NEXUS Chapter Retreat 2025: A Celebration of Connection, Learning, and Inspiration in Phuket

The NEXUS Chapter Retreat 2025 unfolded last weekend in the breathtaking setting of Phuket, Thailand—a destination that perfectly embodied the spirit of connection, growth, and joy. EO Melbourne members, joined by their spouses and life partners, guests from EO Adelaide, and Strategic Alliance Partners, came together for an unforgettable three-day journey. It was more than just a retreat; it was a vibrant tapestry of shared insights, meaningful conversations, and moments of pure inspiration.

The event began with a warm welcome at the Golden Sunset Soirée on Friday evening. Set against the stunning backdrop of SAii’s Upper Pool Lawn, attendees mingled over cocktails as the sky transformed into a canvas of fiery oranges and pinks. EO Melbourne President Costa Vasili officially opened the Chapter Retreat, extending a heartfelt welcome to all participants and setting the tone for the days ahead. His words resonated deeply, reminding everyone of the power of community and the limitless potential that arises when people connect with purpose. The atmosphere buzzed with anticipation, not just for the days ahead but for the connections waiting to be forged.

This was NEXUS at its finest—a space where relationships are nurtured, ideas are exchanged, and possibilities feel limitless.

Saturday morning offered an optional breathwork session led by wellness instructor Chris, setting a reflective tone for the day. As participants gathered on the beachfront, the rhythmic sound of waves provided the perfect backdrop for Chris’s guided techniques. These moments of mindfulness were designed to ground attendees, preparing them to fully engage with the wealth of knowledge and inspiration awaiting them.

The heart of the retreat truly came alive during the Saturday Sessions, where industry leaders took the stage to share their stories, expertise, and vision. Tony Nash, former CEO of Booktopia, captivated the audience with his candid reflections on scaling businesses and navigating failure as a critical step toward success. His talk resonated deeply, reminding everyone that resilience is not just a trait but a practice.

Sanaiyah Gurnamal, known as The Love Alchemist, followed with a powerful exploration of love and businesses—how love-driven business strategies can transform both personal and professional dynamics. Her words lingered long after she left the stage, sparking conversations throughout the room.

Finally, Itamar Marani, a former special forces agent turned mindset expert, delivered a riveting session on adaptability and mental toughness. His real-world anecdotes and actionable strategies left attendees equipped with tools to tackle challenges head-on.

After a nourishing lunch, the group headed to YONA, the world’s first floating beach club, where the energy shifted to relaxation and connection. Conversations flowed effortlessly in the VIP area, with the infinity pool glimmering under the sun. The informal setting allowed relationships to flourish organically, underscoring the essence of NEXUS—a community built on trust and mutual growth.

Sunday brought another opportunity for mindfulness with an optional yoga session led by Chris, who guided participants through stretches that awakened both body and mind. The serene morning set the stage for the final round of speaker sessions, which proved to be just as impactful as the day before.

Cindy Sirinya Bishop, the retreat’s charismatic emcee and a celebrated Thai model and actress, shared her journey of balancing creative pursuits with personal fulfilment. Her talk on Leading with “Jai”—heart-led leadership and the power of connected presence—left an impression among the participants. Her authenticity struck a chord, inspiring attendees to embrace their passions without compromise.

Nathan Chan, Founder & CEO of Foundr, followed with practical insights on the 12 Leadership Lessons from the 12 years of Foundr—building scalable ventures, emphasising the importance of adaptability and customer-centric thinking. Closing the sessions was Athan Didaskalou, Co-founder of July, whose fireside chat on design innovation and problem-solving left the audience brimming with fresh perspectives.

Post-lunch, attendees had the chance to dive deeper into experiences tailored to their interests. Some connected with nature at Green Elephant Sanctuary Park, feeding and bathing elephants while learning about conservation efforts. Others chose high-energy activities like Muay Thai classes or relaxed at Café Del Mar, soaking in the island’s laid-back charm. For those seeking introspection, the Sound Journey offered a meditative escape, using sound vibrations to unlock emotional clarity and creativity. Each activity, whether exhilarating or calming, reinforced the retreat’s theme of balance—between work and play, learning and leisure, individuality and community.

As the sun dipped below the horizon on Sunday evening, the Carpe Diem Closing Ceremony marked the culmination of an extraordinary journey. Fire dancers lit up the night, their movements a metaphor for the sparks of inspiration ignited throughout the weekend. Attendees gathered around the feast, sharing laughter and heartfelt reflections. It was clear that this retreat had transcended its agenda—it had become a living, breathing embodiment of what NEXUS stands for: connection, collaboration, and growth.

On Monday, as participants packed their bags and prepared to leave, there was a palpable sense of gratitude and renewed purpose. The bonds formed in Phuket would undoubtedly endure, serving as reminders of the power of community. Conversations sparked during the retreat would evolve into partnerships, friendships would deepen, and lessons learned would shape future endeavors.

Kudos to Costa Vasili, EO Melbourne President, for his visionary leadership in setting the tone for an extraordinary retreat, and to the tireless organisers whose dedication ensured its seamless success. Hats off to the incredible participants and their partners, generous sponsors, and inspiring speakers—your contributions were the lifeblood of this transformative experience. Together, you created a space where ideas ignited, connections deepened, and inspiration flourished, making this retreat an unforgettable celebration of community and growth.

For everyone who attended, the NEXUS Chapter Retreat 2025 wasn’t just a series of talks and activities—it was a celebration of human connection and collective potential. From the wisdom shared by remarkable speakers to the laughter echoing across beaches and lounges, every moment underscored the belief that when people come together with open hearts and minds, magic happens. If you missed this year’s retreat, don’t wait—mark your calendars now. The next chapter promises even more opportunities to connect, learn, and thrive.

Trailblazing Talent Takes Centre Stage at GSEA Melbourne

After a decade-long absence, the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) made a triumphant return to EO Melbourne on Wednesday, 13 November 2024. The event brought together some of the brightest young entrepreneurial minds from tertiary institutions, all competing for the prestigious title and the chance to represent Australia at the APAC finals in Japan next year. The evening, hosted by EO Melbourne Chapter Strategic Alliance Partner BlueRock, offered a unique blend of intense competition and camaraderie within the vibrant, creatively designed spaces of their venue.

Participants, aged 18 to 30, met stringent criteria: their businesses had to be active for at least six months, generate revenue or funding exceeding US$1,000, and they needed to balance these achievements while pursuing tertiary education. With a full expenses-paid trip to Japan at stake, the competition attracted some truly remarkable contenders.

Showcasing Innovation and Impact

Four finalists presented their business ideas to an esteemed panel of five judges, facing a challenging deliberation process. Among the standout entrepreneurs was Savannah Fung, the founder of Typpio.com, a company dedicated to fighting banking fraud. By harnessing AI technology and analysing unique typing patterns, Typpio offers a cutting-edge alternative to traditional password systems.

Equally impressive was 20-year-old Kai Seymon, the founder of Kaikofidgets.com, a thriving $2M business that began as a personal endeavour at just 11 years old. Kai’s handcrafted fidgets, designed to aid neurodivergent individuals in improving focus and reducing self-harm, have evolved into a globally impactful enterprise employing individuals with disabilities. Kai’s deep understanding of his customer base, coupled with his operational expertise, set him apart as a formidable competitor.

Celebrating a Winner and a Bright Future

Ultimately, the judges crowned Kai Seymon as the winner of the 2024 GSEA Melbourne competition. With his mother and carer by his side, Kai accepted the honour, ready to take on the next stage of the competition at the APAC finals in Japan on 21st February 2025. Savannah and the other participants were commended for their outstanding efforts and rewarded with access to four exclusive learning days, reinforcing the GSEA’s commitment to nurturing entrepreneurial talent.

EO Melbourne extends its heartfelt gratitude to Blue Rock for their unwavering support, to the judges for their time and dedication, and to every participant for their courage and ingenuity. As we cheer Kai on in his quest to bring home the title, this year’s GSEA has truly reminded us of the incredible potential within our next generation of leaders.

How Melbourne Business Owners find opportunities in difficult situations

“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” — Maya Angelou

Successful entrepreneurs get to where they are now because of their determination to reach their goals, which includes braving the odds and overcoming hurdles. The recent global scenarios in the past two to three years have been very challenging. Many business leaders have looked into finding opportunities under tough situations. But how do you do it?

Look at the present needs where you can provide a solution

Entrepreneurs have shared how their businesses fill a gap. Dion Castle, CEO of Struber, said, “With the fast-changing environment in society and the world, in general, it is easy to see that the culture, technology and customer experience in our industry were due for an upgrade.”

But when the conditions of a society change, the needs of society also change.  If there are difficult circumstances, how can your business help in this time of need? Are your products and services relevant in such circumstances? It is good to look into new problems that arise and find the areas where your business can offer a solution.

Be open to new creative ideas, innovate and pivot

Unexpected things happen, so when a crisis arises and you hit a wall, take advantage of this hiccup to go back to the drawing board and revisit your plans and current offerings. This is where innovation comes in. Brainstorm for new ideas that can help boost your enterprise and make it thrive when the going gets tough.

Nitasha Badhwar, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables, shared that “Innovation for us is more than just implementing new technology, solution, or process. It is our culture and one of our cornerstones – something that we come back to in good and bad times.”

Also, opportunities open up when you pivot. Arosh Fernando, Creative Director of WooHah Productions, once shared the changes they had to do within their business to keep them going during the lockdowns. “All these changes helped us, as we would have no income if it wasn’t for these pivot ideas. We have managed to claw up to 20-30% of our monthly revenue,” Arosh said.

Keep an eye on new markets

It is often said that “when one door closes, a window opens.” A crisis or a setback can be a turning point where new opportunities are formed. Look where the resources go. Observe the trends and be ready for new markets that will emerge.

According to Clayton Cross, Head of Strategy at Expia, “The pandemic has opened hundreds of opportunities. Most golden. Essentially new markets have been created, especially in the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) space, which we are targetting.”

Offer help and strengthen relationships

When problems and adversities arise, that is the best time for everyone to help each other and work together to overcome the challenges ahead. The pandemic has shown how important relationships are – within the family, among friends and even with people you meet through your business. 

Ben Beattie, Managing Director of True Blue Plumbing Australia, talked about his experience. “When they shut down construction in Victoria, we had 10 plumbers a day off work with only enough emergency work for 12 guys. This was the week the earthquake hit and thousands of insurance claims were lodged. We contacted our major clients and offered to assist them with virtually assessing all the damage from the site back to their head offices as they were swamped with work. We were able to keep 3 additional guys busy for the final week of lockdown reducing to major financial losses we were incurring.”

We never run out of opportunities. The important thing is to look out for it at all times or even create those opportunities when you can.

Data vs gut-feel in decision-making

When do you use data and when do you rely on instincts in making business decisions?

Decision-making is important in every business and organisation. It is crucial in finding short-term, medium-term and long-term solutions to problems or plans that need to materialise. 

There are different ways and factors in arriving at a certain decision. Some have to be done at a snap of a finger due to the need for urgency. Others have to be deliberated carefully by a team. Then, there’s this age-old question, “Should you use data or should you rely on your instincts or experience when making business decisions?”

Many entrepreneurs recognise the value of both in decision-making. One must be able to know how to weigh when one is more necessary than the other in a given situation. Relying only on one may put decision-makers at a disadvantage. It is helpful to look at data and listen to gut-feel and learn from experience when coming up with a plan or strategy to navigate through one’s decision-making process and arrive at a sound resolution. 

Data and gut feel go together

There are circumstances when data weigh heavier than gut and vice versa. But one has to consider both when arriving at a resolution. According to Renata Freund, Founder and Director at Honeycomb Strategy, “Data and intuition go hand-in-hand, both playing a role in business decision-making. Together they are the secret sauce that underpins great entrepreneurs. Data is your confidence. It is what allows you to make decisions with conviction, knowing they are grounded in truth. Instinct is your creativity. It is what allows you to experiment, to create the new and reimagine the old. When you pair that confidence and creativity together, that’s when the magic happens.”

This was echoed by Hayden Brass, Founder and Managing Director at Zea. He remarked, “They are both critical and both play an important part in my business. For marketing, a lot of instincts have played a part in coming up with unique concepts and ideas for campaigns, but often, this has to be backed up by relevant data. When it comes to reviewing the return on investment for a marketing campaign, it is crucial to look at the data and statistics to determine whether one’s gut instincts are accurate or not.”

He also added, “And when it comes to hiring staff, this is probably the most critical of them all. It is important to go through the relevant standard hiring processes to see if they are “on paper’ a good fit for the organisation. This is one of the most crucial steps in vetting candidates. But as it approaches the pointy end of the hiring process, the more I like to pay attention to my gut instincts as to whether I believe they are the right person for the role or not. By no means is this always accurate, but it is complementary to the data collected on the candidates and both play important roles in finding people that are a good fit for our organisation.”

Nitasha Badhwar, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables agreed that both go together. “I think both data and gut-feel go hand-in-hand, and you can’t necessarily isolate one from the other. Data prepares you (like a weather app) but your gut-feel defines your direction.”

She cited an example from her experience, “When we started working with lithium-ion batteries, the prices were exceptionally high. It was difficult to develop a commercially viable product without stripping features to a bare minimum. If we had just relied purely on data, we would have started many years down the line which wouldn’t have afforded us the time to experiment, develop and evolve a truly comprehensive product. At that time, it was just gut-feel to jump into product development, given the data we had in hand. Today, our product line has a range of products catering to customers’ every need including an Intelligent energy flow optimizer which turned the product from a regular generator to a smart generator. On the other hand, our gut-feel was to stick to b2b and not develop the online sales channels, but the pandemic and data proved us wrong, and we are now embarking upon developing this sales channel.”

A balanced approach can help

David Fastuca, CMO and Co-founder of Locomote, maintains a balanced approach when it comes to making decisions. “I relate this back to marketing because within the marketing world, there's often this fight between data-driven marketing in which you spend a dollar, you get X dollars back, and then there's the marketing that you can't attribute, which is like a brand.”

David further illustrated this by providing an example, “When someone sees a link to a post on LinkedIn, just because you might be getting low engagement or five likes and two comments, it doesn't mean that few people are viewing it. The ideal customer you're trying to get might have read it but just hasn't interacted with it. Then all of a sudden they come to your site and then they inquire about a demo. Where does that attribution go to? It's easy to say, ‘Okay, they clicked an ad and then they signed up, so let's throw more money on ads.’ But the truth could be is that they saw your post, they read your blog, they interacted with some other content on your website, or they heard you on the radio. Maybe, all of a sudden, they saw an ad as they were scrolling through Instagram and then decide to click it.”

“But what happens is that the CEO of the business or the CFO says, ‘That lead is attributed to this ad spend so let's put more money into that,’ when really you need to attribute that to beyond other channels. So, that's where the instincts and gap come into play. I try and have a balanced approach where 50% of my decisions are using data and 50% is based on my instincts and what I'm learning in the space. If things are improving, such as more conversions are happening on my website, then I will attribute a good percentage across both channels, the ones that you can really track because it's really analytical. But then, it's always important to be working on your brand and your awareness through channels that you don't spend on. So, while I do 50-50 decisions, I also split my budget differently across those channels. So, I do 70% of my budget on what I can track really tightly and closely, such as outbound meetings being booked and calling. Then, I reserve the remaining percentage to the brand, which is content and things that you can't track because as a business, you always need to be investing in your brand over the long term,” he explained.

Decision-making in business is crucial because it affects a lot of people, both in the internal and external environments, including the peripheries. It is important to take into consideration all the factors that may be necessary for arriving at a particular resolution. It’s always good to check the numbers and it also pays to listen to your instincts.

The importance of innovation in business

Competition is getting fiercer, technology is advancing faster, and market preferences are leaning towards newer products and services. For enterprises to have a continuous upward curve in their performance and remain relevant to the changing times, they need to look for ways to constantly innovate themselves and consistently improve their business.

Entrepreneurs see the importance of innovation to keep their businesses going. They’re always on the lookout for ideas that will improve their product offerings, better their services, widen their reach and be ahead of other players in the industry.

Here are a few examples of how entrepreneurs implement novel ideas in their businesses and how such ideas impact their organisations.

Online Marketplace and Customer Education Sessions

“We have recently launched a number of innovations, one of the standouts would be our new online Marketplace. We understand that our partners prefer to engage with us in various methods,” said Nick Clift, Co-founder at Otto and Founder of DWM Solutions. 

“Through feedback from our partners, we identified that there was a great opportunity to create a Marketplace where they could have a customised portal specific to their businesses that would provide standardised solutions which ensure they are always procuring items aligned to their business requirements,” he added.

As a company that is humanising technology, Nick and his team makes sure that they are able to help their clients with all the technical things that help their business grow. “The second (innovation) is our regular Customer Education Sessions where our team run a 45-min session for clients on various subject, e.g., Cyber Security best practices, data management, Office 365 tips and tricks. These sessions add value to our clients and the feedback has been very positive,” he explained.

Creative Leadership Team and Research & Development

Innovation is what drives the business of Nitasha Badhwar, Founder and CEO of Immersify and Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables. “Being heavily R&D-driven, innovation is naturally a core business value for us and a continuous reality. Innovation for us is more than just implementing new technology, solution, or process. It is our culture and one of our cornerstones – something that we come back to in good and bad times,” she remarked.

“We have learnt that a creative leadership team tends to be the ultimate driving force of innovation within an organisation, and we are lucky to have one. Our core team realises that with innovation there is no place for complacency. Therefore, we had to set up an innovation-friendly environment with systems and processes that support the initiative, creativity and R&D. One of the best things we did was to appoint a Product Manager to coordinate between different teams and prepare a business case to prioritise and justify adoption and creation of certain innovations over others, all measurable through keys metrics like ROI,” Nitasha expounded.

She added, “This helped us realise that we need to implement new technologies for faster and smoother product development resulting in the recent purchase of a new 3D printer that has helped improve R&D timelines by over 30%.”

Apart from this, Nitasha and her team continue to do hands-on research to know how else they can innovate their products and services. According to her, “Another key practice that we follow regularly is providing an immersive on the ground experience in different countries to our staff where they learn how to implement in real-time prudent and creative strategies to problem solve and overcome stumbling blocks. This is further strengthened by coming back to the R&D facilities, using state of the art equipment and working with other innovative minds to create a long term, paradigm-shifting solution. This two-step immersive training has created many a brainchild in our company, including our Cleo solar generator.”

Furthermore, Nitasha shared, “This model is famously termed as ‘Jugaad’ (Hindi term roughly translates as overcoming harsh constraints by improvising an effective solution using limited resources), a concept taught at Harvard Business School and has been a great learning experience for all of us.”

Micro innovations and experimenting and piloting new ways

John Bevitt, Managing Director at Honeycomb Strategy, admitted that “We’re big fans of ‘micro innovations’ or the little things that can help to make our jobs easier or add more value to the clients.” 

True enough, innovations do not necessarily have to be big as they can also be done in small actions but can result in a huge impact on one’s business. John shared, “In the book Atomic Habits by James Clear, he talks about how a performance coach for the British cycling team used a strategy called the “aggregation of marginal gains” to turn the team around and win the Tour de France, essentially by making a 1% margin for improvement in everything they did that added up to remarkable improvement.”

With this, what John does in his business is that “We encourage something similar, always looking for opportunities for improvement. Every team WIP starts with a short ‘tips and tricks’ session where the team can share shortcuts and hacks that they’ve found to be really useful. We’ve actually built this philosophy into our systems and processes as well – we’ve defined our processes as the ‘current best way we think we can do something.’ This gives the team permission to experiment and pilot new ways of doing things, and if it’s better, we change the process.”

Innovation: a road to the future

Most of what we have and use today are products of innovation, and they can change 5 or more years down the road. This shows that we are constantly developing and always finding opportunities for improvement. It is a path towards a more progressive future, not only for your business but also for the communities and societies you serve. Take a deep look into your business and see the areas where you can innovate, introduce new ideas, and become a changemaker.

The value of training in organisational development

How do you nurture your organisation’s human resources? Every member of your team is valuable on how to bring your business forward and achieve its goals. But as you take in new challenges, aim for greater heights and expand your horizons, how do you equip your people to ensure that you can all move towards the same direction and at the same speed?

When you want to grow your company and develop your organization, it is also necessary that you upskill the people within your team so that they’d be able to perform better and increase their productivity. What kind of training do you provide to your team that contribute to your business growth? Entrepreneurs share their experience on how they value training and how this has benefited their people and their organisation.

Areas where they can excel

Having some expertise in a particular skill, field or area is beneficial to individual team members as well as to the entire team because it facilitates growth in your organisation and establishes authority within your industry. Honing your people to be great at something can boost their morale as well as your customers’ confidence in your business.

Understanding the benefit of this to his business, Karl Simity, Managing Director of Canopy, supports the growth of his staff by equipping them through proper training. “Training for our team is a key focus, both in-house and external. If our team isn’t growing, the business won’t either. We encourage and coach our staff to look for areas where they want to excel in or areas where they could improve and then we build specific training plans for them,” he stated.

“Right now, we are running an executive training with our leadership team. Our design team is doing further technical training and our consultants are doing some external sales training. An investment in our team is an investment in our future,” Karl added. 

Learning resource and follow-up sessions

Building a learning resource for your team can be a huge help in ensuring continuous growth and development within your organisation. This is what Nick Clift, Co-founder at Otto and Founder of DWM Solutions, had in mind when they established the Otto Academy.

According to Nick, they have “Leadership Training, Personal Coaching, Individual development plans for all staff.  We have recently launched our online Otto Academy, this is a great learning resource that enables our staff to develop both role-specific skills and various other business/soft skills.”

But it doesn’t stop there. As in most learning processes, having follow-throughs are essential to ensure that there is regular progress and growth. “We run monthly and quarterly team meetings, where from time to time, we bring a Subject Matter Expert to run a session for the team. This often leads to follow-up sessions to hone a particular skill or technical knowledge,” Nick explained.

Team development plans

“Personal growth and development is a massive focus at Honeycomb and we begin building team development plans as soon as someone joins the team,” John Bevitt, Managing Director at Honeycomb Strategy, shared.

It is often advantageous to create learning opportunities for your staff and team development plans early on. Sometimes, learning opportunities don’t always come knocking at your doorstep, so it is better to proactively search for them and then work on plans that will ensure the growth and development of your team. 

John expounded on this, “Rather than just looking at training that helps employees to perform better in their role, we look at learning opportunities that help make all of us (including leadership) become better, more authentic and well-rounded humans. We’ve learned from experience that you do your best work when you’re being your most authentic self. This makes working on Dev Plans really interesting and really diverse – sure, we definitely have on-the-job training and such, but I’ve also got team members who have added ‘learning to weld’ or ‘get my pilot’s licence’ to their dev plans.”

Learning can be done not just on skills development but also in honing the mindset of individuals. John further explained, “As researchers and consultants who need to understand behavioural psychology and consumer behaviour as part of our role, a big element of our team development plans is also around understanding our own psychology, why we respond on how we do, and how our underlying beliefs, values and motivations contributes to this. This also helps to build empathy and emotional intelligence, which makes it easier to understand consumer behaviour, but also connect with clients. We often bring in subject matter experts to help with this and even had half our team attend a virtual Tony Robbins conference recently!”

Cross-education

Having additional knowledge outside of one’s field of expertise can also be helpful to your organisation. It widens your staff’s set skills and enables them to support each other and work better as a team.

Nitasha Badhwar, Founder and CEO of Immersify and Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables, illustrated how they do this in their business. “Our endeavour is to upskill our team members regularly. We have multiple internal departments, and for them to work better as a team, we found that it is important, every so often, for our staff to spend time in different departments to get a better understanding of other areas of the business. This cross-education has been crucial to our success, so far. We have implemented buddy days where they shadow a team member in a different department to learn about their job.”

This provides better coordination among departments and individuals. She added, “Learning and understanding each other’s roles and responsibilities, daily pressures, and deliverables creates a healthy and respectful working environment. In turn, this has created a much better workflow and has deepened the bonding between interdepartmental team members. This has the added benefit of making social and family days a lot more interactive and fun.”

Education and growth do not stop when we step out of the confines of the classroom. Learning continues in workplaces and it is necessary to develop your organisation and your business. There is a proverb that says “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link”, which is why it is critical to look after your people and ensure that they not only grasp the tasks or work assigned to them but also master what they do, be the best at it and expand their knowledge and set skills.

Corporate values and nurturing them in your business

Corporate values are important in every organisation because they provide a strong foundation for decision-making, team building, customer relations and driving your business forward. It is your company’s compass that directs you which way to go and the backbone on how to run your business successfully.

Every organisation has their respective corporate values, depending on the preference of the owners or board of directors or the purpose of the business for operating. Nurturing your corporate values strengthens your team and enables you to achieve your mission and goals. Here are some corporate values that entrepreneurs have in their businesses and how they ensure that these values are upheld in their organisations.

Integrity and accountability

Integrity is defined as “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness,” while accountability is “the fact or condition of being accountable; responsibility.”

For Nitasha Badhwar, Founder and CEO of Immersify and Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Sunpower Renewables, “Integrity and accountability are the most important values for us. In an organisation that values innovation, having integrity in what you believe in, what can be seen through to completion, and where time and resources need to be prioritised, is a crucial success factor.”

These two values are also often found in other organisations as they build trust within the team and from customers and third-party partners. Nitasha added, “We strongly believe that integrity in the workplace promotes an open and positive working environment that helps in developing happy, resilient, and successful teams with a strong moral, ethical and fair code of conduct.”

Diversity

John Bevitt, Managing Director at Honeycomb Strategy, revealed one of their core values that resonate well with their team. “Of our three core values, I think one of the most powerful ones is ‘Celebrate our Superpowers’. I love this one as it helps to celebrate our diversity – no matter the role or level of seniority, everyone has a ‘superpower’ that helps make them unique from everyone else. It’s the one thing that, if focused on, trained and nurtured, makes everything else easier or unnecessary,” he stated.

It’s not a common corporate value, but it is something that can stick to everyone’s mind. John further explained, “Every team member has an idea of what their superpower is and we create a development plan homing in on it and using it to help achieve their personal objectives, share learnings with the team and create an environment focused on strengths, not on weaknesses. Having clarity on these superpowers and knowing how these can be combined across the team creates a multiplier effect and is what has helped to take our business to the next level.”

Drive for results

With the end of sight, Canopy Managing Director Karl Simity shared that “Canopy was founded with the vision to create inspiring workplaces that encourage and enrich the lives of workplace inhabitants to build and grow successful organisations.”

Corporate values are often anchored on the vision of the business and its owner. A corporate value aims to help achieve this vision. Karl cited an example, “One of our values is to ‘Drive for outcomes’, and this value is something I see all our employees live by in their day-to-day activities. What helps us create these inspiring workplaces is the drive our people have to make it happen, to always push for success, and their persistence over resistance to solve problems.”

People first

Businesses are made for people, with the aim of providing solutions to concerns and challenges affecting our society. Corporate values are also people-centric because they are to be lived out by people for the people that the business serves, whether they are internal or external stakeholders.

This is why for Nick Clift, Co-founder at Otto and Founder of DWM Solutions, people are significant pillars of their corporate values. He expounded, “At Otto, our key corporate value would have to be People First. We are redefining the industry and Humanising Technology. Otto, as a brand, represents the humans behind the technology — the human hands that make the tech work. Essentially, we are a human-led, tech company, so I guess you could say that technically, we are anti-tech.”

If you look through other companies, businesses and organisations, you will find varying corporate values, yet these values define who they are as an institution. Values put a soul to your brand, especially on how you and your people act and conduct business accordingly.

What are your corporate values and why have you chosen them as your values? How do you ensure that your people live up to them? We’d like to hear your thoughts.

Dealing with burnout and work fatigue

When your days are filled with tonnes of emails to check, meetings to attend, fires to put out, and many responsibilities to take care of, it won’t be surprising to find yourself feeling weak, tired, anxious, irritable, exhausted, drained, depressed, forgetful and the list goes on. How do you manage burnout and work fatigue so that you can sustain yourself for the long haul?

There are different ways to deal with burnout. One, you can do something before it happens and, two, you can find a way to overcome it or relieve yourself from it when it occurs. Burnout is a huge challenge to many business owners, so we have put together a few tips, including some pointers and experience shares from entrepreneurs John Anderton, Founder and CEO of Butterfly, Mark Calabro, Co-Founder of HungryHungry, and Anthony Holdstock, Director and Owner of Sharp & Carter. 

Try to separate home and work, workdays and weekends

Setting boundaries between work and personal life can be a struggle for many entrepreneurs. However, you often need to switch off from all the demands of the role and devote certain time for self-care. Take some time to focus on yourself after work or during weekends. While it can be a challenge, it is something that can be beneficial in the long run.

It is a tough thing that Mark tries to conquer as well. “I try to keep work away from weekends but that’s difficult as knowing I have a tonne of stuff to round off from the week gone, which also builds anxiety, so it’s not easy.”

John sees it as a way to avoid burnout by having a “strong separation between home and work”, such as “ignoring emails at night and on weekends,” for example.

Know your limits and learn to say “no”

Even though you want to be on top of everything and stay in control of things within and around you, there are times when you need to say “no” or acknowledge the stop sign before you run out of energy to keep going. Especially that entrepreneurs are living a life that is always on the go and with various obligations to attend to, it is better to take a pause and assess if the things before you are something you can carry out at the moment. If not, delegate tasks to your team. Seek help when needed. 

“Knowing my limits” is one of the ways John deal with work burnout and entrepreneurial fatigue. There is wisdom in not going beyond what your body and mind cannot take. There’s nothing wrong with admitting there are certain things that no longer be accommodated on your plate. Listen to your body. Don’t overdo yourself to the extent that you exhaust yourself.

Take a break or vacation

“Rest if you must, but don’t you quit” is a famous line in the poem “Don’t Quit” by Edgar A. Guest. True enough, resting is not quitting. Instead, it is one way to recharge yourself so that you will have all the energy to tackle the next big thing along your journey.

A vacation is also something that John finds helpful in avoiding or relieving one of burnout. “Holidays or at least dreaming about holidays,” he commented. It’s good to be away for a while, be in a different environment or scenery, and do something that you don’t get to enjoy every day, for a change. It allows the mind and body to rejuvenate and have more stamina when coming back for work.  

Exercise

Exercise can do wonders not only to the body but also to the mind and one’s overall wellbeing. This is why John makes sure that “Physical exercise is built into my weekly routine,” he revealed.

Anthony has been keeping up with his exercise as well. He shared, “I don’t think I have ever had burnout or experienced burnout. But maybe that’s because of what I do consistently. I exercise for 1 hour at 5 or 6 times per week; running 10km every second day and HIT/Strength workouts on the other days and 1 to 2 rest days per week.”

On the other hand, Mark admits to facing certain challenges when dealing with burnout, but he tries to overcome them with exercise. “I struggle. Exercise is my sure way of levelling myself out, usually with a 3-4km run.”

Meditate and reflect

Meditation and reflection can help you clear your mind, organise your thoughts and focus on the more important matters. It can also open your mind to insights and ideas that you may have missed due to the various things that have been preoccupying your mind. You can take a few minutes each day to just have some quiet moment by yourself and do meditation exercises. Reflection also helps you review the things you’ve done and give serious thought to what is on hand or those that are about to come.

It is one of the preferences that Anthony does to avoid getting burned out from work. “I try to make sure I have time set aside for reflection, learning and family time,” he remarked.

Spend time with family and friends

Spending time with your loved one -- be it in the comforts of your home, the fun and familiar atmosphere of your favourite hangout place or the excitement of a trip -- can help ease your worries and burdens. The positive energy you generate by being surrounded by people who are dear to you can inspire you to have a better outlook of work, despite its many challenges. As Anthony has mentioned above, quality time with his family is something that he makes sure to set aside in his schedule. 

Read, learn and equip yourself

To take a cue from Anthony’s remark about setting aside time for learning, trying something new that can expand your knowledge and hone your talents can get you motivated. Learn a new skill, tap on your creativity or start a new hobby. Read books about your interests, grow a garden, build a piece of furniture, do some handicraft, or study a new language. There are lots of activities that can take your mind away from the pressures of your job while, at the same time, contribute to developing your capabilities as an entrepreneur and a person. Little accomplishments from your other interests or new endeavours can increase your drive to do better at work.

Talk with someone who can understand your situation

Sometimes, all it takes is for you to be able to let out your frustrations, problems and disappointments that come with your many responsibilities as a business owner. That is why it is helpful to surround yourself with like-minded people who can understand and relate to your predicament. This is the beauty of EO through its Forum, which fosters peer-to-peer sharing between members in a trusted and confidential environment. 

How do you deal with burnout and fatigue? What are the ways you do to overcome it? We’d love to hear from you. Share a tip in the comments section below.

Realising true entrepreneurial freedom

by Jamie Lingham 

As an entrepreneur, I want the benefits of not only being my own boss but also having the ability to do what I want, with who I want, where I want and when I want. After 20 years of running my immigration business, dealing with staffing issues, long nights, long weekends and time away from my family, COVID was the one to push me to take on the ultimate travel, work, and family adventure around Australia.

“My business works better when I get out of the way. As much I would like to think that I am the centre of my business universe, the reality is that after 20 years, the business is just fine without me.”

The year 2020 was particularly bruising for the immigration advice industry. Instead of laying off staff, as our competitors did, we circled the wagons and took on the message from our EO Melbourne WhatsApp group to double down on marketing and use the resources around us to get through this together. As a result, we not only survived but also grew the team during this period. Personally, it was taxing and stressful, yet it was also exciting as it reignited my entrepreneurial fire and reconfirmed my ability to manage a crisis.

Fast-forward to January 2021, my wife, Penne, and I decided to purchase a camping trailer, take the kids out of school, rent our house out on Airbnb and drive around Australia, while still working on the business. Four months later, our Instagram handle ‘@leadingremotely’ was born and we were on the road!

Nine weeks in and I have already learned some great lessons:

Why didn’t we do this sooner? – Our business allows us to work anywhere with internet access, and our clients don’t care if we are in Melbourne or Mexico. As a family with young kids at this age (10, 7 and 5), we feel the timing is perfect. Home school can be a battle, but we figure that they are learning more every day than they will at school.

Systems, processes and preparation – We have spent the past few years (over)-engineering the systems and processes in the business. We have also employed the right people in the right seats and invested heavily in their success (two of my team are in EO’s KEP and we are trying to get something similar for another team member in New Zealand). These team members get the same buzz that I do after the forum and it’s amazing to see their growth.

My business works better when I get out of the way – As much I would like to think that I am the centre of my business universe, the reality is that after 20 years, the business is just fine without me. This has challenged my purpose and relevance, yet the best news is that it allows me to unshackle myself of everything but the top-level strategic decisions.

It’s my eat-love-pray moment – No matter how spontaneous the trip felt, it is apparent that there is a deeper meaning to this journey. Rather than a holiday, it is a lifestyle, outside of leading remotely. It’s about letting go, as well as it’s about connection - connection with myself, with Penne and, most importantly, with my kids, before they seek connection away from our guidance and are lost to us forever.

We have already travelled more than 14,000kms over this vast land, changed three tyres, busted the water tank on our camper, and I have also torn all of the ligaments in my ankle after falling off the roof of my car. Despite this, we are still only 40% in of our planned journey, and not only am I excited for the next six months but I am also eager to meet the family that will soon to Melbourne and the impact that this amazing life experience has had on us as individuals, as a couple and as a family unit.

For more updates on working remotely and our outback journey please follow us on Instagram @leadingremotely.

*Jamie Lingham is a member of EO Melbourne and the Global Immigration Leader of Absolute Immigration.

How do you communicate bad news to your clients?

In every business, there are times when things take a different turn and projects can often head south, may it be due to human error, unforeseen circumstances, or uncontrollable situations. When things go awry, how do you break the bad news to your clients?

“Bad news is never good to deliver, but developing a process over time has made it easier to handle.”

- Steve Jackson

There are different approaches to it, depending on your client’s characteristics and your relationship with them. A few entrepreneurs share with us their experience and how they tackle the problem when the situation calls for it.

However, all of them have one common word – HONESTY.

Truly, there’s no better way than to be upfront about things, especially in business. It saves all parties time, resources, and effort when things are talked out promptly and issues are tackled head on.

Austin Vaughan, Managing Director at Pacific Solar, confirms this. “I would commonly take a direct approach as we feel honesty applies in all our communications,” he said.

Nyree Hibberd, CEO of Koh Living, expounds on this further. “Honestly, as it’s one of our 5 brand values: “We are honest, authentic, and down-to-earth; ‘keep it real’ is our number one mantra. We tell the truth and strive to always do what we say we’re going to do.”  For us, bad news may be around stocks selling out or delays in arrivals of replenishment. So at every stage, we aim to keep the customer informed with accurate information to limit the interruption to their business.  In most cases, we find it’s about the communication of the news rather than the news itself, so we aim to always be upfront and honest with any bad news,” she remarked.

While unfavourable news cannot be avoided, it often depends on how the information is delivered. But having a method or careful approach can help mitigate the negative impact it may bring to the client or business. However, it doesn’t stop with just telling the client about the problem. Coming up with alternatives at the onset can also help ease the worries of the client.

Steve Jackson, Director at PurpleMonky and Founder of Moon & Back Co., shared, “Bad news is never good to deliver, but developing a process over time has made it easier to handle. Firstly, an urgent team meeting internally to discuss what happened, and what solutions are available. Then, we make an immediate phone call with complete honesty to the client about what happened and how we want to work together to find the best solution. No matter the outcome, the client always respects the honesty & willingness to find the solution.”

In short, crisp words, Dion Castle, CEO of Struber, stated it simply but powerfully, “Communicate quickly, clearly, honestly with a solution ready.”

This is echoed by Joanne Camilleri, General Manager of Telco Business Solutions Group, “With complete honesty, authenticity and ensuring, if necessary, that we are taking ownership.  Ideally, we communicate face to face.  If appropriate, we would finish it off with the challenge or opportunity that is arising from the bad news.”

A more detailed explanation is provided by Ben Stickland, Founder and CEO of Alliance Software, “We do it with brutal honestly and as quickly as possible. The formula is simple: we tell clients this is what happened, this is how it'll affect you and this is what we're doing to fix it. We also always tell clients that right now, we're focused on the fix and when the dust settles, we'll do a review and work out how we avoid these problems in the future and make it right. In our space, clients are very understanding if you're upfront and drop everything to make things right.”

Have you experienced a similar situation where you have to break some bad news to your clients or customers? How do you do it? Share with us your approach and its effect on your business.

Budget-saving tips for more cost-efficient work operations

In business, it is important to track what’s being used, including cash, goods and, of course, time.

Keeping up with your day-to-day operations may quite be a handful, but with a few tips, you may just be able to have a more cost-efficient day-to-day operation in your workplace.

We gathered some amazing ideas from entrepreneurs on how they budget their resources, lower their spending, and save money, time, and effort.

Go paperless

The use of less or no paper at work is an earth-friendly initiative and also a great way of saving on costs. Besides, using paper a lot can take up so much space in your office. For Dion Castle, CEO of Struber, their way of doing this is to “make it really hard to print.” He added, “When your team stays digital, you save the planet and save on printing costs at the same time.”

Monitor expenditures

One way to stay on budget is to constantly keep your eye on your spending. Alliance Software Founder and CEO Ben Stickland shared how to do this. “Set a time (for us, it's every 6 months) to review all recurring expenditures and challenge whether you need them or perhaps need them at the level you use them. It only takes 10 mins and saves money on subscriptions that were good ideas but didn't get used,” he remarked.

Gather data and purchase correctly

When purchases are done in bulk and large quantities, keeping track of spending might be challenging. However, with the current technology, it can be done fast, accurately and effectively. “With all our larger commercial solar projects, there are bulk materials to be procured, so purchasing correctly is the key to cost-efficient & profitable operation. Also, utilising streamlined operational systems and apps to efficiently capture details from all parties involved reduces admin hours considerably. This presents a very professional outcome that is appreciated by the end customers,” explained Austin Vaughan, Managing Director at Pacific Solar.

Put systems and have business rhythms

Being cost-efficient is about keeping track of money spent as well as the amount of time spent on the kind of work that has to be done. Putting a system in place and coming up with a regular business rhythm can save a lot of time, effort and resources. This is what Malcolm Bean, Director at Beanmkrgy, and his team have been doing in their organisation. "We come up with simple systems as much as possible and agree on daily or weekly rhythms for meetings and planning wherein we stick to start and finish times. The more we are aligned and adhere to business rhythms, the more we multiply productivity. So, most of our focus is productivity, which is getting more out of each hour as opposed to cost savings,” he stated.

Think of various strategies that may be applied to your business

Look closely at how you do things and get your team to brainstorm and come up with strategies that will help you manage your cost more effectively. Moreover, be sure that these strategies are executed in your business. Rahul Kale, Director at Sunpower Renewables, revealed what they’ve done within their business.

According to Rahul, “We went through an exercise to identify the top 2-3 operational cost drivers and implemented a proper strategy to manage these costs. We also ran an internal competition within the organization and the person with the best idea to save costs over a period was rewarded. This strategy was well communicated and shared within the organization. It is important to get everyone’s buy-in to make this a success. We try to do it as much in-house as possible to save costs, and as of late, the simpler things seem to be helping us save a lot:

• Being more energy-efficient by turning off the computers and lights before we leave;

• Calling our suppliers and asking for discounts if we buy in bulk (important to have good inventory control and line-of-sight on future orders to do this);

• Replacing paper-printing marketing material with digital and online material;

• Utilising technology and VC tools to reduce commuting and travelling costs;

• Doing a barter system with businesses in the area. We specifically worked with a data & AI business that we have helped go energy-efficient, and they returned the benefits via reduced bills as their energy costs have plummeted.”

Automate

Taking advantage of technology and, at the same time, making less use of physical resources is one way of lowering costs. This is why Cameron Bell, CEO at Pyrochar, utilise available software to his business’ advantage.

“I think people really overpay and underuse software. Many businesses (including my own) still rely very heavily on human input for certain tasks and requirements that could become automated with the right level of skill. My secret weapon is Zapier, which is used to automate as many things as possible. While I do currently automate a fair amount, I know I could do it more with greater skill in that area which would allow for: a.) lower staff costs or b.) a reallocation of staff capital to revenue-generating processes that need human input,” he shared.

These are just a few things that you might be able to apply to your own business as well, but there are still more best practices and suggestions out there on how you can manage your resources well. Now, if you have an office budget-saving tip, we would be happy to hear them. Share your tips below in the comment section.

3 different ways innovative entrepreneurs use cryptocurrency for their business

As the online space and financial world merge more and more and break boundaries, the interest in cryptocurrency is increasing by the minute. People looked into it as a way of boosting their financial resources. As its popularity rises, cryptocurrency has become an option for entrepreneurs to use in their business. How can it be done?

While many can not wrap their heads around this new concept, we tapped into the expertise of EO Melbourne Member and Nugget’s News Executive Director Ben Simpson, who shared with us his thoughts on the subject matter.

1.       Investment

Eliminating financial institutions in the process, cryptocurrency provides an alternative method for investment, which may be advantageous to startups and small and medium-sized enterprises. One thing to note, however, is that while it provides opportunities for expanding one’s business, it can also pose certain threats because it’s highly volatile.

According to Ben, “Cryptocurrency is one of the best performing asset classes of the past decade, but it’s also the most volatile. There is a wave of innovation in the space that can touch a range of different industries and create a huge amount of opportunity, and I think entrepreneurial types are very much drawn to that. It also helps that entrepreneurs typically possess a relatively high-risk tolerance and a thick skin which is very much needed if you’re going to participate in this space in any way.”

2.       Payment

As it can be used worldwide without going through banks, cryptocurrency can make processes swifter and cheaper. Given that, Ben said that businesses can use it for payment transactions, international payments included. “One method (which is what we do in our business) is to use cryptocurrency as a method of payment. For most of our team outside of Australia (predominantly the US), we pay them via cryptocurrency to avoid the excess fees, poor exchange rates and slow transaction times offered by our local bank,” he said.

3.       Trade and other transactions

Cryptocurrency is also advantageous to use not only in sending money but also in receiving them easily. Ben added, “Another method is to start accepting cryptocurrency payments in exchange for products or services. These days, it’s far easier for businesses to set up cryptocurrency payment gateways, and also to automatically convert it into their local currency if they want to avoid volatility risk. Of course, entrepreneurs will first want to consider their customer base before deciding to accept cryptocurrency payments.”

While cryptocurrency seems to be attractive to many, particularly business owners, it is still good to have a full grasp of its advantages and disadvantages, as well as opportunities and risks. Ben’s recommendation is to “Educate yourself. Blockchain is a bleeding-edge technology that can deliver great opportunities, but with great opportunity comes great risk. Users are faced with several challenges including (but certainly not limited to) scams, security and price volatility underpinned by the knowledge that most mistakes are often irreversible.”

If you feel that you still need to know more about cryptocurrency despite the many resources available, don’t rush yourself. Seek experts’ advice, if needed. As Ben pointed out, “There’s a rather steep learning curve to understanding the basics of cryptocurrency and blockchain, which leads many people to invest blindly in the space without taking the time to learn, research and understand it. A little bit of knowledge can go a long way in this space to ensuring you act safely and securely and take advantage of as many opportunities as possible without exposing yourself to a disproportionate amount of risk.”

Investing your money and resources into cryptocurrency also entails investing your time and effort in learning more about it before dipping your feet into the water. Look into it more closely and see how it can benefit your business growth and resilience. Cryptocurrency holds great promise, so it’s better to be prepared for what is to come as cryptocurrency can usher businesses to the future of financial technology.

The path of entrepreneurship through acquisition

Not all entrepreneurs start their journey from a garage; some entrepreneurs decide to jumpstart the process and follow the entrepreneurship by acquisition path.

This is not a made-up term. As a matter of fact, top-level universities and business schools like the Harvard Business School, Columbia University, The University of Chicago, and Duke University, among many others, offer Entrepreneurship by Acquisition in their main MBA curricula.

The truth is that you don’t really need to have a brilliant new idea or a unique opportunity to become an entrepreneur. Some people prefer to look for an existing business that already has the available resources and assets and then scale it or do a pivot or bring the company to a better position than from where it was before. Acquisition entrepreneurship is a good option for those who want to put their advanced entrepreneurial skills into good use from the get-go because they can spend more time on implementation and putting things into motion rather than be stuck on conceptualisation, trial-and-error, and ascertaining the business environment.

Is it the right path for you?

This was the route that Mobile Skips Owner and Managing Director Jacob Spencer took, who acquired the business from the original owners. He said, “Whether choosing to start a business from scratch or acquiring an established business, both have their relative pros and cons, usually quite different from the other. In my case, I chose acquisition, as the option best suited my strengths and weaknesses.”

“Before making this decision, I spent quite some time identifying and listing clearly what I needed (and wanted) in a business to acquire—with fundamentals like valuation and profit a given. I then spent the lion share of my time on the non-financial attributes that would complement my experience and skills. The first challenge then presented itself: a very limited amount of acquirable businesses that fit my detailed list of requirements…there were none. So, the first lesson was prioritising the list so that the right compromises could be made,” Jacob continued.

While buying a company may seem less risky than creating a start-up from zero and then building it, there are still varied difficulties to face for those who choose this path. One of these challenges is looking for the right business that corresponds to the needs, wants, capacity and capability of the entrepreneur.

To successfully acquire a business, would-be business owners must be able to:

1.)    Do a proper search for the right business to acquire

This is a crucial phase in acquiring a business. According to Damian Blumenkranc, who has founded and sold businesses before like Creativa Videos and now taking the entrepreneurship by acquisition path, recently acquiring Sunset, a concrete precast factory in Melbourne, “The first challenge, and it is not a small one, is to find a business you are comfortable with to buy and run and close a deal.” It has to be done properly, checking into the background of prospective companies you want to buy, their profitability, and other factors qualitative that are important to you.

2.)    Review or come up with a good proposal and negotiate

When you have done proper research and preliminary due diligence, you can then prepare an offer and negotiate all the terms of the deal. It is critical to try to get the whole picture of where the company currently stands and what is important for the current owner for this transaction.

Another important factor in acquiring a business is having the capital needed to invest in the company. Here are a few options when it comes to financing the business:

• Direct investment – you put your own resources to invest as capital to acquire the assets or ownership of an enterprise. This is usually done without an intermediary or broker.

• Loans from banks – you apply for a business acquisition loan which you can use to acquire an existing company, buy a franchise or buy out your business partner.

• Search funds – if you have limited resources for capital, you can look for other investors to pool funds into acquiring and financing a business.

3.)    Take the reins and lead the transition of the company

The success of the acquisition does not end with the signing of the agreement. As Damian stated, “That is just the beginning. I would say the second big challenge of buying a running small business is that the business won't wait for you to adapt, learn and take over. You, as a foreign entity, need to catch up quickly and find your place in the new business. It is like jumping in the cockpit of a commercial plane in mid-flight and taking over the controls without causing too much turbulence.”

Once the deal is done and the sale is closed, immerse yourself in the company, engage with your internal and external stakeholders and review your plans and the changes needed to implement. You may need to reassure your new employees and customers, present a plan and work towards adapting your team, systems and processes.

Lessons learned

Damian shared the lessons he learned in every stage of the process. “For the search stage, I would say, you must have real clarity of the parameters of the business you are looking for (i.e., industry, size, markets, financials, structure, capital requirement, etc). For the deal stage, be as clear and specific in the letter of offer as you can regarding the deal – from what type of contract you will expect to use to even specific guarantees you will expect to have. If you have investors, keep in constant communication with them, and set clear expectations of the type of shareholders agreement you will want to sign. Finally, for the handover stage, make a good 90-day plan, grab every key aspect of the business, such as people, cash, occupational health & safety, marketing, sales, and manufacturing, and set a weekly plan for 15 days to 90 days with all the things you want to do for each area of interest. This will help you manage the workflow, prioritise and ensure that you don't drop the ball on something critical to the business.”

He added, “To be able to launch and build a brand that existed before, the first thing for me is to understand the history and heritage of the brand, do nothing until we totally get it and understand the market and consumers well. Once we feel comfortable that we understand and get the brand, it is time to plan the strategy for the next few years.”

The rewards of entrepreneurship through acquisition

Despite the challenges, struggles and difficulties, the whole experience and the results can be rewarding. “One of the significant rewards is that instead of having to start from scratch, you can immediately grow the business and make it more profitable, experiments and small changes can be meaningful from day one compared to a startup where you need to build momentum first. With a running business, you might be able to make small adjustments and get significant rewards quicker,” Damian pointed out.

Similarly, Jacob also finds his journey of entrepreneurship through acquisition satisfying. “The benefit of the acquisition is that much of the hard work proving out the product or service model had been achieved. But much like buying a house vs building one from scratch, some things needed remodelling, renovating and even rebuilding. When I bought Mobile Skips, much of what we could see and review was in great shape, but some elements needed to be rebuilt to enable our skip bin hire to be scaled. I realised these unforeseen things seem to be more normal than not and having available capital to deal with them (and expecting some issues) meant we dealt with them quickly, getting us back on track and growing the business with limited disruption. Having enough capital and resilience to ride the bumps in the early stages ensured we weren’t snagged down early on.”

“My most enjoyable part of the acquisition was having an established group of customers we could learn from and quickly improve our skip hire offer. This meant we were able to do some great research early on and update the service offering, making it even better and getting instant feedback from our customer base. This helped drive more sales quickly and also built loyalty with our customer group by listening and reacting to their feedback. Happy and loyal customers are a huge part of the acquisition valuation. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my journey with Mobile Skips since the acquisition almost 5 years ago. I hope these small experience shares somehow contribute to your journey as well,” Jacob shared.

Share with us your experience on entrepreneurship through acquisition, if you have any, or drop a question in the comments section below if you are contemplating acquiring a business.

What quirky hobbies do entrepreneurs have?

Hobbies can help an individual learn new things, acquire additional knowledge, declutter the mind, bond with people who share the same interest, and warm the heart. Hobbies are beneficial to the physical, mental and emotional well-being of a people, especially entrepreneurs and business leaders.

Intriguingly, some entrepreneurs have quirky hobbies, showing us their fun side that we do not get to see most often. Here are some of the interesting pursuits of EO Melbourne members that they do when they’re not on their laptops or immersed in their business.

Kitesurfing

Kitesurfing is the leisurely pursuit of Cesar Aldea, Founder and Managing Director of Aldea Consulting.

According to Cesar, “I started kitesurfing back in 2007 when I arrived in Australia. I love it because it keeps me fit and takes my mind away from any pressing problems, allowing me the time to reset and come back to it with a fresh mindset.”

Flying a helicopter

Getting into the air is also a penchant of Honeycomb Strategy Managing Director John Bevitt. “I started learning to fly a helicopter last year when I turned 30,” he declared.

“It was something I've always wanted to do. My wife bought me a trial flight for my birthday and I absolutely LOVED IT. In terms of what I love about it - it's the feeling of seeing something familiar from a new perspective, looking down over Melbourne and seeing so many familiar places. Just the freedom of flying in a 3d space and being able to move in any direction (compared to a plane for instance) is simply wonderful,” John shared.

Growing cacti

“I love cactus for some weird reason,” says Andrew Colliver, Executive Director and Co-founder of Banjo Loans. He explained, “My interest commenced on visiting our happy place in Sorrento and there was a massive cactus garden against a Mexican-looking wall. It was further reinforced on a trip to California 2 years ago. Each variety is so unique; they can be very tricky to plant and some sting like crazy – and they grow so slowly. Patience is required, a virtue I lack.”

“Some varieties have incredible flowers growing from a hostile-looking plant. They appear to be the adaptive masters of growing and surviving in a hostile environment – the poster child of a weird individual combined with resilience. And unrealistically, I somewhat expected a dinosaur to suddenly appear one day and start munching on them which would just cap off a great day,” Andrew said.

Stacking books

WeTeachMe Founder and EO Melbourne Past President Kym Huynh stacks books. “You would be amazed at how many options or variations are possible,” he remarked.

“I find the art of stacking books both meditative and cathartic. From the endless variations (all vertical, all horizontal, half up/half down, sort-by-alphabet, sort-by-colour, sort-by-size, sort-by-genre, sort-by-author and the endless combinations thereof, including but not limited to combining with art, photo frames filled with pictures of loved ones and cherished memories that instantly transport one to moments of pure unadulterated joy, and objects discovered in strange and foreign lands) to conscious choices in symmetry or asymmetry (perfect if one feels a sense of anarchy or looming irony), stacking books perfectly combines art in its creativity and expression and organisation in the structure of carefully-selected or curated books.”

“In this sense, I find that it mirrors life quite beautifully, and I'm sure there are theoretical links to leadership here in that it requires both creativity and structure for one to be effective and free. In actuality, I'm just practising leadership in each corner of the bookshelf or coffee table. That's what I'll just keep telling myself. Stacking books is practising life in a safe and contained environment where it is OK to fail or make mistakes,” he reflected.

Collecting and restoring Saab cars

“I collect Saab cars and restore the classic 900s,” shared James Murray, Founder & Managing Director of Work Healthy Australia. “I started doing it about a year ago,” he continued. “Once, I had a head-on collision in a Classic Saab 900 and walked away. If I had been driving my Ute I would have had a much worse outcome!”

“I drove Saabs for many years after that but stopped when they went under in 2011. Last year, I realized that SUVs were not for me as I missed my Saabs too much. Since then it’s all Saabs! I have two of the wagons that I use for work and they are both crazy fun to drive,” James revealed.

Paragliding

A sports enthusiast and Executive Director of Sports Tech World Series, Johann Odou is into paragliding since 2012/2013.

“There is something magical about flying. Learning to operate in a different world, one where you go up, down, left, right, forward and back. It's a pretty special feeling to be able to look down on birds flying,” Johann quipped.

Collecting chess sets from the USSR

Rankin Business Lawyers Principal and Founder Rob Roy Rankin has a fascinating hobby. “I collect chess sets with a focus on sets from the USSR.”

Well, if one is a chess enthusiast, why not collect sets from the land of the chess champions? Chess and Russia have a long history together as it is believed that their rulers were partial to this game.

Rob recalled, “I started collecting chess sets back in 1991 when I made my first visit to the USSR. Chess was such an enormous part of Russian and soviet culture in the 20th century and the variety of chess sets produced in that period is incredible. So much of the nation’s culture and history can be gleaned form each set and every piece of each set is a small work of art.”

pinball machines

Dylan Smith, Founder and Managing Director of Rubix, found pinball machines cool. “I started only two years ago and now, I’ve got fifteen of the beautiful creations.”

What makes him take interest in pinball machines is that “I love every tiny little aspect of it. I strongly believe it is the ultimate example of lessons on how to run a global long term business using some of the most complicated and advanced skill sets, whilst keeping a diverse global customer base happy and screaming for innovations, but then complaining when the machines deviate from their definition of pinball.”

He added, “Disciplines include software engineering, mechanical engineering, game theory, manufacturing, pricing, global distribution, support, innovation, sound, lighting, theme licensing, cost of goods, fussy customers, theme integration, storage, business operations, artwork, tournament management and world ranking algorithms plus lots more!”

Cooking new and interesting food

Of course, there are also hobbies that we may find simple, yet relevant in the current situation. For Ben Stickland, Founder and CEO of Alliance Software, he found his interest in preparing food for his family. “I'm enjoying cooking as a hobby, works well in lockdown. Every weekend, I figure out at least one new meal and cook it. My goal is to transition our family to new & interesting food, and a few months in it is working well. It works for me because my wife and children all love food and so it's allowing us to explore new meals together,” he shared.

While most of his growth as an entrepreneur comes from the people he interacts with, many of which are from EO, he finds personal and professional growth through the readings that he does. Still, cooking provides a different kind of value. “Cooking is about an escape. It's a small, completable project. Often as entrepreneurs, we're working on big things that sometimes don't have clear finish lines. When I cook a meal, it's done. Delicious or disgusting, it's done,” he added.

There are many other hobbies out there that entrepreneurs can be involved in and benefit from. What rare or quirky hobby do you have that is not on the list above? Share with us why you enjoy it through the comments section below.

5 books every entrepreneur should read

Crowd Culture Director Blake Brunne and Orange & Green Founder and Executive Director Rudi van der Vlies share the books that have helped them navigate through the business space and understand their market better.

According to Blake, “There are a lot of books about Marketing and Entrepreneurship out there at the moment but for me, the two that have stuck out the most for me are The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss and Purple Cow by Seth Godin.”

As to why he chose these books, “Both of these books gave me some great insights and learnings when I was getting Crowd Culture off the ground in 2016 and a lot of which I still use today. The books itself isn’t too long and are easy to digest especially in Audio Book form, which makes it a great starting point for any busy entrepreneur,” Blake explained.

1. Purple Cow by Seth Godin

Blake shares what he has learned from the book. “Purple Cow was the book that gave me early insights on how to understand my customer better. Although my business has changed a lot since 2016 when I read it for the first time, my key takeaway from the book remains the same: Passion. In the book, Godin writes 'If you make something that you’re passionate about, it’s sure to be remarkable; if you create something that others are passionate about, it’s sure to have a market. Passion is key.’ I feel if that even you don’t read any more of the book, then you would have still learnt a valuable lesson from this.”

“We all want to do something we are passionate about or that we find a sense of joy in, and for a lot of us that could be the reason we became entrepreneurs. But for the majority of us, eventually, we are going to have to work on something that we are not passionate about. Godin writes 'you still need to project an air of passion, even if it’s not real.’ It sounds straightforward, but for me, it isn’t that simple. I was hell-bent on finding a way to do something I was passionate about, and I hadn’t thought about the fact that if I only did things I was passionate about, then I was leaving a whole heap of clients and markets left untapped,” Blake shared.

Blake has learned since and has adjusted his mindset. “It took a while and I still need to work at it today, but when I speak to clients about their event now I can show genuine excitement and share in their passion. In my game, that means a better solution for my clients and could be the difference between winning and losing the job.”

2. The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9–5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich tackles lifestyle design. Citing several case studies, the book presents examples of those who have multiplied their income, shortened their work time and enjoyed their life due to wise decisions, practical solutions and smart adjustments in their work regimen.

One doesn’t have to work round-the-clock, wear themselves out and wait for retirement when they can start to enjoy life. In his book, Ferriss shows that people can work smart enough to be able to attain financial freedom, location independence and frequent vacations or what he refers to as ‘mini-retirements’ while continuing their business journey.

And while Blake has gained considerable tips and advice from these two books, Rudi, on the other hand, believes that good business leaders should have the following three books at the front of their mind so that they can always act and manage accordingly. These books have presented mind-blowing concepts that have guided many entrepreneurs and helped them attain the success they were aiming for. They have also helped business owners reach their goals at an accelerated rate.

3. Scaling Up by Verne Harnish

If you want to master the four major decision areas of your business: People, Strategy, Execution, and Cash, then Verne Harnish’s Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It…and Why the Rest Don’t is a must-read.

The book contains practical tools, techniques and approaches that have been tried and tested by various companies and businesses. It also includes one-page tools that readers can use in scaling up their ventures. Entrepreneurs can learn from this book on how to grow a business that can dominate an industry without killing it.

Aside from authoring books, Verne Harnish is also the Founder and CEO of Gazelles, a global education and coaching company, and also the Founder of EO.

4. Good to Great by Jim Collins

“Good is the enemy of great” is a famous line of Jim Collins in his book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. The question that this book wishes to address is ‘can a good company become a great company, and if so, how?’ Based on the five-year research on various companies, the book presented several findings: the Level 5 Leadership; First Who, Then What; Culture of Discipline; Hedgehog Concept; Technology Accelerators; and The Flywheel and the Doom Loop.

It’s a great read that reveals significant thoughts from the data and examples of companies cited in the book. The concepts are helpful tools for entrepreneurs that can challenge their mindset and motivate them to aim for better results.

5. The Ideal Team Player by Patrick Lencioni

Jeff Shanley is a leader who tried to save his uncle’s business by bringing back the commitment of the organization towards teamwork. He needs to find out the virtues that team players must have so that he can hire and build the team based on such virtues. His story is the central point in Patrick Lencioni’s book, The Ideal Team Player.

Apart from the story, Lencioni includes in the book a powerful framework and actionable tools that can be used in recognising, employing and fostering ideal team players. Since good human resource is an important factor in the success of a company or enterprise, the book is a valuable guide to business leaders in developing and nurturing an ideal team that can help them drive their ventures towards their goals.

This is a good list that you can take with you on your entrepreneurial journey and growth as a business leader. What books have you read that have helped you face the challenges of entrepreneurship? Tell us your recommended books in the comment section below.

Music Makes Better Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs live busy lives as it is, which are often filled with stress and pressure from various angles. With the challenges that the current crisis brings and the uncertainty that the future beholds, they need more than ever to turn to methods and solutions that can contribute to their mental health. Music is one tool that brings energy to a lethargic mind and respite to a weary soul.

Let’s see how busy entrepreneurs use music as they go through the rigours of their journeys.

“Music has a significant effect on my mood and my emotions.”

– Kym Huynh

WeTeachMe Founder Kym Huynh finds music as an integral part of the human experience. “I use it to lift my mood and comfort, boost general happiness, and reduce anxiety. For me, music is an easy – and powerful – way to transform how I feel and, consequently, how I think.”

Kym, former President at EO Melbourne, also talked about how music has piqued his interest in the human mind.  “I'm particularly curious about how music can influence cognitive function. A tool I use for concentration –  https://brain.fm/ -- creates functional music that is optimised for focus. I find that the frequency of this music shifts me into one of focus and concentration, and the cerebral shift starts from minute 2 onwards.”

“I also listen to 432 Hz frequency music as part of my morning routine that was taught to me by Warren Rustand, called the 10.10.10. Without fail, this frequency of music, combined with the 10.10.10. in my morning routine, prepares me for an exceptional day. As a side benefit, music tuned to 432 Hz is softer and brighter. It is said to provide greater clarity and is easy on the ears,” Kym added.

“Music is good to start your day and end your night.”

– Tui Cordemans

For Tui Cordemans, Director at Koh Living, there is nothing like a hard trance to move your stress levels and get the energy flowing. “As COVID hit, I went back to my 20’s and started running and listening to hardcore trance which stopped any thought patterns and got me ready and pumped for the day.”

She described how she starts her mornings with energy-boosting music. “I have been listening to albums such as trance essential and hard trance anthems. I highly recommend this strategy if you are experiencing any negative thought patterns because the music is so intense and loud that you just have no place for any other thoughts. During stressful times, having an empty mind is potentially the best place to go to have a mental break. In the mornings, it is very easy to start with this music because your mind is not exhausted from the day.”

This is in stark contrast as to how Tui ends her nights, as well as the kind of music she listens to when she caps her day. “On the flip side, when I want to relax at the end of a night, I often enjoy pure silence. I find this extremely relaxing. I became accustomed to this after spending years doing meditation. If I do listen to music at the end of a day, it has to be classical as I find it dissolves my day into pure bliss. Pretty extreme change from my morning music, I know.  My brain is fairly exhausted from the day, so silence or listening to classical music works for me. Something like Swan Lake from Tchaikovsky, The Four Seasons, Vivaldi or even Rigoletto by Pavarotti – all great stress busters!”

“Music has a huge effect on my wellbeing.” 

– John Liston

“I would go as far as to say it’s the single most important thing in my day-to-day life,” said John Liston, Director at Liston Newton Advisory. “I have Spotify on throughout the entire day. I use it for energy and momentum when doing work. I use a good song to celebrate a win during the day or to get my energy back up if it’s been a hard day. I use it when cooking dinner and spending time with the kids to make things more upbeat and fun.”     

Apart from having it at home, music is also part of his work environment. “In the pre-COVID days, we would have a UE Boom in our open-plan office and play music throughout the day. It’s hard to always get everyone to agree on taste, but it’s a great way to generate mood and energy in the office,” John shared.

John’s top three chill songs include: “Give Me Tonight” by Dustin Tebbutt; “Old Pine” by Ben Howard; and “Fading” by Valis Alps.

“Music is core to me as an individual.”

– Dean Cherny

Dean Cherny has been in the music industry for so many years. He is the CEO and Founder of Marketing Melodies and storePlay, as well as Managing Director of DJ Dimension – all of which are related to music. “As you might expect, music plays a massive part in my well-being. It is core to me as an individual and something that compliments almost every part of my life. From training in the morning to hanging out with the kids, I love having a soundtrack to everything I do,” Dean remarked.

He shared an experience he recently had with his family. “Only last weekend, I watched my two daughters grooving and singing along to Donna Summer’s Hot Stuff as we built Lego, and it bought such a smile to my face. These soundtracks also allow me to build a bridge with my kids as I share stories about the artists and my time in the music industry.”

Outside of the home, music still plays an integral part in his entrepreneurial life. “While my company Marketing Melodies primarily focuses on using music to help create ambience in retail spaces, we also realise the importance of using music to stimulate, boost, and motivate the workforce in these environments.”

Dean stated the significance of music in a work environment. “The correct playlists can indeed help boost productivity in shops and offices. More laidback, relaxing music works best for periods of concentration, whilst more upbeat music helps to boost energy levels towards the end of the day.”

And if you’re curious as to what are Dean’s must-listen music, here are his top five ‘chill’ artists and albums:

1. David Gray - White Ladder

2. Massive Attack - Blue Lines

3. Maxwell - Maxwell’s Urban Hand Suite

4. Morcheeba - Big Calm

5. George Benson - Give Me The Night

What is music to you?

Let us know how music has played in your personal and professional journey. Comment below your thoughts or share your favourite songs that have become a significant part of your life.

Tech brands that made it big

Most companies and businesses nowadays do not have a physical product to sell. With information and transactions mostly done online, many brands that we have come across offer various services through websites or phone applications. From photo sharing, social networking, email marketing to buy-and-sell, there are plenty of industries that now rely on the internet to push their businesses forward.

Some of these businesses started as side projects, yet they became so popular that they evolved into core products of their companies. Others offer simple yet valuable solutions to certain challenges or difficulties we encounter in our day-to-day lives. Let’s take a look at a few examples and get insights on how they have built their brands from nothing into something big.

Mailchimp

While founders Ben Chestnut and Dan Kurzius created a web design agency for large corporate clients, they also made an email marketing project on the side to cater to small businesses. But this email service has become a valuable tool among individuals and small to medium-sized enterprises, garnering a user base of tens of thousands that continues to grow exponentially. It led the founders to focus exclusively on their product, called the Mailchimp. At present, users can integrate Mailchimp in their websites and social media platforms, making it easy for them to communicate and reach out to their customers and those in their mailing list.

Craigslist

One of the early players in the field is Craigslist, named after its founder, Craig Newmark. It began as an avenue for Craig to inform his friends of the latest happenings in the San Francisco Bay Area. Eventually, other people started posting jobs, items for sale, apartment for rent and other announcements on the list. The site, which is very simple in appearance and easy to navigate, has become the go-to place for people offering and looking for various items and services. Now, Craigslist service several cities and countries around the globe.

Skyscanner

The tourism industry is among those that have benefitted greatly from the advancement in online technology. Several websites and apps provide information and easy access for travellers to plan and book their trips by providing information on accommodations, flights and car rentals and compare costs. One of these sites is Skyscanner, which traces its roots in Edinburgh, Scotland, and later acquired by Trip.com.

Twitter

In the social media realm, Twitter is one of the main players where people can connect and share thoughts, moments and information. The microblogging site was initially called twttr, a project of its mother company, Odeo, and it was first used internally among the employees. Later on, celebrities, brands and even government officials turn to Twitter to post on various topics and users turn to the “trends” to jump in the conversation. Now, Twitter is a company in itself and is widely used worldwide.

Shopify

Before it became an e-commerce platform, Shopify was just another online store, called Snowdevil, that was selling snowboards. Not satisfied with the existing e-commerce tools at that time, one of the founders, Tobias Lütke, decided to build their own, which is now Shopify. This online marketplace grew from just five people meeting and working in coffee shops to having thousands of employees across the globe, servicing over a million businesses and buyers.

Unsplash

It all began as a Tumblr blog filled with photos from photoshoot outtakes of founder Mikael Cho’s company. He welcomed others to use the photos until it grew and became what is today’s Unsplash. Now, it is one of the sources of stock photos although changes have been in place and there are certain restrictions. But who ould have thought that from a humble beginning, it is now widely used by various individuals and companies?

Grammarly

At first, Grammarly was created by Alex Shevchenko, Dmytro Lider and Max Lytvyn to support students in their spelling and grammar. But the product held so much promise that it was also being used by professionals in business and everyday writing. Grammarly can also be used as an add-in to various platforms and browser extensions.

GoFundMe

If you’re looking for a job, a property, an item, a picture, a flight schedule or an event, you name it and the internet will surely lead you to something. But it’s not just products or services that are found in e-commerce and tech sites. There are also crowdfunding that aims to help those in need. GoFundMe is one site that provides a platform for those looking for resources and those looking for a cause to support. Its forerunner was Paygr which was originally established to provide its members with an avenue where they can sell their services.

Houzz

The advent of the internet also paved the way for many do-it-yourself projects, allowing those who cannot afford to pay professionals to do things by themselves or seek advice from people with similar interests or concerns. Houzz was born because founders Adi Tatarko and Alon Cohen were remodelling their home. Frustrated with piles of magazines where they cut out pictures of houses and still couldn’t put together their dream design, they built Houzz and became an online community on interior design, architecture, landscaping and home improvement.

Groupon

Groupon is a platform that banks on the concept of collective bargaining power. Its founder Andrew Mason first helped establish The Point, which was based on the principle of the “tipping point”, gathering people for a common goal. Eventually, people started using it to band together to save money through group discounts. It evolved into Groupon, an e-commerce site focused on group buying.

There are many more technology-based startups that have grown in a span of a few years. It goes to show that people turn more and more to the internet for all their needs and wants. The challenge, however, is in sustaining these brands by staying relevant amidst the changing times.

How entrepreneurs can spend their weekends in the new normal

Restrictions have eased up after the quarantine, but movements are no longer the same as to how it was before COVID-19 hit the world. People are still advised to observe distancing as much as possible. Some companies have opted for flexible work arrangements with their people where certain staff members work from home. Many events and activities are still held online. As long as no vaccine is available, precautions are still advised to be taken to avoid a similar occurrence in the future.

For everyone else, it’s a new normal. Even entrepreneurs are not spared with the lifestyle change happening in our society. The boundary of home and office becomes blurred as many opt to work from the confines of their houses. Although you may have an allotted space where you do business, making it more accessible often leads you to attend to your business more than you used to. How can business owners spend their weekends and spare time in the current unusual scenarios? When you can’t go to the beach or hike to the mountains, there are other ways to take a break, especially when the stress and pressures of work are too much to handle.

Look after your body

With the health crisis that the world is facing today, it is important to look after your physical well-being. You can do some exercise or be creative in your exercise routine and indulge yourself to other physical activities that will not require you to leave your vicinity. You can also get into gardening or cooking healthy food that can help boost your immune system.

Take care of your mental health

Worrying about the future, your family, your business and your people can take a toll on your mental health. The uncertainty that the situation brings can be a major concern for an entrepreneur. Do some meditation exercises, talk to people close to you or indulge yourself into something that can help you relax and ease you of your worries. Get into music or learn a new hobby, something that can bring you little joys.

Deepen relationships

During these challenging times, it’s okay to check in with your friends or call someone whom you have not spoken for a long time. Reconnect old ties and strengthen new ones. You can even stay in touch with your clients and business associates. Attend online gatherings when you can. Most of all, spend more time with your partner and family members. Being cooped in your home may be an opportunity for you to enjoy each other’s company even more.

Clean up and organise

When you’re off your computer or not out for some business matters, you can spend time at home cleaning up, fixing things or organising your stuff. Maybe they are just waiting for you to find time to arrange them. Not only will it keep your surroundings clean but it can also be therapeutic for you.

Develop yourself

Continue developing yourself amid the crisis. There are plenty of webinars that are available online that can help you gain more insights not only on how to survive the present challenges but also on how to make yourself better in various ways. Read books and listen to podcasts on things you want to learn more.

Do philanthropic work

A lot of people are suffering. Some of them may be within your community. Take time to know the immediate needs that require quick action. As volunteering physically may not be possible yet, you can help out within your means, whether you donate to a cause or lend your expertise to a group.

We’ll never know what the future holds, but we have experienced something that has changed our lives. It has taught us to take care of ourselves and be mindful of those around us. Life goes on, and work still never stops for the entrepreneur, yet a weekly break is a welcome respite from all the stress we receive from within and around us.

The pros and cons of serial entrepreneurship

There are entrepreneurs and there are serial entrepreneurs. But what is the difference between the two? Both start a business from an idea. While a typical entrepreneur may opt to stay to run their venture, a serial entrepreneur may pass on the reigns of managing the business to someone else and moves towards starting another one.

Some entrepreneurs may be more skilful at the startup stage and find it a challenge overseeing the day-to-day needs of the business. Serial entrepreneurs thrive at creating ideas and putting such concepts into concrete results by building startups. There’s nothing wrong with it if one’s skills set better matches becoming a founder rather than managing a business. Still, it pays to be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of serial entrepreneurship should you decide to be one.

Pros of serial entrepreneurship

More opportunities to widen one’s creativity

Not all business ideas can be merged into one venture. Some are unrelated that you need to establish a separate enterprise for your various business concepts. The good thing about being a serial entrepreneur is that you don’t get stuck with just one idea or box yourself within your existing business. By opening another startup, you can experiment and come up with many creative outputs without putting your other business in jeopardy.

Gives you more flexibility and freedom

A variety of businesses with different concepts and core products or services may allow you more flexibility and freedom to do whatever you want. As you are more into generating ideas and laying them out, you are not tied up with the day-to-day operations of your businesses. With that, you can pour your time and effort into what you do best while getting experts to take care of areas where you need help the most.

Personal and professional development

Exposure to different industries and challenges will help hone your skills and capabilities. It can provide you with various avenues for professional growth as well as personal development. You get to learn the ins and outs of the many industries where your enterprises belong and understand more the mindset of different market groups.

Can bring in more money

Having more businesses may bring in more sales and profits. It’s not always the case, but if they all become more prosperous, you will reap a good harvest with what you’ve sown. Many successful serial entrepreneurs now enjoy various streams of income because they have established several ventures and provided a good foundation to allow them to grow.

Cons of serial entrepreneurship

Several risks to take

Establishing businesses here and there may sound exciting but it may come with a huge price. Starting a business means investing your resources, time and effort. If you have several ventures you may need a lot to invest in them, which means exposing yourself to a lot of risks. You need to be more calculating in your decisions to lessen probable harm to you and your businesses.

Need for trustworthy people

Since serial entrepreneurs are usually more present in the business during the early phase and may have to hand over the reins to someone else, there is a need to find trustworthy people who can manage the various aspects of the business once it has started to take off. As the entrepreneur moves on to another startup, there must be strong leadership that will steer the other ventures forward.

A lot of accountability

Although there may be directors and managers that will take care of the other businesses and their departments, having several enterprises entail bigger accountability to the entrepreneur. There are more people under your wing. One misstep may not only affect one venture but may also affect the others. When something unexpected happens, you have more people to tend to and matters to attend. It cannot be avoided that as you multiply your businesses and expand them, there are more mouths to feed and more individuals relying on you. It might be difficult to pull out when the right time comes.

Lack of focus

With three or more businesses to your name, you need to allocate quality time for each. Having too many may result in a lack of focus, causing one or several of them to suffer. Some of your businesses may demand your attention all at the same time and not be able to address a certain issue may yield to losses and failure.

Becoming a serial entrepreneur takes a lot of courage and confidence. Not everybody may be one, as much as not all can become an entrepreneur, but if you put your mind and heart into it, you may be able to surpass the unimaginable and be able to build a business empire.

When to partner with a competitor

It may not be commonplace to find competitors partnering with each other, but it is also not a rare case. Besides, such collaboration only lasts for a certain period and is not expected to be done in the long-term.

However, there are benefits you can get by working with a competition, although it may also pose some risks. But if you have a common goal in mind, then doing so may mean you have to set aside your differences and cooperate until you achieve what you both want to attain. Just make sure that you keep your trade secrets close to your chest as certain circumstances may call for it.

During times of crisis

A crisis, tragedy or disaster, such as the global pandemic we are currently experiencing, are few instances when you need to put two minds together until both your businesses can surpass such difficulty. Oftentimes, several companies in the same industry come together to cooperate so that they can survive and navigate through a crisis.

For innovation in the industry

Competition happens not just among businesses belonging in the same field but also among various industries. With the rise of online and app-based ventures, physical stores or those with physical products experience a dent on their performance. Other industries are left behind because of the fast technological advancements. Partnering with a competitor to revive your industry or innovate it is a good move to help your business withstand the rising trend of other new industries.

When expanding the market

It is often difficult to enter a new market or expand your existing one to new territories. To save you on your effort and resources, as doing so may require a huge risk, partnering with a business similar to yours may be a wise thing to do in certain situations.

To complement each other’s business

While you are competitors, you may have different strengths and unique selling propositions that one may have over the other. You may complement each other’s businesses by putting on the table something that the other one does not have.

In facing a bigger competitor

When a huge corporation dominates a certain market, small businesses sometimes suffer as they only get a meagre portion of the pie. They need to join forces so that they can increase their market share and have a better competing power against the big player in the field.

For a common charitable cause

Businesses usually help out a sector that is related to their brand or operation. Construction firms would want to build homes to the homeless or schools to communities in need. Enterprises that are into children may help in education. Competing companies can work together to help a particular sector of society, hoping to provide better conditions to that group.

It may be an opportunity to find a circumstance where you can partner with a competitor. But then, think it over thoroughly, do a lot of research, discuss it with your team and analyse the situation carefully. There are benefits with working with a competitor but know the risks. Be sure that you do it to advance your business and help you get closer to your vision and goals.