Fundraising ≠ success

Plus, how leaders can stay flexible during chaotic times ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  March 6th, 2022 The Memo | Issue #83 What is product-market fit? We talk about it all the time in the business world, but it seems like [no one can agree on a definition]( or specific measurable benchmark. Instead of chasing a nebulous concept, focus on defining and measuring the numbers that are actually meaningful to your business. Create scalable growth there and you’ll never have to worry about defining product-market fit. Now, let’s dive in... The Right Way to Fire Someone “Pointing fingers and making them feel inept won’t make the problem better. If anything, it will just piss off your employee and make you look like a real jerk. But with the mindset of extreme ownership, that conversation goes from an interrogation to a collaboration.” As a leader, chances are good you’ll have to fire someone at some point in your business. No matter what, it sucks—especially if the employee is nice and trying their best. In our experience here at The Scalable Company, 9 times out of 10, [firing someone isn’t actually the best way to solve a problem](. But when it is, being sure about the path forward can make things a lot easier. In this 10-minute video, Scalable Co-Founder and CEO, Ryan Deiss, explains how you can ensure everyone is treated fairly, with dignity, and given the opportunity to grow—using the Performance Improvement Flowchart we developed. Related: [Download the Performance Improvement Flowchart]( Fundraising ≠Success “The only way to build a successful company is to build a product that your customers love and want to pay you money for. Anything else—including fundraising—is a distraction from that mandate.” You just closed on another big fundraising series and your company’s officially a unicorn—that’s success, right? Waseem Daher, CEO of Pilot, argues it’s actually not. The reality is, [your customers don’t care that you’re a unicorn](. They care that you can help them solve a problem. That’s why Waseem wrote this article as a reminder to founders everywhere that fundraising rounds are really just the beginning. Do a happy dance, savor the win, and then get back to work. Related: [You should be spending more on marketing]( Is Your Company Ready To Scale? Your business strategy is easy to improve when you can identify and benchmark your current scale constraints. A smart business can then identify the easiest and cheapest ways to dramatically improve its performance. That's why we created a [free 5-minute “ScaleABILITY” assessment]( to quickly discover which of the 8 “Scale Factors” could be holding your business back. This assessment has been designed to show entrepreneurs, startups, and small businesses their scale constraints and provide instant, actionable steps on how to improve! Your unique results will show you… - What you can do to maximize your strengths and optimize your constraints, depending on your current ScaleABILITY Score. - Why knowing your “Scale Factor” scores will help you navigate through your current constraints and overcome the challenges you face as you grow and scale your company. - How to use your ScaleABILITY Score to decide how to prioritize your time and determine what activities will be most effective in achieving predictable scale. Are you ready to scale? [Take the assessment today.]( 3 Signs You’re Entering the Business Killing Zone “When a new pilot is between 50 and 350 flight hours, a combination of ongoing survival and experience somehow leads to an increase in the likelihood of death (at least for a time). The same is true of business.” In the aviation industry, this point in pilot training is known as the “Killing Zone.” In business, this is the time when things start to take off—and you can either make it big or fail miserably. The trick is knowing when [your business is about to enter the killing zone]( so you can proactively manage it. Mark de Grasse, President and General Manager for DigitalMarketer, has seen his share of companies through this phase. In this quick read, Mark breaks down the 3 undeniable signs your business is growing too fast and approaching the Killing Zone. Related: [Why you need a business operating system]( How to Stay Flexible During Chaotic Times “Willingly or not, companies everywhere were forced into greater flexibility. But wise leaders and companies learned to embrace it, rather than trying to regain control as soon as they could.” As we enter the third year of a pandemic amid global upheaval, it’s clear that the “new normal” isn’t so much a steady-state as a period of constant change. To be effective, leaders need to get comfortable managing through the chaos. Flexibility is a key part of that—and a big part of what talented employees are looking for in 2022. We love this article from Trello because writer Genevieve Michaels shares highly actionable ways leaders can learn to live with a little bit of chaos and [stay flexible despite the constant change]( around them. Related: [What kind of founder are you?]( We hope you enjoyed this week’s issue. If you did, could you do us a favor and share it with 3 friends and colleagues? It would mean the world to us. Thanks. :) - The Scalable Team Share The Memo Step 1: Click the button below Step 2: Share the Memo with friends Step 3: Earn Rewards Refer 3 friends and get listed on our site as a "Founding Subscriber," plus some mystery gifts we know you'll love... :) [Share The Memo]( Or copy & paste your referral link to share directly with others: What is The Memo (a.k.a. the thing you’re reading right now)? Every week, my partners and I send an email memo to our internal executive leaders (the people running our companies) sharing news and insights we believe they should know. Sometimes it's an interesting article...sometimes it's a new thought or idea...but it's always something timely, tactical, and actionable. Now, you can get the same memo... and you don't even have to sell us your company. 🙂 What is The Scalable Company? The Scalable Company is a collective of founders and entrepreneurs who have no idea what they’re doing, and are willing to admit it. You can read our “Accidental Entrepreneur Manifesto” [here]( and peruse our internal “wiki” of resources and best practices [here](.  Sent to: {EMAIL} The Scalable Company, 4330 Gaines Ranch Loop, Ste 120, Austin, Texas 78735, United States Don't want future emails? [Unsubscribe](