn how to form this habit – check out The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg [we go through Srini’s habit cue, routine and reward loop in the episode – MB].
The thousand words don’t have to be good. By creating all these crap, you’ll be able to find gold.
Meron: Figuring out who’s your avatar, who are you really talking to. This helped me immensely realize what I can offer them and what do they really need. Once I did that, the resonance multiplied by a huge factor.
What’s the one thing you’ll focus on in 2014?
Srini: The Instigator Experience, the conference we’re doing that will make a lasting impact and complete other things.
Meron: Shipping. I need to stop worrying about if things will do well or not – just ship and find out. The focus is going to be to get things out the door.
Jared: Shipping, too. I have a product launch coming out and I wanted to do more meet-ups. I see the power of meeting face-to-face and at this point in the game for me — I’m just new and don’t have a massive audience yet — that just makes sense to continue to do that: Strategic alignment with key people just like Inspiring Innovation — bringing people together and learning from them, he’s going to do that as well.
David: The plan is to focus on the App market, create bigger apps and games, and also pre-empt some adjacent services which will be offered to app developers.
Final words…
Srini: Really, at the end of the day, it just boils down to your tolerance for risk. The more you keep upping the ante and the more you keep trying bigger things, the more interesting outcomes you’ll get. The other thing you have to realize is it’s not just about winning, but also learning. If you do something and it doesn’t work and you learn and develop a skill that you can lead on to something else, that can be tremendously useful.
Jared: Read ‘Little Bets’, read ‘Flourish’ and listen to ‘Mixergy’!
David: A lot of people are focused on finding their passion and can be paralyzing sometimes. It’s great to find something you are passionate about – if you manage to.
I think it’s better to focus on doing and seizing opportunities that you see. Sometimes passion comes later; you can find passion in what you’re doing. If you really want to leave your job and start a business, then just start even if it’s not perfect. That might give you the opportunity to leave your job and later down the track, do something that you’re really passionate about once you already have the funds and can do that more easily.
Meron: This quote: “I won’t let anybody walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” –Gandhi
Look, you hear these podcasts, read these books and blogs, have all these inspiration and then someone close to you — friends or family or whatever — somebody just crushes your confidence. If you want 2014 to be amazing, you really need to resist that.
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If you haven’t already, I would love if you could be awesome and take a minute to leave a quick rating and review of the podcast on iTunes by clicking on the link below! It’s the most amazing way to help the show grow and reach more people!
Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you, and I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase.
Herb gardens… New Year resolutions… getting fit…and …
Making things happen in 2014!
It’s our last episode for 2013, so it’s time for some good ol’ new year’s resolutions …
Or is it?
A New Angle On New Year Resolutions
Today’s episode starts with unexpected lessons learned from… my herb garden.
Wait, what?
Julie and I always wanted to have a herb garden. We imagined ourselves making peppermint and lemon grass tea, using rosemarie, sage and green onion for cooking, the whole sha-bang. So we finally planted one in 2013 (I know, you probably can’t contain the excitement! Read on 🙂 .)
So on today’s episode you will find out what our garden taught us about life, and why it made me revisit the way I do my new year resolutions. You’d be surprised what mother nature can show you :).
The episode goes on to some reflections on the year that’s ending; What worked? What were my shortcomings? What to do when your year ends up so far away from your original plan that the seem ridiculous?
Then I share my plans for the first three months of 2014, which I’d love your input on, and I’d love to hear YOUR PLANS! Let’s keep each other accountable. (Come to think of it, it’s one thing I forgot to mention in this episode – the accountability factor.)
And of course, as always, we are joined by a very interesting guest.
Today’s Guest: The 12-Minute Athlete – Krista Stryker, HIIT Superhero
My guest today has a lot to celebrate as this year comes to a close.
Krista Stryker is the founder and creator of ’12-Minute Athlete’, which started as a website filled with effective workouts you can do at home that take….12 minutes! (Hence, the 12-minute athlete.)
Krista Stryker – The 12 Minute Athlete
Instead of spending hours in the gym with all the fancy equipment, Krista claims you can be just as fit by doing high intensity interval training (abbreviated HIIT) from your own home. Stressing on the phrase: “Don’t waste life in a gym,” Krista shows us why we don’t really need to go to the gym to workout, and why our workout doesn’t need to take so much of our time.
She launched her business in October 2012, and 2013 was a major year of growth for her. I think she’s the perfect guest to end 2013 with, and here’s why:
If you’re anything like me – you probably have “Getting into shape” or something similar in your bucket list for the coming year. If you’re much like me – you’re already dreading the idea of signing up to that gym, or of making the time needed to accomplish this goal.
Which is why Krista is the perfect guest. Following her motto – “Don’t waste life in a gym” – her training regime only requires 12 minutes of hard work, every couple of days. Sounds like a sweet proposition to me!
I think that new year’s eve is the best time to celebrate one’s achievements, and just completing her first year with 12-Minute Athlete, Krista has a lot to share and celebrate!
Having only completing her first year, she has a lot of fresh lessons and tips to share, that I hope will help you make 2014 YOUR ENTREPRENEURIAL YEAR!
The different struggles and choices she had to make are familiar and very relatable to any entrepreneur. Listen to today’s episode to find out:
Episode Highlights
What can a herb garden teach you about business?
Why I ditched new year resolutions.
How did Krista get started once she had her idea?
Krista’s tips from her first year as online fitness entrepreneur.
The power of a mastermind, and how can you get into one?
How to start networking.
Our do’s and don’ts for those attending NMX (or any conference for that matter)
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Become an Inspiring Innovation VIP Founding Member
The Inspiring Innovation VIP member club has opened up, and the founding members that join now will get a lifetime free membership. The club will give you:
Direct access to the show’s guests. You ask them anything you want – they answer on the interview.
Exclusive episodes, content and tools
Early access to the weekly episodes.
Imagine being able to ask people like Pat Flynn, Dane Maxwell, and Krista anything you want, and have them personally answer you. If you’re interested, hurry up to make sure you will be part of the founding members wave. Join here.
Stay awesome,
Meron
Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you, and I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase.
“I need independence. You can’t have independence if you’re an employee.”
The only way to be really, truly independent – is to become an entrepreneur.
However, it’s not hard to quit the 9-5 job and become one, not to mention – a successful one! And more so when there are bills to pay and mouths to feed. It seems that the longer you wait, the harder, up to impossible, it becomes.
One Questions That I Keep Getting That Today’s Interview Tries To Answer
I’ve received several comments from Inspiring Innovation VIP Members that said: “All the stories on the show are so inspiring, but I’m almost 50, have a wife, a dog, and 4 kids – I don’t have the time to start something, nor the ability to handle the decrease of income!”
I get that. Which is why I’m so happy to have Bernd Geropp on the show today.
Leaving Corporate at 46 To An Entrepreneurship Career Supercharged By New Media
Bernd Geropp
How did Bernd, an electrical engineer from Germany, leave his position at the corporate he’s been serving for almost ten years, and became a market leading leadership coach?
Turns out it IS possible to become an entrepreneur at any age, no matter how many liabilities you have. Especially if you can supercharge your marketing with the latest new media tools.
Listen to today’s episode for all the details, including:
Episode Highlights
How one of Bernd’s early entrepreneurship ventures almost led him to bankruptcy, and how that affected him in leaving the corporate life at an older age. How it affected his planning, willingness and tolerance to risk, and attitude? (You’d be surprised! It’s not the common, “I’ve been there once so I know there’s nothing to fear from”!)
How he bridged the gap between 9-5 job and entrepreneurship – with the support of the company he was about to leave.
Finding the balance between moonlighting in order to start your own business, and burning the ships at shore and taking more risk than you’re ready to take.
How Bernd used new media like blogs, YouTube, and especially podcasting to build a name, a brand, and most important – a business. He doesn’t have to cold-call anymore, and it’s all because of new media!
Today’s episode is a reminder that it doesn’t matter how late in life you decide to enter (or re-enter) entrepreneurship, it’s always possible.
Have Questions For Bernd?
If you have any questions to Bernd, leave them as comments to this post, and I guarantee he will answer!
Using something else? Copy this address: ––– http://www.meronbareket.com/feed/podcast/ –––
Become an Inspiring Innovation VIP Founding Member
The Inspiring Innovation VIP member club has opened up, and the founding members that join now will get a lifetime free membership. The club will give you:
Direct access to the show’s guests. You ask them anything you want – they answer on the interview.
Exclusive episodes, content and tools
Early access to the weekly episodes.
Imagine being able to ask people like Pat Flynn, Dane Maxwell, and Bernd anything you want, and have them personally answer you. If you’re interested, hurry up to make sure you will be part of the founding members wave. Join here.
Stay awesome,
Meron
Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you, and I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase.
Even if your blog has little traffic, you still have a lot of influence. Bloggers are the celebrities of today and tomorrow, and brands are willing to pay you for your influence. And now, there’s an easy way to have them find you.
Blog Monetization In 2014
This week we are joined by Dino Dogan, CEO of Triberr. On Dino’s previous appearance on the show, he managed to mention Hitler and Steve Jobs in the same sentence and sparked a lot of attention. That was episode 11: How To Get More Attention To Your Blog And Make Your Fans Insanely Loyal
Dino Dogan – CEO of Triberr
Now, Dino is back to share a lot of very interesting bits that will be a part of his session for the upcoming NMX 2014 in Las Vegas this January, and I wanted you to be the first to know.
What’s Today’s Session All About?
For more than two years, Dino and his team at Triberr have gone through lengths in discovering and sharing new ways and strategies to help bloggers create powerful content distribution by closely collaborating with other bloggers, sharing each others content, and building tribes that scale quickly and massively.
For example: I’m a member of a tribe that has 12 members, but the compound audience reach is over 362,000 people. This has been an incredibly powerful tool for many bloggers, and now Triberr have taken it to the next step.
From the big brands’ point of view, a single blogger with a moderate-to-low audience doesn’t make much of a difference. His reach is not big enough. But what happened when you put 10, 20, 50 or a 100 in one tribe, with specific goals and milestones to achieve? Suddenly these bloggers — together — can move the needle even for Nike!
And that’s the future that just went live on Triberr: Brand campaigns. It’s kind of like Kickstarter in reverse; instead of raising money, brands are raising awareness by building a campaign tribe of bloggers, podcasts, YouTubers, etc. that will be their brand ambassadors and create word of mouth for them.
While a single blogger previously had no chance of getting paid by brands like Godiva’s, Cottonelle, TOMS Shoes or Almay — when he creates his bargaining power by collaborating with other bloggers — he gets attention, AND money. This is not wishful thinking; this is what has been happening on Triberr over the last few months, according to Dogan.
The Best Part (A.K.A. Episode Highlights)
You can start getting paid for your blog even if you don’t have massive traffic numbers
It doesn’t cost you a penny.
Not only do you get paid, but you also get tons of shares and social media boost from all your other tribe-mates.
You get the social proof of being a paid brand ambassador. That’s great both for shushing your family, but also for how your blog is perceived by other bloggers, your readership, and future sponsors.
It’s FREE!! Have I mentioned that? 🙂
How Can You Start?
To know more, tune in to this week’s exciting episode (the play button is at the top). After you learn all the details, join the Inspiring Innovation Tribe and introduce yourself. Dino & I are looking forward to see you there. 🙂
Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you, and I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase.
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