Perform

Navigating a world of distraction 

Focus
The main or central point of attention or interest
Execution
The carrying out of a plan, an order or a course of action.

In the first three chapters, we explored the importance of setting a  strong basis for a productive culture. You define your purpose, vision  and values, create clarity around the roles and responsibilities in the  team and adopt an outcome-driven mindset where consistent planning  is a priority. But even if you master all this, nothing will get done unless  you execute. Every day, you need to be relentless in your execution, to  produce results in the core focus areas you have defined.  

It’s more difficult than ever to stay focused. We simply have too many  choices and possibilities. Choice abounds not only in terms of the  product features to build and the customer segments to target through  a startup, but in the life of a founder overall, such as where to live, whom  to date and how to spend free time.  

It’s easy to get distracted. We have mobile computers in our pockets.  Using your smartphone, you can download billions of applications,  consume limitless content and buy anything you can think of in just  a few clicks. We’re addicted to technology. If you’re checking your  phone in the first 15 minutes after waking up, you’re just like 80% of all  humans. According to a study, we spend 3 hours and 15 minutes a day  on our smartphones.  

We switch between computer applications around 600 times a day. We  check our emails more than 11 times an hour. A Harvard study88 found  that we spend 47% of our waking hours thinking about something other  than what we are doing.

Think about all the hours of lost productivity. You have no time to  lose: You need to cut out the distractions. With less than 10% startup  survival rate,89 you should be conscious about every minute and invest  it carefully in activities that bring results. 

Focus and execution are closely linked and both crucial to master as an  entrepreneur. This chapter teaches you how to smoothly and efficiently  turn your plans and goals into results.

Raising your standard  of execution

No one built a great company with a great idea but mediocre execution.  Conversely, if you have a reasonable idea and a committed team with a  tenacious spirit, you have a much greater chance of success. The higher  your standards of execution, the better you become at understanding  what works and what doesn’t and where should your focus go.  

It’s worth remembering that it often takes a lot more effort than  we expect to achieve results. Stoyan is a co-founder and partner  in a company for high-end mastermind90 experiences and business  retreats: Samodiva Masterminds. When Samidova launched its first  product, a seven-day mastermind retreat, the team had only two  months to sell the tickets.  

Stoyan thought the places would get filled easily. After all, the team had  designed an amazing product, an experience they themselves would  have jumped on the chance to attend. They had invited international  speakers, booked 5-star hotels and combined adventures and fun  activities with in-depth personal growth sessions and workshops, all at  a reasonable price. So why wouldn’t people pay for it?  

As no bookings came in during the first few weeks, they had to face the facts:

They had dropped the ball when it came to marketing.

No one  knew what the event was and why they should care. 

Due to the short deadline, pre-payment had been required for most of  the logistics. That investment was at stake. The team had a deadline  and a clear goal: ”Attract 12 quality participants to the retreat”. There  was no time to lose.  

During the remaining weeks, Stoyan personally reached out to more  than 1,400 people from his network, talking about the event, inviting  them to participate and asking for feedback and referrals. He ran online  campaigns. He was obsessed. He used any opportunity to reach the  goal, working every minute of the day. These were some of the most  hectic weeks he’d ever lived through. It was intense, but it paid off.  Samodiva managed to attract 12 quality participants91 for the retreat  and had a great proof of concept. 

Three key lessons came out of this experience:  

Lesson 1: The fewer the priorities, the better the  focus 

For two months, Stoyan had one major goal, clearly defined and sealed  with a deadline. Since his attention wasn’t scattered in different  directions, it was easier to build momentum and achieve the goal. 

No more than three: Focus at Circle 

“As a founder you need to learn to focus,” stresses Melissa  Rosenthal, co-founder at SMS-tech platform Circle and former  Executive Vice President at Buzzfeed. “At any given time in  your startup you only have two or three things you should really  focus on. 

At Circle, at the moment they are: 

1. Making the product the best it can be 
2. Understanding how the users are using it and iterating  accordingly 
3. Customer acquisition