[BOOK REPORT] āTHIS IS ITā
The following is an excerpt from my contribution to āThis is Itā by Glenn and Jordan Edwards. Purchase on Amazon.com here.
Credit: Sam Zises, founder & CEO of [L]earned MediaĀ
About: [L]earned Media is a creative marketing agency based in New York City.
Q: How did you get started in your business?
A: It is easy to look at successful people at the top and think, āWow, theyāre so luckyā or simply overlook all that must have gone into that personās career for them to get to that point. Anytime I find myself glaring up at a role model, mentor, or even industry titan, I remind myself of a quote I came across many years ago, āIt takes ten years to build an overnight success,ā and I elicit a reality checkānothing good comes in life without hard work and dedication.
To that end, itās important to also consider that no one rises to the top of their industry without (many) bumps along the way. Scott Belsky, founder of Behance (acquired by Adobe), recently wrote a book entitled The Messy Middle. The gist of which can be described within an infographic on his blog.
In this light, and having gone through what feels like my share of ups and downs, I still feel like there is a long way to go for me to reach my āsuccess.ā Nonetheless, I am proud of all that I have accomplished to date and happy to share the evolution of it all.
I can trace my career path as far back as late middle school when my brother and I took our Bar Mitzvah money, bought DJ equipment, and started getting paid to DJ at school dances, birthday parties, anniversary parties, and yep, even Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. The entrepreneurial bug that bit me all those years back plays a role down the line, but certainly gave me a taste of what itās like to āeat what you killā and be my own boss. Having attended our fair share of Bar/Bat Mitzvahs ourselves we thought, āThese people get paid to play music and hype up a crowdāhow hard can that be?ā
Given my affinity for music and entertainment, fast for- ward to senior year of high school where I sought out an internship at a NYC-based record label. I was preparing fan club kits and organizing shows for bands which helped teach me the business behind the business.
Following that experience, I spent a summer in college interning at an ad agency downtown and sat in on the brainstorming process developing campaigns for name-brand clients. Summer internships throughout college had me working on set for an NBC TV show, behind the scenes at MTVās Total Request Live, running errands for hip hop rappers at Warner Bros. Records in LA, and lastly in an editing studio on 31st and 5th Avenue developing content for AOL.
Timing turned out to be right, and just as I was graduating college in 2007, the media/tech/advertising/marketing world began to shift. All of a sudden social media gave rise to new ways of reaching large audiences, and I found myself at the center of it all at an upstart firm selling just the right services to attract large clients and investors.
Within just a few years, our company grew from five to over one hundred employees, and with a little piece of sweat equity my stock became worth a few hundred thousand dollars. A year later, I found myself at a global ad agency building my professional resume and continuing to learn the ropes of an ever-evolving industry.
Finally in 2012, after four summer internships and four years working for someone else, I decided it was time to go out on my own. Today, I run a creative marketing agency employing as many as a dozen talented associates across strategy, design, technical development, account services, and more.
Q: What was the driver that helped you take action?
A: I believe it was a combination of naiĢveteĢ relating to what it would take, overconfidence to think I could make it work (thanks in part to emotional support from friends and family), and timeāyouthfulness and with- out a family of my own (wife and kids) to take me away from the requirements of building a business from the ground up. Had I lacked one or even two of these three traits, I donāt know if I would be in the position I am in today.
Q: What challenges did you face getting your business off the ground?
A: I believe we live in an increasingly competitive world. Consumer access to products, services, and an over- whelming amount of choice/variety relating to each has created competition within industries that has never been seen before. Finding product-market fit or a wide open opportunity has never been more challenging. On the flip side, low startup costs and that very same access has made it easier than ever to enter a market.
The biggest challenge I have faced to date is my own impatience. I am constantly trying to recreate the wave of success I experienced back in 2007 and expedite growth. However, I have recently begun to realize that sometimes itās just not possible and embracing slow growth built on long-term trust, integrity, and over- servicing clients may just be the right recipe in the long run.
Q: What advice would you give a young entrepreneur struggling to take that first step?
A: Start as young as possible, albeit ensuring you have a baseline of expertise needed. The longer you wait the more pressure you will have, period.
Q: Do you think now is a good time to start a business? Why?
A: Yes, now is a good time to start a business. Timing will never be perfect; there will always be a cycle of recessions, bull markets, family pressures, shaky political climates, etc. If you plan to start a business in your lifetime, stop waiting. The timing is perfect today, no matter when you read this.
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