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  • What’s your big eyed eel?

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    Big companies thrive on big ideas – or at least they should.

    Big IdealSmall businesses, the ones that thrive, tap something else all together. I’ve hung out a bunch over the last few weeks with some really smart, passionate, vibrant and nutty small business owners and they are a different breed.

    Sometimes I don’t know how to describe it, I especially struggle describing it to the corner office, large cubicle types, but I think it has something to do with hatching very personal ideals. Small business owners run on ideas fused with constant innovation and caring – ideals.

    It’s simply enough to have a vision, a picture, sort of faint and opaque, and then just run like hell. That’s the big eyed eel. And man, that has a special energy that’s just hard to put into words, but you know it when you see it. It’s really scary too, but I find that successful entrepreneurs aren’t fearless, far from it, they simply choose to use fear for what it is – motivation.

    So, here’s some sharing – I don’t have the answer, but I’ve witnessed the question and that’s my big eyed eel – increasing numbers of small business owners are desperate for practical solutions to marketing their businesses and I think DTM gives that to them in various ways. I believe that’s a worthy mark and filter for my doing good business in this world. That’s the ideal behind it all.

    Please, tell me, what drives you, your business, what’s your big eyed eel?

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    Posted by: John Jantsch on Sep 13, 07 | 8:08 am
    Category: Vision | Tags:

    Comments
    • I'm absolutely driven by my fear of failure and the recognition that I have virtually no marketable skills other than music production.

      I learn as much as I can about marketing (and love your site and insights, btw!) and other aspects of the business world so I don't end up digging ditches someday instead of writing and licensing music.
    • Graham Talley
      Hi John, thanks for the article. I'm just in the process of constructing my second start-up, and for some reason knowing that other small businesses out there are crazy as well is like snuggling up with a warm blankey when you know there's a monster named 'The-Way-Things-Are-Done' who lives in the closet.

      Our new company, See3, is tackling the eel of doing small online apps designed specifically for a single person, and then opening it up to anyone. The kind of app that when all is said and done, the recipient can say, 'That is just... perfect.' We are also thinking about making small paper crowns for them to wear.
    • I agree, it's nice to know I'm not the only crazy one.

      My eel? Happiness. Even if it's only a minute with a cup of tea, or a whole couple hours of massage and spa treatments... we each deserve at least a little bit of "happy" in our days. And I passionately work to provide those things to my customs.

      And I find it's hard to lose someone interest in a conversation when they as what you do for a living and you answer, "I make people happy."
    • My big-eyed eel: The prospect of being able to do what I love (writing) all day long, for as many hours of the day as I want to do it, for people who really appreciate what I have to offer, and who demand integrity and authenticity.
    • This is something I've been thinking about a lot lately, as I'm planning on starting my own business early next year and am just writing my business plan.

      My big ideal is getting people excited about sport - making playing sport seem possible, fun and enjoyable.

      My BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) is to combine the best of scientific rigour, marketing flair and sporting passion to show that grassroots sports marketing can be a truly great discipline.

      Will I get there? I don't know yet, but I'm sure as hell excited about it.
    • Some people say" It's as much work to solve problems for small businesses on little budgets as it is to solve problems for big businesses with bigger budgets.

      My big eyed eel is working with small business owners and actually seeing results in a short amount of time.

      Looking them in the eye and collectively mapping out marketing plans really makes the difference for me.

      It means more clients and more work, but in the end, it will be more rewarding.
    • This is a great topic.

      My "big-eyed eel" is the desire to give very small business owners in particularly small niche businesses, a way to let customers know they exist. To paraphrase a quote I read once, "Remember, everyday you wake up looking for a client... there is a potential client waking up wondering how to find you."

      Some examples: the business that makes wheat-free birthday cakes for kids' parties, the person who makes custom clothing for handicapped clients, the person who can construct a custom bed for your 7-ft tall son...

      Since competition is not a big fear for these micro-business owners, they just need a way for the customer who is looking for their services to find them. Collective advertising is the simplest way to achieve thsi goal affordably. I hope the idea catches on, and that more micro-preneurs will see the incredible benefit to being "findable" without making sales pitches.
    • John Jantsch
      Mimi and all,

      It's funny how a single focus like yours is hard to explain to some but keep it and hold onto it no matter what and eventually you will find some overwhelming momentum that comes with conviction.
    • I've wanted to be a writer since I was six years old. I am a writer, and now I'm working towards making a living (with padding) from my writing. That, and knowing that I can likely travel as a result, drives me.
    • I graduated college Magna Cum Laude, while working 40+ hours per week. Others around me who's sole focus was school, managed to graduate with a B average. Entering into the workforce, I have begun my career as an entry level marketing employee for a large casino company. They pay me an acceptable wage for 40 hours per week of my time. I feel like I am making B's in life right now. Yes, I am putting in ground work, preparing myself for success, but everyday I goto work is motivation to no longer labor for someone else.
    • What motivates me is knowing that my ideas actually work and that people listen and use them. I also know that I am pursuing something I love and that large business just is not ready to tackle.
    • Hi John;

      We are in the process of launching a new company (www.makeanythingwork.com) and it is our big eyed eel that keeps us going when the slogging gets tough.

      For us, the eel is a learning system we've developed that can be used to convey new information in a way that is more easily absorbed and integrated than traditional learning systems.

      We've taken what we've learned in the accelerated education world of live personal training and adapted it for a home training system.

      The big eyed eel inside our big eyed eel is that we can use the system to help anyone with an expertise realize their dream of becoming a published author and provide them with a passive revenue stream!

      Thanks for another thoughtful post. Keep up the great work!

      Paul
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