Today marks Video Husky’s first year in business and it’s been quite the ride!
Having just closed out February, we’re now working with 51 active customers who bring in $23K in MRR (monthly recurring revenue) and a team of 17 who work hard every day to make sure that we’re able to not only deliver high quality videos on a regular basis, but more importantly, build relationships with our customers so that both parties can benefit together in the long run. It’s a long way from when we first began just over a year ago, and so I wanted to share a couple of the big lessons in leadership that I’ve learned through Video Husky during this time.
Problems are never solved, only changed
I’ve been living in Canggu, Bali for the past couple of weeks and there’s one infamous shortcut takes what used to be a 20-minute scooter ride and cut it down to around five minutes. You would think that everybody loves the shortcut but it’s the single most hated road in Canggu. Unfortunately, the shortcut was narrowly built but allows two-way traffic and as a result creates a ton of congestion and frustration among the drivers on the road.
This shortcut reminds me a lot of Video Husky. I’m sure whoever first thought of this shortcut thought that he would be solving so many people’s problems and while he did make the trip significantly shorter than what it used to be, still ended up creating a whole new host of problems. When I first started Video Husky, I thought it would solve a lot of the problems that I perceived were in my life. All I would have to do is put a bit of money and a good amount of effort up front, then eventually this would turn profitable and be a long-term passive income business. All I would need to do is solve those beginning problems.
A year ago that first problem was finding the first 10 customers. Then the next problem was about finding a system to communicate with the customers. Then the problem become how do we find another editor to deliver more work. Fast forward 12 months, our biggest problem now is figuring out how we can build better relationships with our customers so that we can deliver more value and work with them for longer.
It took a while before it finally hit, but I acknowledge now that no matter what we do, there will always be something that we can do to make things better, and ultimately as a service provider to our customers, it’s our responsibility to do so. The reality is the world that we live in is dynamic, so there are always new challenges that come up and new opportunities to take advantage of.
On one hand dealing with all these problems is exhausting and can easily cause a lot of anxiety since there’s always something else to do, but on the other hand having these problems is the whole point of life. I mentioned in a previous personal article, but the point of a good life (and I think a good business) is not about being problem free, but rather about working on the “good problems” that are out there.
One year on, we’re at a point now where we’re both profitable and growing sustainably, so my biggest hope in year two of Video Husky is that we’re working on the good problems.
Defining the right problems
When just starting on a new business the right problems to work on are relatively simple.
1) Validate by finding paying customers
2) Define a repeatable method to fulfill the service profitably
3) Find a traction channel to consistently generate new leads
4) Create a sales method that turn leads into prospects into customers
5) Hire people to fill each of the job roles mentioned above
Being realistic, even the above five steps can take most businesses years to reach and so I’m glad that we’ve gotten Video Husky to a point where all the above five functions are handled. It’s interesting because when I first started Video Husky, I hoped that it would be roughly twice the size that it currently is, but in a way it’s not necessary. I’m able to pull out a small monthly salary from Video Husky, I’ve hired a PA (something I’ve wanted to do for years now), I’m not involved in the day to day work and I know that if I were to take a couple weeks off tomorrow the business would likely still be able to grow modestly (or at least be stable) during the time that I’m away.
It’s also interesting because for the first time, I don’t know what I want Video Husky to look like in the future. I’ve only really thought about getting it to where it currently is at and so it goes back to deciding what are the right problems to solve? I’ve been struggling with this for most of the quarter because there are so many things we could do, but with such limited resources, it’s my role as the leader of this company make sure we’re investing those resources in a manner that benefits the market and our company.
This starts with knowing what I want from the company in my own life. At minimum, I want to continue the location and time flexible lifestyle that I currently have while also increasing my income over the next few months and years. Video Husky also provides me with a platform to learn new things like content and affiliate marketing or UI/UX for web design which are areas of study that I wouldn’t be able to learn without something like Video Husky to apply it to. Beyond that though, I want to have a bigger impact on Video Husky’s stakeholders. I don’t want for Video Husky to only be a video editing commodity for our customers that can replaced any time and I don’t for our to view us only as a job that pays them money to work from home. I want us to be an indispensable partner for our customers so that we can help them accelerate the growth of their own businesses while also making our employees better editors and people through goal setting and weekly accountability.
While it was easy writing the above, putting it into practice is a lot less so. As the quarter 1 has gone by, I’ve come to realize that the biggest impact I make on the work that happens in Video Husky is setting the direction. As we’ve started to grow more in size, it’s almost like we’re a snowball that’s being pushed down a hill. Whereas before when we were a small team (or snowball) it was easy to change direction, but as we’ve down, nowadays it’s a lot harder to stop that momentum and change course. This means more and more that I need to not only be sure about where we’re going, but also in what priority are we doing the work because if I get it wrong, my decision will cost everybody in the company.
These past few months especially have shown me that it’s a leader’s responsibility to have a vision of what the future looks like. In Video Husky’s case, although I don’t have everything figured out yet, our mission is:
To accelerate the growth of 1,000 independent creators through long term, reliable video editing collaboration.
Between now and the end of the year, to get closer to that goal we will:
- Overhaul our web presence through a clean new website and improved social media activity
- Build out Video Husky’s brand through effective content production and affiliate marketing
- Level up our internal training processes so we have better editors, salespeople and leaders
- Create a community with Video Husky so that our editors and team members can support each other in their personal and professional growth
- Define our financials so that we can grow and invest in a fiscally responsible manner.
Viewing problems as opportunities
Yet to be a good leader, it’s not enough to know where we’re going, I must help those who follow get there. At Video Husky a big part of our hiring criteria is finding people who want to grow. I’ve been so fortunate to work with a great team where people want to contribute to a better future at Video Husky and develop both personally and professional. With that said, it then does become my responsibility to not only provide the vision for the future but also to define the path that it takes to get there and support everyone on his or her journey in reaching that destination.
The thing is taking that journey means doing new things and doing new things can be hard. As the company has grown, my role (as well as the roles of many people within the company) has changed and with change comes the unknown which brings our fear, resentment and negativity. Before Video Husky, I usually either worked by myself or was isolated enough that nobody else would have to deal with me when I felt challenged. I joke with my friends that I’m perpetually dissatisfied because while it means I carry a degree of negative energy within myself, it can be a great driver to get things done.
Yet now that I work with a team, especially as the leader, I see how important it is to be generally positive and optimistic. In The Power of Full Engagement, Jim Loehr argues that “emotional intelligence simply is the capacity to manage emotions skillfully in the service of high positive energy and full engagement.” Although we don’t meet face to face, even through online meetings I can see how my employees are affected when my I consistently have negative energy and as a result, how that affects their work. Beyond that, I can see how my actions are reflected in my own employees — when I’m consistently late to meetings, I encourage my employees to also act in a similar manner. And so, the second lesson that I learned was foundational — to learn to lead others, I must first be able to lead myself so that I can bring high positive energy and full engagement to our company and the work we do.
On my end, that means a change in my own priorities. It means learning to put myself and my own wellbeing first. It means knowing that it’s not enough to show up every day, but to show up as my best self every day. The reality is my role (and some of the team’s roles as well) are no longer measured by hours but instead by the impact that they make. I’ve never particularly been a social or optimistic person, but when our environments change, we’re forced to change to and I’m hope that in the coming months and years I’m able to grow in a way that I’m not only able to provide the vision for the company but also to be emotionally mature enough to support them through their struggles in a positive, optimistic manner.
That starts with leading and support me first. Making sure I go into work every day with a smile on my face, to view my own problems and struggles as opportunities to grow and be better and to focus on the positives so that I can encourage my team to do the same.
The Future
With all the above said, there’s no way to know what the next year will be like.
I can think and plan as much as I want but the world throws hitches in plans all the team and we’ll have to adapt accordingly.
All I can say is that I’ve greatly enjoyed the journey that I’ve been to go through with Video Husky in the past 12 months and am so grateful for the team that I get to work with every day — if you guys are reading this, know you’re the best!