4 steps to a happy startup

4 steps to a happy startup

The path from passion to profits

thehappystartupschool.com

We’ve had enough of the leeches. The companies that look to take everything they can and give nothing back.

We believe in a better world, where companies have a clear purpose other than

just making money – placing people and happiness before profits. These companies will have a strong culture, happy employees and loyal

customers. Get all of these and you can change the world in your own little way. We’re building our own purpose-driven tribe and hope you’ll join us.

The Happy Startup School team


why now?

At The Happy Startup School, we’ve seen first hand several problems that we believe need addressing in the world. Problems that almost everyone is directly affected by in some way.

1. A huge proportion of people (72%) are disengaged at work We spend most of our waking hours at work – more than we spend with our loved ones – so if we don’t find it fulfilling or meaningful, it leads to an unhappiness that can spill over into the rest of our lives.

2. Business as we know it is broken

Many people still think that to succeed in business you need to act like the TV personas of Alan Sugar or Deborah Meaden – hard-nosed, ruthless and, often, downright rude – but it needn’t be that way. A new type of conscious business leader is slowly, quietly making an impact. People that care for their employees and customers, and don’t focus purely on profit – their companies have a higher purpose. We want to see more of these role models – people like Tony Hsieh, whose company Zappos is focused on ‘delivering happiness’.

3. Customer service is at an all-time low In a recent study, 80% of CEOs believe their company provided an excellent customer experience, but interestingly only 8% of their customers agreed. Customers will ultimately decide whether a business succeeds or fails, it’s time they’re treated fairly. Social media has changed the rules – now everyone has a voice. We believe the future belongs to truly customer-centric companies.

4. Most startups fail Nine out of 10 startups fail. But many failures can be avoided with the right approach. There are loads of resources available that focus on the mechanics of starting a business – the hard stuff; but very little that focuses on the soft stuff. We want to bring the emotion back into business. Love what you do, love your customers and employees, and they'll love you back.

Our aim is to change the face of business, by encouraging more people to tap into their passion and find meaning in their lives through entrepreneurship. Our hope is that we can encourage people to leave jobs they’re unfulfilled in and take control of their lives. To stop dreaming and start doing.

Whatever your story may be, if you believe, like us, that happiness is the key to success both in business and life, then you’re in the right place.


In this ebook we’ll cover the 4 p’s to building a happy startup. Passion, Purpose, People and Profits. We’re here to show you how you can build a happier, more successful and sustainable business whilst living a balanced, fulfilling life. There’s no need to stick around in a job you hate anymore, or coast along without any reason for being. We believe that we all can learn how to turn our passion into a profitable business – helping us to realise our vision of better businesses, happier workplaces and more delighted customers. Happiness all round!

“Entrepreneurship is neither a science nor art. It is a practice.”

Peter Drucker, management consultant

expert and author

Just some of the companies that have inspired us on our journey


The path from passion to profits


“Do something you love and you’ll never have to work a day

in your life.” John Lasseter, chief creative officer, Pixar

We spend most of our waking lives at work. It’s a big part of who we are, so it’s important that we enjoy what we do. If you’re stuck in a job you hate, then it’s about time you changed something. By finding and following your passion, you’ll help to give your life real meaning and your business its mojo. The path to a profitable business starts with recognising where your passion lies. And don’t just think ‘which hobbies do I enjoy?’, but rather ‘which problems do I see that need addressing and get me excited?’. When passion drives you, fear of failure and setbacks won’t distract you - they’ll be seen as necessary steps on your journey. It’s vital to your startup’s progression that you’re passionate about the problem you’re trying to solve. After all, you’ll probably be devoting several years of your life and some long hours, so it’s vital that you’re into what you’re doing. If you’re not, it will show – in your ability to motivate yourself and others, the quality of your service or product, and the relationships you build with your customers. It needs to be authentic and real.

Success ≠ happiness

Many of us believe that if we work hard, success will follow. And that we can only truly be happy once we’re successful. Perhaps you’re waiting on a pay rise or promotion to bring success so you’ll eventually be able to afford that new car and buy your way to happiness.

Well, believe it or not, study after study tells us once our basic needs are met, money has very little impact on our happiness levels, so if you’re working tirelessly for financial ‘success’, then chances are you’ll be disappointed. Don’t defer your happiness to a later date that may never come. Life is short. Enjoy the journey as well as the destination. This means you can love every step along the way, not just the finish line.


Happiness is a serious business The easiest way to prove this is to stop and think about how you work when you’re not happy, when you’re feeling negative, anxious or stressed. Are you creative? Innovative? Motivated? Engaged? Is your productivity at its peak? Unlikely.

Our ability to work effectively declines when we’re feeling stressed or under pressure. We can’t make decisions thoughtfully or work to our full potential.

Now turn it around. When you feel happy, how do you work? Are you charged up, feeling creative and positive about outcomes? More resilient and persistent when you suffer setbacks? Absolutely.

Our brains become more alert, open to ideas and innovation when we’re happy, letting us work to our full potential. It’s a recipe for productivity that comes much easier to those whose business ideas revolve around something they believe in.

Happiness at work

Studies show there are two key contributors that make us happy at work – results and relationships. Doing great things that matter to us, working with people we like, having an impact in a team and doing something worthwhile, all make us happier at work than salary, location and prospects. All this points towards doing something you love, with people you like, who share the same passion for getting the job done. So if you’re looking to become your own boss, you’re in the privileged position of being able to decide what you work on and who with. The first steps towards a happy startup.

“Money is a by-product of bigger, more meaningful goals.

Have fun, do good, and the money will come.”

Richard Branson, founder, Virgin Group


Patagonia leads the way

Companies such as Patagonia are a shining example of how building a business centred on passion can form the basis of long-term success. Patagonia is an outdoor clothing brand, selling climbing, hiking and sports apparel. Since the 1950s, its founder Yvon Chouinard had a love for climbing and mountaineering – naturally building a strong network of friends with the same interest, who taught one another to climb peaks in places such as Yosemite and Tahquitz Rock. Through his experience and endless discussion with fellow climbers, it became apparent that there was a gap in the market for re-usable pitons (metal spikes used to crack into rock, acting as an anchor for support in climbing). Pitons were originally designed to be placed into the rock, and left, needing hundreds for a fairly advanced climb.

Chouinard, in an attempt to scratch his own itch, trained as a blacksmith to make his own reusable hardware. Word spread and soon enough Chouinard had his own business, selling to fellow climbers at $1.50 a piece. He took himself off on regular breaks to The Rockies with only the money made from his invention to fund it. Profits were very low to begin with, sometimes only having 50c and tin of tuna to pull him through a day. But his passion for mountaineering, doing what he loved, and the small help he was giving other climbers gave him the encouragement and motivation he needed to take things a little more seriously. Slowly but surely Chouinard’s invention developed into a fully fledged business. He set up a shop to trade his products and eventually branched out to mountain clothing, equipment and travelling apparel. Today, Patagonia is renowned for its ethical and environmental approach to ‘clean climbing’, standing as the advocate in many new climbing tools. Patagonia turns over an estimated $400 million annually, largely down to its ‘do well by doing good’ values and, of course, because one man pursued his passion.


“Your purpose is the wind in your sail.”

David Hieatt, co-founder, Hiut Denim Co

Your passion is ignited by your purpose. Your purpose is the reason why you do what you do, not what you do. It should be something greater than you, a ‘purpose of significance’. Before setting out in business it’s vital to find the personal purpose that drives you, as this will ultimately help you create a more sustainable business that you passionately believe in.

Businesses with a higher purpose have a real resilience to them. They have a reason for being that sets them apart from greedy corporations that give business a bad name. If your purpose in life is solely to make money, then it will be a hollow existence. The same applies to business. The financial crisis has highlighted what can happen to businesses when chasing money is the name of the game. If a company’s purpose is purely to satisfy shareholders and investors, then where’s the fulfillment? What change have you brought to the world other than lining your own pockets?

Progressive leaders are showing us that to make an impact in the world, businesses need to balance purpose and profits. They’re creating a movement of people building businesses of the future that demand greater contribution than just increasing shareholder value. Interestingly, the man most associated with this term, former CEO of General Electric Jack Welch, says:

”On the face of it, shareholder value was the dumbest idea in the world. Shareholder value is a result, not a strategy... your main constituencies are your employees, your customers and your products.”

It’s now time, more than ever before, to set your business apart from faceless corporations and drive profits through meaning.


“Your business has to have a mission, providing people with a

clear idea of who you are.” Richard Reed, co founder, Innocent Drinks

What’s all the fuss? However small or large your business is or plans to be, you need a purpose. Your purpose should be driven by a desire to make a difference and change things for the better in the world (however insignificant these changes may seem early on).

Will McInnes, a leading voice on 21st century business and author of Culture Shock, outlined what having a higher purpose will do for your business:

1. It connects you to your customers

People like to feel emotionally connected to a company. If your purpose is strong, and matters to them, you’ll appeal to them in a market that’s already fiercely competitive. You’ll set yourselves apart from a saturated market, developing loyal customers who’ll spread the word; and if they’re your target market, chances are their friends are too. 2. It unlocks engagement with key minds

Having a clear purpose not only engages your customers, it engages key minds in your industry. If you share a similar vision with key minds, you’re on the road to framing your organisation in a context that matters and contributes to society. Connecting with key minds in the industry will give your business more weight in driving you forward. 3. It becomes your road map

Having a clear and well-defined purpose provides a road map for your goals, aspirations and vision as a business. Because of this, it’s important to define your higher purpose as early as possible. Without a purpose, a business can meander along without much momentum, and when things get tough (which they inevitably will), you won't have much to pull you or your team through. Having a


clear purpose adds some real meaning to your work, and a cause that people can rally around and be passionate about even when times get hard. 4. It attracts a talented workforce

In the same way that it attracts customers, a higher purpose will attract a great team. People will be drawn to your purpose, already having that core passion necessary to become an integral part of a team, and a perfect culture fit. 5. It helps build a story

Brands that communicate their purpose, communicate strength in their story as a company, connecting with their audience at an emotional level. Nowhere has this been better articulated than in Simon Sinek’s renowned TED talk ‘How great leaders inspire action’, which included this notable quote:

“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”

Simon Sinek, author and business leader

The Call Me epiphany Call Me is a small Danish phone operating company, with an interesting story that demonstrates the importance of defining a higher purpose. It began life the same as every other network provider in the industry, set out for profits, and profits alone.

In 2011, Call Me (along with other fighting brands in the sector) was subject to fierce competition and rivalry from competing businesses. Big brands were offering heavily discounted rates in a bid to lure and secure customers, and smaller brands began to follow suit, attempting to steal them back. Customers began to yo-yo between network providers who offered cheaper rates, changing their numbers every six months to save money and steer away from the disloyalty of major brands.

For Call Me’s CEO, Hanne Lindblad, business suffered as a consequence. She became fed up of the vicious, dishonest cycle in this dog-eat-dog industry and looked for inspiration from other customer-facing companies like Zappos and Southwest Airlines. Hanne became inspired by the approach these businesses took in attracting and securing long-term customers (and employees) by ditching the rules of their competitors and focusing on loyalty instead. These companies were different yet still as


successful (if not more) than their competitors. It all came down to doing business that fulfills a higher purpose, not solely for profits.

It became clear to Hanne that the entire mobile industry had been permeated by mistrust and it was time something changed. The first step was to develop a brand people trusted, differentiating Call Me from competing brands in the industry. This epiphany was a pivotal moment for the company’s progression and gave Call Me employees a higher purpose to rally around during the hard times. Months on, Call Me took a complete 180 degree turn, and for the better. New customers were at a record high and began committing to long-term contracts, breaking the traditional cycle. Also, employee engagement was at an all-time high with sick days reduced, staff turnover down and staff now proud of the company they worked for. All this shows that purpose-driven companies create a stronger connection with people which can, ultimately, lead to financial success.

Some examples of companies driven by a clear purpose:

• Zappos’ purpose isn’t to sell shoes, but to deliver happiness to employees and customers.

• Innocent Drinks’ purpose isn’t to make delicious smoothies, but to make it easier for people to live healthier lifestyles.

“We’re a customer service company that just happen

to sell shoes.” Tony Hsieh, CEO, Zappos


How defining a purpose benefits your branding Defining your higher purpose paves a clearer path in marketing and branding your product. As Ole Kassow from Purpose Makers says:

“Companies such as Zappos and Southwest may be price competitive, but that’s not why they’re successful and why they turn millions of customers into raving fans. It’s because their customers are in love with them. Their customers are ambassadors and promoters of the kind that can drive explosive growth via mail, blogs and social media As it turns out these companies not only have a good standing among their customers. They also have a remarkably good standing among their employees and in society in general. What really distinguishes them is that they operate in accordance with the Golden Rule: One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself. In short, these companies are purpose-driven, which gives them a license to operate and an abundance of social capital.”

Great brands stand for something. They develop a personality that wins customers through providing a clear message and through communicating (and living) their core values.

As Mike Moser points out in his excellent book United We Brand, companies often fall into that “zero” personality trap where they never fully connect with customers at an emotional level - with a knock-on effect on sales. This is where having a higher purpose comes in. It gives you and your team a clear focus, meaning you’re all on the same page when it comes to defining your brand personality and core message. If you don’t have a clear purpose, it can make you more vulnerable to any competitors out there with more defined brand personalities that aren’t afraid to voice their opinion.

“If you try to appeal to everyone, you’ll end appealing to no-one.”

Seth Godin, entrepreneur and public speaker


Innocent Drinks

Take Innocent Drinks for example. A company that needs no introduction (for people in the UK at least), it’s the brains behind the little pots of smoothie goodness turning over £100M since it started in ‘98. Co-founders Richard, Adam and Jon recognised a need in the world. Too many people were living unhealthy lifestyles having beer and pizza for dinner every night, working late and staying up late, with fresh fruit and veg making a rare appearance upon trips back home for Christmas. Whilst they wanted to be healthy (and kept hearing about the importance of eating your five fruit and veg a day), there was something about modern urban life that conspired against it. The Innocent trio became passionate about their purpose - to make it easier for busy people to do themselves good, by providing healthy drinks that help people to live well and die old.

From defining their purpose, they’d answered their ‘Why?’ question. Everyone on the team bought into the cause (as did the customers!), bringing a myriad of long-term benefits. It helped to engage and motivate everyone to come to work everyday and guide the choices made by the company.

The importance of values

Umair Haque, the renowned writer and economist, recently stated that “we’re on the cusp of a values-driven revolution”. He highlighted that consumers now are much more careful about who they buy from and whether they represent the values they hold dear. When starting any business it’s vitally important to communicate what your core values are and what you stand for. Think of your core values as those that, when the chips are down, you believe in so much that if you took them away your company would cease to exist. However, don’t just brainstorm some values only to then forget about them – you need to live and abide by them everyday. Your values are how you behave, not how you would like to.

“In the absence of values all decisions go to profits.”


Some tips on creating your values: • Make them explicit • Be bold • Ensure they are authentic • Live by them

Your values should be reflected in everything you do and every interaction you make, not just a document filed away somewhere only to see the light of day when someone new joins. Your values are the framework from which you should make all of your decisions.

At our company Spook Studio (the home of the Happy Startup School) we’ve created a set of 10 values that define us:

1. Put people first 2. Give our all 3. Have pride in our work 4. Make it fun 5. Keep it simple 6. Never stop learning 7. Talk like friends 8. Be honest 9. Be better, not busy 10. Do it all with a little humility

These values are our DNA and define us. Without them, we’re just another company.


As the Innocent trio so eloquently put it:

“In the end everything comes down to people; a business is

nothing more than a community of human beings. They’re the

ones looking after your business, you should look after them.”

On our journey to profits, we’ve gone from first looking at what makes us tick, recognising what we’re passionate about and how to channel this energy into a meaningful business. The next step on the path to profits is perhaps one of the most important to get right. It’s all about delighting the people who help make it all happen.

Engaged employees

Whilst securing long-term custom is vital for company growth, it’s not all just about the customers. Having a happy team is vital for the success of any company.

Think about this for a second. In the same way you’re doing something that makes you happy for a living, wouldn’t it be great if your whole team had the same positivity? By fulfilling their needs, giving them flexibility, responsibility and ownership you can build a team of happy workers which, as we’ve highlighted, can bring huge business benefits. Your happiness rubs off on your employees and subsequently will rub off on your customers in the product or service they receive.


Make your company feel like a family

If you want to build a business that can survive even in the toughest times, then you should place real importance on creating a strong company culture. Products and services can often be copied but cultures can't. Your culture is about your people and the environment you create. Build a happy workplace with a focus on shared goals, shared knowledge and mutual respect, and you'll be on your way to a healthier, more sustainable company.

Again companies leading the way, Zappos and Southwest Airlines, have created strong cultures by placing a real focus on teamwork and a family spirit. One of the ways they do this is by encouraging people to be themselves at work, blurring the lines between work and family life, which results in happier, more engaged employees. Don't make your people save the real them for the margins of life, embrace their uniqueness and you'll have a more human side to your company. Research suggests that people who are happy at work tend to be more productive, better at their job, have better attendance, less absence, stay longer, are more loyal and make customers happier. Invest in your culture and it will pay dividends in the long run and give you some protection should times get tough.

The new breed of business leader realises that openness and transparency are key to creating brands that fully engage their employees and customers. Social media has changed the landscape for business and meant that leaders have had to learn how to cope with this new era of connectivity and real time information at our fingertips. Communicating honestly with your audience creates a bond that gives your brand authenticity. Even if you have bad news, it's best to tell it how it is, rather than brush things under the carpet in the hope that they will go away.

Forward-thinking companies such as Semco in Brazil and Nixon McInnes in the UK are leading a wave of democratic workplaces that have openness at the heart of their businesses. They even go as far as open book accounting where everyone knows each other's salaries and has a say in how the company finances are spent. In fact, the organisation WorldBlu is on a mission to have a billion people working in democratic companies, a noble and ambitious purpose if ever there was one.


“Our people are our single greatest strength and

most enduring long-term competitive advantage.”

Gary Kelly, CEO, Southwest Airlines

Hire for attitude, train for skills

So how do you go about creating a great culture in your startup? A good company culture starts with successful hires. We’re seeing too many companies make the mistake of hiring people based on their skills and experience alone, disregarding attitude and personality traits. Whilst skills are clearly important in any role, a great culture is created by getting the balance right. It’s all about finding people who are team players and want to help each other (and customers), whatever their position.

Companies of the future are recognising the value of hiring candidates for their passion, willingness to learn and attitude to work. If these characteristics are in place, you can train candidates to the skill of alternative hires, only they’ll be passionate about their work, on top of being a pleasure to be around for other employees and customers. Happiness is contagious.

Starting a company from scratch requires a variety of different skills, so it helps to hire people who share the same set of values as the business, but brings a different and complementary set of skills to the business. Making a mistake in hiring can be detrimental for the culture in a business.


Leadership

Smart business leaders realise that to get the best out of people you need to treat them like adults. The best leaders inspire the people around them by leading with a credibility gained through a real understanding of the work entailed at all levels. Also conscious business leaders such as Tony Hsieh of Zappos and Ricardo Semler of Semco have a genuine empathy for their employees and care about their welfare. If you are able to listen to any concerns or troubles that any of your team may have (whether business or personal) and strive to help them out in whatever way you can, then they'll reward you by going the extra mile. It pays to show you care.

Who comes first – customers, employees of shareholders?

In the words of Herb Kelleher, the visionary behind Southwest Airlines, “It’s not a conundrum at all.”

“Employees come first and if they are treated right, they treat the

outside world right, the outside world uses the company’s

product again, and that makes the shareholders happy.”

Herb Kelleher, co-founder, Southwest Airlines


It’s all very well following your passion and defining your purpose, but what about that dirty word (in many people’s eyes), profits? In order to survive, a business needs to be profitable. Profits are the fuel for your mission, the validation of your purpose. Without them you won’t be around for long.

Purpose and profits as friends, not enemies

We believe the best companies have a strong social purpose and are highly profitable. There is a growing number of businesses out there that are doing good and making money. Will McInnes mentions some great examples in Culture Shock. The first is a company called Grameen Bank, founded in Bangladesh. Grameen Bank provides micro-credit loans for impoverished people, mainly women, who typically lack collateral and employment but have various under-utilized skills to earn an income. Grameen gives out micro loans on a group basis, with the idea that impoverished people will make money (and pay back their loans) if they have the necessary support. The founder Muhammed Yunus, focuses on helping women without access to finance or communities without access to healthy nutrition. Grameen Bank turns over an average of $1.5bn annually. Small fry it ain’t.

“Any fool with an empty wallet, a gimlet eye, and an emptier head

can sell his soul; just as any dilettante can trade meaning for

money, and glorify themselves as a starving artist."

Umair Haque, author and economist


GiffGaff is another leading business mentioned in Culture Shock. GiffGaff is a mobile service provider (a small sub-business to the very big O2, but operating as an independent mobile brand) that aims to build a powerful online community, big on caring and sharing. It’s on a much smaller scale than O2, allowing the company to accelerate the business at its own pace by developing stronger customer relationships (the platform is run by their members). It has a ‘payback’ scheme rewarding members for solving each other’s customer service problems in online forums and by promoting GiffGaff to friends through referral schemes. In their first year of setting up in 2009, the payback scheme earned the company upwards of £700,000 and today figures reach almost £2m.

TerraCycle are another example of a company that does good and remains highly profitable. TerraCycle’s purpose is to eliminate the idea of waste. It buys waste that’s typically hard to recycle (like some food packaging, old mobile phones and electronics) from consumers and businesses and then incorporates the recycled materials into products sold in stores. The company knows how to take care of its employees by creating a great work culture by partaking in Nerf battles come Friday afternoon. Alongside building a happy company with a clear purpose and happy employees, it turned over $14.2m in 2011 and have just announced that it’s in its 9th straight year of revenue growth.

“Profit can be hungry and alert in the short term. Purpose on the

other hand has a slower but possibly greater gravitational pull."

Will McInnes, managing director, Nixon McInnes


Finding the balance between doing good and making money

Ask anyone their reason for building a business and they’ll come back to you with similar answers; to make money, to be profitable, to generate sustainable revenue streams. It’s almost always finance that motivates. Whilst profits are immensely important for the progression of your business, they should be seen as a secondary goal. As progressive businesses like TerraCycle and Grameen demonstrate, profit should be an outcome of doing the right thing, not a destination in itself. They recognise that if they are profitable they can:

• Remain independent on the path from passion to purpose and disregard any worries of having to raise funding.

• Continue to evolve and innovate as a business, attract and reward the best people for the company.

• Distribute profits evenly to emerging shareholders who can invest in better business.

There will always be some level of tension between purpose and profit. The challenge we all face is learning to balance the two to create a truly happy startup. On one hand profit is hungry, it’s a short term, clear measurement of how ‘well’ your business is doing and to many, it acts as a scoreboard that can often ignite a fierce, competitive side in leaders. On the other hand, purpose has a slower but stronger force behind it. To fulfill your purpose as a company is a much longer, slower process that’s hard to track statistically. As people, we sway towards quick results, which is evidently why it becomes much easier to be the fierce financially driven business leader just like every other. Great business leaders of the future know how to balance purpose in one hand and profit in the other.

Love your customers (and they’ll love you)

In a recent study, only 3% of companies scored ‘excellent’ for the quality of their customer experience. It’s now time, more than ever before, to differentiate your company from competitors and take care of your customers. A key route to profits is to have a loyal customer base that spend more, more often and bring their friends.

Before you launch your business it's important to really get to know your customers and their world. Ideally you'll work within a market you know well, especially if it centres on your passion. But if you don't, it’s important to do your research or work alongside someone that does.


As Seth Godin recommends, choose your customers, define which people you feel passionate about and build your business around them. The better you understand your customers' problems and what makes them tick, the better positioned you'll be to help them (whilst also speaking their language).

As well as knowing your customers inside out, you really need to care about them too. Ideally you'll be creating something you’re passionate about for an audience you love doing it for and it’s important to delight them in every way possible to build a rapport.

There’s no fast, easy way to build lasting relationships with customers but it starts with building trust. Trust is key in any successful relationship, so if you trust your customers and they reciprocate this, you'll have a more sustainable businesses and a loyal customer base.

Amazon is a great example of a company that trusts its customers. It understands the potential lifetime value of a customer and works to delight not disappoint. Amazon will never risk losing custom by refusing to refund an item just because they don't want it anymore, developing a level of trust with its customers. Similarly Zappos has a year-long return period where customers can return any item bought within that period without any questions asked. These companies know that their customers are people,


so if you treat them as such, and start with a position of trust, more often than not it will pay dividends over the long run.

Our old favourites Zappos (now owned by Amazon), have become pioneers in delivering happiness to customers old and new. One of their core values is to ‘deliver WOW through service’ aiming for service beyond good every time. They’re renowned for taking care of their customers and in return, customers love them.

“A student in my office thought she could either make money or

make the world a better place, but couldn’t do both.

I told her you can do both. In fact, you have to.”

Brian Brenberg Did you know that Zappos once saved a best man from going barefoot at a wedding? When UPS got addresses mixed up for one Zappos customer, it meant that the unlucky best man’s shoes were going to be delivered too late for the wedding. After one quick phone call to Zappos 24-7 customer phone line, the best man received a brand new free pair of shoes with overnight delivery as well as an upgrade to a VIP account meaning free overnight delivery on all subsequent orders. Just another crazy way Zappos demonstrated trust with customers, securing a customer for life.


Planning out your business – from passion to profits

If you’re an early stage startup the last thing you want to have to do is write a 30-page business plan. Wouldn’t it be great if you document your business ideas on one page, allowing you to focus on actually building your business, not planning it? Startups are unpredictable so don’t fall into the trap of basing your business on shaky ground with a set of assumptions and guesses. Rip up your business plan and explore various business models instead. Then see if they’re viable by talking to potential customers and partners.

The Happy Startup Canvas (an adaption of the lean canvas, below) lets you adopt the principles of the business model canvas. Create multiple canvases if you like, collaborate and share with others, and re-visit later. It forces you to focus on the things that count right from the outset:

• What top three problems are you trying to solve (and for whom)? • Who will be your passionate early adopters? • How are you going to reach them? • What’s your killer value proposition?


The canvas will help you crystalise your ideas and communicate these better. As well as creating the elements that make up your business model, you can also set up experiments to test your assumptions.

There’s an area for revenue streams and early on you’ll be making best guesses about what these will be. Rather than betting on one way of making your venture profitable there may be various ways to monetise your idea. Don’t be too fixed on this early on, listen to what customers tell you and be open to opportunities.

For any startup the canvas is an essential addition to your toolkit.

For a more practical guide to building a startup our 4 week program covers step by step how to turn your passion into a profitable business. More info at www.thehappystartupschool.com/homeschool In summary

In this book we’ve shown you how you can balance passion, purpose, people and profits to create a happy, thriving business. Many of the ideas in here, whilst adopted by some trailblazers such as those companies mentioned already, can seem unorthodox to some traditional business people. After all, business is about making money, isn’t it? As you’ve gathered we think differently. After reading this, we hope you agree.

“Happiness is a business model.” Tony Hsieh


At the Happy Startup School we’re at the start of our journey to build a community of people that believe there’s a better way to do business. We want to help passionate founders build the best companies of the future that have a clear purpose, a strong

culture with engaged employees and loyal customers.

If you’d like to get inspired by others and learn how to build a happy startup, we’d love you to join our growing community.

Join our movement at www.thehappystartupschool.com Follow @happystartups on Twitter.

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4 steps to a happy startup

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