Business models

Podcast

Henry Ford's core business principles from "Today and Tomorrow"

Founders July 14, 2019

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Business models 9

Deep work & focus 7

Processes & SOPs 5

• An underpaid worker is a customer you destroyed — wages and demand are linked.
• Debt divides allegiance: businesses that borrow serve financiers, not customers.
• Purpose before method: know what you're building before choosing how to build it.

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Valuation

YouTube

Three mistakes that destroy owner-operated company value

Bill Gallagher July 10, 2019

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Valuation 9

Scaling infrastructure 8

Cash flow management 6

• Minimising taxes by hiding profit kills your valuation and fundability.
• If the business can't run without you, it's not sellable.
• Concentrated revenue and low-margin channels dilute the value you've built.

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Identity & self-belief

YouTube

Why "nice" holds you back at work

StoryBrand With Donald Miller July 10, 2019

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Identity & self-belief 8

Communication 5

• Nice is fear-based self-erasure, not genuine kindness
• Authenticity — not niceness — makes people want to follow you
• You already know who you are; stop hiding it at work

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Hiring & recruitment

YouTube

How early-stage startups should approach hiring, culture, and inclusion

Y Combinator July 10, 2019

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Hiring & recruitment 10

Culture building 7

Management 5

• Proactively sourced candidates are hired 35% faster than cold applicants.
• Impact descriptions outperform job postings for talent quality and diversity.
• Build inclusive culture before hiring diverse candidates, not after.

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Closing techniques

YouTube

A three-question checklist for every sales conversation

StoryBrand With Donald Miller July 9, 2019

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Closing techniques 10

Copywriting 5

• Three specific questions that must be answered to close any deal
• 'Let me get back to you' means confused, not uninterested
• Vagueness feels clear to the seller but kills the sale

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Hiring & recruitment

YouTube

Staff your liabilities to expand your impact

StoryBrand With Donald Miller July 9, 2019

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Hiring & recruitment 9

Identity & self-belief 6

• Hiring to cover your weaknesses is the core growth lever.
• A visionary without an executor hits a ceiling fast.
• Treat your whole team as one brain — audit the gaps.

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Hiring & recruitment

YouTube

Hire a chief of staff, then a COO, to scale yourself

StoryBrand With Donald Miller July 9, 2019

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Hiring & recruitment 9

Outsourcing & delegation 7

• Chief of staff duplicates your judgment; COO replaces it with process
• The chief of staff role has a natural ceiling — you can't scale a person
• Write the job description before hiring: beyond executive assistant

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