I started my company, VendEngine, with zero outside investment, credit, or employees – nothing but an idea. Ten tough years later, managing the business on cash flow management, I sold it to an S&P 500 business for $89 million.
It was an atypical entrepreneur’s journey. I’d do it all again. Along the way, I’ve learned important lessons.
Lesson #1:
During the late 1990s, I had a very successful, multi-million-dollar mentor. He repeatedly told me: “To be successful, look where everyone else is headed – then head in the opposite direction.” Looking back, I don’t believe he literally meant for me to head the other way, instead to slow the urge to be the first to market at something. Slow down, observe and make moves on areas where perhaps others had great ideas but failed. Being young at the time, that didn’t make a lot of sense to me. However, after being an entrepreneur who experienced the boom and bust of the early 2000s dot-com era, I began to understand his philosophy better.
Lesson #2:
I love working with entrepreneurs. I see hundreds of business plans a year and serve on several boards for startups, including serving as Chair of the Board for the University of KY Entrepreneur Center.
To aspiring entrepreneurs, I always share the following:
- Just because you have an idea it doesn’t make you an entrepreneur
- 99.9% of being an entrepreneur is execution, willpower and the ability to be flexible and agile to evolve: where you start today is NOT where you will end up.
- Are you prepared for the most challenging thing you have ever tackled? An entrepreneur breathes, sleeps, eats, and marries their business.
- Only 1 in 12 entrepreneurs will make it past Year 1, and of those only 10% will make it to Year 3.
- The majority of businesses become lifestyle businesses and not multimillion-dollar exits.
- If all of the above appeals to you, let’s make it happen
Lesson #3:
Steven Covey said it best: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” Entrepreneurs are typically highly creative individuals who see a problem and want to fix it. But why do so many great ideas and concepts fail? Be aware of chasing rabbits, always persevere and partner with executioners.
Chasing rabbits: What starts out solving one problem often leads to other ideas that solve different problems. Entrepreneurs fail to focus on solving the main problem and start chasing others.
Perseverance: Startups are challenging. There is no room for failure at first, while recognizing the need to evolve and adapt for survival: those are highly divergent skills.
Execution: Executing the plan is difficult, especially for a creative entrepreneur. Those that survive have partnered with great
executioners early.
Silas Deane is Vice President, Courts and Justice, Tyler Technologies. Before that, he was President and CEO of VendEngine, successfully selling to Tyler Technologies for $89 million. Silas is experienced in technology, healthcare, government relations, and communications. He is passionate about finding solutions to complex problems and creating/executing sustainable business models from them.
