RE/MAX Elite CoLouth’s Post

The first 5 years are the hardest. True for me and most founders I know.  By year 6, founders should have achieved a few important milestones that remove a lot of the insane stress of the early years: 1) Hired at least one solid leader to run a large part of the business. 2) Earned enough money or funding to pay themselves a reasonable salary. 3) Gained enough traction to know the business is likely to survive, if not thrive. Years 0-5 are extremely hard - physically, emotionally, professionally. Hats off to all the founders still in this tough phase. Weirdly, those are the days that 10+ year founders are nostalgic for, so realize that you're lucky to even have the opportunity. If you’re still in the grind, know this: It’s brutal—but you’re lucky to even have the chance. Keep going. #founderlife #startupjourney #growthmindset

Team problems contribute to over 18% in early startup’s failure. Companies who have prioritized innovative practices that focus on employee satisfaction and team building are seen to have a higher retention rate. For example: Netflix has an employee retention rate of 95%. Zappos Family of Companies has an employee retention rate of 64/100. After analyzing the practices of such companies: At Stockify Fintech Pvt. Ltd., me and my co-founder Rahul Khatuwala made some strategic decisions to build a good company culture for the long term game. Here are my 3 secrets learnt from building a good company culture: 1. Identify leaders - We hire people who take initiative on their own without any external pressure. - The enthusiasm and ethic of our employees contributes more to our growth. 2. Happy employees = Healthy company - Our employees are free to work from their comfortable location. - This makes them not to feel work as a burden and we see an increase in productivity. 3. Share your vision - Most companies fail as they hire people who don’t really know the long term vision of the company. - An aligned vision with our employees made the process easy for us to progress. Building a good company culture has been one of our biggest goals from the beginning. Now, we are proud of the way we are building a beautiful space for our employees to grow along the company. What was your biggest goal in your entrepreneurship journey? Comment below #stockify #preipo #unlistedshares

I resigned from Butobox as co-founder I made this bold decision on my 25th birthday, it's not the first time I made this decision this thought was in my mind for the past 6 months but I just made it final and official. 🫥 It might sound totally shocking as Butobox was something that I created from zero to a full fledged working agency.💹 I sent resignation mail within a week of shifting to the new office.🎈 This was my startup to which I devoted everything to a year of hard work, losing my friends, my close ones. I was managing a full-fledged team of 7 people and a lot of clients, things looked fine from outside on social media and among outside people, but I wasn't happy and one shouldn't stick to something where you are not valued at all.🥺🥺🥲 I was just a revenue generator handling all the responsibilities and doing efforts day & night selflessly. It was not the first time it happened. In April'24 as well I left the company but I was back here within 15 days that I think was the biggest mistake of my life. I must have believed in myself and started from scratch building my own Brand as I had knowledge expertise connection and everything that took to create a business.💹 But now I left that place 😌 and I would like to work for myself to trust my knowledge skills expertise connection and the people who really value and care for me. We all are humans and are connected to each other through emotions, ❤️🩹although emotions are something that one should not keep while doing business but you are connected to your business and brand emotionally only. And if that gets hurt by some means and your decisions are not valued at the workplace, then there is no meaning to stay in that business.🫷 Believe more in your start from scratch I have done it once with full potential and now I can do it even more better.❣️ Bidding All the very Best to my new born solitary entrepreneur for all the success ahead. And this time it's going to be massive and everlasting success. #entrepreneurship #life #growth #setback #journey #sucess #mindset #clients #potential #business

One of my goals this year was to have fun. Yes, you read that right. As a founder pursuing ambitious growth targets, this might sound borderline irresponsible. After all, aren't we supposed to be Grinding 24/7, sacrificing everything on the altar of success, and measuring our worth solely through revenue metrics? Well, here's the plot twist: my year ended with a gut punch - an email on December 31st announcing the cancellation of a multi-six-figure deal due to client layoffs and reorganization. Classic startup life, right? But here's why having "fun" as a goal turned out to be my most strategic decision yet: Throughout the year, I facilitated workshops from a pool in Grenada (yes, really!), celebrated milestone birthdays with my wife and friends, and worked from various corners of the globe. These weren't distractions - they were fuel for innovation and resilience. The entrepreneurial journey is a marathon disguised as a sprint. When you're building something meaningful, the highs are euphoric, but the lows? They can be crushing. That's precisely why having non-financial goals isn't just nice to have ↳ it's essential for survival and success. These moments of joy didn't just make me a better leader ↳ they gave me the emotional reservoir to handle setbacks with grace. When that year-end email hit my inbox, instead of spiralling, I had the mental fortitude to see it as a chapter, not the story. For my fellow founders, your company's success and personal happiness aren't opposing forces - they're synergistic. Happy leaders: • Make better decisions • Inspire stronger teams • Build more sustainable businesses. Because sometimes, the most radical thing you can do is choose joy. #Entrepreneurship #Leadership — — — — 📣 Know someone who could benefit from my content? Re-post this with your thoughts. 🔔 Want to work with us ✉️us at hello@mindsetshift.co.uk 🌐 Website - www.mindsetshift.co.uk

Delivering Happiness: The Tony Hsieh Way 🤯 Just finished rereading [3rd time] "𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬" by the late, great Tony Hsieh, and it's still one of my all-time favorite business books. 📚✨Hsieh, the visionary founder of Zappos, was absolutely obsessed with company culture. And guess what? It paid off BIG TIME. 📈 Zappos became known not just for shoes, but for its incredible customer service and employee happiness. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭: Culture is KING: Hsieh believed that a strong culture focused on customer happiness was the foundation for success. It wasn't just a nice-to-have, it was EVERYTHING. 💯 Hire for culture fit: Zappos famously offered new hires $2,000 to quit if they didn't feel like a good fit. Talk about commitment to finding the right people! 🤯 Empower your team: Hsieh encouraged employees to be themselves, make decisions, and have fun at work. Who wouldn't want to work in that kind of environment? 🎉 Hsieh's unconventional ideas may seem crazy to some, but they worked wonders for Zappos. He proved that putting people first (both customers and employees) is a winning strategy. 🥇 If you're building a startup, or even leading an established company. ___________ I talk more about building an amazing crowd in my upcoming book: Step Zero - Before the Hustle 💡 #TonyHsieh #DeliveringHappiness #Zappos #CompanyCulture #CustomerHappiness #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #StepZero

In the three years since we started Every, not a single employee has voluntarily left the company. (Except for one, but he is coming back) One reason is that when I hire people I ask them what their motivation for coming to work at an early stage company is. If the conversation immediately turns to compensation and potential stock upside, it is almost always going to be a bad fit. In the early days of a startup, the financial position can be a roller coaster and those people will often get off the ride early. When you hire someone that is motivated by building for the sake of building, and by the desire to bring something awesome into the world, you know they will be in it for all the twists, turns and loop-de-loops. This changes when you are Series A onwards, so I wouldn’t apply this unless you are at the seed stage.

Perspective Matters: A Journey of Growth and Resilience 🙌 I want to share a little story about my journey. There was a time when I was working with a startup. My main agenda was to set up an entire vertical, a domain I had no prior experience in. Initially, I felt overwhelmed and unsure about where to start—whether to gather the team or build a rock-solid foundation. One day, I directly asked, "There are many people in the organization with more experience and in the same position as I am. Why have you given me this significant responsibility to create something new from scratch?" He smiled and said, "The day I hired you, I knew I had found someone who could align with our goals and perspective. That's the uniqueness I saw in you." From that day, it took me just 15 days to set up, create, hire, and align a new vertical. I gave opportunities to newcomers who had the hunger to get things done and hustle. Within two months, my vertical became the highest revenue generator. Learn from your setbacks to come back stronger. 💫 ~ a.s.R writes #growthmindeset #leadership #resilience #Perspective #hustle 

$2,000 for happiness, Tony Hsieh's bold move at Zappos shows that value isn’t always about the money. Tony Hsieh, former CEO of Zappos, introduced “The Offer,” a bold initiative where, after training, new hires were offered $2,000 to quit if they felt Zappos wasn’t the right fit. This wasn’t just about cutting costs—it was about building a strong culture. By giving employees the option to leave with cash, Hsieh ensured that those who stayed were fully aligned with the company’s mission and values. As a founder, I’ve realized that value isn’t just measured in money or productivity. It’s about making choices that reflect your values. Here’s what you can do to bring this mindset shift: ● We obsess over financial profits, but the richest moments are often cost-free. A game of catch with my son beats any business win. ● Children prefer attention from parents over material gifts. I've made it a rule to shut off my phone during family time. ● Reading a book to my child not only bonds us but expands both our horizons. It's a two-for-one deal on personal growth. ● True value isn't in your bank account; it's in the moments that make life worth living. It's about being rich in experiences, relationships, and personal growth. What's the most valuable "free" thing in your life? Share your thoughts below. Let's remind each other of life's true treasures! #LifeValues #WorkLifeBalance #FamilyFirst

Touching down in the UK for a series of customer meetings and a cool HR event🚀 and it’s one of those moments where I’m reminded why having a great co-founder matters so much! After a full day of travel, while most people would call it a night, Badis and I found ourselves deep in discussion, sketching out ideas, tackling challenges, and pushing the vision forward. Having a co-founder who matches your drive and stays relentless in the pursuit of your shared goals.... There’s nothing quite like it! Partnerships like these don’t just build companies; they build resilience, sharpen focus, and keep you moving toward a vision that’s bigger than any one person. Grateful for this journey, the late-night brainstorms, and a co-founder who’s all in. ☄️ On another note: If you’re in the UK and would love to connect, drop us a comment.  🇬🇧 #CoFounders #StartupLife #Vision

6 things I’ve learnt in 6 years at Slick....! It’s been 6 whirlwind years of fun, getting married, Covid, 2 kids and a lot of hard work…not necessarily in that order! What has scaling Slick taught me? 🤼 Hiring people is key but hard. Hire for attitude and energy. The rest can be taught. Experience counts for jack sh*t 💩. Getting sh*t done is what counts. 💪 Stay positive & resilient. We’ve survived COVID, an energy crisis, a cost of living crisis, investor rejection. Start ups are hard but never give up. Ever. 🤬 Trust your gut. We’ve made mistakes and 99% of them could have been avoided, I just didn’t have conviction to make the tough decision early enough. 💰 Pricing is hard and is the biggest reason you might fail. You need to test and test early. Take your time. Don’t rush it. Pivoting pricing models is a pain is the 🍑 and it will hurt. In early days we put 10x more effort into product than pricing. Pricing is key. You can release product updates. You can't release pricing 'updates'... 👂 Listen to experts but bring the salt cellar. Lots of great advice out there but you need to work out what works for YOUR product/customer. SMB SaaS is a different beast to enterprise. Experiment and test relentlessly. Your investors invested in you because they trust you. Use that to give you confidence to follow your convictions. 🗣 Communicate. With your team. With your partners. With your investors. With your customers. Avoid surprises and the more you communicate the more people can, and will, help. It also helps you get invites to Parliament... 😜 Ps I actually needed 8 as the last 2 are probably the most important…. 💜 Customer support. Do it better than your competition. No excuses. Exceptional customer support is your biggest defensive moat. When starting out it covers all manner of product shortcomings… 😍 You need to work harder than you ever have done BUT don't forget to spend time with the important people in your life. I wouldn't have survived 6 years without my amazing wife Lucy Smith: a rock of support and an amazing mother to our 2 beautiful daughters! Thank you Luce! #founder #foundersfactory #saas #scaleup #fintech #beautytech #loreal