Shirin Oreizy is the founder of Next Step, an award-winning marketing agency that uses behavioral science to drive user behavior. Follow her @nextstep04.
Who is your hero? (In business, life, or both.)
Theodore Roosevelt ranks high up in my book for two reasons. First, he was a lover of nature and a great champion for our national parks. My boyfriend and I have a lifelong goal of visiting all of our national parks before we die. We’ve covered 17 so far.
Next, his “Man in the Arena” quote embodies everything I strive for in life. It’s about finding your mission/purpose in life and working relentlessly to achieve it.
What’s the single best piece of business advice that helped shape who you are as an entrepreneur today, and why?
The single best advice I’ve gotten is from my boyfriend (a serial entrepreneur), and that is the relentless pursuit of process. We are constantly thinking how we can improve our process, making it easier and more efficient for our clients and our team. It’s allowed us to scale and grow rapidly.
What’s the biggest mistake you ever made in your business, and what did you learn from it that others can learn from too?
I regret not forming a peer-to-peer accountability group earlier on. I’ve worked with many executive coaches and advisors over the years, but there is nothing like a group of fellow entrepreneurs that have been in your shoes, can give you actionable advice and ultimately hold you accountable to your goals/vision.
What do you do during the first hour of your business day and why?
I take our puppy for an hour long walk/run — nothing like clearing your head for the day. As soon as I get home, I go through my calendar and determine the key tasks I want to accomplish for the day. This leads nicely into my 9:05 a.m. daily huddle with my team (a 15-minute call where we each share what will be committing to doing for the day, and areas where we need each others’ help).
What’s your best financial/cash-flow related tip for entrepreneurs just getting started?
Make sure there is a recurring revenue component to your business. Our monthly recurring revenue support plans have really helped stabilize our cash flow and curb the “feast-or-famine” cycle that agencies typically have. It’s also allowed us to be more selective with the types of projects we take on.
Quick: What’s ONE thing you recommend ALL aspiring or current entrepreneurs do right now to take their biz to the next level?
I have two: first, find your “X-factor” (a key differentiator that gives you a ten times the advantage over the competition). Second, if you don’t have a formal board, create a monthly accountability group (preferably with entrepreneurs who are more experienced than you and in different industries).
What’s your definition of success? How will you know when you’ve finally “succeeded” in your business?
I don’t see success as an “end point” but a process of being aligned with your life goal/mission, which is the ultimate form of happiness. Our near-term goal is to touch one million lives through our design work. That’s why we work with mission-driven companies that are creating a meaningful and measurable impact on the world, from making communities safer with real-time alerts of illegal gunfire, to education programs that lift students out of poverty and onto a solid career path.
I suspect once we hit our first million lives, we’ll add a zero to the front and continue right along.
