TwosWrite things down

Heard from Gird (@Girdley)

Heard from Gird (@Girdley)

by Joe · 175 things on Twos

Advice gathered from @girdley on Twitter.
Follow here: https://twitter.com/girdley
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Vary your exercise types a lot.
5 categories of risks when you start (or invest) in a company.
TECHNOLOGY RISK
"Can we actually build this thing?"
"Can we build this thing at a price people will pay?"
MARKET RISK
"Will anyone want to pay for this?"
If we, for example, decide to build toys in the US because Chinese models have chemicals in them.
But the cost is 4x to build them in the USA.
Your risk is a market one -- both in terms of finding (marketing) and selling.
FINANCING RISK
"Is there enough capital to pursue this idea?"
Take Uber, for example.
That business could not have been built except in an environment of loads of venture capital.
Or if bootstrapping, can we afford to run this business until it gets cash flow positive?
REGULATORY RISK
"Will regulations end our business?"
This is where the risk in Cannabis startups, for example, was concentrated.
Yes, people want marijuana. Yes, it can be grown cheap.
Would the feds cut off the lifeblood for these ventures?
That was the risk.
EXECUTION RISK
"Can this team actually deliver?"
Some companies have wife-husband teams.
Many investors hate them because they're a higher risk of blowing up.
In this example, you can mitigate the risk, not avoid it— but also listen closely for how strong the marriage is.
7 systems that are the best at solving the problems every business has
https://tinyurl.com/GetAGrip12
Process/strategy/vision/organizational design
https://tinyurl.com/StoryBrand121
Uses the same Hero's Journey (think Star Wars) that resonates with everyone.
Then turns that into highly effective marketing.
https://tinyurl.com/TopGrading12
Takes all the common, broken ideas in hiring and does the opposite.
Personality assessments
Unlike Meyers-Briggs, DISC, etc -- it's scientifically backed.
So you can use it in hiring.
It's also valuable as you try to "meet your employees where they are."
https://tinyurl.com/TheUltimateQuestion12
All the customer satisfaction systems are broken.
NPS is just the least broken one.
https://tinyurl.com/FirstBreakAllTheRules12
This is the contrarian's guide to being a manager.
Based on studies of productive managers, they developed best practices.
Ex: should a manager spend more time with a-players or the weak ones?
Don't tell everyone all your trade secrets ;)
Pick one thing. Do it right. Keep making it better.
Are there times to broaden scope beyond laser focus? Of course.
But media isn’t the place to do that in today’s environment.
Niche focus wins. The more niche the better.
Most critical questions you ask yourself before starting up
Does anyone want to buy what we're selling?
Can we profitably make them aware of it?
Can we execute on it profitably?
Will it be fun?
The simple system to set big goals -- and stay on track for years.
10-year goal
I start with picking a 10-year goal.
Here are the rules:
has to be one number like earnings, etc or a state like "retired"
has to be a bit scary but achievable
has to be measurable
Good examples:
“Be worth $X mm” or “Retired with $Xk fixed income”
3-year goal
Next, I write a "vivid vision" of my desired life in 3 years if I'm on track for that 10-year goal.
It's a bulleted list of everything.
Earnings, relationships, living situation, cash flow, vacations, etc.
Each of those is defined by a number if possible.
1-year goal
Then I say, "If I want to achieve the 3-year vision and be on track for the 10-year, what do I need to accomplish this year?"
Then I write down the S.M.A.R.T. goals I need to do this year to be on track.
Critical: No more than 7 goals.
S.M.A.R.T. Goals
This is an acronym for how you write effective goals.
S=Specific
M=Measurable
A=Actionable
R=Realistic
T=Time-bound
So, "I will climb Mount Everest this year" is S.M.A.R.T. except for the A=achievable part cause I am old AF. :-)
Quarterly goals
Then I break down the 1-year goals into quarterly goals (3 months each).
At the start of each quarter, I set the 3 to 7 SMART goals needed to achieve those 1-year goals.
Then I track the heck out of those most important things to be on track for the year.
===
TLDR
I regret not setting big goals early in my career.
I now use a dead simple personal planning system.
It picks a big 10-year goal defined by one number.
Then creates a 3-year vision, 1 year, and then quarterly goals.
So I'm always on track to achieve big things I want.
“I’m the boss. I can dress however I’d like.”
I think this is a misconception.
You have to dress yourself for the company you want to be.
Unless you’re running a Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, you avoid wearing flip-flops and Hawaiian shirts to a serious business.
Accounting talent is harder to find than software developers these days
Internal Revenue Code Section 1202 "Qualified Small Business Stock"
You make an investment in a C-corporation.
You hold it for 5 years or more.
When it sells, the *greater* of $10 million or 10x your investment is federal capital gains tax-free.
That's it.
Rules
First, the stock must be issued and acquired directly from the company.
Not on a secondary market like a stock exchange or similar marketplace.
And it has to come directly from the company where you invest.
Second, you must have purchased the stock from the company with cash or property.
Though you can also accept it as payment for a service.
And you must NOT be a c-corporation as the investor.
Individuals and things taxed as partnerships qualify (like LLCs, S-corps, LPs, etc).
Third, I know you're thinking:
"Well, I'll just put this building in its own c-corp and sell it tax-free later."
That doesn't work.
>80% of the assets must be for the business or trade of the company.
And only certain types of companies fall under the category of QSBS.
Fourth, firms in the tech, retail, wholesale, and manufacturing sectors are eligible for QSBS.
Hospitality like hotels or motels, personal services like law firms, financial corps, farms, and mining ventures don't qualify.
Attached is from Sec 1202 itself on this.
Fifth, the enterprise value (EV) of the company must have less than a $50mm fair market value when you invest.
That's the size above which the IRS says you're no longer a small business.
Most folks on here should easily be under that when buying/starting a new company.
Sixth, for stock issued after 2010, you get a 100% capital gains tax exclusion up to the $10mm/10x greater of limit.
It stepped up to 100% in the years before 2010.
And, also, there is no limit.
You can do it repeatedly per shareholder with independent corporations!
Just because it looks like the market is "done", there might be something there to try
Especially when the market size is huge.
Everyone sane has imposter syndrome. Just take a deep breath and ignore it. Channel the empty feeling in your tummy towards more focus and giving your all. That’s it.
Make your iPhone less addicting with black and white color filters
To turn on
Settings --> Accessibility
Display and text size
Increase constrast
Color filters --> On
Grayscale
To turn off
Settings --> Accessibility
Accessibility Shortcut
Select color filters / Increase contrast
Triple click the sleep button and tap to turn off/on
6 things to remember before traveling to France
Basic French language learning.
My wife and I like to travel more like locals when going places.
So knowing some of the language helps.
The French were (universally) kind and spoke enough English.
But, ~10 hours of prep would have helped us navigate restaurants, taxis, etc
Hire real, local tour guides if you can.
We used “Tours By Locals”, which is like AirBNB for tours.
Out of the three we did, the two best were (a) food tours with (b) guides very familiar with the USA.
They gave interesting perspectives because of (b).
A little effort goes a long way.
We would try to speak French as much as possible.
Acted kindly and graciously.
Universally, the French responded in kind.
(Kind of surprising given reputations.)
Try to blend in.
I think this is a courtesy as a tourist.
My wife spent some time looking at blogs on street fashion.
We brought the right stuff to dress as the Parisians do.
They knew where we were from, but we felts treated a bit differently.
And it wasn’t much effort.
Ask a chef/foodies for recommendations.
Halfway through the tour, I DMed @themontereySA, a friend+chef from San Antonio.
He spends tons of time in France.
His 5 recommendations not in any guidebook -- all home runs.
If you know someone with experience, hit them up.
Trust Google Reviews.
We learned to escape from the tourist areas for any food or drinks.
Places with great Google Reviews further afield were 100% great.
Seems every English speaker rates stuff!