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why now?
At The Happy Startup School, weve seen first hand several problems that we believe
need addressing in the world. Problems that almost everyone is directly affected by in
some way.
1. A huge proporti on of pe ople (72 % ) are di se ngage d at w ork
We spend most of our waking hours at work more than we spend with our
loved ones so if we dont find it fulfilling or meaningful, it leads to an
unhappiness that can spill over into the rest of our lives.
2. Busi ne ss as w e know i t i s broke n
Many people still think that to succeed in business you need to act like the TV
personas of Alan Sugar or Deborah Meaden hard-nosed, ruthless and, often,
downright rude but it neednt be that way. A new type of conscious business
leader is slowly, quietly making an impact. People that care for their employees
and customers, and dont focus purely on profit their companies have a higher
purpose. We want to see more of these role models people like Tony Hsieh,
whose company Zappos is focused on delivering happiness.
3. C ustome r se rv i ce i s at an all-ti me low
Nine out of 10 startups fail. But many failures can be avoided with the right
approach. There are loads of resources available that focus on the mechanics of
starting a business the hard stuff; but very little that focuses on the soft stuff.
We want to bring the emotion back into business. Love what you do, love your
customers and employees, and they'll love you back.
Our aim is to change the face of business, by encouraging more people to tap into
their passion and find meaning in their lives through entrepreneurship. Our hope is
that we can encourage people to leave jobs theyre unfulfilled in and take control of
their lives. To stop dreaming and start doing.
Whatever your story may be, if you believe, like us, that happiness is the key to success
both in business and life, then youre in the right place.
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Were here to show you how you can build a happier, more successful and sustainable
business whilst living a balanced, fulfilling life. Theres no need to stick around in a job
you hate anymore, or coast along without any reason for being. We believe that we all
can learn how to turn our passion into a profitable business helping us to realise our
vision of better businesses, happier workplaces and more delighted customers.
Happiness all round!
Entrepreneurship is neither a
science nor art. It is a practice.
Peter Drucker,
management consultant
expert and author
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Success happiness
Many of us believe that if we work hard, success will follow. And that we can only truly
be happy once were successful. Perhaps youre waiting on a pay rise or promotion to
bring success so youll eventually be able to afford that new car and buy your way to
happiness.
Well, believe it or not, study after study tells us once our basic needs are met, money
has very little impact on our happiness levels, so if youre working tirelessly for financial
success, then chances are youll be disappointed. Dont defer your happiness to a later
date that may never come. Life is short. Enjoy the journey as well as the destination.
This means you can love every step along the way, not just the finish line.
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Happiness at work
Studies show there are two key contributors that make us happy at work results and
relationships. Doing great things that matter to us, working with people we like, having
an impact in a team and doing something worthwhile, all make us happier at work than
salary, location and prospects. All this points towards doing something you love, with
people you like, who share the same passion for getting the job done. So if youre
looking to become your own boss, youre in the privileged position of being able to
decide what you work on and who with. The first steps towards a happy startup.
Money is a by-product of
bigger, more meaningful goals.
Have fun, do good, and the
money will come.
Richard Branson, founder, Virgin Group
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On the face of it, shareholder value was the dumbest idea in the world.
Shareholder value is a result, not a strategy... your main constituencies are your
employees, your customers and your products.
Its now time, more than ever before, to set your business apart from faceless
corporations and drive profits through meaning.
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clear purpose adds some real meaning to your work, and a cause that people
can rally around and be passionate about even when times get hard.
4. It attracts a tale nte d w orkf orce
In the same way that it attracts customers, a higher purpose will attract a great
team. People will be drawn to your purpose, already having that core passion
necessary to become an integral part of a team, and a perfect culture fit.
5 . It he lps bui ld a story
Brands that communicate their purpose, communicate strength in their story as
a company, connecting with their audience at an emotional level. Nowhere has
this been better articulated than in Simon Sineks renowned TED talk How great
leaders inspire action, which included this notable quote:
successful (if not more) than their competitors. It all came down to doing business that
fulfills a higher purpose, not solely for profits.
It became clear to Hanne that the entire mobile industry had been permeated by
mistrust and it was time something changed. The first step was to develop a brand
people trusted, differentiating Call Me from competing brands in the industry. This
epiphany was a pivotal moment for the companys progression and gave Call Me
employees a higher purpose to rally around during the hard times. Months on, Call Me
took a complete 180 degree turn, and for the better. New customers were at a record
high and began committing to long-term contracts, breaking the traditional cycle. Also,
employee engagement was at an all-time high with sick days reduced, staff turnover
down and staff now proud of the company they worked for. All this shows that purposedriven companies create a stronger connection with people which can, ultimately, lead
to financial success.
Some examples of companies driven by a clear purpose:
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Companies such as Zappos and Southwest may be price competitive, but thats
not why theyre successful and why they turn millions of customers into raving
fans. Its because their customers are in love with them. Their customers are
ambassadors and promoters of the kind that can drive explosive growth via mail,
blogs and social media
As it turns out these companies not only have a good standing among their
customers. They also have a remarkably good standing among their employees
and in society in general. What really distinguishes them is that they operate in
accordance with the Golden Rule: One should treat others as one would like
others to treat oneself. In short, these companies are purpose-driven, which
gives them a license to operate and an abundance of social capital.
Great brands stand for something. They develop a personality that wins customers
through providing a clear message and through communicating (and living) their core
values.
As Mike Moser points out in his excellent book United We Brand, companies often fall
into that zero personality trap where they never fully connect with customers at an
emotional level - with a knock-on effect on sales. This is where having a higher
purpose comes in. It gives you and your team a clear focus, meaning youre all on the
same page when it comes to defining your brand personality and core message. If you
dont have a clear purpose, it can make you more vulnerable to any competitors out
there with more defined brand personalities that arent afraid to voice their opinion.
Innocent Drinks
Take Innocent Drinks for example. A company that needs no introduction (for people in
the UK at least), its the brains behind the little pots of smoothie goodness turning over
100M since it started in 98. Co-founders Richard, Adam and Jon recognised a need in
the world. Too many people were living unhealthy lifestyles having beer and pizza for
dinner every night, working late and staying up late, with fresh fruit and veg making a
rare appearance upon trips back home for Christmas. Whilst they wanted to be healthy
(and kept hearing about the importance of eating your five fruit and veg a day), there
was something about modern urban life that conspired against it. The Innocent trio
became passionate about their purpose - to make it easier for busy people to do
themselves good, by providing healthy drinks that help people to live well and die old.
From defining their purpose, theyd answered their Why? question. Everyone on the
team bought into the cause (as did the customers!), bringing a myriad of long-term
benefits. It helped to engage and motivate everyone to come to work everyday and
guide the choices made by the company.
Your values should be reflected in everything you do and every interaction you make,
not just a document filed away somewhere only to see the light of day when someone
new joins. Your values are the framework from which you should make all of your
decisions.
At our company Spook Studio (the home of the Happy Startup School) weve created a
set of 10 values that define us:
1. Put people first
2. Give our all
3. Have pride in our work
4. Make it fun
5. Keep it simple
6. Never stop learning
7. Talk like friends
8. Be honest
9. Be better, not busy
10. Do it all with a little humility
These values are our DNA and define us. Without them, were just another company.
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Engaged employees
Whilst securing long-term custom is vital for company growth, its not all just about the
customers. Having a happy team is vital for the success of any company.
Think about this for a second. In the same way youre doing something that makes you
happy for a living, wouldnt it be great if your whole team had the same positivity? By
fulfilling their needs, giving them flexibility, responsibility and ownership you can build
a team of happy workers which, as weve highlighted, can bring huge business benefits.
Your happiness rubs off on your employees and subsequently will rub off on your
customers in the product or service they receive.
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Leadership
Smart business leaders realise that to get the best out of people you need to treat
them like adults. The best leaders inspire the people around them by leading with a
credibility gained through a real understanding of the work entailed at all levels. Also
conscious business leaders such as Tony Hsieh of Zappos and Ricardo Semler of Semco
have a genuine empathy for their employees and care about their welfare. If you are
able to listen to any concerns or troubles that any of your team may have (whether
business or personal) and strive to help them out in whatever way you can, then they'll
reward you by going the extra mile. It pays to show you care.
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Its all very well following your passion and defining your purpose, but what about that
dirty word (in many peoples eyes), profits? In order to survive, a business needs to be
profitable. Profits are the fuel for your mission, the validation of your purpose. Without
them you wont be around for long.
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As Seth Godin recommends, choose your customers, define which people you feel
passionate about and build your business around them. The better you understand
your customers' problems and what makes them tick, the better positioned you'll be to
help them (whilst also speaking their language).
As well as knowing your customers inside out, you really need to care about them too.
Ideally you'll be creating something youre passionate about for an audience you love
doing it for and its important to delight them in every way possible to build a rapport.
Theres no fast, easy way to build lasting relationships with customers but it starts with
building trust. Trust is key in any successful relationship, so if you trust your customers
and they reciprocate this, you'll have a more sustainable businesses and a loyal
customer base.
Amazon is a great example of a company that trusts its customers. It understands the
potential lifetime value of a customer and works to delight not disappoint. Amazon will
never risk losing custom by refusing to refund an item just because they don't want it
anymore, developing a level of trust with its customers. Similarly Zappos has a yearlong return period where customers can return any item bought within that period
without any questions asked. These companies know that their customers are people,
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so if you treat them as such, and start with a position of trust, more often than not it will
pay dividends over the long run.
Our old favourites Zappos (now owned by Amazon), have become pioneers in
delivering happiness to customers old and new. One of their core values is to deliver
WOW through service aiming for service beyond good every time. Theyre renowned
for taking care of their customers and in return, customers love them.
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What top three problems are you trying to solve (and for whom)?
Who will be your passionate early adopters?
How are you going to reach them?
Whats your killer value proposition?
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The canvas will help you crystalise your ideas and communicate these better. As well as
creating the elements that make up your business model, you can also set up
experiments to test your assumptions.
Theres an area for revenue streams and early on youll be making best guesses about
what these will be. Rather than betting on one way of making your venture profitable
there may be various ways to monetise your idea. Dont be too fixed on this early on,
listen to what customers tell you and be open to opportunities.
For any startup the canvas is an essential addition to your toolkit.
For more practical advice on creating your happy startup, download our toolkit at
www.thehappystartupschool.com/toolkit.
In summary
In this book weve shown you how you can balance passion, purpose, people and
profits to create a happy, thriving business. Many of the ideas in here, whilst adopted by
some trailblazers such as those companies mentioned already, can seem unorthodox
to some traditional business people. After all, business is about making money, isnt it?
As youve gathered we think differently. After reading this, we hope you agree.
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At the Happy Startup School were at the start of our journey to build a community of
people that believe theres a better way to do business. We want to help passionate
founders build the best companies of the future that have a clear purpose, a strong
culture with engaged employees and loyal customers.
If youd like to get inspired by others and learn how to build a happy startup, wed love
you to join our growing community.
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