My guest is Lisa Hendrickson, a serial entrepreneur who has lived an immersive life around startup ventures. She’s the founder of Spark City and the co-author of Boom: Deciphering Innovation – How Disruption Drives Companies to Transform or Die. A leader in many entrepreneurial programs including the Future Lab series, she’s an adjunct professor of business at FIT, has conducted the CEO Forum Training at Harvard Business School alongside Michael Porter and was also a judge for Goldman-Sachs Institute for Entrepreneurial Thinking. She has appeared on the BBC World Business Report, the NY Times, CBS, The Early Show, ABC, and many other major news outlets. In this episode, Lisa shares why she says entrepreneurship is an ethos, the four essential ingredients for any entrepreneurial endeavor to succeed, and how she got her start as an entrepreneur at age five by selling her first idea for a company to her dad.
Selling her first idea for a quarter
Lisa’s first idea for a company was to create a backyard carnival and sell tickets to neighborhood kids. Her father “bought” that idea for $.25, but the experience gave her the impetus that pushed her forward. She realized that she could have great ideas and make things happen. Entrepreneurship requires hard work and a passionate approach in how we engage with people around our ideas and life. Lisa Hendrickson views entrepreneurship as an “ethos”- a way of thinking and seeing the world that does something better for others.
When an idea isn’t right for you
When she and her husband lived in a particular NY neighborhood, they saw that it was in dire need of an organic sandwich restaurant, maybe in the place of the place they dubbed, “the dirty deli,” which was an awful place with amazing potential. They contemplated the venture but didn’t want to take on the requirements and commitment of running a restaurant. It was an example and a lesson learned, that not every great idea you have should be brought to life.
What to do when you’re in “the goo”
The worm in the cocoon goes through a time when it’s just “goo” and it’s waiting to change into a butterfly. Sometimes in life, we have to respect the struggle and allow the transformation to happen. While this takes place, some people don’t understand the process and are waiting to engage with you about your ideas, even though the timing isn’t right. Sometimes you just have to move on, knowing that there will be other opportunities when the time is right.
A lightning bolt moment
Lisa shares a lightning bolt moment that happened while she worked as a bartender during Monday Night Football games because there was always great money to be made. She noticed how everyone in the bar yelled at the players on the TV screen and the commentators offered their comments about what was happening in the game. Her big “Aha” moment came when she realized that “millions of people all over America are yelling at the TV, making no difference at all in the outcome of the game, because the 22 players on the field are the only ones who can do that.”
The Witch’s Brew
Lisa Hendrickson shares from her TEDtalk, “Big Ideas, Small Magic, and the People Who Wear the Glass Slippers.” She describes herself as a highly critical, deep-thinking, challenger of ideas who asks where the power is in each relationship. She lists four essential pillars that can turn entrepreneurship on its head.
- Have an intense curiosity and willingness to challenge the status quo
- Have a very competitive nature
- Have a healthy disdain for mediocrity
- Let yourself be consumed by your BIG ideas
Women’s Power in Entrepreneurship
Women are all-powerful in many situations, but too often we ask permission to show our power. We can’t put ourselves in the position of being taken advantage of by giving up power. If someone takes our power, it’s probably because we have given it to them. It all comes down to what you tolerate and what causes you establish boundaries. Lisa shares how her “crappy temperament” helps her to keep moving through challenges and towards her goals when she has zero patience for others’ attitudes.
Episode Highlights:
- 5:00 – Entrepreneurship as an approach, application, and ethos
- 14:40 – Advice for those in “the goo”
- 21:25 – A lightning bolt moment for Lisa
- 26:50 – The witch’s brew and the four pillars
- 41:35 – Working on ideas is really working on ourselves
- 45:25 – Entrepreneurship is about personal power
- 51:50 – What’s real and what’s nonsense?
Resources Mentioned:
- Lisa’s Website: www.sparkcity.co
- Lisa on Twitter: @LisaMax
- Lisa LinkedIn: Lisa Hendrickson
Fem Five:
1. Favorite book for women?
- Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck
2. Favorite self-care hack?
- “Get rid of negative people”
3. Best piece of advice and who gave it to you?
- “Write a thank-you note” – advice from my mother
4. Female thought leader or CEO you’re into right now?
- “Oprah. It’s always Oprah.”
5. One piece of advice you’d give your five years younger self?
- “Lisa, lighten up. It’s all going to work out.”
Last Time on The NextFem Podcast
Clearing the “Fertility Fog” as a Means of Empowering Women – with Dr. Janelle Luk
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