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Effective communication
Persuasion techniques
Closing a sale
Finding your leverage is like finding out which parts of the board you control in a chess game: this is the area where it would be prudent to make your play.
Find your leverage by asking yourself a couple of questions:
- What responsibilities do I have at my job that are crucial to the company?
- What are some problems that I am in a unique position to notice?<
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Build your leverage
Once you define your current leverage position, it’s time to expand it.
Ask yourself some further questions:
- How can I solve the problems relevant to my position?
- How can I scale this solution to apply to other companies, not just my own?
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Find your rock
That rock is somebody with the authority to approve your suggested improvements on behalf of your current company. Not only that but you need this person to recognize your right to do this as a separate entity rather than as an employee of a company.
To maximize your chances, do 3 things:
- Maintain good relationships within the office.
- Build a minimal solution at home before you talk to your company.
- Be extra vigilant in your work during this time so as not to appear to be putting your side project above your job.
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Make your pitch
Offer a free trial and a free installation. Charge for maintenance and use of your solution later on. If you sign a contract, make sure it is not exclusive. After all, the goal is to sell the solution as a product to other companies. Who knows, you may even expand into other industries later on.
Make sure to form a separate entity to handle the invoices, bills, and contracts rather than signing anything as an employee of your current company.
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Make the transition
After a few months, with your product validated and your first customer paying you regularly, it’s time to start pitching other potential customers. Use the months in between to build connections with professionals from other companies within your industry.
Whether your new business grows big enough to replace your job entirely or remains a nice side hustle is impossible to tell beforehand.
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