Melanie Jones interviews Brock Blake at a Utah Business Founder Friday event.
Once a month, Utah Business hosts Founder Friday, a free event sponsored by BONCO that showcases the wisdom of one incredible Utah-based founder. In August, Kiln hosted the conversation between Brock Blake, founder and CEO of Lendio, and Melanie Jones, editor-in-chief of Utah Business. Here are a few takeaways from this event.
1. Find the inefficiencies.
When Blake was searching for business ideas, he realized that although there were plenty of banks, VCs and other lenders, businesses were still struggling to access capital. After three years and five different business models, Lendio won out and innovated the space.
2. Set yourself up for success.
The challenges of leading a startup are overwhelming, and “fetal position” moments can be common. Blake circumvents and mitigates these moments by cultivating high-performance habits. He asks, “What are the things that are really most important to you? How do you sustain that over a long period of time?” For him, prioritizing date nights, attending his kids’ activities, regularly working out and having a strong support system helps him stay on top of his stress and be ready to take on the challenges of entrepreneurship.
3. Craft a compelling mission statement and communicate it well.
“People want to be part of something bigger than themselves that makes a difference in the world,” Blake says. At Lendio, Blake and his team are saving the American dream of many by connecting small businesses with capital so they can survive and thrive. The team is so passionate about this mission that they once worked without being paid in anything but stock options. A good mission statement can attract the right customers while building loyalty and motivation within your team.
4. Give people ownership, then get out of the way.
As CEO, Blake leads by focusing on Lendio’s values. He recommends hiring to your values and firing to your values. After that, “Give them ownership, make sure they know how they fit, and get out of the way.”
5. Go directly to your customer to find the best product-market fit.
One of the top problems Blake sees small businesses face is product-market fit. When entrepreneurs have a business idea, they ask friends and family what they think of it. This wastes time, money and energy “because they don’t want to tell you your baby’s ugly,” Blake says. Find unbiased information by asking customers directly.
6. Be ready for your time.
Winston Churchill said, “To each, there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.” For Blake and his team, COVID-19 was that time. Lendio ended up truly saving the American dream for hundreds of thousands of small businesses.