Six Practices of Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs

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Six Practices of Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs

Starting or building a business is exciting, though comes with challenges and roadblocks that can even scare veteran entrepreneurs. You're not alone. It is rare that the difficult challenges that an entrepreneur may face have not been previously encountered by others. That’s where the Bootstrappers Breakfasts step in - to facilitate entrepreneurs working together to exchange learning and information that grow the skills and confidence it takes to build a successful business.

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Interview with Sean Darras of LUXTECH, Making Millions with Social Impact

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Interview with Sean Darras of LUXTECH, Making Millions with Social Impact

Sean Darras, a Trajectify client and CEO of LUXTECH, a young, innovative LED lighting company in Old City, sat down for an interview with Mike Krupit during Trajectify Live. Sean founded the company in 2012 and over the last 6 years he has filled the company with people who care about the good of the company, the environment, and each person the products touch. The company has had impressive growth, and each quarter brings a new series of challenges for the team to learn from and conquer. In the Trajectify Live interview, Sean and Mike walked through some of the lessons learned in each phase.

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Fear and Thinking Too Lean

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Fear and Thinking Too Lean

My challenge with “Lean” is that as much as it’s a great philosophy for when you are starting out, you lose the ability to leap when you think about really big things. How do you do things that can’t be done in a one or two week sprint, the things that are too big to put on a little post it and stick to your bathroom mirror? In order to grow, you need to have a mindset of leaping, planning and doing big things, and then to figure out how to land after you take that leap.

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Overcoming Challenges to create 100+ Jobs and a Multi-Million Dollar Business

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Overcoming Challenges to create 100+ Jobs and a Multi-Million Dollar Business

Growing a multi-million dollar company rarely comes easy. The path to success is certainly different for each hungry entrepreneur. Lisa Robinson was one of the keynote speakers with a heart-warming story that opened our eyes to a new perspectives. Her story to success was unconventional. She didn’t start out as the leader that we see today taking over the stage or the owner that the U.S. SBA recently named Eastern Pennsylvania District Minority-Owned Small Business of the Year.

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So Much Learning in Trajectify's Five Years

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So Much Learning in Trajectify's Five Years

This month, August 2018, is the 5th anniversary of Trajectify. Words cannot express how grateful and lucky I am to have been able to build this business and accomplish all that we have. HOW A BUSINESS IS BORN. I decided to leave startup #7, Real Food Works, in May 2013. I had turned 50 a few months earlier and found myself wondering, “what do I want to be when I grow up.” I told myself no more startups. So I embarked on what turned out to be a three month discovery mission that led me to create Trajectify in August 2013.

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Not Falling Into the Chasm, Jamie's Post-Graduation Perspective

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Not Falling Into the Chasm, Jamie's Post-Graduation Perspective

My last semester of college was filled with fear and panic, wondering if I had spent my higher education preparing for a career that was not meant for me. After graduation, college students are faced to take a leap of faith and enter the real world. As we approach the cliff, far from the safety net of secured and structured education, and jump head first into the unknown, it is impossible to not fear what is next. With no idea what I was heading into, the overwhelming feeling of insecurity and possible failure seemed inevitable. To cross the chasm it takes momentum and trajectory, neither of which graduating college students have.

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Clarity, Transparency, Focus: Critical Differentiators Between High Performers and the Rest

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Clarity, Transparency, Focus: Critical Differentiators Between High Performers and the Rest

I’ve had the good fortune of working in a variety of industries, building scale into growing businesses and advising executives on strategic initiatives. Despite the variety of products, services, and customers, I’ve observed certain constants across all businesses that separate the elite performers from the average.

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Peter Shankman, Entrepreneurial Effectiveness and ADHD

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Peter Shankman, Entrepreneurial Effectiveness and ADHD

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to participate in a breakfast program with Peter Shankman. He is a successful entrepreneur, author and investor. You may know him as the founder of HARO (Help A Reporter Out), or the author of “Faster Than Normal,” or have heard his Ted talks or other keynote speeches. He's quite quotable and I've been know to borrow a line from him now and then. I especially like his “I have ADOS - Attention Deficit, Oooh Shiny.”

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2018 Summer Reading List to Relax, Unwind, and Feed Your Mind

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2018 Summer Reading List to Relax, Unwind, and Feed Your Mind

Every year, Trajectify coaches and clients put together a list of books they've been reading and recommending. With summer approaching, vacation time and opportunity for days away from the office ensue. Wherever your adventures take you (even if it's just in your backyard hammock!), use this OOO time to de-stress, reflect, read, and learn.

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The Best Growth Strategy is to Make Yourself Dispensable (Lesson #4 of 8 Lessons Growing 8 Companies)

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The Best Growth Strategy is to Make Yourself Dispensable (Lesson #4 of 8 Lessons Growing 8 Companies)

It took me three years to go from VP Engineering to CTO to COO to CEO. How does someone grow that quickly? Yes, I worked hard and focused on results. Yes, I was afforded an opportunity being at a good place at a good time. Still, no amount of hustle, talent or luck could have made such a rapid transition successful. What made it possible?

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A NYC Space for Entrepreneurs Who Are Growing Their Business Organically, 7 Tips from April

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A NYC Space for Entrepreneurs Who Are Growing Their Business Organically, 7 Tips from April

The NYC Bootstrappers Breakfast is back… with new mentors to help facilitate serious conversations about starting and growing a business. Thanks to our friend Alex Portera, Co-Founder of Nowhere Men Media, here are a few quick and valuable points from the inaugural NYC Bootstrappers Breakfast comeback.

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How Do You Get Work Done When There's 100 Events In One Week?

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How Do You Get Work Done When There's 100 Events In One Week?

I attended my first Philly Tech Week (PTW) in 2012. There weren't a ton of events, but my notes say I attended 14, and scheduled another 8 meetings in between events.  Pretty intense, especially for someone who leans introvert. That year I also hosted the first Philly Bootstrappers Breakfast during that week (more on that below).

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Mike's Insights on Leadership Communication as He Pushes Himself (and you) To Do More Video

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Mike's Insights on Leadership Communication as He Pushes Himself (and you) To Do More Video

In a recent video, Mike shared three basic and effective essentials to achieve greater leadership communications.  (1) Feel It. You are your company's evangelist, you need to show that passion. (2) Speak It. You need to talk loud and clear. (3) Communicate It. Your words and meaning must be coherent, so write them in advance and practice-practice-practice.

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4 Valuable (and inexpensive) Business Tips from Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs

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4 Valuable (and inexpensive) Business Tips from Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs

Bootstrappers Breakfast is a mastermind-style meetup where we have serious conversations about growing a business. This group offers a combination of brainstorming, education, peer accountability and support in a group setting to sharpen your business and personal skills. As a group, we diagnosed the following four topics: referral marketing as a powerful lead generation tool, the importance of practicing your pitch, learning not to stand in the way of your own success, and validating product ideas through user research.

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Review Your Business Model to Get Better Results

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Review Your Business Model to Get Better Results

Most of us take care of things that are important to us on a regular basis – maintaining our car, going to the dentist for a checkup, and updating software on our computer. But do we take a step back and invest the energy to look at our business model to see if everything is working the way we’d like it to? When you take time to review your business model, you may be surprised by the value you discover by making some tweaks – or perhaps even reinventing what you’re doing and how you’re doing it.

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3 Challenges Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs Face When Building a Business

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3 Challenges Bootstrapping Entrepreneurs Face When Building a Business

When starting a business, it’s no secret there are going to be risks involved and difficult decisions to make. It may take a while to find a steady stream of revenue. One mistake could end up costing you lots of time and money. You’re aware of the relatively high possibility that your company could eventually fail. But most entrepreneurs know this and are prepared to take challenges head-on with grit and determination. Here we share three common challenges entrepreneurs face when building their own business.

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