Above all else, I think you should make self education a habit. Many people leave the educational establishments and think that they have finished with their learning, which is sad because it’s only just beginning.
Chloe Smith is the creative director and founder of Forty8Creates. Forty8Creates is a branding agency that offers services from graphic design, digital marketing, web and app design & development. London based for the past 5 years, the company is now expanding to San Antonio, Texas, United States.
Where did the idea for your company come from?
It was a natural progression from my Graphic Design degree ????
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
I start my day with a cup of tea. I tend to wake up around 6 and go for a run. I do some work before its time to head out to the office. Working out in the morning sets the tone for the day and makes me feel much more productive.
I do a mandatory daily to-do list and on a Monday a master, weekly to do list. Both of these keep me sane and it really helps me achieve maximum productivity.
Recently I’ve been very inspired by the book: ‘Eat that Frog’ by Brian Tracy, and his mantra to be productive or “just do it”. Eating the frog suggests that we stop avoiding the big tasks, completely isolate yourself and focus on that single thing until it’s done – especially those income generating tasks! I won’t give away too much, but I would strongly recommend this if you are easily distracted.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I think it’s important to be surrounded by creative people. It’s also important to look outside the realms of your own industry and have a genuine interest and desire to learn about how the world – and the industries that make it – works.
The original inspiration will push me to come up with solutions and new ideas. Once the original concept is designed, work is the ultimate driver and it will get things done, along with my wonderful team, whom without this, I couldn’t have done.
What’s one trend that excites you?
The idea of success is changing and we are definitely part way through the start-up and entrepreneurship trend. It’s that fresh mindset, the idea that you can be anything you set your mind to. There hasn’t been another time in history that you could start a billion dollar tech company in your teens, you can become an influencer from your bedroom, and you can have something delivered within hours. We live in an exciting time and I do hope this trend continues.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
Above all else, I think you should make self education a habit. Many people leave the educational establishments and think that they have finished with their learning, which is sad because it’s only just beginning. I have developed this habit over the last few years and it has done wonders for the growth of Forty8Creates.
What advice would you give your younger self?
I would say to her, not to take things personally, business is just business in the end. You will be fine. And I would just remind myself to invest, do not be afraid of investing, especially in people, because the more you give the more your business gets back.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.
I’m not a foodie I would almost certainly take a pill that would give me the necessary nutrients if it were invented.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Write a blog! It will help you with your SEO and if you write what you know it could help other people or your employees.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?
I think we pride ourselves on good quality work and honesty with our clients. The business grows organically and through word of month. I guess you could say authenticity has been our strategy for the past 5 years, however as we scale up so will our brand awareness and communication activities.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
One thing I did struggle with originally was letting the team come in and take over the work I was doing. If the person responsible to do my job said “I’m having issues with this“ I would take over instead of taking the time to explain the process, I felt it easier then me having to explain. This is wrong, don’t do this.
I’m still working on it, but this book ‘Life Leverage’ by Rob Moore really help me cultivate a new mentality which sees me take the time to explain and allow the team to practice and self educate before relying on me.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
I think an SEO service that could suggest to you what kind of content is missing from your website. That would help people tremendously.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
Last week we sent out thank you gifts to all of your clients. It let them know we appreciate them and were thankful for their investment in us and their patience whilst we grow.
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
We use Trello quite often for organisation, its “Kanban” style workflow enables us to keep track of departmental to do lists.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
‘Start now, Get Perfect Later’ by Rob Moore & “Systemize, Automate and Delegate” by Tom Corson Knowles. Both of these titles helped me prioritise and organise my workflow.
What is your favorite quote?
If you’re born poor, it’s not your mistake. But if you die poor, it is your mistake” – Bill Gates
This quote inspires me to motivate myself and it drives me to up my game.
Key learnings:
- Don’t be afraid of investing. Especially in your staff.
- Read (or listen to audiobooks) as much as you can. Education is never done
- Gain as much knowledge as possible on different industries and different new topics.
- Just do it: go for it and start your business.
Connect:
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.