Being so new in a fairly new company has made for a fun experience of finding a place to settle in. The environment here in the office though is completely conducive to such settling. Things are incredibly uplifting, and as Erin so perfectly put it when I asked her on my first day if she liked working here, “I have never been so respected in any job before”. I find out every day how true that statement is. I’m certain Erin or someone has written about the white board method before, but I will just add my newcomer opinion. Every couple of days we all stand in front of the big white board just down the hall and write a list of our goals. We categorize by A, B, and C according to priority, per instructions in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (an incredible book.) I feel like this is where a lot of the respect that Erin was referring to is shown. We can put any little thing we need to do up there, and it never feels like anyone’s tasks are more important than anyone else’s. And nothing beats that satisfaction of crossing something off your list. Yesterday Rich was at the board and almost crossed something off my list but stopped short and said to me, “Oh, I’ll let you do that, I know how good it feels to cross things off your own list”. Thank you, Rich. Nothing could be more true.

Each day here, Erin and I uncover new evidence supporting the theory that we are actually twins separated at birth. The newest discovery was made on Thursday when we both admitted to our lifelong dream of going on a hot air balloon ride. Immediately we went to Ron and suggested it (almost without believing it could even be considered) as the next reward for reaching some big office goals. Within the hour we were all at the board listing goals that we thought worthy of such a lofty reward (sorry, I couldn’t help myself with that pun opportunity.) So lo and behold, we are now working our way toward a hot air balloon ride in Park City.

The prospect of going on a balloon ride and actually checking something off my life To-Do list is more exciting than could be described. I came into work early this morning with my head just bursting with all of the things I need to get done–and more excited than ever to do them all. The level of motivation that the goals and rewards system creates in me is unlike anything I have ever felt. And the willingness of everyone in the office to work together to help everyone achieve their goals is a big part of that. There has not been a day yet that I have left feeling like I did not accomplish something, because here we treat every little thing we cross off that white board as one more step toward our goal. And with that hot air balloon ride at the end of the rainbow, I know Erin and I will be crossing things off as fast as we can. If only everyone in the world recognized the value of focusing so much on the positive. I bet we’d all be a lot more willing to put in our best all the time, in all aspects of life.

Which brings me to the last and most important lesson I’ve learned thus far working here…Rich and Ron really do know what they’re talking about. It is such a huge opportunity to work in an environment like the one they have created here, and I hope with the publishing of their book that there will be more offices like ours. Looks like balloons are not just for kids.

Recently we finished a chapter for the book on accountability. Accountability can be scary, especially when it comes to entrepreneurship. If you’re accustomed to the corporate world, you may find yourself feeling a bit naked without a buffer between you and the world- protecting you AND your assets. Here’s the thing- as scary as it is, it can also be absolutely liberating. Knowing that you are making the decisions, and then standing up for them- that’s as free as it gets. It means that you own the risks, but you also own the joy.

Accountability can be big, or small. Rich an experience working for a company before striking off on his own. He ended up signing a document agreeing to take responsibility for the computer payments should the business not provide an adequate buffer. Turns out, the company failed, and Rich was left with payments that almost matched his mortgage. He learned the hard way that you should NEVER sign a personal guarantee for a company you don’t own. Still, he followed through with his obligation. He wanted his signature and his word to mean something, and because he accepted accountability during the difficult times, it does.

Other examples: I’m always ELATED when I find myself in a store or restaurant, a mistake is made, and the person behind the counter says something to the effect of: “I made a mistake. I’m sorry, it’ll take a minute, but I’ll personally make sure this is taken care of.” It completely diffuses my frustration. I trust the person again. That is, of course, opposed to what normally occurs. It drives me crazy to hear, “Well, Dan was supposed to come in here this morning and set this up, and because HE bailed…we’re all left in a lurch. I hate it when no one does their job.”

One more. I’ve been listening to Pandora Radio online lately. Every so often, as with most technology, it glitches or fails on me. When it does, I always get an error message to the effect of, “We experienced trouble saving your preferences. It’s our fault. Should we try again?” There is something about that site that just makes me feel relaxed and well served. It doesn’t need to be perfect, it just needs to be accountable.

I’ve had another slight pause in the bootstrap update! We had a meeting this morning to discuss the new avenues we’re going down as a business. It’s exciting to see the plan that Rich and Ron made in the beginning coming together. When they first starting with Everest, they had three distinct ideas. First, engineer outsourcing. Second, linkbuilding. Third, SEO. When they ran the Porter Model and drew out the different plans, they found out that SEO actually came out on the bottom. However, as bootstrappers, they knew they needed something that matched their current skills and abilities, utilized their contacts, and was quick to cash. Enter Everest Web. Since I’ve been working with Everest, I’ve seen them gain enough experience, captial, and contacts through their SEO efforts to seque into their other two plans. Rich calls this “parallel entrepreneurship.” It’s kind of business evolution- survival of the fittest business. Start where it’s smart to start and ride the waves, allowing your venture to stay strong.

There is one interesting skill that parellel entreprenership demands. During our meeting this morning Rich said that it’s imperative that we treat each of the ventures as if it is our ONLY venture. The book, SEO, outsourcing, linkbuilding. We all have our niche, but it’s not quite enough. In order to give the venture fuel, we all have to work effectively, and wear as many hats as we can. I think the upcoming weeks will really try and prove the principles we’re trying to capture here, and in the book. Shanna (the new admin) and I will keep you updated as we go along.