Another fun episode where James, Kevin, Rob, and Jeremy discuss different types of entrepreneurs. Kevin and James give a shot at describing each other's entrepreneurial styles. Kevin shares the secret family business. And all four of us discuss the the Doritos product, Lady Chips. All is all it a fun listen and a special shout out to our studio mates, The Punnery Podcast.  

In this episode of Adventures in Businessing, James, Kevin, and Rob discuss their younger selves and how they started exploring this thing we call entrepreneurship. Origin stories, funny families, and epic exits from previous employment are the stops on this episodes journey and it's sure to be a fun ride.

AIB is back with a brand new cast and learning how to record all over again. Not without some poor audio artifacts, mostly some clipping here and there, we are back with some new energy and what I hope will be a great chemistry as we discus entrepreneurship from the perspective of three very different business. Get to know the players a little better as we discuss some of the topics we would like to cover in future episodes. Transcription coming soon.

Keeping up with the AIB norm, the crew takes on a hairy WordPress topic, in the future of the JavaScript Framework. Enter React.

Topics Include:

• An awkward Ebay sponsorship.
• A history of Backbone.
• How Backbone is showing its age.
• What is React?
• What is Calypso?
  • Advantages.
  • Discussing criteria.
    • Some don’t think ease-of-use should determine usage or adoption.
• A React compare/contrast.
  • Measuring the barrier to entry.
• “What helps you make decisions for the future of your business?”
  • (Briefly derailed by nautical terminology.)
• What is the mission statement for your product?
  • How does this differ from your business missions statement?
• The determinate reason for having a mission statement.
  • Anytime you create a focus, you will alienate users.
  • Ensuring you have a scope nailed down, for your product, service, business.
  • Your mission statement has to align with your business objective/s.
  • As silly as it may sound, why you need a mission statement for everything.
  • Missions Statements exist not to infer what you say ‘Yes’ to, but to conclusively decide what you say ‘No’ to.
  • In the end, it’s about freedom.
• “Helping others be successful.”

Mentioned on the Show:

• The AIB episode about the Andon.

In this week's Part 2 story of WP Ninjas, James and Kevin talk candidly about the stages of their business; successes, failures, and general curiosities await.

• Celebrating renewals and sales.
• McDonald’s gets frork'd!
• Making changes in the digital market versus the physical space.
• Getting your product known
• Branding
  • Hiring a design team.
  • Enter FocusLab
  • The investment risk and reward of branding.
• Kevin’s move back to America, from U.K.
• The impact of James and Kevin finding out they would both become fathers.
  • How that revelation translated into kicking the business into the next gear.
• Kevin’s plot to influence James into hiring the first employee.
• Transitioning to the first office space.
• The impact of annual renewals.
  • How ignorance garnered experience.
• How Kevin’s daughter, in part, led to a hiring frenzy.
  • The potential hires that did work out…and the ones that didn't.
• The 2016 office switch.
• Going back to FocusLab to revamp the UI
  • The intensity and lead up to launch.
  • Launching the 3.0 redesign, reaping the benefits.
• Bringing on Jon and KR.
• All business is a risk, there are always investments in startups, and most things are a gamble.
• The Keystones of Growth

Get ready for Ninja History 101, as our shinobi hosts recount the great tale of how Ninja Forms was born. Many a battle were fought, and a veritable storybook of experiences has been written. Commence part 1 of this epic narrative journey!

• Sponsorship…The return of Taco Bell
• Six years as a business.
  • Where has it gone?
• Model Experimentation
  • Deciding if the add-on model was right for us.
• The Ninja Forms/WP Ninjas origin story
  • The first client.
  • The first version of the product.
  • On increasing visibility.
  • The freemium model and raising prices.
  • The benefits greatly outweighed the price critique.
  • Switching to EDD
  • The single most pivotal action in Ninja Forms history: the add-on model.
  • The freakout James and Kevin experienced as sales more than doubled, thanks to the add-on model.
• Challenge your assumptions.
• Be willing to be wrong.
• Success is relative, and on no one’s clock.

Disclaimer: Adventures in Businessing, and the hosts thereof are not certified professionals in the field of mental health. As such, all views expressed in this episode should be treated with a grain of salt, since they are representative of personal experiences, and individual life hacks. If you yourself experience issues with time management, productivity, sleep, and/or mental health, please consult a local, qualified professional. Disclaimer aside, we hope you have fun listening to this week's episode of AIB!

Topics Include:

• Shout out to the startup podcast: Hallway Chats
• AIB listener review roundup.
• Sponsorship of the week.
• How we get things done.
  • Managing our schedules and getting through the day.
  • Barriers:
    • Troublesome wrangling of to-dos.
    • Remembering to eat and sleep.
    • Not saying no and spreading yourself too thin.
    • Improperly organizing your day.
  • Maximizing your peaks and valleys
  • Common tasks that get dropped and why.
  • Time management:
    • Night owls versus morning larks.
    • Irrational guilt affecting performance and resulting in overworking.
    • Controversial beliefs on circadian rhymes.
  • A day in the life of our hosts.
    • The value of chunking.
    • Mind dumps: archiving tasks for later.
  • What do you wish you were making time for?

Resources/Mentions:

• Evernote
• @nsfwfw
• Hallway Chats
• Night Owls vs Early Risers
• The Genetics of Sleep
• Disorders that May be Disrupting Your Sleep

Every once in a while Jon can't be at the recording and he has the really cool recording set-up. I do not an thus the mix isn't as pristine as we would like it. In this episode of AIB we discuss development processes and how we are adjusting to become a more effective development team. Special guest, Kyle Johnson, WP Ninjas Senior Developer.

In this episode.. we come to terms with the fact that we are all Matt Pritchett! We also cover the relevant topics related to Matt Madeiros's new vlog on the 'WordPress Community not being for the Taking.'

Topics Include:

• Matt Pritchett
• Taco Bell Shenanigans
• Our Favorite Things
• WordPress is not for the taking.
  • Open source entitlement.
  • Increasing your surface area.
  • Learning from your failures.
  • Don't just work for yourself, pay it forward.
    • Keep giving to the community.
  • Don't be a jerk.
  • Capitalize on success; have the confidence to cut what doesn't gain traction.

Mentioned on the Show:

• Building a WP Plugin Business from Scratch
• Pritchett Media
• The Matt Report

I don't like writing show notes, but since Jon wasn't able to be on this episode I though I would be nice and write them out. This is why the notes are sparse and the episode is being posted so late. PRO TIP: Don't offer to do something for someone if you are going to do a piss poor job. :)

Topics Include:

• Welcome, Zach, as a guest
• In The News:
  • Pressnomics
    • https://pressnomics.com
  • Yoast SEO PHP Initiative
    • https://yoast.com/yoast-seo-4-5/
    • https://wptavern.com/yoast-seo-4-5-urges-users-to-upgrade-to-php-7
  • AWP Facebook Group to Admin Moderated Posts
    • https://www.mattcromwell.com/awp-facebook-improving-content/
    • https://wptavern.com/advanced-wordpress-facebook-group-moves-to-curb-low-quality-content-with-admin-approved-posts
• Feature: Making Product Development Decisions
  • Lot's of good stuff and since I don't want to spoil it for you, you'll just have to listen.
• Mailbag
  • "Did you guys ever remove free features from Ninja Forms and make them an add-on? Or take an add-on and push it into core?"

The life of a business, much like a person, is marked by series of firsts, so join AIB as the crew talks business beginnings.

Topics Include:

• What’re you working on?
• Business Milestones
  • When to hire.
    • "When you are spending your time on the immediate and not the ultimate, you need to hire."
• Business firsts.
  • The first employee.
  • The first office.
  • The first firing.
  • Getting a book keeper.
  • Outsourcing taxes, etc.

This week the crew congregates once more on the WordPress.org repo redesign. Sharing pros, cons, concerns, and hopes on all things repository and forums, all for the betterment of the WordPress community.

Topics Include:

• WordPress.org
  • The Redesign
  • Forum Support
  • Maintainability
  • Challenges
  • The Future

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

This week, the AIB talking heads share opinions on WordPress.org and the state of the repo after recent announcements.

Topics Include:

• WordPress Repo
• Following guidelines for the repo.
• What is the spirit of WordPress?
• Mercy vs Harshness
• Appearances, perception can play a pivotal role to your community.
• On how people use WordPress.
• Usage Data and sharing.
  • Assumption & Telemetry
  • The 80/20 Principle
• Jetpack Themes
• Brand Protection
• WordPress.com Custom Plugins

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

This week, the AIB talking heads share opinions on WordPress.org and the state of the repo after recent announcements.

Topics Include:

• WordPress Repo
• Following guidelines for the repo.
• What is the spirit of WordPress?
• Mercy vs Harshness
• Appearances, perception can play a pivotal role to your community.
• On how people use WordPress.
• Usage Data and sharing.
  • Assumption & Telemetry
  • The 80/20 Principle
• Jetpack Themes
• Brand Protection
• WordPress.com Custom Plugins

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

This week, the AIB talking heads share opinions on WordPress.org and the state of the repo after recent announcements.

Topics Include:

• WordPress Repo
• Following guidelines for the repo.
• What is the spirit of WordPress?
• Mercy vs Harshness
• Appearances, perception can play a pivotal role to your community.
• On how people use WordPress.
• Usage Data and sharing.
  • Assumption & Telemetry
  • The 80/20 Principle
• Jetpack Themes
• Brand Protection
• WordPress.com Custom Plugins

This week, after a brief on person project updates, the AIB crew has a roundtable discussion on the marketplace business model.

Sub-Topics Include:

• Defining & analyzing collaborating developer expectation.
• 3rd Party Auditing
• How Ninja Forms developed its own marketplace.
• Pros of having a marketplace.
  • Monetary
  • Marketing
  • Growth
  • Exposure
• Cons of having a marketplace.
  • Compatibility Issues
  • Support Overhead
  • Repercussions
• Developing a language and culture expectation for collaborators.
  • Create an expectations document.
  • Ensure you are protecting your brand.
  • Establish standards.
  • Switching from a dev application to a product application.
• On requiring collaborators to use your support system.
• Narrowing down pricing of integrations.

This week AIB casually closes out the show with 'Favorite Things', as we get to know each other, and reach out to you, the listener, about your favorite movie. Be sure and let us know your favorite film in the comments below, as we'll go over answers in the following episode. 

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

This week AIB discusses how to get the most out of your freemium product.

The Freemium Model:

• The free version of your product can’t be worthless.
• Be careful not to include premium feature candidates in your free product.
• Avoiding the 80/20 principle.
• Weigh support cost.
  • How prone is this feature to be being misused.
• You can’t be everyone’s solution.
  • Staying from feature bloat.
  • When everything is emphasized, nothing is emphasized.
  • Capitalize on your strengths.
• Yes, integrations can broaden your market.
  • However, integrations will not keep you afloat.
• Working backwards from the goal.
  • Measure success in meeting goals, not a specific dollar amount.
• [Whatever you do] “make something awesome.” -Josh Pollock
  • Go in with confidence.
  • Charge what you’re worth.
  • Don’t be afraid to experiment.

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

You need a co-founder, and this week Adventures in Businessing explains why. Part group sourcing, part compare-contrast between the James/Kevin & Jon/Kenny dynamic as business partners, listen in as they cover why cofounding is near essential for what is required in the modern era.

Why You Need a Partner:

• You can’t be good at everything.
• Make sure you fail every now and then.
• The cofounding of Hardly Casual.
• Doing the work before you are awarded a title.
• Why a designer/engineer partnership works so well.
• Find someone that compliments your weaknesses.
  • Someone who can pull you out of dark times.
• Entrepreneurship is lonely.
• Ask yourself, “Who do I want to answer the phone at 3am?”
• Honesty & Trust are key in any partnership.
• You must have a mutual respect.

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

The AIB crew starts this week's episode by visiting THE 'Ancient Email' that started James and Kevin's business partner. Which leads into the celebration of the WP Ninjas transitioning Jon from part-time, to the newest member of their salaried roster. They then briefly (in proper AIB jokingly-awkward fashion) segway into emotions and being/not being in touch with them.

Our Favorite Things:

• Productivity tips, tools, and hacks.
• Compartmentalization
  • Separating your concerns.
• Bear Notes
• Noteshelf
• Basecamp
• Omnifocus
• TextExpander
• The value of good ol’pen and paper
  • “Thoughts untangle themselves through the lips and the finger tips.”
• SnagIt
• SmarterQueue
• Analyze when you’re most productive.
  • Be mindful of your time.
• PhpStorm IDE
• Codetree

The crew topic breaks with Kenny “gratefully” delivering this week's sponsor, Chevrolet, and the Chevy Volt.

Business Processes, Systems, and Productivity:

• Implementing a support ‘Andon’ system.
  • What it is, why it matters, why you need it.
• Measure the health of process flow.
• Support will be with you always.
  • 24/7 support is NOT healthy.
    • You team cannot be effective with that philosophy.
• On implementing process.
• Preparing for the probable and the unlikely.
• Never 100% trust forecasts.
  • Treat your data with a grain of salt.
  • Acknowledge trends and react to them.
• Why James enforces and lives his "no one left behind" mentality.

The AIB crew starts this week's episode by visiting THE 'Ancient Email' that started James and Kevin's business partner. Which leads into the celebration of the WP Ninjas transitioning Jon from part-time, to the newest member of their salaried roster. They then briefly (in proper AIB jokingly-awkward fashion) segway into emotions and being/not being in touch with them.

Our Favorite Things:

• Productivity tips, tools, and hacks.
• Compartmentalization
  • Separating your concerns.
• Bear Notes
• Noteshelf
• Basecamp
• Omnifocus
• TextExpander
• The value of good ol’pen and paper
  • “Thoughts untangle themselves through the lips and the finger tips.”
• SnagIt
• SmarterQueue
• Analyze when you’re most productive.
  • Be mindful of your time.
• PhpStorm IDE
• Codetree

The crew topic breaks with Kenny “gratefully” delivering this week's sponsor, Chevrolet, and the Chevy Volt.

Business Processes, Systems, and Productivity:

• Implementing a support ‘Andon’ system.
  • What it is, why it matters, why you need it.
• Measure the health of process flow.
• Support will be with you always.
  • 24/7 support is NOT healthy.
    • You team cannot be effective with that philosophy.
• On implementing process.
• Preparing for the probable and the unlikely.
• Never 100% trust forecasts.
  • Treat your data with a grain of salt.
  • Acknowledge trends and react to them.
• Why James enforces and lives his "no one left behind" mentality.

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

In this episode, Jon hath become undead... Barring that breach of logic and reality, the whole crew moves into a fantastic, content rich topic lineup of quantifying success and launching a product amongst a multitude of competitors.

The Startup Rat-race:

• Defining success.
• You should NOT be obsessing about your product, numbers, or work 24/7.
• Every business is a lifestyle business, the question is, “What kind of lifestyle is it giving you?”
• Be the captain of your own ship.
• Don’t be apart of the rat-race.
  • Compete with yourself, then beat yourself.
• Hockey stick growth is great, but don’t expect it.
  • Be happy with steady growth.
• The dangers of venture capitalist funding.
• Silicon Valley should not be your standard
• More money does not equal happiness.
  • There are ample studies showing those who make over a 70-75k salary, have diminishing returns on happiness.
    • The same studies show 35-75k being the happiness sweet-spot, depending on family size and location.

Launching a Product in a Saturated Market:

• Weighting starting in a saturated market versus creating a category.
  • Pros and cons of launching in the middle of saturation.
• A demo for your product is a great tool.
• Finding out what users need.
  • Be the solution.
• What are people saying about the competition?
• Fanboys can be dangerous.
• Beware of false standards from the competition.
• Legacy users can be trouble in some situations.
• Price is a terrible differentiator.
  • You must stand out in other ways.
  • You want customers who are seeking solutions, not bargains.
  • Don't undercut your worth.
• Anybody can build a feature that you have.
  • Anybody can do what you've done.
• Evaluate and often reevaluate what can, will, and does set you apart.
  • Finding your differentiator versus finding your niche.

We close out with Kenny dropping a hilarious bit of hot knowledge on us (which gets mildly explicit), as he explains business jargon, as only a Kenny can.

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

The crew comes to terms with life without Jon. ...James gets so choked up that he can't pronounce the show title. James, Kevin, and Kenny proceed to suggest many ways to bring Jon back…which includes everything from replacing him with his twin, picking another Jon from the multiverse, to cloning. (Spoiler: Due to the dark turn this show has taken, Jon may very well be undead at this point. Find out in Episode 11!) We also learn that Kenny has baby arms, like that of a newborn T-Rex.

Criticism and You:

• What do you do when other's critique your work?
  • Make sure you're absorbing the feedback, regardless.
  • Harsh words and mean spirits don't negate the truth.
    • Be self aware and humble enough to take criticism.
  • Analyze, are they a troll, or just rude?
  • Be careful how you respond; think before you act.
  • "I'm not concerned with whether your critics can sleep at night, I'm concerned with whether you can sleep at night." - James

The guys take a mid-show break with a fantastic product of Taco-Bell's finest food-mancers, the Naked Chicken Chalupa. Now antibiotic free!

WordCamp Breakdown:

• Conference season is here.
  • How can you get the most out of your experience as a business owner, freelancer, etc.?
  • Increasing a conference's value for a business.
  • What IS a hallway track??
  • Go in with a plan.
  • Be strategic and network with a purpose.
• If you are sponsoring a WordCamp, take it seriously.
  • Are you trying to raise brand awareness, launch a product, or revitalize interest in your offerings?
  • Don't be a swag robot...unless you are Swagbot 9,000.
  • Leave your options open, there are other ways to raise awareness.
  • Trade time...or in Kenny's case, dignity for money.
    • Grassroots/Guerilla Marketing
    • The superhero origin of the Kenatee.
  • Why the WP Ninjas won't be sponsoring as avidly in 2016.
  • Sunglasses and T-shirts are a wonderful method of marketing.
    • T-shirts are potential expensive, branded sunglasses much less so
    • Make sure your logo is prominently displayed on the back!
• Don't be afraid to approach new people.
  • Implant yourself in a group.
  • People in the WordPress community are generally super inviting.
  • Look for the relationships that bring synergy to you & the companies you are trying to connect with.

AIB then signs off with a 'If Kenny were president, what would be his top five executive orders signed off day one?'

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

This week AIB starts with four lightning rounds of Jelly Belly's ‘BeanBoozled’. (Spoiler: it takes no prisoners...except for Jon, who got out scot-free.) As the crew washes out their BeanBoozled mouthes with whiskey, they inquire, "how are those New Years goals coming along?" Then, for a bit of potential instant gratification and group accountability, the group establishes 7 day goals on the spot. All to be followed up on in episode 10. Finally, before the main event, AIB gets sponsored by Canada herself! Itself?

Firing customers:

• What kind of customers should you be firing?
• When you start your business you’ll take any customer.
  • One toxin customer can bring your business down.
  • At what point is it not worth it?
• Invest time and energy into loyal customers.
  • To do that, identify what type customer each person is.
• How exactly do you identify the tares from the wheat of customers?
• When should you fire?
  • When they become unreasonable unprofessional.
  • When they breach ethical or moral behavior.
• Think of every person and why they behave that way.
  • “Hurt people, hurt people.”
  • Put yourself in their shoes.
• Give first offenders the benefit of the doubt.
  • You’ll find that most people will apologize or feel guilty after being verbally abusive.
  • They often just want to be heard and empathized with.
• Fire customers when they become a drain on your resources.
• At some point you have to acknowledge that, “We may not be the right fit for you.”
• How do you deal with it.
  • Be candid, polite, and thorough with each interaction, as you consider firing a toxic customer.
• Jon shares his first experience in considering firing a customer.
• You want to go above and beyond for your users.
  • Sometimes customers request things that just aren’t possible with your product.
  • You don’t necessarily want to fire them, but you may have a better solution for them.
  • That solution may not be connected to you product and ecosystem.

The main topic gets interrupted with “Kenny’s Breaking News”! Also...a random, brief debate of an old pickle idiom breaks out. BeanBoozled Treehouse Code School JavaScript.com Bear Note Application Andy Stanley Leadership Podcast The Origin of the 'In a Pickle' phrase

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

In this episode (after James pours a massive Jack'n'Coke) the guys ease into things by briefly discussing what they've been working on... Kevin slips on the developer management shoes, as the WP Ninjas trial a potential hire. Kenny learns from his coding philosophy mistakes on a big project. (Spoiler: Communication saved the day.) Jon gets support savvy, while beginning to march to the beat of JavaScript. While James has been figure-heading support, piercing issues like spearfishing goblin sharks right in their ugly mugs. Then as a special treat for you, the crew delivers a double-feature, two topic episode!

Support

• Breaking down WP Ninjas renewed focus on support.
  • The immediate (monetary) fruits of that labor.
  • The near instant change in customer tone.
• "As support goes, so to does sales."

Hiring

• Best practices.
• Biggest mistakes.
• How we think about hiring.
• When do you hire?
  • How do you know it’s the right time.
• Have you properly budgeted for a new hire?
• It’s all about “Attitude, then aptitude.”
• Ask yourself the following about your potential hire...
  • “Do they get it, do they want it, do they have the capacity to do it?”
• Hire for the person, not the position.
• How you can apply this to your company.

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand

FYI: This episode contains explicit language. While we would love you to listen and get your feedback, you do so at your own undetermined peril. FYI Part II: This is a sneak peek of what the podcast may be. We are still learning our equipment, format, and chemistry. Also, this site has yet to actually be built. 😜 Welcome to episode zero of the Adventures in Businessing podcast. As the site title suggests, at it's highest level, this show is all about the adventures that come in building and running a business. At a more focused level, it's a show about two business partners. One an entrepreneur and the other an engineer. Together they currently build WordPress plugins like Ninja Forms. Where this adventure takes them is anyone's guess. You don't have to though. You can eavesdrop in on every episode. 🤘🏼 We hope you enjoy!

Special thanks to the CrashJonesBand for providing us with our theme music. No One Can Tell You How To Live by CrashJonesBand