Business Tips

No-one likes to be rejected. Except, possibly, John Kueber.

 

The successful serial entrepreneur told a Shawnigan Entrepreneurship class that rejection is likely what they will need to endure if they want to succeed in the world of business.

Shawnigan alumnus, Mr. Kueber, ’89 (Ripley’s), is a U.S.-based entrepreneur with a focus on launching new technologies. The founder of SōRSE Technology, which he has taken to $5 million in sales this year alone, his other startups include LiveShopCast, Speechforms.com (acquired by Spoken.com/Avaya), Superbuild.com (acquired by Hardware.com), and Urban Pages Media (acquired by Tiger Oak Media).

 

Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Mr. Kueber has humorously referred to himself as a “recovering Canadian.” He attended the University of Washington after graduating from Shawnigan, and has lived in Seattle, Washington, for more than 25 years.

 

We listened in as Mr. Kueber spoke to Mr. Dukelow’s Entrepreneurship class (along with several visiting School board members) about ‘The Five Things I Wish I was Told.’

 

First Principles thinking is the practice of actively questioning every assumption you think you know about a given problem or product, and then creating new ideas and solutions from scratch, explained Mr. Kueber.

“Explore new ideas while you’re young,” he told the attentive class of grade 10, 11, and 12 students. “It gets harder after age 30. This is a window of opportunity that you have now, here at Shawnigan. Play ‘entrepreneurial futsal’ as much as you can, now, while there’s no risk.”

 

A pitch deck is a brief presentation designed to give a short summary of your company, your business plan, and your startup vision, he explained. “This is the time to learn how to do a pitch deck, while you have the freedom to practice.”

 

“This is the best thing you can do to prepare for being an entrepreneur. You’re going to have to sell and market a product or service. You have to get comfortable with rejection, with other people saying No.”

 

The opinions of other people may not always “relate to you the way they once did,” Mr. Kueber told students, pointing out that the need for familial approval isn’t always a good thing when exploring new ideas or innovations.

 

“Don’t just ‘follow your passion.’ I can’t believe how many times people say that. Well, I love cycling, I’m passionate about it, but I’m not good at it. And even if I’m passionate about it, that doesn’t necessarily mean it would make a great business.” Find a niche that no-one else has thought of, he advised, and be objective about it from a market viewpoint.

 

And, finally… Mr. Kueber urged our budding entrepreneurs to take advantage of the business ‘incubator’ that is Shawnigan, which offers a soft landing for youth with big ideas to explore!

 

“I know everyone probably tells you how lucky you are to be here at Shawnigan. I didn’t know it at the time, didn’t appreciate it… This is your base layer and you are lucky to have it. Remember, you’re in an environment of support now – and that goes away.”

 

Following the presentation, students had a chance to ask questions – so many, in fact, that Mr. Dukelow had to wrap up with several hands still waving in the air!

Here are just a few of the excellent questions our students had for this inspiring American/Canadian alumnus (who surprised students with small prizes for the two ‘best’ questions!).

 

 

A. Do it when you’re young. When you don’t have a family to worry about. But keep a balance. Mental health is a huge risk – entrepreneurs do crazy things under stress.

 

A. If you’re getting offered a premium, sometimes you have to sell. Unless it’s a legacy business or you love it, then that’s different. But a premium may not come around again.

Q. Did the fact that people like your parents didn’t always like what you were doing – was that actually a motivator in some ways?

A. Proving other people wrong is always going to be a motivator! But it’s more about friends than parents; I think it’s more that you really want to prove your friends wrong. And that’s OK.

 

A. Motivation is important, of course. In hindsight, it’s a requirement, but motivation is not the only thing. Being smart, working hard, all those things are important, too. Shawnigan will give you all a taste of working hard – and you will need that ability, as a young person, to connect working hard to being entrepreneurial, and doing well.