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Transcript from class assignment - Jeffery Pollock...

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Gary Kayye – rAVe Publications So how can I help you with your project? So basically I just have some questions to ask you about rAVe and um, the experience you've had been an entrepreneur. I have about 15 questions, but some of them kind of can be answered in one swoop. So just keeping that in mind with what you've got going on for the rest of the day. Um, you know, I don't know how much time you can give me right now but we can go ahead and get started if you're ready. Questions 2-3 What is the aim of your entrepreneurial venture? How long has your venture existed? Yeah, it was originally started as a consulting company and then we added a publication more as a way to educate our clients and keep our clients informed on what was going on in the industry. The publication part of it grew very rapidly because we were sort of accidentally filling, filling a niche so it wasn't intended to be the bigger part of the business. It became the bigger part of the business because we sort of accidentally fell into a niche, which at the time was, um, email newsletter. So we're in a whole lot of companies doing that. Everyone was still doing print, so we're sort of at the right place at the right time and so we've pivoted a little bit and uh, but we, we have, um, continued to sort of innovate in that segment of the market. So therefore it's kept us in a leadership position. Question 4 Can you tell me a little bit about what you do at rAVe? Now or then? I'm, well, I'm the, I'm basically this, I guess you'd say President of the company. I basically run sort of day to day operations and, and um, do most of this sort of more creative thinking I would think you would say. Um, and then I do also still participate in a lot of the writing of stories and content as well. Question 5 So how did you come up with the idea for rAVe? Well, as I said, originally it was a consulting company and the original idea came from us using a newsletter too and former clients as to what was going on in the industry is sort of an added benefit to the client relationship. So it was formed out of that. Question 6 Is there any family also involved in the business or who, who's on your team? Um, I mean they're all mostly Carolina grads from journalism school just because it's easy because we're here in Chapel Hill and uh, so I think we've been lucky to sort of have a pipeline

of connections through UNC just because of our being close to UNC and also having like in the case of your sister, she took my class so, um, being in my class. Question 7 Did you go to college and what did you study? Um, yeah, I did actually. I was an advertising major in college in the journalism school. So I did actually study this kind of actually doing what I studied, which is a bit unique I guess. Question 7 Continued What was something that you wish you knew about being an entrepreneur before you really learned it? Like looking back now, what is one thing that you wish you knew about having your own business? I'm probably more of a financial and accounting background. That was sort of the amount of stuff you have to keep track, but as far as that goes is irritating because it's not creative to me, so if I knew more about it, but rather than every time I reports I have to get educated on what I'm looking at, then that would be nice Question 8 What's one of the main sources of stress for you when it comes to owning your own business? Feeling responsible for the employees, jobs and happiness and that kind of stuff. That's stressful because you're worried that you're not going to make enough money to pay down or you're not going to make enough money to keep them or whatever. You're always worried about that. Question 9 How do you respond to that stress? Normally meditate. Question 10 What metrics do you use regularly to track how the business is doing? Um, I don't, uh, don't do that religiously because I have, I do it more based on gut feeling and knowledge of the industry. Of course, my accounting, my accountant gives me reports on harassing her and she keeps track of everything going on. So she does a good job and warns me most of the time or does he have the time for having an issue? But generally I try to not. I'm not focused on that because I feel like that if we're good at what we're doing then it won't really matter. Question 11 What is, what are some of the ways that you have worked over the past couple of years to scale your business to kind of meet where the industry is at? I'm small enough that we can move pretty quick. I think maybe when you grow it's to benefit to

sort of empower people to them to do things on their own. I think the problem comes in is where you find you have to do everything yourself. The more, the more you sort of let people kind of do things on their own, that's more that automatically makes for a scalable business. Question 12 Can you talk a little bit about how you maintain your work life balance, especially being in your position where you're so hands on of how do you make it to where you're still Gary Kayye and you're not 100 percent just rAVe? Yeah, that's a tough one. I don't know the right answer for that, but I've always been a really good multitasker and doing lots of things at the same time. It, it doesn't really stress me to do that. I think I'd get bored, so I think certain personalities when themselves better. I think it is true that certain personalities lend themselves better to an entrepreneurial sort of spirit than others. I mean, I know people that I don't think it would be good at the entrepreneurs because they're, because they aren't multitaskers for examples. Question 12 continued Do you feel is though having that responsibility of a small business has changed your relationships in any way? Just like with family and friends and things like that. I mean, I think in general it does because you're always on. I think that adds a level of stress and a, I would say a level of responsibility. So I think so, yeah, I do think that that is naturally going to affect them. Question 13 Would you consider yourself frugal and if so, how? I would not say so I would say no. I would say that a more practical but not frugal. Okay. Question 14 Um, did you, have you had any mentors over your career and if so, like how did they help you get to where you're at now? Yeah, I don't think it's a good idea for entrepreneurs not to have mentors. I don't think you can survive without somebody, you know, you can call them, ask their opinion on something then to be honest with you. Um, so yeah, I think they've been extremely helpful. Question 15 and 16 Can you tell me what you like most and what you like least about being an entrepreneur? Freedom is definitely the most. The least is probably the most, the level of stress, just normal natural level of stress that you're going to have....