If you could ask THE INVISIBLE BOSS one question about your business... what would it be???
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 12:55PM 
What makes you happy?
A dear friend of mine (also an entrepreneur) recently replied to this simple question: "I am happiest when I have nothing to worry about."
Business owners, by definition, are incapable of doing nothing for long periods of time. We are builders, artists, and -yes- obsessive control freaks. We create things to worry about.
We are programmed to "do what needs to get done," to "do it ourselves," and to lengthen the work week vertically (longer days) and horizontally (more of them).
Wouldn't it be nice if we got to do what we WANTED TO DO instead of worrying about the things we NEEDED TO DO? Wouldn't it be nice if we could simply enjoy THE PRESENT MOMENT instead of worrying about what didn't or what should get done?
An Invisible Boss is somebody who lives this reality.
If you could ask The Invisible Boss one question about your business... what would it be?
What knowledge do you need in order to shed the "worry" standing in the way of "happy"?
What needs to happen for you to start WORKING TO LIVE instead of LIVING TO WORK?
Ask away. Let's figure this out together.
Reader Comments (7)
I have a problem getting people to join me.What can i do to get the word out there.
"Getting people to join you" =
* People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care
* Most leaders use more energy talking about themselves and their offerings than they do learning about others (think of people you met recently)
* We have two ears and one mouth = listen twice as often as we talk
* This creates trust = the essence of relationships
* Resist the urge to always have the answer
* Keep asking questions
* Memorize this phrase: "Tell me more"
Assuming you are prospecting for an MLM company or are recruiting talent for your business? "How do I get the word out" =
* Be clear on EXACTLY what type of person you want: how they act, what they're like, and how they work with you; quality beats quantity 7 days a week
* Write it all down: "I want to team up with people who..."
* Seriously. Get it all on paper.
* Meet everybody you can JUST BECAUSE (agendaless relationships)
* You can do this on the internet or in real life. Have an open mind
* The people you are looking for will start to show up, often times in unexpected places (like at the gym or in a waiting room). When they do?
* Listen. REALLY LISTEN.
* Give them what they ask for (when they ask for it) and then some
* Repeat
Your understanding of who you're looking for will evolve as you learn more about the business and more about yourself.
...
Horace, thank you for your question. I appreciate you being the first commenter. You are leadership in action!
Live the life. TheInvisibleBoss.com
I’m planning to start by business this year; I will be selling stickers for cars. What would be the best way to market my product and get my product on shelves in all major cities?
What are your thoughts on this:
I own a relatively successful business and have secured a level of comfort significantly beyond the reach of the average person for my age. It doesn't help that I appear to be in my early 20s (am 37).
How do you recommend I deal with folks who seem to have a chip on their shoulder that someone decades younger is *walking* circles around them and hence being passive aggressive in not cooperating?
I am pretty down to earth and not very flashy so this probably contributes to their perception.
In drag racing, the 'sleeper' humiliates the unexpected.
In Mixed Martial Arts, the unassuming wins.
So in business, what *happens* with the uber talented if they are surrounded by naysayers? These naysayers are the same folks who the our hypothetical prodigy relies upon...
Tom-
If I were running your business, I would make it as "invisible" as possible. In other words, I would create a situation where another company handled all of the production and distribution of my products.
This allows you to eliminate all of the admin... and focus on the two most important things: creative design and marketing.
There are sites like this that allow you to do this. Check out: CafePress.com/cp/info/sell
CafePress is widely known. They will walk you thru the very cheap way of creating your own site and will handle the backend for you. Benefits of starting this way:
1) Outsourcing everything = minimal investment
2) Outsourcing everything = way less work as you figure out the business
3) More products. In addition to bumper stickers, CafePress will sell your work as tee-shirts, coffee-mugs, etc.
4) You can test your ideas to see how popular they REALLY ARE before making any significant asset investments
5) Once you have a website, you can begin the process of learning how to REALLY market (your ability to do this successfully will determine whether you have a business or a hobby)
MAJOR DISADVANTAGE = they take a decent piece of the pie. Therefore, this might not be a long-term strategy for you... but can get you started immediately.
A lot of entrepreneurs have an "all or nothing" mentality. They lack the maturity to start small and build. CafePress is a great way to start small. You could open up your store tomorrow for under 100 bucks.
If you're totally convinced that you have a market-share and you're willing to invest the necessary resources to do all of the production and distribution in-house? Check out: http://www.howtoadvice.com/BumperStickers
... A lot of this info is probably old news to you, but I found it interesting at least. A very fascinating industry.
...
Once you have a web-enabled distribution system?
Now it's time to start marketing.
Most important thing = define your strategic position and your value to the marketplace. If you don't know who you are, you don't know how people will find you.
Once you do that, it's all about using internet-marketing to get your message out to the public. The big three = PPC, SEO, and Social Media.
Pay-per-click marketing (PPC) is the preferred method of an Invisible Boss. It's like having little virtual sales people that work for you 24/7. Of course you need to have a deep knowledge of how the whole thing works or you'll just end up wasting money. I would master that first. Get started by buying PERRY MARSHALL'S GUIDE TO GOOGLE AD-WORDS on Amazon and by checking out (free) blogs on the subject.
Or --if you are passionate about NOT becoming an expert-- outsource it to somebody who knows what they're doing (invisible boss-style... facebook msg me if you want me to connect you with somebody I trust: Facebook.com/MikeMonroe.CEO).
How to get my product on store-shelves:
1) Build a relationship with the distribution decision-makers (somebody in a suit determines what bumper stickers are sold in Wal-Marts, etc). Find out who they are, connect with them on Linked In, and begin the (very challenging) process of getting them to check out your product (easier to do when you have market data for them).
2) Kick-butt on your own, create a buzz, and wait till they find you.
There are enough stories out there of big companies buying out small companies to inspire a grass-roots entrepreneur.
This is why it pays to set yourself up as an Invisible Boss = because if the owner isn't needed for successful operation of the business, then your company is 10000 times more attractive as a potential acquisition (tip: don't name your company after you).
In summary:
* Start small
* Focus on the creative design and the marketing
* Set the business up so you are as invisible as possible
And have fun! Shoot me your site once it's made (or advertise your business FREE on my fanpage: Facebook.com/InvisibleBoss). I'm thinking that I could use:
A) A new convertible
B) A cool bumper-sticker :)
Good luck, Invisible Tom.
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