Blondie

Blondie was great. No, not the ultra cool band from the 80s, but Liz Blondie. Liz was an inspiration to just doing it. Maxing out credit cards, having to deal with HR headaches but having no HR staff, and getting things done the old fashion is what stuck out to me about Liz. I was amazed to hear about someone who knew nothing about an industry but just decided to learn and go out and do it, and that’s what she did.

She is a Detroiter for sure and is active on the ground level of getting Detroit into 2.0. Of course there are the Roger Penskes and the Dan Gilberts we are going to have to thank for making Detroit truly 2.0, but I hope we don’t forget the Liz Blondies as that happens. Small business is just as vital to a city as big business.

Cat’s Meow

Our guest speaker on Tuesday was a testament to ground level execution. More than any other speaker he seemed to be one who we could most relate to. He’s still in the struggle of becoming a success and not yet at the point of making 6 figures plus a year, but instead has his eye on the prize of hitting that next level of success.

He used resources such as SCORE, a resource I plan to tap into in the very near future. And once again he spoke on the importance of networking, even mentioning BNI as a group he uses to network through. Having been to many BNI groups myself as a subsitute, I found it interesting that a man in his line of work would even think to use it. Simply another example of how the inches we need are all around us. In a group typically filled with real estate agents, lawyers, insurance salesman and other service based individuals he realized that for a few hundred bucks a year there could be a chance for him to network with someone who could help him. And that’s exactly what happened and helped lead him to securing an important deal for him.

All and all, the Purfect Opener seemed a little strange to me. As it should, since I’m no where near the target demographic. But his visit taught us how using your previous experience, networking and filling a need ultimately helps lead to innovation.

Lisa Toenniges

Lisa Toenniges of Innovative Learning Group was different than most of the speakers we had come in, but different in the best kind of way. First, she didn’t give a speech! She sold me at that. She let us ask her questions and get the most out of the experience. That aside, she spoke in down to earth real world examples and more so than any of the other speakers she didn’t talk as if she had plans to take over the world. Lisa Toenniges spoke about growing her business gradually and profitably. From her talk with us I could tell, she is in a good place making a good salary and giving a great service and is happy with that.

When she spoke about her business, everything was concrete; no spin. She broke down her 8 member team into specific job titles. She ran through her work schedule and gave specific percentages on where her time is spent. She gave one of the specific reasons for her success in the fact that 60-70% of her business is done outside of SE Michigan. With all of that being said I think the greatest thing Ms. Toenniges left me with was the merit in running a good company and that business isn’t all about forcing the competition out of the market, but instead about servicing the customer.

Mike Melfi

The CEO of 6 Degrees magazine Mike Melfi came in and describe to us what it’s like to run a young, hip business at a young age. 6 Degrees magazine is an urban lifestyle based magazine available in Detroit as well as other places such as Miami. Melfi started going from business to business himself and asking if he could leave copies there and grew to a multi-channel magazine that also host a ecommerce site directed at 6 Degrees’ target market.

The major lessons Melfi left us with are:

1. You’re either selling or being sold. So get to selling.

2. You can’t win a championship on your own. Surround yourself with good people and treat them good and it’ll produce a return.

3. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. When asked why he hasn’t gone national, Melfi admitted he didn’t have the infrastructure to do so. It drew back to the when the owner of Small Plates said he could have grown but didn’t because he didn’t have the key people in place to do so.

4. Don’t reinvent the wheel, there is research and practices already out there. Use that, don’t do it on your own.

Dave Bing

“People who are successful in high school basketball, are the same ones successful in college ball and the same ones successful in the NBA”, Dave Bing said. It’s those ones willing to work hard. He said it’s the same thing with business. From working at a bank on his NBA off season to immediately going to work after retirement, Dave Bing serves as his own example for how hard work means all the difference.

How does a man with impaired vision in one eye go on to be a hall of fame athlete? Hard work. How does a man who dribbles a basketball for a living become a leader in the manufacturing industry, and without having any background in it until his mid 30s? Hard work.

Hard work isn’t the only thing Bing brought to the table. Dave Bing has an enormous amount of basic wisdom as well. Many times people come to business wisdom and try to give some outside the box kind of philosophy, but not Bing. He shot straight through and through. With advice like, know your weaknesses and get someone else to cover for them, and just trust your gut when you hire people Dave Bing was a good business 101 reality check.

John Ferchill

Know something. Do a good job at it. Create a reputation for yourself. It seems time and time again this seems to be the formula for many of the entrepreneurs we’ve learned from who have been in the game for years. They learned from working a job in an industry. They do a good job at it and create their own company where they make a reputation for themselves by doing a good job, getting things done and making customers happy.

This was the case for John Ferchill. He went to college and then eventually got a job with a Midwestern development company. Eventually opening his own company with his own money. In his own words he stated, “We are relentless for completing projects on time and on budget.” He’s created a strong reputation to back up his strong personality. He stated that people love him and some hate him, but they all respect the work he does and they know he’s the best.

With all that being said one of the greatest lessons I learned form Ferchill was not a direct one, but a lesson that we all picked up on. Be yourself. He wasn’t politically correct, but I believe people respect that. People respect a man who will shoot from the hip and not feel like he has to pretense himself in order to do so. I think of people in my own sphere who I don’t have a great deal of respect for. Those are people who feel as though they need to say the right things and do the right things, rather than being the right thing. All and all, I guess the lesson learned form John is to let who you are speak for itself. People can love you or hate you, but if ingrained in you is the propensity to do the right thing, it will show in all the work that you do.

Bruce Bruce

Talk about a born business man. Bruce Schwartz is, “that guy.” His father was a pool hustler turned salesman. While Bruce became a real life hustler turned In-House Realty CEO. Finding opportunity after opportunity and using his social network and streets smarts to his advantage every step of the way.

Bruce is a true serial entrepreneur. His laundry list of businesses sounded like a couple pages out of mobster’s rolodex. From a gambling hotline to construction and even a little arcade game services he’s had a piece of nearly all the mafia related businesses short of hired hand (at least I hope).  Bruce never stopped seeking out opportunities. His continued pursuit of business exploits even after complete destruction is what impressed me most about Bruce. His gambling hotline was put out of business by an uprising in credit card fraud and his construction business self imploded after too much demand after a hurricane.

 The more and more I write about this guy the more and more I’d love to see a movie about him. It’s strange, Bruce didn’t seem overly charismatic or shockingly impressive, but he’s one of those guys if you were to sit down with I could guarantee you he has some stories to tell that could keep your attention for hours.

There is no Box

I liked Bill Emerson. As of yet I hadn’t had much of an opportunity to come in contact with Bill or even hear much of him (other than the fictional birthday party for his daughter I was dooped into), but meeting with him was interesting. Having met with most of the top leaders in Quicken Loans it was nice to finally meet with the CEO. Bill had a strong yet humble veiw of leadership. He saw leadership as a role in which to serve people. I’ve heard many leaders say this before, but with Bill it seemed as though he actually believed in this service form of leadership.

As he spoke on leadership he explained in order to lead others you have to lead yourself. I think this is vital in business. Too many times people don’t set goals for their business because they aren’t used to setting goals for themselves. Too many times people don’t manage their business well because they don’t manage their personal lives well. Bill mentioned that we had to have a core belief system in being a leader and being successful and I believe that as well is one of those things that translate from the personal to the business.

A great piece of advice Bill gave was to get new prospects to tell you their goals and then explain your goals to them and then it’s vital to have them explain how they fit in with your goals. This way they confirm that they are on board and conversely you can see where they want to be in your organization. Another piece of advice Bill gave was to “under promise and over deliver” (I’m not sure if I’ve heard that one yet, but it sounds good ; ).

Bill had great nuggets of knowledge, being a guy who admits to love sayings he left us with some great ones to live by. Zig win everyone else zags. That’s an idea I’m taking to heart in my ideas for internet based businesses. He also said start each day asking yourself where can I have the most impact, interestingly my mentor gave similar advice a few weeks back. It’ s interesting that so many strings again and again keep getting pulled from people who don’t have that great of a connection to one another. There is no secert sauce, it seems almost more like a the kool-aid but one I’m glad I’m getting a sip of.

Small Plates; Big Vision

It was strange. As Todd Stern spoke he reminded me a lot of myself growing up. He spoke of doing yard work in the neighborhood at a young age and knowing what an entrepreneur was and wanting to be one long before anyone his age had gone beyond wanting to be a doctor or a fireman. I had all but forgotten that in elementary school I had been the same way. It was only somewhere in middle school that counselors, teachers and peers all but convinced me that picking a ”career” was a must.  It wasn’t until high school that the entrepreneur passion came back for me. Oddly, in a similar way it went with Todd. He began working for small quick serve food establishments and was trusted with the responsibility to manage the establishment a much younger age than typical.

Todd continued to stay in the industry and work his way up. From dishwasher to general manager he had the opportunity to work the restaurant industry from top to bottom. He was good at his jobs and was being paid well, but had to pursue his dream and open small plates. Despite construction outside his establishment for years, he was able to create a profitable business with over a million in revenue. 

Two other things I saw Todd and I had were what we see as important aspects of business development: A strong vision and strong networking skills. Beyond this Todd had lots of great advice to give. Similar to Dan Gilbert and many of the other speakers we’ve had he believes in creating a great environment for employees. And to create opportunity within the company for people to move up is vital to employee retention.

He also had two very unique pieces of advice that I hadn’t heard before but were great. The first was to create a list of things that excite us about the city. He mentioned this in response to a question Andrew had on how to convince outside businesses to team up with us to do things in the city. The other piece of advice that I think was the best advice he gave was not to grow too quickly. Through all the speakers I had heard this is something I don’t recall hearing. In the world of seemingly overnight success and dot com explosions like Facebook and You Tube the idea of not growing until the company has key people in place that can support the business is something I think I have overlooked. All and all, Todd was great and so was his lunch.  

Do you believe in Magic?

It seems as though Magic isn’t a good enough nickname for sports icon Earvin Magic Johnson. When he came and spoke to us last Thursday afternoon it seemed as though he wanted to steal the nickname of another basketball great, Karl Malone aka the Mail Man, as he stressed how important it was not only to deliver, but to over deliver, and boy did we get the message.

Most of the time when former athletes speak to a group of business people, it’s more or less of a chance to pump their own ego and speak of their glory days. Not Magic. When he came and spoke to us he stayed true to his most overseeing statement, “know your customer.” He spoke of his days before playing basketball and how is interest in business got started and he spoke of his current and most recent endevours. To be honest, the 5′5″ owner of a mortgage company spoke more passionately about his basketball achievements that day than the legendary Johnson even alluded to.

Magic’s simplistic message and charsimatic delivery style made for an amazing lesson in achieving success. Contrary to popular belief, his status of a superstar didn’t make start up easy for Magic. He got turned down time and time again from investors who just saw him as a dumb jock who had gotten out of sports and needed something to fill his time It wasn’t until someone took a chance on Magic that the world began to see the business genius he truly is. The amazing part is no matter how much he achieves, every time he goes into a new area of business it’s the same story. He has to prove himself like a rookie in the league before anyone decides to back him.

All and all, Magic’s words on his business success and failure made for a great session of Business Wisdom. The way he stressed the importance of serving and knowing your customer never resonated as clear as it did that day and continues to stay clear in my mind every day as I think of business ventures.