Phil O’Brien is an entrepreneur and founder of W42ST, a hyperlocal lifestyle print magazine and media brand that connects readers to the New York City experience. As others migrate toward a more digital presence, W42ST Magazine is a successful print magazine for and about Hell’s Kitchen. Under Phil’s leadership, W42ST Magazine has a circulation of over 30,000 and features stories about real people. As an entrepreneur who also successfully founded and sold the world’s largest independent photography agency in 2004, Phil is an expert on entrepreneurship, marketing, and sales, as well as how to come up with a great business idea.
Entrepreneurial Role Models:
When business started difficulties overcame:
“I always remember putting the business plan together. The business plan was typewritten, the cash flows and the sheets were hand drawn, I have still got copies of them you can see them on my website. And we went to what was Williams and Glyn bank in Nottingham and went to see the bank manager together and we wanted to thousand pounds as an overdraft… And the guy looked and says ‘no we are not loaning you to thousand pounds, why don’t you just keep to your proper jobs and I think this is not a good idea.’ So I walked away thinking … I will keep on going, this is a great idea, I am determined to do this”…[Listen for More]
Favourite Books:
Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us Book by Seth GodinFavourite Quote:
“Point of View Is Worth 80 IQ Points” Alan Kay
Recommended Online Resources:
Get off line
Best Advice to Other Entrepreneurs:
“you have got to have a passion for what you are doing. It can’t just be a clever idea and something you think might make a lot of money; it’s got to be something that’s a passion because it won’t happen overnight. You are going to have to persist in it, you are going to have to find a joy in it consistently for a good period of time. So, my advice would be fine something that you will get joy out of”…[Listen for More]
More About Phil O’Brien:
Neil’s Quote at the Beginning:
“Time is the friend of the wonderful business, the enemy of the mediocre.” Warren Buffett
Other Quotes From the Chat with Phil O’Brien:
- “navigate the river of cash. And I think that’s always being very respectful of the money around you and making sure that you don’t run out and making sure that you preserve them for another day”
- “there’s always another totally different business that you are going to get the idea for your totally different business for”
- “I’m just intrigued by life and I’m always trying to work it out. And I think that’s important for an entrepreneur is you have got to be curious”
- “if you got an idea and you really believe in it you’ve got to get people along to believe in it to. And if you build your tribe and that momentum, they will tell their friends the momentum is there and you build that tribe”
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