Think and rethink about the user experience, you must constantly seek to make it better. Always.
Brandon M. Welch, MS, PhD is an Assistant Professor in Biomedical Informatics and Director of the Telehealth Research and Innovation Program at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Welch uses his training in human genetics and biomedical informatics to develop innovative and user-friendly health IT solutions for personalized medicine and telemedicine. While a PhD student, he founded Doxy.me, an award-winning, simple & free telemedicine solution now used by thousands of healthcare providers. His current telemedicine research focuses on expanding and improving telemedicine technology to support research and to serve rural, underserved, and global populations.
Where did the idea for Doxy.me come from?
While completing my PhD in Biomedical Informatics, I was tasked with finding a simple telemedicine solution for a clinical research study. The only available options were expensive and complicated. I couldn’t believe there wasn’t a simple and free telemedicine solution available, so I created one.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
I spend the daytime at the office bouncing between meetings, emails, video calls, customer support, writing, etc. I spend the evening with my wife and boys (2 and 4), then back at it once the wife and kids are in bed until about midnight. The evening is my most productive time when I get a lot of stuff done (like these questions, ironically).
How do you bring ideas to life?
I’m an innovator, but I need to build a team of people with the talent and passion to help turn the vision into a reality. So the key to bringing an idea to life is to surround yourself with a great team.
What’s one trend that really excites you?
User-centered design. With so many simple and elegant solutions becoming available now, I have no patience for poorly designed services anymore.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
Constantly thinking about the product and how to make it better. Every free moment I’m thinking about how to solve problems that the users face.
What was the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?
No job is bad if I learned from it. I’ve learned from every job and am grateful for each of those opportunities.
If you were to start again, what would you do differently?
Delegation is important to being successful, but delegating without oversight could become disastrous. Always know what is going on, even if you have delegated the responsibility to others.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Think and rethink about the user experience, you must constantly seek to make it better. Always.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business? Please explain how.
Make it free, it’s easy to sell and markets itself. Your lost earnings would have gone to pay for marketing anyway.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
Trying to manage something I didn’t understand. You can’t manage what you don’t understand. I overcame it by completing a PhD. 🙂
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
A service that teaches PhD students how to be entrepreneurs, then invest in their ideas.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
On my wife. Happy wife is a happy life, it’s very true. Also, a loving and supporting spouse is important for any successful entrepreneur.
What software and web services do you use? What do you love about them?
Trello, Slack, Google Docs, Intercom. I appreciate and get inspired by their user experience.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
Start with Why by Simon Sinek. It makes you rethink what you are saying to your customers, and how to say it more effectively, and why.
What people have influenced your thinking and might be of interest to others?
Eric Ries
@ericries
Connect:
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Doxy.me on LinkedIn
Brandon M. Welch, MS, PhD on LinkedIn
Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.