Vladimir Gendelman is the founder and CEO of Company Folders, Inc, the standard bearer of online folder printing. He has spent over a decade immersed in the print marketing industry and working with clients such as Sony, Hallmark, Ford and other Fortune 500 companies, as well as a multitude of universities and government/non-profit agencies. He specializes in knowledge related to helping businesses create an image they can be proud of. Follow him @vgendelman.
Who is your hero?
There are two phrases that my mother loved to use:
1. “Don’t put off to tomorrow what can be done today.”
2. “We’re not rich enough to buy cheap things.”
My mom taught me to save time and money by thinking ahead — to get things done without delay whenever possible, and to use products and procedures that will last for a long time without needing to be replaced or redone. These are the lessons that I still live by today as I run my business.
What’s the single best piece of business advice that helped shape who you are as an entrepreneur today, and why?
Question everything. Over the years, I’ve learned that “why” is always much more important than “what.” When you understand why people do what they do, you end up with greater insight into your vendors, clients and employees.
What’s the biggest mistake you ever made in your business, and what did you learn from it that others can learn from too?
When I was first starting out, I didn’t have a very clear vision. I experimented with several different industries. But going in so many completely unrelated directions at once meant that I was spreading myself too thin. I was trying to be versatile by expanding our influence in many different areas, but I wasn’t actually “expanding” at all; spreading out was, ironically, limiting my company’s growth. Once I realized this mistake, I identified a clearer long-term goal and gave my business a laser focus. Since then, it’s as if we added yeast to the company’s recipe; we just keep on growing.
I’d strongly urge other companies to learn from this mistake. Trying new things is great, but a company can’t succeed without a clear focus and a specific goal. Figure out what it is you want to be doing and stick with it; it’s much better to do one thing well than a hundred things passably.
What do you do during the first hour of your business day and why?
Believe it or not, I exercise while listening to business-related audiobooks for the first hour of my business day. I find that I am most receptive to new information in the morning, so that is when I learn. Plus, physical exercise gets my blood going and increases my energy level so that I am ready to move mountains as soon as I get to the office.
What’s your best financial or cash-flow related tip for entrepreneurs just getting started?
Don’t spend all your money at once. A phrase I like to use is “try and pivot, try and pivot.” Instead of worrying about getting everything perfect the first time, adapt your products and procedures over time as necessary. Only through trial and error do we become stronger and more capable.
Quick: What’s ONE thing you recommend ALL aspiring or current entrepreneurs do right now to take their biz to the next level?
Make sure that your company’s core values closely resemble your own. Stay true to yourself under any circumstances, and remember that the road to achieving your goal is not a straight line. You may have to take occasional steps to the left or right, and sometimes you might even have to take a step back to reassess the situation before moving forward. But no matter what detours or setbacks you run into, don’t forget who you are and always keep heading towards your destination.
What’s your definition of success? How will you know when you’ve finally “succeeded” in your business?
Arthur Ashe once said that success is a journey, not a destination. I feel that as long as I’m moving forward, I’m succeeding. Growing and improving is its own reward. If I ever get to a point where I say, “That’s good enough, I’ve succeeded,” then I’ll actually have failed because I’ll have let myself stagnate.
