"Tell me what you've done and I'll tell you who you are"

[Andy Black]

"Tell me what you've done and I'll tell you who you are"
(Unknown)

This is one of my all-time favorite lines.


Imagine you meet your business hero and he asks you to tell him about yourself.

How will you respond?

Will you tell him all the courses you've taken and the books you've read? Will you tell him all the plans you have? Will you tell him all your hopes and fears?

Or will you tell him about how you made money mowing lawns, but then went bankrupt because you scaled too fast? That you've now helped X number of people do Y thing using Z solution?

Do you think he will be more impressed with a one page spreadsheet showing the past 6 months of growth ... or an achingly beautiful 32 slide powerpoint with logos, route to market, pie-charts of market share, and fancy graphs of predicted growth (complete with stock images of beautiful people using your app on their mobile)?



How to position yourself

I think it was Rob Walling who came up with a nice rule of thumb if you want to position yourself as an "expert" in XYZ:

"Spend 50% of your time doing the work, and 50% of your time talking about it."​

What he means is document what you've done, not talk about what you hope or plan to do.

(Another quick way to become "The XYZ Guy" is to help people with XYZ - a subject for another thread.)



More proof in case you need it

Notice which threads get turned Gold?

It isn't the "bold declaration" threads (aka "I'm gonna make $100k by the end of the month!!!").


Here's a recent example by @Rcaraway1989:

• GOLD - How I lean startup’d my way to $240k+ on the saturated App Store

All of a sudden @Rcaraway1989 is "The App Guy" in my mind. If I ever want advice about apps then he's going to pop into my head.


Here's another recent example by @Vilox:

• GOLD - Getting Rid of Cold Calling Anxiety Using Brute Force

This is a short progress thread (in terms of days). @Vilox even starts by stating he isn't good at cold-calling. Then proceeds to relentlessly make progress, make 1,000 calls in a month, and make sales.

He'll likely be amazed that he's now one of "The Cold-Calling Guys" from this forum in my mind. (@Tweeve11 is another because of his market-place ad and because of the call I had with him.)



The mirror

Don't kid yourself. Look in the mirror and ask yourself that question.



The pearly gates

What you gonna say when the time comes? I hoped to do this? I really wished I'd done that?

Your legacy is what you've done, and the people you helped.

 

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[sonny_1080]

"Vimm ni xjev zua'wi fupi epf O'mm vimm zua xju zua esi"
(Aplpuxp)

Vjot ot upi ug nz emm-voni gewusovi mopit.


Onehopi zua niiv zuas catopitt jisu epf ji etlt zua vu vimm jon ecuav zuastimg.

Jux xomm zua sitqupf?

Xomm zua vimm jon emm vji duastit zua'wi velip epf vji cuult zua'wi sief? Xomm zua vimm jon emm vji qmept zua jewi? Xomm zua vimm jon emm zuas juqit epf giest?

Us xomm zua vimm jon ecuav jux zua nefi nupiz nuxoph mexpt, cav vjip xipv ceplsaqv cideati zua tdemif vuu getv? Vjev zua'wi pux jimqif Y pancis ug qiuqmi fu Z vjoph atoph B tumavoup?

Fu zua vjopl ji xomm ci nusi onqsittif xovj e upi qehi tqsieftjiiv tjuxoph vji qetv 6 nupvjt ug hsuxvj ... us ep edjophmz cieavogam 32 tmofi quxisquopv xovj muhut, suavi vu nesliv, qoi-djesvt ug nesliv tjesi, epf gepdz hseqjt ug qsifodvif hsuxvj (dunqmivi xovj tvudl onehit ug cieavogam qiuqmi atoph zuas eqq up vjios nucomi)?



Jux vu qutovoup zuastimg

O vjopl ov xet Suc Xemmoph xju deni aq xovj e podi sami ug vjanc og zua xepv vu qutovoup zuastimg et ep "iyqisv" op YZB:

"Tqipf 50% ug zuas voni fuoph vji xusl, epf 50% ug zuas voni vemloph ecuav ov."​

Xjev ji niept ot fudanipv xjev zua'wi fupi, puv veml ecuav xjev zua juqi us qmep vu fu.

(Epuvjis raodl xez vu ciduni "Vji YZB Haz" ot vu jimq qiuqmi xovj YZB - e tackidv gus epuvjis vjsief.)



Nusi qsuug op deti zua piif ov

Puvodi xjodj vjsieft hiv vaspif Humf?

Ov otp'v vji "cumf fidmesevoup" vjsieft (ele "O'n huppe neli $100l cz vji ipf ug vji nupvj!!!").


Jisi't e sidipv iyenqmi cz @Sdesexez1989:

• HUMF - Jux O miep tvesvaq’f nz xez vu $240l+ up vji tevasevif Eqq Tvusi

Emm ug e taffip @Sdesexez1989 ot "Vji Eqq Haz" op nz nopf. Og O iwis xepv efwodi ecuav eqqt vjip ji't huoph vu quq opvu nz jief.


Jisi't epuvjis sidipv iyenqmi cz @Womuy:

• HUMF - Hivvoph Sof ug Dumf Demmoph Epyoivz Atoph Csavi Gusdi

Vjot ot e tjusv qsuhsitt vjsief (op visnt ug fezt). @Womuy iwip tvesvt cz tvevoph ji otp'v huuf ev dumf-demmoph. Vjip qsudiift vu simipvmittmz neli qsuhsitt, neli 1,000 demmt op e nupvj, epf neli temit.

Ji'mm molimz ci enebif vjev ji't pux upi ug "Vji Dumf-Demmoph Hazt" gsun vjot gusan op nz nopf. (@Vxiiwi11 ot epuvjis cideati ug jot nesliv-qmedi ef epf cideati ug vji demm O jef xovj jon.)



Vji nossus

Fup'v lof zuastimg. Muul op vji nossus epf etl zuastimg vjev raitvoup.



Vji qiesmz hevit

Xjev zua huppe tez xjip vji voni dunit? O juqif vu fu vjot? O siemmz xotjif O'f fupi vjev?

Zuas mihedz ot xjev zua'wi fupi, epf vji qiuqmi zua jimqif.

Xjip O xet 21, O qsopvif 100 catopitt desft efwisvotoph "Hesehi Dmiepoph" epf xipv fuus vu fuus tivvoph aq eqquopvnipvt. O jef e vsadl epf nz nunt dmiepoph taqqmoit. Nz gostv datvunis xet ep umf xofux O xet sigissif vu cz e sepfun juniuxpis O eqqsuedjif.

O nefi tunivjoph moli $800 upi xiil epf xipv fuxp e fsaplip jebi ug e seccov jumi.

7 ziest mevis O gopf nztimg op sihsiv.

Vjepl zua gus zuas iwis-hsuapfoph xotfun Epfz. Ov't wisz ietz vu mutv op vji gusan huoph fuxp foggisipv seccov jumit.