Mindshare Marketing

The other day, someone asked me why I was attracted to working with start-up companies.  After all, money’s tighter, margins are slimmer, and the risk associated with start-up equity is so much higher.  Why would anyone want to enter that kind of a business relationship?

With me, it’s all about one of my three pillars: fun.  Working with a new company (or even an old company creating a new product) is exciting!  There are unforeseen obstacles to be avoided or surmounted, new relationships to be nurtured with partners, customers, and other stakeholders, and every kind of business challenge you can imagine.

… Then again, I am a bit of an adrenaline junkie.

I had the opportunity this past weekend to watch my brother SCUBA dive for the first time.  Yes, it was only in a swimming pool, but he was still completely under water for a good 10-12 minutes at a time.  I would have gone with him, but we were at the state fair and, unlike him, I had forgotten to bring a spare pair of shorts.

Think about what he was doing.  He was trusting a handful of experienced guides and second-hand equipment with his life.  He was then following the guides completely under the water with this equipment and playing catch with them at the bottom of the pool.  When I think about what he did on Sunday, and the risk he was taking by doing it, I just sit in a state of shock.  There’s a huge, resounding “wow” in my head when I look back at photos of it, too.

All the same, he jumped at the chance.  The $5 fee was no roadblock as he quickly filled out liability waivers, stripped down to his gym shorts, and pulled on the SCUBA gear.  He was excited by the opportunity to try something new and, at least to him, completely untested.

We must be related, because that’s exactly the way I feel about start-ups.  Here I am, trusting a handful of experienced businesspeople and second-hand advice with my professional reputation.  I follow them into the fold and, once I’m completely immersed in the business, I sit at the table and play catch with different ideas for the “future.”  Maybe that’s why other people can look at what I do on a daily basis, and the risk I assume through doing it, and sit in a state of shock.

What do you do in your life or business that people don’t understand?  Do you have similar drivers like “fun” and “excitement” to fuel you as you mock their disbelief?  What are they?