Watch Out for Founder Snowflake Syndrome

I tell entrepreneurs to watch out for snowflake syndrome. Snowflake syndrome among founders is a very real thing. 

If you've never heard of this concept then you should know what it is and see if it applies to you.

Snowflake syndrome is when you think that whatever you're doing is unique or special because of X, Y, Z reason. You're special and whatever you're doing is special--like a snowflake. 

I see it a lot with entrepreneurs. Many entrepreneurs believe that general ideas and principles that apply to other people don't apply to them. Now, to be clear, having snowflake syndrome is not an entirely bad thing. Of course, there is nothing that is truly bad nor truly good. Having some type of snowflake syndrome is good. Some of it is just commingled with the idea of believing in yourself and that's fine. 

But be careful of how or where this syndrome is manifesting. There will be times when it is appropriate for you to deviate from the norm and do something unique with the operations of your company.

The big picture things that work for companies across the board are the same. There are hundreds of oil and gas companies in Houston, Texas and Dallas, Texas that are doing the same type of thing and are incredibly successful. There are also thousands of companies that failed in Texas because they tried to do things differently. There's a time and place to do things in a unique manner. The fact of the matter is that for big picture concepts and operations, don't have the snowflake syndrome and try to do things in a unique way. Don't try to get fancy. 

What I am saying is this: don't think that your idea is so great that you can skip important steps or not pursue them to the fullest when it comes to starting up properly or forming or financing. Don't try to shortcut these issues because they WILL come back and bite you. 

In other words, remember that at the end of the day you are running a business so you still have to abide by the steps that ANY business has to take in order to be successful.  What does that mean? It means to focus and get the big picture right. So let's talk about the big picture and what the big picture is. 

It's this: 

Phase 1: Formation 

Structure as a C-corp. Don't do a fancy stock situation if this is your first rodeo. Don't get complicated. Vest your stock. Form in an appropriate state. Use an attorney that knows this stuff. Get help.

Phase 2 Considerations: Grow and Operate

Have a marketing plan in place. Actually write that shit out and do it. It can feel childish at first, but it's important. Make sure individuals within the company are doing what they're supposed to be doing. Compensate individuals appropriately.  

Phase 3: Financing

Study this stuff. Read the articles on the sidebar. This is important. Don't run afoul of securities regulations and be careful. A lawyer will help guide you with these items. Make sure that investors are accredited. Document what's happening. Avoid flying by the seat of your pants. Use investment structures that make sense. Again, read the articles on the left bar. 

Phase 4: End Game

Plan for the end game. Have an exit strategy. This strategy should be incorporated in the first three phases. 

Don't get fancy with any of this. Get fancy when you make it big. Then your operations can really be like a snowflake. 

Make Your Oil and Gas Startup Product Easy to Deploy

As a lawyer in the startup space here's what I see happen all of the time: oil and gas entrepreneur introduces a pretty badass product to investors and potential customers. It's going to revolutionize operations.

There's a buzz about it. Everyone is impressed. Everyone talks about it. This is especially seen here in Dallas, Texas and Houston, Texas. You get a lot of really great product innovations in the energy tech space. 

But then no one does anything about it. No one invests in it. No one really cares when it really comes down to it. (By the way--how do you know when things get real? When people actually and seriously talk about putting down money.) 

So what's going on? 

What's often going on is that the product is not easy to deploy. Time and time again, I've noticed that a lot of entrepreneurs don't give enough consideration on how to easily deploy their product into a new customer's existing system.

It's a problem because it has the effect of making the product unattractive to investors, potential customers, etc. 

You need to make it easy for your customers to adopt your product. Let your potential investors understand that it would be easy for customers  (or themselves) to do so. You need to make your startup product easy to deploy. 

So how do you do this?

a. You make it so that you can insert your technology into existing infrastructure seamlessly with minimal disruptions

Particularly in the oil and gas energy industry, you have these companies that have large, established systems that are full of all sorts of unimaginable processes. So what happens when some late great technology comes out? The energy company actually LIKES what the entrepreneur is offering, but there's not an easy way to deploy the new product into the established system. 

Think about it from the viewpoint of those guys. You have this awesome system going, do you really want to change things up for something new? 

Of course you want to change things, because if you don't innovate then you're headed into trouble; but you want to change things while minimizing disruptions in your current operations. The new product has to be deployed quickly and seamlessly. 

b. You communicate clearly how this is all done 

You would think that clear communications is pretty obvious, but it's not. A lot of people need to be reminded about this. 

Let venture capital/private equity investors and customers you are pitching to know how this will all fit in cleanly. Remember also that in the energy/clean tech space that a number of big investors are also going to be the ones that utilize your technology. Tell these individuals what's going on and how this is all going down. 

Furthermore, if you are an energy entrepreneur speak clearly and SHOW to these companies how your product will fit in quickly. Do some demonstrations if possible. Communicate that incorporating your startup product will not be an unreasonable transition--that it will not disrupt their current operations, and additionally will make operations better and faster. 

If you can't communicate these points clearly, then everyone will be hesitant to jump on your bandwagon. 

The more seamlessly you can make your product deployable and the more clearly you communicate how this all fits in, the easier it will be to deploy. This makes sense.