Vik Patel is a prolific tech entrepreneur with a passion for all things cloud. As the CEO of Detroit-based Future Hosting, Mr. Patel has played a significant role in the world of hosted infrastructure since the turn of the millennium. His unique perspective throughout the new Internet frontier is further enriched by a B.A. from the University of Michigan and J.D. from the John Marshall Law School. Follow him @fhsales.
Who’s your hero? (In business, life, or both.)
This probably sounds like a bit of a cop-out, but if I had to choose, I’d say Warren Buffet. He’s an absolute master when it comes to figuring out which way the wind’s blowing as far as investment is concerned, and he’s an incredibly savvy businessman. Yet in spite of all that — in spite of the fact that he’s among the richest men in the world — he still remains humble and disciplined.
He doesn’t spend his wealth like a lot of successful businesspeople do: to make himself look like some sort of god apart from men. He’s practical with it. He could afford any house in the world, yet he chooses a little slice of suburbia. He also donates a ton of money to charity and is more than willing to try and help others get to where he is. He’s definitely someone I admire and somebody I’d like to shape my life after.
What’s the single best piece of business advice that helped shape who you are as an entrepreneur today, and why?
The best piece of business advice I ever received wasn’t even directly related to business, now that I stop to think about it. It can be summed up like this: know your limits and don’t try to push yourself too far beyond them. It’s OK to test yourself every now and then. But if you’re constantly taking on more than you can handle, you’re going to burn out.
That philosophy has shaped pretty much everything I do as an entrepreneur. It’s shaped my sleep schedule (I avoid all-nighters like the plague), my eating and exercise habits and my personal life. Because I take the time to stop and think about my own health, I have way more energy to put into my business.
What’s the biggest mistake you ever made in your business, and what did you learn from it that others can learn from too?
Simple: not knowing your clients. Failing to pick up the phone and talk to them is a huge mistake. Calling them and talking to them, even for a minute — to pick their brain about what they are happy with, unhappy with, want and need — will do you well. If you fail to do that, you are on a path to disaster. Provide nothing but fantastic service and do NOT chase the money. Money will follow good client services.
What do you do during the first hour of your business day and why?
I plan out the rest of my day. Usually, I’ll start by taking a look at any messages I happen to have missed. Who’s trying to get in touch with me and why? Is it urgent? Critical to my business?
Once I’ve sorted through that, I’ll figure out what I need to accomplish, then slot a bit of time for each specific task. The reason I do this is simple: it helps me focus more if I arrange everything into a bit of a schedule, almost like a database. It means I know exactly what I need to get done and I’ve a good idea of how much time I need in order to do it.
What’s your best financial/cash-flow related tip for entrepreneurs just getting started?
Honestly, the same advice I was given about my personal life applies here. Don’t overextend yourself. I know there are plenty of tales about businesses that succeeded after operating in the red for a while, but trust me. You don’t want to do that. If you’re going to purchase new equipment, expand or make an acquisition, you need to make absolutely sure you have the budget for it.
I know from experience. Early on in my business life I didn’t follow this advice and dug myself into $200,000 of credit card debt. I did get out of debt and have been cash flow positive since. But it was extraordinarily risky for the business so early on.
Quick: What’s ONE thing you recommend ALL aspiring or current entrepreneurs do right now to take their biz to the next level?
Seek out new people like you’d seek new experiences. Aim to make friends wherever you go. You never know when a guy you met at a sporting event one Saturday might turn out to be a valuable business partner. Plus, acquainting yourself with new faces will give you insight into new perspectives — and perspective is an incredible thing to possess as an entrepreneur.
What’s your definition of success? How will you know when you’ve finally “succeeded” in your business?
Personal success is probably the easiest (or maybe the hardest, if you’re a perfectionist) to reach for. Do you feel fulfilled? Are you happy with where your business is going and what you’re doing with your life? If the answer is yes, then congratulations. That’s personal success.
Professional success, meanwhile, involves recognition. Is your business starting to gain ground in its industry? Are people talking about you as an up-and-coming entrepreneur? Someone to watch?
Finally, financial success is probably the easiest to quantify, but by no means the simplest to achieve. If your business has succeeded financially, that means it’s regularly turning a profit.
It’s a bit of a roundabout answer, sure, but I think true success in business is a combination of the three. You need to be personally fulfilled, your business needs to have attained professional recognition, and it needs to be financially viable. If you can check off all of those, you’re successful.
