Founders discuss tough decisions entrepreneurs face

Two founders took the stage at Kansas City’s chapter of 1 Million Cups to discuss the vast variety of tough decisions entrepreneurs face when starting and running a business.

Stuart Ludlow, co-founder of RFP 365 and Sarah Shipley, co-founder of BikeWalkKC, offered insights and advice for those launching a business. Read about RFP365’s recent funding round and partnership with Kansas City here.

On what it’s like to be a co-founder …

Ludlow: Choosing a co-founder is a little bit like choosing a wife — you need to choose someone you work well with, you balance, you have fun with, and you can communicate well with.

On deciding it’s time to step away …

Shipley: You step away when it’s right — when you know you’re not needed anymore. The organization isn’t about you, it’s about making sure it’s sustainable. I’m not someone who is a maintainer. I’m a starter. I stepped away when I realized I had the staff that could do the job. We were funded, we had a plan and the right people were in place. I think every entrepreneur needs to do significant ego checks — check your ego all the time to make sure it’s not about you. It’s about the organization.

On navigating fundraising …

Shipley: Funding comes with strings attached. It’s usually all or nothing in the type of fundraising I was doing with BikeWalkKC. Money makes things very, very complicated because you have to figure out what to spend your money on and what not to spend it on. You need a plan for your money.

Ludlow: Once money comes to the table, things drastically change. The second that money came in the door, we had to start hiring employees and having board meetings with our investors. The level of growth, which is expected, is vastly different when you have that money. Money has made our business a hundred times more sophisticated. Part of the reason we’re moving really fast right now to implement these processes and tools to make things better, is because of the money and the requirements that come with having it. It’s a lot to juggle. It’s fun! But it’s a lot.

On hiring …

Shipley: As an entrepreneur, your first thought is to keep your hiring with your friends. That’s not what you should do. You should look all across the nation and pull the best and brightest from anywhere. Everyone wants to work for fun, sexy startups. So, get the best of the best for your organization.

On work/life balance …

Shipley: Life is not in balance. Startup life is not regular, normal day-to-day life, it’s 24-hours-a-day, sometimes your liver gets a little bit damaged, sometimes you are in desperate need of solace, but it’s a fabulous life.

Ludlow: What I’m doing right now is just as personally fulfilling as all of the activities I used to do before startup life — marathon running, traveling, etc. I had to sacrifice personal time to do this, but the level of satisfaction hasn’t changed in my life.

On structuring an average day …

Shipley: I don’t sleep very much. I wake up with a list in my head of probably 200 or 300 things I need to do that day. I look at the list and I figure out what I need to triage first and what I can get to other people to do on my behalf. And then I start the day. I mostly go to bed around 2 to 3 a.m. and wake up around 4 a.m.

Ludlow: I don’t check emails throughout the day. I check emails when I wake up, over lunch, and when I go to bed. I can’t take the distractions that come every couple of seconds when my email is up. I’ve turned off the notification because, for me, I have to take the time to focus without the distraction.

On working after receiving funding …

Stuart: Honestly, we work the same amount. We work just as much. Had we not worked a massive amount of hours beforehand, we would not have gotten funding. The money has just allowed us to run faster, longer. The money changed the nature, and the stress level, but the amount is the same.

Shipley: When we got funding, I realized we had to double down and work even harder than we did before.

On working with investors …

Ludlow: I don’t feel any extra stress from our lead investor. I put the stress on myself to perform for him. He is not breathing over our shoulder… In fact, he’s really, really valuable to us. It’s on Dave and I to pull his expertise out of him. The stress comes from ourselves.

Shipley: The funders who want to fund you are also going to be your best advocates. They’ll help you see your blind spots and help you pivot as well. They’re an asset.