Inspiration comes in many shapes and forms

As a business owner of a start-up, I am more motivated than ever to ramp, scale and grow my business.  I strive to be successful through my customers.

I have more than one vision for my company, and I think that is what motivates and drives me.

Throughout my career I have often had people ask me a few common questions so I thought I would take a little time to share my responses here so that others may use this information for their own growth.

What inspires me and where does my passion come from?  This is a question that I get asked a lot from colleagues, peers, and even business owners and executives.

Well, while there isn’t a simple answer I do have some things that I can share that may help others continue to maintain their motivation as they move forward.

1 – Inspiration – Recently I watched a series on TV called “The Men who Built America.”  It is an insightful look at the  industrial revolution and the trust companies (monopolies) that grew and thrived in the presence of incredible opportunities.  While the story has an underbelly of “breaking the backs of Americans” (not what I condone) – it also tells a story about how a few men built the infrastructure of what still touches a lot of our lives today.

So how did I frame my inspiration into words by watching this series – and why was it inspirational?

A – Carpe Diem – if you see an opportunity – GO. Don’t wait.  I learned the 5 troop leading procedures as an officer in the military and I still apply them today (look them up) but I do a mental risk assessment: what if, what if not, who is in the market, what do they do, what is missing, how can I be “DIFFERENT?”  Think, Act, Do.  I love Rockefeller’s approach to kerosene.  Everyone made it – his product was the same – but he “marketed” it differently and created an empire.  He didn’t wait for someone else to do it first.

B – Flexibility –  Be flexible and adaptable – and change with or before the market.  I love being in front of customers…why?  You see their needs (macro) before the market does.  When the analysts are talking about something, the problem has already been solved. Rockefeller created the first oil pipelines and nearly bankrupted Commodore Vanderbilt by being FLEXIBLE – and changed the face of both the oil and rail industries forever.  Ford later created a whole new market that leveraged one and competed with the other.  CHANGE.

C – Differentiation – I talked about this above in Rockefeller’s example – but it is so imperative that you drive / derive value through your customers differently than everyone else.  ME TOO – is me too little or me too late.  Many times in my career I was asked to help quote a solution that was put together by someone else…and my immediate answer was always “NO!!!”  Why would I stoop to “ME TOO?” (me too late).  I stood a better chance of winning by engaging – ripping apart (where possible) the other solution – and using my business experience to change (and solve) to better align with the LONG term goals of the organization AND win the deal.  Rockefeller was a chemist at heart and refined kerosene out of crude oil.  While everyone fought for drilling oil out of the ground, he focused on delivering “Standard Oil” kerosene to every household – and he became one of the richest men in America by doing this “different” thing.

2 – Passion – Where does my passion come from?

A – Childhood – I think where we come from and what we’ve experienced in life fuels the fire.  I know what it is to have absolutely nothing – and when I think about it, I never ever want to go back there – so a real fire burns inside. Contrast this with Dale Carnegie.  He started in the mail room and as an impoverished errand boy for Vanderbilt and he grew into one of the richest men in America.  Embrace who you are – and whatever fuels your passion.

B – The desire to succeed – Fear of failure (people ask)? I say – “no”  Fail to what?  No matter what, I won’t fail to a level of where I came from – so it isn’t a fear of failure – or I wouldn’t try anything.  Too many people get stuck in a position because of a fear of failure – to the contrary – I would say it is an overwhelming desire for “SUCCESS.”  J.P. Morgan risked it all on Thomas Edison – who was so transfixed on his blind passion around DC power – that he dismissed the young brilliant Tesla who worked for him – and was willing to GIVE HIM AC Power.  In the end, Tesla gave away all of his patents to Westinghouse to see his vision through.  JP Morgan’s ability to seize the day created a new company called “General Electric” that we all still know to this day.

C –  The overwhelming desire to learn – I truly enjoy learning new things.  If you look at my life and you will see “Frank the fiddling fireman.”  Someone once called me that at a young age because I seemed to have so many interests – that they said I would never accomplish anything if I didn’t focus.  WOW – if you let people hold you back, I promise they will.  What have I accomplished? Hmm…

– US Army Paratrooper – with many accomplishments
– US Army Aviator – Instructor Pilot – Standardization Instructor Pilot
– US Army officer (and scholarship recipient)
– Race car driver
– Motocross racer
– Musician/songwriter (closet
– Scuba diver
– Military ski instructor
– Multi-lingual
– Successful technologist
– Successful salesperson
– Marathon runner
– Father of three wonderful children
– and a LOT more…

I don’t mean these as a narcissistic brag – I post them so that you can see the diversity of the accomplishments.  Some people would take any one of these their lifelong dream or accomplishment.  I just looked at them all as a “bucket list”  and learning experiences.

In my professional career today – I still have that overwhelming desire to learn and grow…
– What are the needs of the market (customers?)
– Who are the competitors – how many?
– What do they do and why?
– Where are the gaps?
– How can I be different?
– What is the payoff versus the investment?

VISION – Self-vision to be more exact.  I have a “vision” that is the core of who I am.  I have my belief system and my values that drive me – and when I waver from them is when I fail myself and other people.  That’s just some personal insight…

But at the core of my “self-vision” I always come back to one word…. “DIFFERENT”

I don’t “dare to be different” for the sake of being different.  I have always looked at the ways I was taught to do something – the way other people did stuff – the way things “have always been done” and I looked for ways to do them differently for me and the people around me.

We are ALL unique – but at what level?  Create your own uniqueness – and make it your own – that is some of the best advice I can give anyone looking to grow.

As I continue forward on this journey of building out “Call To Action” – know that I won’t settle for being a  “me too…”

If you are an entrepreneur, a salesperson, or someone just starting your career and you read this – and it gives you a little direction or insight – then I did my job in writing this.