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A Small Set of Simple Moves

Guest post by: Brad Feld

Article Overview: I heard the phrase “a small set of simple moves� a few weeks ago from someone and it stuck in my head. Since then I’ve been thinking about it regularly as a fundamental operating principle.

A Small Set of Simple Moves

I heard the phrase "a small set of simple moves" a few weeks ago from someone and it stuck in my head. Since then I've been thinking about it regularly as a fundamental operating principle. Building any company is hard, but when I look back on the success of many of the companies I've been involved in, it occurs to me that it is built on a small set of simple moves. Now, these moves are rarely obvious, and are often hard to figure out, but once you nail it, you can do them over and over again all the way to greatness.

While running this morning, I was thinking about this in the context of running marathons. I know exactly what I need to do to get in shape to run a 4:30 marathon. Going from 4:30 to 4:00 requires a small set of simple moves. Anyone that has run a marathon knows this, but also knows that it's a bitch to knock 30 minutes off your time, even if you start from a base of 4:30! The moves aren't complicated but aren't obvious to someone running their second marathon. I've run 14 and have a coach so they've become pretty obvious to me. Yet I've still never crossed the 4:05 mark.

The reason is that it requires conviction. You now know the moves - now do them. Over and over and over again. Not so easy. Especially when you get tired, have other things come up that get in your way, lose confidence, get distracted, or just get bored. But - when you stick with it, execute the small set of simple moves, and then run the marathon in 4:00, it's magic.

Just like building a company. When I look at the great entrepreneurial CEO's that I've worked with, they understood this innately. They worked extremely hard to figure out the small set of simple moves that would work, and then just did them over and over again. When they inevitably got distracted or bored their fundamental conviction pulled them back to the small set of simple moves. Occasionally they introduced a new move into the mix, but only when they had conviction that it would be additive. And - in a phrase that is trendy today - they "failed fast" on things that weren't going anywhere.

I learned a phrase from my dad that I love - when I was a teenage he said "don't make complicated mistakes." A "small set of simple moves" fits nicely with that. If you are a CEO, have you figured out what your small set of simple moves are?

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Article Tags: 30 minutes, bitch, ceo, coach, confidence, conviction, greatness, magic, marathon, marathons, phrase, principle, shape



Related Forum Posts
Re: My Favourite 7 Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time - Hi Evan, I have a new suggestion for "Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time" and a suggestion for your Learning from the Masters series: 1. Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time = Christopher Columbus: "... he saw the possibility of treasure and commerce where others saw only danger. He committed so wholeheartedly to that vision that not even dozens of rejections and ongoing penury could dissuade him from pursuing a journey to Asia via the West. He built on his technical strengths as a seaman to plan a viable journey and eventually marshal an expedition." - Christopher Hoenig, 6 Essential Secrets for Thinking on a New Level I bought Hoenig's book about 10 years ago but couldn't make head or tail of it then... reading it now and finding it inspirational... 2. Nomination for Learning from the Masters video: Dee Hock, founder of VISA. (Source = Hoenig.)
Re: New Infographic: Top Ten Reasons to Partner with Someone - I like it. Simple yet informative. I also RT'd it for you.
Re: Is being too connected pushing your business forward or back - Good advice, Terrycan! Simple but necessary.
Boosting Self Confidence - Thanks Barbara! That is great advice. It goes to removing Toxic people and situations from your life. I like to remind people that they were born - thus granting them worthy to exist. No one can take away or add to your self worth. Simple but true. If you woke up this morning - you deserve to exist. J
These maybe the coldest franchises out there: - Here are the worst 15 performing franchises in regards to having the highest Small Business Administration (SBA) loan failure rates. The list is dotted with sub sandwich shops, fitness centers and car shops. WORST FRANCHISE LOAN FAILURES Failure % 1 OBEE'S SOUP SALAD SUBS 55.56% 2 LADY OF AMERICA 41.94% 3 COUNTRY CLUTTER (BED & BREAKFAST) 41.18% 4 COPY CLUB 36.36% 5 ALL TUNE AND LUBE 35.71% 6 PICKERMAN'S 35.71% 7 PHILLY CONNECTION 35.59% 8 ROLY POLY ROLLED SANDWICHES 34.78% 9 COTTMAN TRANSMISSION 34.48% 10 HAIR COLOR EXPRESS 33.33% 11 LEE MYLES AUTOMOTIVE TRANSMISSIONS 33.33% 12 GODFATHER'S PIZZA 33.33% 13 SMOOTHIE FACTORY 33.33% 14 BLIMPIE 31.39% 15 GOLF U.S.A. (RETAIL GOLF EQUIP.) 30.77% Source: Small Business Administration, SBA Loan Performance Within Franchise Code for the Period of FY 2001 - 2005


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