EP. 61 Think Small & Burn The Ships

Graham Weston, Former CEO & Chairman of Rackspace (NYSE: RXT), founder of Geekdom, Weston Ventures, Weston Urban and the 80/20 Foundation (to name a few) talks about the power of “thinking small” and how the tactics inform the strategy, not the other way around.  Much of finding success is about executing something simple, very aggressively.  Graham believes that one of the greatest contributions he made, in the early days at Rackspace, was reducing all the other services they had and focusing on just hosting.  Doing one thing well, allows companies to have an advantage over established organizations.  Graham also shares that the devil is who gets you to diversify, meaning, stick to what is working for a while before you decide to invest elsewhere.  Any entrepreneurial endeavor also requires burning the ships and fully committing if you want to have a shot at finding success.  Graham believes that many ideas and dreams are never realized because of fear.  The fear of not having a stable job and being able to maintain a certain standard of living, is the very thing that can hold back the best ideas from coming to life.  Being self-aware is also critical and understanding that sometimes you are better off being employee 7, instead of employee 1.  It’s about creating value and doing it the best way you know how.  Self-awareness also applies when it comes to how long one stays the course.  Tenacity in accomplishing a goal is commendable, but not if timing, product-market fit and lack of Team is not on your side.  Nothing wrong with acknowledging that certain conditions are not present and moving onto something else.  Sacrifice is also a crucial mindset, especially in the early days of any business.  Not personal sacrifice (although that is part of it), but business sacrifice.  It is easy to get lured into "Doing It All", but you will almost guarantee failure if you do.  Graham’s induction as a Legend, into the Texas Business Hall of Fame was for his contributions to Texas business and encouraging the next generation of entrepreneurs.  From the 80/20 Foundation to ventures like Geekdom, Graham continues to help companies and Teams across Texas reach their potential.  

You can follow Graham at www.grahamweston.com

This episode was in partnership with the Texas Business Hall Of Fame. You can learn more about TBHF and their mission by visiting www.texasbusiness.org