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Life Among The Monsters: Starting, Running, & S...

Ian Lurie
August 16, 2023

Life Among The Monsters: Starting, Running, & Selling An Agency

When you have no plan whatsoever...

Ian Lurie

August 16, 2023
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  1. Life Among The Monsters Starting, Running, & Selling An Agency

    When You Have No Plan Whatsoever Ian Lurie, & Everyone Else Along The Way @ianlurie
  2. They are not a “resource” They have lives. Good days.

    Bad days. They screw up. In other words, they’re you.
  3. 02 You are not the cavalry There is no cavalry

    You are not a superhero You are a professional You are not in a movie
  4. 04 It’s not “just business,” ffs. You have permission to

    feel good/bad/awful Care what other people think. Then get to work Be emotional
  5. 08 Two recessions, one banking collapse, a terrorist attack, two

    (at least) major wars, a pandemic Tear gassed, mugged (unsuccessfully), major earthquake, two bike crashes, son lodged a penny in his throat, daughter hit in the face with a flying wooden banana, emergency appendectomy, three major layoffs Every shitshow’s different
  6. Clarity & Trust Go Hand In Hand ”Clarity” isn’t about

    “mission.” Clarity is anything that helps you and your team make good decisions about the work, their tenure, their careers, and their lives.
  7. 10 It costs you trust Praise in public Critique in

    private Don’t fart in public toot
  8. 11 Don’t think out loud Be careful with sarcasm Take

    advantage to teach/lead w/ less effort Everyone’s listening
  9. 13 It shouldn’t happen often When it does, cut the

    cord Know when someone’s checked out
  10. 15 What means a non-stop trip out the door? Make

    sure everyone knows Have non-negotiables
  11. 16 (avoid farts of omission) Silly? No. Think of the

    little questions that come up: Expenses, holidays, PTO, dress code (yes, dress code), supplies It’s about the little things that can make you… Have an employee manual toot
  12. 24 Even when the world goes to shit Even if

    you (barely) survived Celebrate
  13. 25 “Yay! We did it!” “What would you do different

    next time?” Master happy teaching moments
  14. 28 They know a thing or two Get the team

    teaching Remember, these are cartoons, not the team
  15. Disclaimer I sucked – SUCKED – at hiring. Seriously. It

    was legendary. I got lucky several times, then those people did the hiring.
  16. 37 “This is a project agreement. However, if hours exceed…”

    Prepare for high-touch Direct team transparency Big clients?
  17. 39 Charge a drama rate When it’s time to renew

    If you’re going out of scope
  18. 41 You’re there to make the client (and you) look

    good ”Sales are up 100%! Thank you, development team, for implementing our recommendations!” I told you so Give the praise, take the hit
  19. 42 It may hurt. It’s worth it. But remember, don’t

    fart in public. Team first. Clients second.
  20. 45 Build to be a great agency Sell when someone

    recognizes that you’ve built a great agency Don’t go looking Do not have an exit strategy
  21. Wil Reynolds: The Consultant’s Rut & How To Escape It

    https://url.ianlurie.com/consult-trap Cough Cough https://url.ianlurie.com/one-trick
  22. Ask (I’ll try to answer) @ianlurie [email protected] Deck, links, and

    all that: https://url.ianlurie.com/agency-life