10 lessons from a Gen Y entrepreneur

I had the pleasure to interview Rachel Rodgers, Esq. a Gen Y entrepreneur who embodies the future of successful professional entrepreneurs. Rachel is a qualified lawyer but she didn’t see her life as a working cog, putting in the hours to become partner in a big law firm. She created her own firm and her own success. These are the lessons I think any Gen Y entrepreneur could learn from her.

1. Choose a path which inspires you.

Rachel worked for a judge as a new lawyer and enjoyed it, she felt her next job should beat that experience. That pushed her to choose the path less travelled. The one which inspired her to create a new business.

2. Find a niche

In one way Rachel’s niche found her. Young entrepreneurs started to contact her for legal counsel on start-ups. Perhaps your niche is already calling you but you do not realize it. Most of us are much better at identifying someone else’s strengths than our own. Our niche often finds us rather than the opposite. This is what Jim Connolly explains when he says:

‘Become the only show in town for someone looking for your kind of service’

By doing this Rachel just outplayed any competition, and set herself appart from any other lawyer.

3. It’s not about you

It really isn’t about how great you are but how great you make others. This simple truth of any successful entrepreneur is something Rachel not only understood but acted on with her blog Gen Y JD.

“I simply couldn’t cope with the emails and phone calls from other young lawyers asking me how I did it, so I set this blog as a resource for Gen Y lawyers to find out more about how I did it.’

What have you done for your clients lately? How did you make your boss shine in the last meeting? Being a Linchpin is not about hogging information and success, it’s about helping others succeed.

Did you ever wonder why great chefs write cooking books with all their top recipes? Do you believe someone is going to find the book and become the next Jamie Oliver. All the information is out there, his recipes, his kitchen tricks, but one very important ingredient is missing: your sweat.

4. Live below your means

Besides being a lawyer, Rachel is an astute entrepreneur. She chose the lifestyle she wanted (the warmth of California as opposed to the cold North Eastern winters), rented her house and moved to a smaller rental in California. This is a great win-win situation, she achieved her dream lifestyle in sunny California and made a passive income from renting her house.

5. Develop a network

When it comes to networking and reaching out, Rachel explains it plainly ‘I am a researcher’. A skill she developed as a law student and later in a judge’s office. Not being afraid to go and ask questions to peers is a winning skill.

Thanks to social media it is now easier than ever to get in contact with the top actors in your niche and ask them questions related to your challenges.  As a student of Scott Gerber, Rachel put his ideas into practice.

Sometimes meeting new people is as easy as shooting them an email and inviting them to lunch. When you email a prospective lunchtime consultant, be sure to clearly identify who you are, offer concrete reasons why you are worth the person’s time, list the specific topics you would like to discuss, and throw out at least three potential dates, times and locations. –Scott Gerber (@askgerber)

6. Manage your workload

There is plenty of work to keep you up 24hrs a day as a young entrepreneur. ‘There is a time in the day when I say stop’ says Rachel. Knowing when to say ‘no’ allows you to be more successful by working smarter not harder. Elizabeth Grace Saunders, a member of Scott Gerber’s Young Entrepreneur Council and a time coach helps her clients define the ‘no’ stuff:

As a time coach, I’ve discovered that one of my clients’ biggest challenges is saying, “No” to what’s Not Most Important. Everyone wants to “be nice.” But if you say, “Yes” to the non-important you’ll miss out on what you truly value and never escape the cycle of overwhelm.

7. Nobody does it alone

Like any successful entrepreneur Rachel learned how to tap into her network for advice and information.

I just emailed people who were doing great at something I aspired to do and asked them how they did it

Not only did Rachel pick up useful advice to overcome some of her business startup challenges but she built a great network of helpful peers.

8. Take time off

Does 2 month in Thailland sound like an entrepreneur’s break? While most startup entrepreneurs struggle to take a day off a week, Rachel took 2 months off in Thailand and still came back to a thriving business. Passive income and a location independent business will do wonders to help you take time off.

How do  you manage to live without working insane hours everyday? Read #4

9. Don’t listen to the little voice

We all have that little voice in the back of our mind. It whispers constantly, especially when you are starting new, big, audacious projects. Some call it the lizard brain, as this is where it comes from, our reptilian, primitive cortex which wants to keep us alive and comfortable.

For young lawyers looking into the abyss of setting off alone, Rachel has one advice,

‘You are more than qualified to do it, you have passed the bar and multiple other exams. So take the jump, you will not regret it.’

10. Get up early

I love this one. I kept it for #10 because it really sums it up.

Like Lisa Barone and other smart Gen Y entrepreneurs like Rachel start ther day when most of us are sleeping. This I believe is a great piece of advice, the early morning is the best time to get quality work done before the phone calls, emails, twitter and other distractions start interfering with productivity. Are you not convinced? Watch this post from Gini Dietrich to find out how she handles all her SM before she gets to work.

These are the top 10 lessons I picked up from speaking to Rachel Rodgers. I would love to know what other advice you would give an entrepreneur?

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