Today we’d like to introduce you to Ken Taylor.
Ken, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in a wonderfully supportive family of accountants and educators. I was taught from an early age to: “Get a good education, get a good job, hold onto it for 40 years, save as much money as you can and, if you’re lucky, you’ll get to retire and do whatever you want. “
Safety and security were very important to my family. We were extremely risk averse. I followed my parent’s advice and got a good education, found a job and started saving for a rainy day. It didn’t take very long working in corporate America before I realized that path wasn’t very safe and secure.
There were seemingly endless rounds of reorganizations and layoffs at every stop in my career. And they rarely made any sense. It was just a game of musical chairs, where shell-shocked employees hoped to be sitting in a chair when the dust settled. I heard this line way too often: “The nail that sticks out gets pounded down.”
Well, that’s just not me. I was and still am a builder, creator, and problem-solver. I wanted to make the most of each and every day. Keeping my head down didn’t make any sense. I woke up every Monday morning dreading the thought of going to work. I justified my misery by telling myself: “I work to live; I don’t live to work.”
That justification meant I worked in order to enjoy my life outside of work. The problem was I didn’t have any time to enjoy my life outside of work because I was always working. Let me be clear, I had a wonderful corporate career… at least on paper. Among other things, I had managed the Coca-Cola Bar Mixer Portfolio of products and was the brand growth strategist responsible for Victoria’s Secret PINK’s rapid growth during the Great Recession. These were very cool jobs; one’s people aspire to. Yet, I was miserable.
What was the matter with me? I was constantly striving, but never arriving. I was under the misconception that the next job title would make me happy. Surely the next pay raise would satisfy me. Maybe the next big important assignment would make this all worthwhile. It never happened. I was never satisfied.
I was on the wrong path, but I didn’t know any other way. After decades of working for others, I reluctantly dipped my toes into entrepreneuring. It happened rather serendipitously. I had just left a stressful job and was looking for “next.” The only thing I knew was that next thing was going to have to be radically different than my previous work experience. I had always felt like a square peg in a round hole and I was in search of my calling.
One day, a freelance marketing project fell into my lap. I’m a marketer by trade. I loved working on that project and my new client loved my work. That’s when I had a crazy thought: Maybe I didn’t need an employer. Maybe I could start my own business. This seemed like a bold, confident and courageous move for someone so risk-averse, but it felt like a calling. It was liberating. I quickly realized I was an entrepreneur at heart. Within a few months, I picked up a client and was off to the races.
But that’s only the beginning of the story. Opening my business changed my entire mindset. I finally had the freedom to create… anything. So, I wrote a book based on the principles of behavioral economics titled, PERSUADED by the Seven Deadly Sins of Decision Making and Influence. I also began writing a blog on the topic: www.thepersuadent.com.
Something interesting happened to me shortly after founding my business: friends and former colleagues began asking for my advice about starting businesses of their own.
Then they began to refer other aspiring entrepreneurs to me. Before long, I was meeting with someone new every week to teach them how to launch a business. These impromptu coaching sessions completely energized me. I quickly realized that this was my way to give back.
So, after years of these coaching sessions, I decided to listen to my heart. I wrote a book titled, Entrepreneuring (look for a June release). It explains the process of launching a business. I also created EntrepreneuringSchool.com to teach people how to launch their business by using a step-by-step interactive approach. My life transformed when I decided to follow my calling. My mission is to help others do the same.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My path as an entrepreneur has not been easy. I made every mistake in “the book,” which is why I wrote a book about it and created Entrepreneuring School. I want to teach others how to avoid the pitfalls of starting a business. I certainly wish someone would have taught me what I’m teaching others. It would have saved me quite a bit of time, money and frustration.
The two most important lessons I learned were:
1) Be a leader. Stay out of the weeds. You can’t do everything, and you shouldn’t try. Build a strong team. Surround yourself with smart capable people, provide them with solid direction and resources, and let them do their thing.
2) Keep your foot on the gas pedal. You own the big picture. Constantly challenge yourself with ways to grow your business. That’s your job.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
My marketing firm is 39 Consulting, LLC. We offer a full complement of sophisticated marketing solutions to businesses not yet ready to hire an experienced in-house marketing department. Our clients are typically businesses in the $5million to $150 million revenue range.
What sets us apart is our approach to marketing. Because of my experience in corporate brand management and business strategy, I understand what business leaders (CEOs, COOs, CFOs) want from their marketing investment and I speak their language. So, not only do we align marketing activities with business growth objectives, but we explain why and how our marketing recommendations will meet their needs.
One hundred percent of our business comes from client referrals and former clients moving to new companies. It makes me proud to know that our clients love working with us.
What were you like growing up?
I was very independent, creative and resourceful. When I wanted something, I would just figure out how to get it and put my plan into place. That was probably an early indication of my entrepreneurial spirit.
I started a lawn business at the age of twelve. My neighbors were an elderly couple. They asked my mother if I would mow their lawn for the summer and of course I obliged. They were very sweet people. I worked hard and was meticulous with their yard. It always looked perfect. Other neighbors noticed and asked if I would do their lawns as well. By the end of that first summer, I was responsible for five lawns on our street. As a result, I always had money to do what I wanted.
That experience taught me a valuable lesson: When you are good at what you do and exceed expectations, customers will find you. It’s hard to find people who truly care. I work hard to earn my clients’ respect and admiration every single day. I care about the process and results and I think it shows.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.39consulting.com. www.entrepreneuringschool.com. www.thepersuadent.com
- Phone: 770-605-0114
- Email: kentaylor@39consulting.com
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