CheatCodes - Avoiding overinflated job titles & 5 lessons from a $22M CEO
Timo's Business Mistakes #1: Giving overinflated job titles
Since so many of you enjoyed the business mistakes last week I've decided to trial a new segment: "Timo's Business Mistakes."
This weeks mistake: Giving overinflated job titles to early employees.
In the early days of building Fanbytes I fell victim of this mistake - purely of my own doing - that caused A TON of headaches down the line.
Basically, the first marketing person we hired I then said - "Great, you're now head of marketing."
SPOILER: This person was NOT head of marketing material.
They were just someone who was good at marketing but this was also their second ever job.
This became a problem when - as the company grew - I needed to hire an actual head of marketing and it just became very messy.
I shied away from having the conversation, I knew it'd be difficult and wasn't good for the company and didn't make the call.
It became very awkward.
We both knew he wasn't Head Of Marketing material but it would also have been a brutal hit to his ego.
But this is where it gets the worse...the rest of the team knew and I didn't look like an effective leader who could make decisions.
People want to work for an effective leader, not a weak one.
Eventually, the episode concluded where he found a job elsewhere and I didn't have the conversations. I still cringe at that experience and I suggest that a lot of you don't need to go through that.
Learn from my mistake.
Lesson: Do not give out overinflated job titles to people just because they were early team members. Save the roles for the people who deserve them based on skills, not timing.
5 business lessons from a $22 million CEO.
Recently I read "Anything You Want" by Derek Sivers where he shares 100 pages of incredible business lessons he learned on his journey to selling a company for $22 million.
(His company is called CD baby if you want to read up on the story.)
Here are 5 of his most powerful lessons
Money is a by-product, not the goal.
Focus on providing the best product possible.
Focus on delighting your customers.
Focus on solving a really critical problem.
Do those things, and the money will follow I guarantee.
2. Act like you're already successful
Adopt the mindset of someone who is your definition of successful.
Successful mindsets result in "successful" actions.
Successful actions are what bring you actual, tangible, real success.
Start mentally.
3. Trust your instincts.
Intuition is criminally underrated.
If something feels right, or wrong, but you can't explain why - believe it.
Chances are you'll be right.
4. Success comes from making others successful.
Helping others achieve their own goals makes you indispensable to their life.
In return they give you opportunity, time, support - the list is endless.
Success is not a zero sum game.
Those who a play a zero sum game rarely end up making it.
5. Focus on what you love, delegate the rest
Concentrate on your own circle of genius - don't distract yourself with other tasks you're very "meh" at.
Stick to your genius and hire other people to work in their genius.
The speed of progress will be 100x faster than if you tried to do it yourself.
