Three ideas from the book stick out most to me:

One, if you care about something enough to do something about it you’re in business. That seems simple enough. I liken this to wanting more to build or fix something than sit in front of the TV or do anything else. This is about priority on one level. On another level it’s about belief. You have to not only care about it enough to do something but you have to also hold the belief that it can change and you can have a role in causing that to occur.

Two, entrepreneurs aren’t in business so much as they’re being playful. I like this. I stand more often on the side of intuition. Go with your gut, be willing to change course upfront and just start trying stuff. Work stuff out as much as you can along the way and enjoy it.

Three, PR can and should be about authenticity. It seems to me that I’ve had a debilitating perception of PR that there was a right and a wrong way to do it. PR only worked, in my old view, if it was mechanical and in a sequential order. Like most things, I’ve found that if you’re more focused on what you think others think you should do you’re not likely to move forward all so fast or successfully. So, with PR, go be you. Be smart and strategic about it but authentic too.

Richard, thanks for framing your past and present in a way that was easy to engage with and curious on so many levels not least of which these three.

Business Stripped Bare: Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur

p.s. If you live in MSP and would like to read this book be the first to call dibs on my copy in the comments below and we’ll find a way to get it to you.