The Single Most Important Question You Should Be Asking
Written By: Kyle Musser
When it comes to starting a business or pursuing a _____ (thing) in the Idea Labs, the reality is that you have endless choices for your different creative pursuits. On top of that, there’s a good chance that whatever you set your mind to in the digital age is most likely possible in some way, shape, or form.
If you’ve ever heard the quote…
“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve” — Napoleon Hill 💭
You’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. Over the last 50 0r so years, we’ve seem more innovations that have changed the world that we could (have) ever imagined as we headed into those same years.
And what’s incredible is that we are just at the beginning of these massive shifts with things like…
Virtual Reality,
Nanotechnology,
Integrated Healthcare,
Space Exploration,
And the list goes on.
Going back to Mr. Hill’s laws of success and that idea above, the fact is that there are still going to be naysays that deflect the idea that these are some of the most amazing times ever in human history here in 2016. And in my view, anyone who tries to throw this garbage at you is flat out wrong. 🤓
My advice to you is to just smile, acknowledge them for their input, and stay focused on your future because you don’t want to miss the opportunity’s that are yet to even emerge.
Opportunities like the that fact that the Content Marketing Industry, one that we advocate here in the Digital Agency world is going to be a $300+B Industry by 2019…
And while the possibilities for creation are endless in the digital age, also comes the challenge of filtering out the right opportunities that are going to help move your business (and life) forward in the right direction.
This is where choosing the right opportunities to pursue and executing on the right ideas becomes a real art form.
So even though he was years ahead of his time as far as knowledge and connections in the absence of the digital world, it’s timeless ideas like the one above that provide perspective based on principle.
As entrepreneurs, as creatives, and as someone who wishes to step out and create something of your own, the truth is very simple as Hill puts it…
“You literally can do anything that you can dream of.” 💭
Whether you’re creating the next Tesla Motors or SpaceX like Elon Musk, working on leading the XPRIZE like Peter Diamandis, or you are sitting on your couch, in a friends dorm room or in a coffee shop, the fact is we all have a creative genius waiting inside of us ready to be unleashed.
And while this is an amazing thing for you and the world around us in terms of new ideas, the fact is that this is also a dangerous and powerful position to be in.
Think about it, if we all have endless possibilities to create a _______ (thing), then how does someone (especially a new creative) ever really go deep enough to create mastery?
The answers are quite simple…
Lots of people preach the power of self-awareness and the need for work ethic as an entrepreneur. And I personally can attest that both of these are necessary requirements if you want to create massive success in any area of your life.
Specifically when it comes to starting and growing a successful business.
That’s why I wanted to share a couple specific Idea Labs experiences in my mid-20’s that lead to The Single Most Important Question You Should Be Asking…
If you’ve ever thought to yourself,
“Man, I wish I could go back and give myself some advice about X, Y, Z, etc.”
Then you’re definitely not alone.
First startup fail (lesson) on my end is an idea which I called Spiro-To-Go.
This was a project that was inspired as part of a venture capital class I was taking during my super senior year while at Michigan State.
I’d hustled my way into not only business school at MSU (after being denied 2 times), but also this class that was a mix of MBA students and undergrads.
As part of the class deliverables, we had to come up with a pitch for a product and present it in front of the class as part of our final project. So not only was I scared to death of public speaking, I had never actually gone all in down the pathway of unlimited profits by pursuing the calling of becoming an entrepreneur.
But needless to say, I was excited about the opportunity to one up the MBA students and show Ms. Fluckk that I meant business.
After putting together this beautiful pitch deck… aka Powerpoint deck, I nervously headed up in front of the class where sweat profusely poured down my face in fear of what the feedback was going to be from my fellow classmates.
Then, shortly after the pitch, visual demo, and Q&A… I thought to myself,
“Ok, what’s next?” 💭
Given that I had not a damn clue what I was doing, and the fact that I had already sealed an internship for the summer and a full time consulting offer afterward… I choose (without realizing) to put my entrepreneurial dreams on hold until I was “ready”.
Summer came and quickly passed full of new friends, lots of beers, and days in my internship where I constantly felt the pull to still pursue my own path.
All while Spiro-2-Go was left sitting idle in the Idea Labs and my expectations of my summer internship fell completely flat. Let’s just say they over promised and very much so under-delivered in terms of the actual work experience.
So while it was cool that I got to fly on the owners private jet and meet some amazing business leaders, what wasn’t cool was the lack of direction and the connection the work.
After deciding not to go after an offer working for them, I was now all in on a new season of life and a big move to the East coast where the world of hedge funds, summer houses in the Hamptons, and nights out in NYC awaited.
And whether I had intended to or not, I had made yet another micro-decision to delay my entrepreneurial dreams. Which needless to say, pursuing the “security and opportunity” of corporate consulting was a huge disappointment for many reasons (more on this later).
But one thing that was still driving me was the need to constantly be learning, growing, connecting, and influencing others along the path.
When I got settled in out in Connecticut, I realize quickly that the entrepreneurial pull was still very real.
Doing quick research while I was supposed to be “Working”, I saw that there was an upcoming Startup Weekend around the corner not too far from where I was living.
Without hesitation, I booked myself a ticket and was excited to re-ignite the entrepreneurial dreams that were still sparked inside of me.
***Side note: If you’re new to business or entrepreneurship, go search a local event out at Startup Weekend. They are exactly the push you need to get moving on an idea…
Come late September and a few weeks into my full-time job, I rented a car for the weekend and commuted back and forth from my swanky new apartment to the city to an event that was full of high adrenaline, way too much caffeine, and tons of excitement.
But what’s crazy is that even when you’re in the mix of all the hustle where you’re pitching, connecting, pivoting, and out customer developing your idea… is the fact that it business still comes down to one thing:
EXECUTION.
And when I say execution, it’s not just after the idea has officially been launched. No, executing on your ideas comes well before in the form of enrolling others in your vision.
So even though I knew that I still had something with Spiro-2-Go, it was just a matter of selling myself, my idea, and the opportunity that lie ahead.
Which I ultimately did a terrible job at in front of a 100+ person audience. After that, I decided to again throw Spiro-2-Go on the back burner and still make the most of the experience by joining another team.
We ended up pitching after we put together an incredible team of people and while we didn’t win, we had a great weekend together building something together.
But what’s interesting is the fact that I distinctly remember one of our mentors giving us feedback that this idea would never work because of the legal restrictions around virtual medicine, diagnosis, etc.
However, looking back and having the perspective (and proof) to now call him out on that wrong judgement is what’s really interesting.
Let’s start with validation of my original idea with a couple examples…
Next, let’s address the idea of feedback.
The fact is that as entrepreneurs, you are going to have to prove yourself right OR prove yourself wrong when it comes to your ideas.
You have to be able to listen to those that matter most… your potential customers until you you know for 100% certainty that the feedback from other’s is aligned with what the market it telling you.
Let me explain…
While this mentor was giving us great feedback, the deeper story is that he was a lawyer who understood things from his perspective and was giving us feedback from his point of view.
On top of that, in 2009 the legal ramifications around telemedicine were still yet to be fully articulated to the market from a governance standpoint.
Looking at the industry as a whole in that specific niche of telemedicine, you’ll see that it’s compounding and growing faster year after year. Just by doing some quick research on Google, you’ll find that there are multiple companies that have raised heavy vc rounds prepping for the exponential growth of telemedicine…
I think that you get the picture.
The point is that when you’re first starting down the road of launching and building something… or solving a pain as they like to call it in the startup // biz dev world. You have to reminder yourself that while you have ability to pursue endless ideas, the reality is that your ultimate success lies in your ability to execute on one idea at a time.
And as you can see or as you may have already experienced, there are going to be twists, turns, pivots, nay-sayers, etc. along the way.
I’m not advising that you ignore feedback or come down with analysis of paralysis because you potentially have unlimited options to create. What I”m getting at is that you have to ask yourself what I think is one of the most important questions that entrepreneurs can ask and that’s…
“Will this opportunity…. ________________?” 💭
Going back to my example of Spiro-2-Go above after that pitch in my VC class, I could have put that idea completely on the shelf and left it never to be revisited.
But like many of you have experienced, the call to be an entrepreneur is powerful. It’s a pull unlike any other and it’s something that many of you reading this have or are embracing more and more with each day that passes.
So even though there might be a trail of broken ideas behind you, the fact is that learning experiences like what I shared above are what lead you to where you are today.
The entrepreneurial journey is a long road and there’s no set formula for success in business. And while there are principals that help accelerate the path to success, the one thing that stays constant is you.
Your Dreams,
Your Vision,
Your Passions,
Your Life,
Your Legacy.
Everything that happens along the road will eventually mold you into who you were called to become with each season that passes. What you have to understand is that when you’re entering the Idea Labs, this is just the start of the journey.
The pathway to unlimited profits not a destination that you reach and check off your list. It’s exactly that, a pathway and a journey over time.
So I encourage you, if you’re just starting out on the path to building something or you’re thinking about creating something of your own, then sit down and finish this question…
“Will this opportunity ________________?” 💭
If you need some inspiration on how to answer this, check out my answers below…
- Will this opportunity… Allow me to become completely debt free and create $1,000,001 in value for DCLabs Clients and our Community by December 31, 2016?
- Will this opportunity…. Support my lifestyle of location independence and freedom of choice daily as to Who I work with, What I work on, How I work and Where I work?
- Will this opportunity… Provide me the platform through which I can Impact (Create and Connect) and Influence (Lead and Give) to others around me?
Those are just a few of my answers, but I share those with you as a way to inspire you in your entrepreneurial journey.
For those that are still reading this, I encourage you to go through this exercise and ask yourself…
“Will this opportunity ________________?” 💭
TAKEAWAY: What is your answer to the question of “Will this opportunity _________?”
Be sure to leave your comments below and share this article with a friend if you feel inspired by today’s message…
And if you’ve found this valuable, I’d be much appreciated if you could leave a HEART below… 💙
I’m Kyle Musser,
Founder and CEO (Chief Experiment Officer) of digitalconversionlabs.com. Come check out what we’re up to and be sure to check out our FREE RESOURCES by clicking on the link below the image…
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