10 insider secrets to thriving in the entrepreneurial wild

Business Journals

05-05-2025

Entrepreneurship is a journey paved by resilience, ingenuity, grit, hustle and – if you are a member of the Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) – a supportive community. In Maryland, EO is a cornerstone for business owners, offering a network for both learning as well as personal/professional growth. I'm offering 10 hacks I wish I knew sooner, which contributed significantly to my own personal and professional development. They are a random compilation of experiences during the last six years or so of my EO Baltimore membership.
1. I joined EO in January 2019. In June 2019 I attended a workshop, based on the book 'Profit First,' where I learned a methodology to pay myself (and my taxes) first. Thanks to this workshop, I had way more money in my personal bank account within six months and was able to start profit sharing with my team.
2. That September I attended a conference where a fellow entrepreneur shared with me that during his team's self-performance evaluations, he asks people to rate themselves on a scale of 1 to 10, but he takes away the 7.
So, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, _, 8, 9,1 0. He said sevens are where people go to hide, and if you force them to pick a six or an eight, it drives people to dig down and get more real with themselves (and you). He was absolutely right.
3. Same conference. Everyone kept using the word 'traction.' They knew something I didn't. I learned 'Traction' is a book by Gino Wickman. My company, Brand Builders, started implementing EOS. My leadership team got aligned, and we started getting more done in two weeks than in whole quarters. It felt like magic. (Another EO Baltimore friend said it to me this way: 'Structure sets you free; for nearly every problem, there's a solution involving structure.')
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4. The Change Paradigm. (See diagram.). It works like this:20% of people are unfazed by change, adopting easily with little to no resistance. Sixty percent of people will adapt, but at different rates. It's our job as entrepreneurs to create as little friction as possible, so they can adapt more readily/quickly. Twenty percent aren't coming. In fact, they will go to great lengths to dig their heels in and thwart the change at every turn. Successful change management includes Identifying which groups your team members fall into and create a plan for each.
5. Time doesn't heal; energy does. – Finnian Kelly. His point was clear: If time healed, then we wouldn't be affected by our childhood traumas. Energy work is now part of my journey.
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6. From my EO forum (it's six of us who meet monthly): 'There's nothing more powerful than the right book at the right time.' Here's an off-the-top-of-my-head list, I personally recommend:
'American Icon,' Alan Mulally
'The Desire Map,' Danielle LaPorte
'No More Mr. Nice Guy,' Dr. Robert Glover (I didn't actually read this one, but it was recommended during a trying time in my marriage; my husband read it, and it was instrumental.)
'Fierce Conversations,' Susan Scott
'The Five Dysfunctions of a Team,' Patrick Lencioni
'The Power of the Other,' Dr. Henry Cloud
'Get a Grip,' Gino Wickman and Mike Paton
'The Obstacle Is the Way,' Ryan Holiday
'Giftology,' John Ruhlin
'The Leader Within Us,' Warren Rustand
7. Warren Rustand taught me there are 86,400 seconds in a day. And encouraged me to stop wasting seconds on what you won't care about in 10 years.
8. Jack Daly demonstrated how to structure a lucrative referral bonus for employees as we were coming out of Covid – one I could afford when I couldn't afford much – but still was meaningful enough to incentivize my team to refer critical talent. (Think incrementally - 20%; 20%; 60% in terms of payouts).
9. Big one: Regret(s) help us because it shows us what we value most. Think of a compilation of regrets being a photographic negative of a good life. Do three exercises:
Write a Failure Resume for yourself.
Three columns at the top of the page:
Mistakes/Setbacks
What Did I Learn?
What I Am Doing Next/Differently?
Conduct a Regret Pre-Mortem on next big endeavor.
Place a phone call to yourself – What am I going to care about in 10 years?.
10. I just attended EO's Global Leadership Conference, where Deepak Chopra spoke to 1,600 entrepreneurs from 56 countries.
To become a member of EO, you must own a business, generating at least $1 million in annual revenue or join our accelerator program, which accepts entrepreneurs whose businesses range from $250,000 to $1 million revenue and are looking to grow to a million in two to four years.