What I’ve learned along the way: What 20 years in business has taught me in 20 points!

I’m often asked for tips and suggestions that may help others on their entrepreneurial or leadership journey. Given we’ve reached an amazing milestone at Joskos, I thought it would be a good opportunity to share some of the things I have learned so far on this incredible journey. I’m excited about what the next 1, 3, 5, 10+ years will teach me and the team!

When Joskos Solutions was founded, I was around 19. I had no business background and no formal business education; I was, however, armed with a bunch of misconceptions from people and naysayers who had either never started a business or failed in one. This is usually why most businesses never start - because people believe in the naysayer more than in themselves! I almost fell prey to that, and if I had, you wouldn’t be reading this right now!

Although I didn’t know much about business when we started, and given that the ‘odds of success’ were stacked against us, I did know that I needed to learn fast, deliver phenomenal service, be creative and outsmart the obstacles – even though I didn’t know what they would be yet! What served me well was a deep underdog mentality, and it was that mentality that gave me the drive, hunger, a burning desire to win and look at old challenges in new ways.

Here are 20 things that I have learned along the way that have served me well. I’m sharing them with you so that you don’t have to learn some of the hard lessons the way I had to!

1.      There is no secret to success, there is a formula. It starts with setting big goals – properly. (I’ve got a formula that I’ve documented – if you would like a copy let me know)

2.      Always be grateful, even for the setbacks, for there will be many. The biggest lessons and gifts in life and business can often come wrapped in disguise!

3.      There is no ‘I’, it is definitely ‘We’. Business is no fun alone – find people, partners and customers that you enjoy working with and build something amazing with them.

4.      Hard work, works – you only cut yourself by cutting corners.

5.      Service, service, service – always place delivering value before profit. If the service is right, the rest with follow.

6.      Think win-win-win – if anyone is losing out, that’s not a scalable business or one that feels good to be in. Winning together is much more fun and long-term.

7.      Trust your ‘gut’ - whether that be a contract, people decisions or new venture – if it doesn’t feel right, that’s probably for a reason.

8.      You won’t always win but you’ll only truly fail if you fail to learn! Learn lessons fast and always keep learning.

9.      Wake up early, be grateful – your goals should be big enough to kick you out of bed.

10.  Procrastination is the killer of opportunity.

11.  Respect your competition – win battles together wherever possible.

12.  Trust and empower the right people. Give them the keys to drive, be clear about expectations, and recognise their value as publicly as appropriate.

13.  Give back, give forward and remember those that have stood by you – never, ever break their trust or let them down.

14.  Surround yourself with the right people and remember that the right people will want to be surrounded with the same. Get a coach, mentor or execs around you that have ‘been there’ and have the experiential wisdom to save you from learning expensive lessons that you can avoid!

15.  Encourage growth, share opportunities and help others succeed. If it’s time for someone to move on or grow into other roles, support them in doing so quickly.

16.  Cash flow is Queen and King! It’s like oxygen – if it runs out, Game over!

17.  Hire hungry, interesting, inspired and passionate people that have a great attitude. If you wouldn’t be able to spend 2 - 4 hours in a car with them in traffic and enjoy the journey, how can you expect your customers and team members to?

18.  Always ask questions. If you have a question, you have it for a reason, and that reason needs satisfying - so just ask the question!

19.  Play to your strengths and hire people with a variety of skills, cultures and experiences – if you’re the architect and visionary, find a great builder to help you build that vision. A room full of visionaries is great, but very little will get built!

20.  Just because it hasn’t been done before doesn’t mean it’s not possible. Maybe it’s been waiting for you to be the first - the past doesn’t have to equal the future! Change is a good thing.

Building a successful business is no small feat, however it can be massively rewarding. It brings me great joy knowing that we have built a business that has served hundreds of thousands of teachers and learners. Some of those learners have even left school and university etc and are now valuable members of the Joskos team, which is phenomenal.

I hope that one or more of the points above assists you in reflecting on your journey. I am incredibly grateful for both the past and current members of my team, and our customers. Every single one of them brings something unique to our experience and our culture without which we wouldn’t have a business.

If there is a lesson/tip that you would like to share with me and others, please do so by adding it to the comments. I look forward to hearing from you.

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