Don’t ever do anything if you can’t track the results on your business. Yeah, sounds like who has ever done this right? I know so many entrepreneurs and myself (still some of our efforts) are doing it. Because things are looking good and you don’t feel why is the bother? Sooner or later that untracked part will back to huge debt.

I don’t really try to be happy in my life. I try to be productive, resourceful, honest etc. Never tried to be happy. I believe in being happy as a moment of feeling. If you have a good coffee or conversation after that situation, you might feel happy (saying yourself I’m glad I had this or that). That’s why it’s so hard to be happy all the time. If you are, I believe something wrong with you.

It is amazing to help others. It helps you more than them. You can discover many untapped opportunities while you are explaining or even listening to them. So, don’t try to solve their problem just be around them. Let them ask the right questions to themselves.

Having everything is not makes you happy, being appreciative of what you have is makes you happy. I was drinking Turkish tea at my backyard in California made me think how lucky I am. I have an amazing home-made tea with my own backyard looking towards a beautiful banana tree under the shade of a maple tree.

Yes, It would be wonderful if our banana trees produce banana or maybe our pool heated, etc. When those things happen, then other things will probably come to our attention. So, never-ending process.

Glad Turkish tea exists…:)

These days, the US government and the country itself are having a hard time. Some of the events are look like their internal problem but it is not. I always admire the people who born and raised in the US because of diversity, having a friend from different ethnicity and culture. Plus eating multiple different cuisines on the same day. ( In Italy, you can have Italian food, In Turkey, Turkish food, etc)

On the other hand, growing up as a minority group might be an interesting mindset. I can’t imagine shaping you with a lot of pros and cons. I grew up in Turkey, as a Turkish. We didn’t have black, white, or colored people. Technically everyone is Turkish (that is a huge debate I save this topic for future posts).

I am a big fan of global equality, freedom of speech, and globalization of human rights & prosperity. We are all connected to the rest of the world than before. Thanks to Instagram lately, everyone is having almost similar breakfast, baby shower, wedding, or anniversaries parties in Athens, Ankara, Seattle, or Lisbon. Our global awareness of freedom is going to change governments, leaders, and societies. I’m very optimistic. It takes time. But I won’t say it’ll happen, It’s happening already….

Sometimes you can’t feel it. Doesn’t mean you don’t want to do it. Just you can’t feel it. It might be emotional or psychological. So, don’t push it to feel. Let it go and give a break then try to think all in all why you don’t feel it.

List it to the real causes and try to fix it. If you don’t, then you can’t feel it anymore. That’s alright. That’s life.

Today, I had two calls with two different entrepreneurs. One of them based in Turkey and another one based in SF. Both of them have a global product. They are in different stages of product growth and development. But, one thing is common each other: They wanted to do what they are working on. Nobody pushed or forced them to do it. They are just doing because they want to do it.

Sooner or later, they will figure out what is working or not. They’ll keep iterate as long as they have money in the bank. If they are about to out of it, they’ll either raise capital or get a loan from the bank. Or, they’ll quit it. Still, most of the time they are the one who is making the decisions.

Stop finding excuses or blaming others. You do what you do because you wanted to do it in the beginning.

Very Important People by Ashley Mears. That is a book about bottle services, models (she needs to be minimum 5’10 and taller) and very important people. Ashley was one of the models during the writing this book and observe VIP parties Miami to Ibiza, NYC to Las Vegas. This book definitely helps you to understand the dynamics of nightlife and “money spending” those clubs. Against this backdrop of rising financial fortunes, downtown Manhattan was transforming, as new luxury leisure services emerged to cater to the newly rich. As the amount of money on Wall Street shot up with each passing year, in came more young financiers with huge pools of disposable money who could afford a thousand-dollar bar tab. (one of my highlights from the book)

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams. Scott Adams is the creator of Dilbert that is a popular cartoon character, especially for business/office life. This book about his life plus he is sharing some of the best practices works out for him. He tried tens of business ventures before started Dilbert. And also after Dilbert too. Such as easy to read a book. If you ask a billionaire the secret of his success, he might say it is passion, because that sounds like a sexy answer that is suitably humble. But after a few drinks, I think he’d say his success was a combination of desire, luck, hard work, determination, brains, and appetite for risk. (one of my highlights from the book)

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown. This is a classic child book probably all over the world. I don’t remember reading this book while I was a kid. However, I remember either from movies or cartoons they were reading this book. I heard this book while I was listening to a podcast and purchased the hard copy. It is a great addition to my library. If you want to watch an animated version of this book (it probably helps to fall asleep) check out this video

TOP 3 BOOKS ARCHIVE

May’s Top 3 Books

April’s Top 3 Books

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January’s Top 3 Books

I remember one of my friends was famous for picking the “right” Watermelon back in the day. He never shared his secret and he was always proud of himself. I never forget his smile while he was watching others when they were eating his “rightly” picked up watermelon.

One day I asked him “Dude, tell me your secret! He said you are not a stranger but please don’t tell anyone else. When you choose the watermelon, look at the bottom, if it’s a little orange, that is a good one.

Yesterday, I saw this image on Instagram:

In this picture, it not only shows how to pick the perfect watermelon but it also explains the details of all possible scenarios.

So, my friend’s secret is no longer a secret:) Many secrets can be revealed with one simple Google search. So, there is no secret anymore in 2020. “Stay Curious”

It is easy to do that. All you need to know:

• Do your homework well.

• Don’t ask a question you can google it and find it.

• Spend time and find the best insights & findings that might not aware of it. Even if they are aware of it, that still shows that you spend time on them.

• Find relevant use-cases and example something similar to their type of business.

• Read their top executives Linkedin or Twitter posts. Understand what type of companies they are. What is their mission or go-to marketing strategy these days?

• Check their top competitors just googling “XYZ competitors” and do the top 5 things on the above I listed at least their top 3 competitors.

You are all set. Now, you know their business maybe more than themselves. Because sometimes companies especially bigger scale they are super focused on their specific verticals. If you are talking Product person from your prospect client, they might not even know what their marketing does.