Four years into my start-up journey, I have been thinking about how my time in Corporate America prepared me for the business I am running today.  There are three major skills that I learned from my days in larger companies that have helped me navigate the sometimes choppy entrepreneurial waters.  They are:

1. Business Discipline
2. Leadership
3. Analytical thinking

Business discipline is essential for success at companies like Pepsico, Conagra, and Kimberly-Clark.  I remember my manager asking me to draft a one-page memo during my first year as an assistant brand manager at Kimberly-Clark.  That “simple” memo took over two days to complete because I quickly learned that honing and sharpening a message proves quite a task.  My corporate career taught me that marketing is as much a science as art.  Applying rules and rigor to one’s thinking is a necessary task to create and run a successful brand. 

This discipline can be seen throughout our business on a daily basis.  Status reports, brand positioning, and pricing models have allowed me to move quickly and effectively in my decision-making and daily operation of the company.  In addition, we document practices and procedures so that new employees can easily grasp our language and way of doing business.  Sometimes I think the word “entrepreneur” is code for “anti-corporate.”  Well, I think you can still be entrepreneurial while maintaining good corporate business discipline. 

My time in both Corporate America and the United States Marine Corps provided opportunities for developing my leadership skills.  All levels of business require the ability to inspire and lead a team to complete a task, and I have found this skill especially crucial for a start-up.  The history of solixir provides examples of challenges that tested our will to continue.  By focusing on the task at hand I led the organization through these tough times and shielded my team members from the stress and chaos.  Managers drilled this skill into me throughout my years prior to starting solixir.  Let me tell you, watching your bank account shrink is not easy for anyone.  It is much easier to say, “Let’s just quit.”  However, my training and passion forced me to do otherwise.  Leadership is of the utmost importance to keep the ship sailing straight ahead.  While marketing is as much science as art, leadership may require more art.  Having worked with managers who allowed me to try and to fail during my 12 years with large companies definitely prepared me for my job today.

Analytical thinking is perhaps one of the most crucial skills I have developed over the years.  Whether crunching sales data or diving deep into the P&L, I could not function without the ability to dissect the numbers.  There have been many times over the last few years that we have relied on our skill at breaking apart a problem with this type of thinking.  Things do move extremely fast in a start-up, but I have been very conscious about slowing things down when we need to do so.  This financial rigor has been extremely important when it comes to cash flow management.  The P&L is one thing, but the cash flow statement is the lifeblood of the business.  Without the skills I learned from my days in larger companies, I am not so sure I would be successful today.

So as you can see, my time in Corporate America has successfully prepared me to thrive in a more entrepreneurial environment.  Business discipline, leadership, and analytical thinking are three skills that won’t leave my management toolbox any time soon.

Tonight I was fortunate to be able to teach an entrepreneurship class at Northwestern University.  The prevailing thought I left the students with was if you want to bring your dream to life it can be done.  Now 3 years into the solixir journey I look back and say “wow” how did we do that.  I could talk about all the financial models, product development, etc.  However, when it really comes down to it the reason we have made it is passion and hard work.

I know that it might seem as if my statement is the standard cliche but it is really true.  Without the passion and drive we wouldn’t be where we are today.  Sure, we have made some mistakes but if you aren’t making mistakes then you really aren’t trying hard enough in my opinion.  So as I wrapped up my talk it was clear that business is business but the difference maker is wanting it bad enough!

First of all, I must say I apologize for my tardiness on this blog post.  It has been awhile but we have been rather busy here at solixir.  Now more than ever I understand the importance of having exceptional people on our team.  As we continue to expand the #1 trait I look for is the will to succeed.  You see, being part of a start-up is hard work and isn’t for everyone.  You must have the passion, aggressiveness, and intellect to perceiver no matter what the circumstances.   Thankfully these traits embody our current team members in Boston, LA, Chicago, and Colorado. 

As I look to the future and we bring on more team members it has been magnified to me to make sure we strive to continue to add extremely talented people that fit our company culture and the start-up mindset.  Part of the job I enjoy the most is exposing solixir to new people and discussing our vision for becoming the preeminent functional drink company.  So as you look to hire for your team in the future I might suggest looking at your company and the type of person that fits you vs. everyone else.

Enjoy!

Scott

 Today was sad in the fact that we lost a truly inspirational business leader.  Steve Jobs created perhaps the most innovative company in history.  However, what marks his greatness is that his legacy will continue to live on for years and years to come.  This is the true mark of a leader. Can you influence your team to carry on the culture and direction you put in place.  I can’t think of a more fitting guidepost for solixir.  As I continue to strategize and set direction for our young company I can look to someone like Steve Jobs and Apple as inspiration.

What has always impressed me was his willingness to take risks and swing for the fences.  You cannot make it big unless you go for it.  Apple always seemed to do it right the first place.  Their organizational culture is to be admired, dare I say cult like (in a good way).  The pervasive nature of their brand was imminent throughout everything relating to Apple.

As I sit here at 9:00 at night writing this blog I am fueled with a passion and energy to keep moving solixir in the right direction.  It is innovative leaders like Steve Jobs that let me know that with the right idea and passion anything can be accomplished.  Good night Steve and RIP.

Finishing up our 3rd summer has allowed me to reflect upon our successes and challenges since launching solixir in April of 2009.  Let me say this, it is true that sometimes you wish you would do things differently if you could go back in time.  One of the biggest lessons I have learned is “don’t bite off more than you can chew”.  Now, this is probably one of the biggest challenges an entrepreneur will face because sometimes it is really hard to not expand, add new business, and drive sales.  Essentially, isn’t that what we are here to do.  However, sometimes that isn’t the smartest move in my opinion.

Growing a business is like raising a child.  Sure you have influence on how you will raise your child but a lot of times things just happen and they develop a personality of their own. The same can be said in business.  You shape and guide the business but sometimes it takes on a life of its own.  The growth can only be seen over a significant amount of time.  Say in solixir’s case 2.5 years.  So what I am saying is where we are now as a business is vastly different than we started.  We are dealing with a 3 year old vs. an infant. 

So in parenting terms maybe I have been too hard on the child (solixir).  Pushed it too hard to grow and develop.  Maybe getting ready for High School when it is really just ready for Kindergarten.  Once I realized this I said to myself “maybe we should take a step back”.  This is not to say we have done things wrong.  It is just that maybe we could do things differently.  Perhaps “focus” is really what we should look at vs. expansion.  So with the help of my team we have done just that. FOCUS. 

So the next time you feel like you are moving too fast, maybe just take a step back and say to yourself “could we do this differently”.  You may not change your course but I can bet it will make you think twice.

Enjoy!

Scott, Founder

Over the last 4 days we had the privilege of selling solixir in the Glenview, IL Costco.  Needless to say it was a fantastic experience. Not only did we sell over 2,200 cans of solixir, we also found some new loyal fans.  Personally it was a real pleasure for me to be able to talk with so many interesting people that were interested in health and wellness.  To make things even more special it happened to be in my home town. 

Being able to tell customers we were “local” meant a lot to me.  It is these personal connections I make that pay for all the hard work we have put into building solixir.  There is one example of this that stands clearly out in mind.  On Saturday we met a college athlete who tried Restore.  He bought some cans and brought them home.  Well, the next day I turn around and there he is ready to buy 3 more cases of Restore.  He said he drank one after his last workout and loved it. Did everything we said it would.

I felt so proud at that moment that we created solixir.  It was really special to know that this young man used our product and felt so strongly about it to come back the next day to purchase more.  As we continue to grow our small brand it is stories like these that make us know without a doubt that we will be successful.  It is all due to our growing loyal fan base.  So thank you to all the new customers we met this past weekend at Costco as well as our fans across the country.  We appreciate your support and wish you all a happy 4th of July.

Enjoy!

Scott

When beginning one’s journey into the commercial world, it is important to set realistic and more importantly, reachable goals. As a soon to be graduate of the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business, I have gained in-depth understanding of corporate framework, and how to interpret business practices. Specifically important to me, is understanding how to start a company from the ground up, and additionally how to successfully grow and sustain while dealing with the competing forces found everywhere in the world of commerce.

Thus, I was looking to intern for a small, but fast-moving company, where my ideas and opinions could actually make a difference in day-to-day operations. I have always felt that I have a fairly high EQ, or emotional quotient, which lends itself well to understanding other’s decision making processes, and after talking with Scott Lerner about the internship with solixir, I felt an instant connection to the position dealing with grassroots marketing and personal selling.

Also on my prerequisite checklist for both internships and future careers is competent, understanding, and challenging management. I found all three of these attributes in Scott and his team at solixir. Without good management, work quickly gets boring and tedious. Each day working with solixir is something new, but most importantly, I am given a high level of autonomy and responsibility. In my opinion, these things are mandatory for long-term working relationships. I am very thankful for finding solixir, and for being given the opportunity to excel.

Will