Everyone laughs at a good poo joke, and this morning’s guest speaker Miki Agrawal delivered that and so much more to CompTIA’s Advancing Women in Technology (AWIT) community.
Recognized as one of the “Top 20 Millennials on a Mission,” Miki is a dreamer and a doer. With an impressive list of entrepreneurial triumphs including WILD in NYC, THINX, Super Sprowtz and soon-to-market Tushy, a modern bidet attachment that turns your average toilet into a tushy-cleaning, personal hygiene wonderland, there’s no question that Miki gets (a lot of) shit done.
After sharing a very personal moment in her life, Miki went straight for the heart stating, “The mystery of life is that you never know when it’s gonna end. The time is now to make (life) count.”
Through stories of her own personal successes and lessons learned, Miki encouraged the room to be an intrapreneur, entrepreneur or both. “It’s never been easier to start a business. Be valuable.”
Whether you are an MSP, vendor, distributor or consultant, Miki’s advice is relevant and resonates because it’s grounded in building relationships and making business more personal. It takes the usual ask of “What’s in it for me?” off the table, and replaces it with “What’s in it for us?” Sure, we can brand that mentality as a typical millennial mindset, but I’d go broader and call it much more of a human mindset that looks at the results of our efforts, not just the revenues.
To help get the wheels turning, Miki uses these three Qs to ideate her next venture and ensure she’s solving REAL problems:
- “What sucks in the world?”
- “Does it suck for a lot of people?”
- “Can I be passionate about this issue or cause for a really long time?”
Another key point Miki drove home was that purpose is our best motivation. “Who are you more interested in supporting?” she asked. “A company that has a purpose and gives back or one that doesn’t. It’s important as an employer to bring purpose to your associates. It will change your culture and help you retain top talent.”
Miki closed her candid conversation with the AWIT community offering advice on how to win buy-in for your idea, solution or service.
Step 1: “Seek to intrigue” says Miki. Leverage the art of storytelling by sharing alarming and unknown facts that will create conversation. “Did you know...”
Step 2: Move quickly to an “imagine if” scenario where you’re presenting them with the best (business) outcome.
Step 3: Let them know they don’t have to imagine it because you’ve created it and can deliver it.
Miki’s fun-loving personality and proven business sense inspired all of us, and hopefully you as well, to find a greater purpose and go “Do Cool Sh*t”... which is also the title of her recent book.
Marie Rourke is Principal of White Fox PR.
