I while ago I mentioned a meeting I had with the local branch of a group called Endeavor.. here and here. As you know I’ve been a bit lazy with the blogging lately, so this is actually old news, but I figured I’d give you an update on how it panned out.
They invited me for the 2nd round of interviews soon after that meeting.. but, I picked up some hesitation in the way they communicated.
The biggest challenge was that you were incubating different businesses with no clear focus.
I was in Spain on a nice warm summers day when I received the email with the above. Usually I’d react in a “we’ll just have to see about that” way and try to prove a point (aka The Pit Bull Instinct). But I was in a pretty chilled mood and I remembered something I read about Phil Knight (from Nike) a long time ago.. apparently he’s not interested in deals where both parties are not keen to do business. He rather walks away.
So I responded with..
I’ve given this some thought,
if it’s not a mutual fit.. let’s just walk away,
I can’t change my business plans to fit your brochure.
It’s interesting how you pick up on small details that are only relevant later on. Here are the things that bugged me about this whole story..
1) They seem to be looking for rock star entrepreneurs, the one man (one hit) wonder band. I’ve never claimed to be the single point around which any of the businesses I’m involved with rotate. I don’t like black polo-neck shirts.
2) They have a cookie cut recipe and they want a story above all. The story must fit the format of the brochure. One hero, one business.
3) I picked up from the meeting that they like giving advice a little too much.. to the point of imposing their views.
4) I don’t like the idea that they want equity in my business(es). If they can inspire philanthropy they win. If they have to ask, they lose.
5) It sounds like a boys club. I get the idea a few golfing buddies were saying.. I’d love to help a few new business guys, but I really can’t be bothered to find them.. let’s pay somebody to do some filtering and make them jump through a few hoops.
6) Don’t ask me why, but I have a need to be a self made man, which makes it hard to join a “business networking club”.. you know that saying about not wanting to belong to any club that will have me as a member.
This is something I once wrote in a birthday card for a good friend:
..there were no fortunes-by-conquest, but only fortunes-by-work, and instead of swordsmen and slaves, there appeared the real maker of wealth, the greatest worker, the highest type of human being, the self-made man.
– Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged.
“the world has no hold on the self made man”
I guess I’m stubborn. I can’t help it.
But Joe, you ARE a rockstar entrepreneur!
My experience of the Endeavor process has been good so far. My impression is that they are very much looking for ‘self-made men’, but you are correct in that they are looking for stories to tell. I.e. what makes you or your business special, what were the hardships you had to face, and what knowledge and experience can you contribute back to Endeavor and society at large.
I didn’t experience point 3 at all though… though I’m sure I could do with plenty of good advice. Point 4 is a more difficult one, especially if you have more than 1 shareholder in your business and the ‘deal’ is not 100% clear.
Remember Atlas Shrugged emphasized not just self-made men, but a _society_ of self-made men and women, where you were rewarded for innovation, where intellectual property was well protected
(We paid $3500 to do a worldwide patent search for the Skyrove process, by no less than a former deputy director of the USPTO, it was patentable but we didn’t have another $20,000 to do it!),
,trade could happen without fear and partnerships were formed “at the speed of trust”!
Although Endeavor might not be anything like Rand’s Atlantis, I think that their formula of finding ‘High-Impact Entrepreneurs’ and throwing them together in a pool is a good start.
Hey Joe,
Your experience is pretty much the same I had when I tried to join a business networking group here in Seattle two years ago. I was astounded at the way the groups I checked out treated their members as if they were in kindergarten. I was also appalled by the way the exclude people of the same profession – in my experience, I have the most to gain from people who are in closely related fields. Anyway, I’m a web developer, so I thought to myself: I can build something better than this in my spare time. Well, it’s turned into something much larger than that now (three full time employees as of today) called Biznik – business networking that doesn’t suck. We just got our 5,000th member on Friday, and it’s a pretty rockin’ network. Also, it’s free to create a basic account. Come check it out and let me know what you think!
iirc, there is some patent on the web auth redirect system most hotspots use.
Good comment about point 4 and other shareholders issue.. but I guess their idea would be that the “Rock Star” gives some equity to them.
Hey Dan
I think Endeavor also had some “first refusal” model for limiting or preventing members in the same game. I’m sure it makes for interesting politics.
Nice site, I remember your logo from the Ignite Seattle site.. I was wondering.. how did you find my blog?