Ageless Startup by Rick Terrien;

Author:Rick Terrien;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lightning Source Inc. (Tier 3)
Published: 2020-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

Now that you have explored some initial launch steps, it’s time to dig more deeply into what drives you: specifically, your mission, goals, and values.

CHAPTER

4

SETTING YOUR MISSION, GOALS, AND VALUES

There is a widely used acronym that you may have heard of, KISS: Keep it simple, Stupid. It’s an old saying, and it needs updating. How about, “Keep it simple, Smarty”? Simple is the new smart.

A few years back at a startup, I was helping install a new piece of equipment designed to recycle industrial fluids. Our startup had landed its first few customers, and this factory was a key test.

There was a lot of science in what we had designed, but we worked hard to hide all that and make the use of the machine as simple as possible. The application was brutal, but the equipment performed above everyone’s expectations.

What was most interesting was the response of the maintenance director. He had circled the recycler a couple of times while I walked him through the details. I needed him to like it.

He looked at me without expression and said, “This is really simple.”

I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Did he think he overpaid? The recycler was ripping oil out of their production fluids. He had to see that. What was the problem?

Ageless Entrepreneur Spotlight

Edward Ginsburg, founder of Senior Partners for Justice (SPJ) and 2015 Purpose Prize Fellow (Massachusetts)

Q: What did you do as your first career (or your most recent—or all of them)?

A: First career: I was a trial lawyer for 19 years and a family court judge for 25 years before, reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70 in 2002. I am now 85.

Q: How did you find your current passion?

A: Current passion: As I approached retirement, I noticed that more and more litigants were coming to court without lawyers, facing the great disadvantage of trying to navigate the system on their own. As a retired judge, I felt that I was in a good position to recruit volunteer lawyers to represent the indigent. As my experience increased, I realized that lawyers were more willing to take on discrete tasks such a participating in clinics and taking on limited (as opposed to full) representation, Senior Partners for Justice now number over a thousand lawyers. Each week, I make a personal phone call to those who volunteered the previous week. The key is developing personal relationships and offering opportunities such as monthly luncheons with a speaker and opportunities to take courses.

Q: What is your best piece of advice you would share with someone in the second half of life considering entrepreneurship?

A: My advice is to enjoy what you are doing and be prepared to take on new challenges.

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