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MichaelSimmons
Extreme Entrepreneurship Education Corporation | michael@successmanifesto.com | CEO | 07/07/2003 | Small Business Owner
Michael Simmons is the author of ##quote##The Student Success Manifesto (http://www.successmanifesto.com)##quote## and Founder and CEO of the Extreme Entrepreneurship Education Corporation##comma## an epublishing company based in New York City that inspires high school and college students to plan##comma## prioritize##comma## and pursue their vision and create lives of passion##comma## purpose##comma## and prosperity.
What kind of training or education did you acquire before your venture?
I am the author of ##quote##The Student Success Manifesto (http://www.successmanifesto.com)##quote####comma## which has been endorsed by educators##comma## entrepreneurs##comma## professionals##comma## students##comma## and best-selling authors Mark Victor Hansen and Stephen Covey. I have been a keynote speaker##comma## workshop facilitator##comma## and panel participant on the topic of youth entrepreneurship at conferences from California to Washington D.C. As a student at the Stern School of Business at New York University##comma## an author##comma## teacher##comma## speaker##comma## and award-winning entrepreneur##comma## I am able to deliver a unique perspective that connects with audiences.
I have written popular articles on student entrepreneurship that have been published by Entrepreneur.com##comma## College Bound Magazine##comma## and Whizteens in Business (a book on youth entrepreneurship). I co-founded my first business##comma## Princeton WebSolutions (PWS)##comma## a web development company##comma## when I was sixteen years old. For the year 2000##comma## Youngbiz Magazine rated PWS the #1 youth-run web development company in the nation. In addition##comma## I am the winner of three entrepreneur of the year awards from NFTE##comma## Fleet##comma## and the National Coalition for Empowering Youth Entrepreneurship.
What services or products does your organization offer?
The Extreme Entrepreneurship Education Corporation is an empowerment epublishing company targeting the over 70 million strong of Generation Y. Today##aps##s youth aren##aps##t just tomorrow##aps##s future##comma## they are one of today##aps##s most untapped assets. We maximize the power of youth by leveraging our generation##aps##s competitive advantage – technology – to create and market multimedia##comma## interactive ebooks.
What type of business or organization do you operate?
We are an LLC primarly because our lawyer strongly recommended it.
How many employees do you currently have?
2
How did you originally discover the idea for your organization?
After starting a web development company and attending college##comma## I realized that a lot of students could benefit from basic principles of success distributed in the right way. This right way##comma## I believe##comma## is ebooks. Our generation is extremely technology savvy and the software/hardware for ebooks is improving at an exponential rate##comma## while the actual usage of ebooks by the population is rising steadily.
How did you originally fund your organization?
Personal Funds
Are you the founder of your organization?
Yes
Do you believe there is any distinct culture within your organization? If so, please describe it.
I feel that the company definitely has a distinct culture. We are in a unique set up because my girl friend is my business partner. We both work full-time on the business and we also live together. As we grow##comma## we are going to have to pay special attention to the corporate culture.
What obstacles or challenges have you faced in your organization?
The largest obstacles I##aps##ve had to face are invisible ones. They have been the people closest to me who want the best for me trying to persuade me away from my path of passion and purpose. These obstacles are hard because they change us without us even knowing it. I##aps##ve overcome this by writing in my journal at least 1 hour a day to organize my thoughts and make sure I##aps##m doing the right things for the right reasons.
While I have faced many other obstacles##comma## all of them have been defeatable with optimism##comma## persistance##comma## and creativity.
Did you accept any advice along the way? Do you believe new organizations should be open to such advice?
Proper advisors are crucial##comma## in my opinion. I have around 40 people that I can go to for advice on various topics. As youth##comma## we are especially advantaged##comma## because older people are extremely willing and interested in helping us succeed if we are pro-active.
Did you receive any help along the way from other businesses or organizations? If so, how and from whom?
National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship – http://www.nfte.com
NYU Stern School of Business – http://www.stern.nyu.edu
Youth Venture – http://www.youthventure.org
Operation Enterprise – http://www.amanet.org/oe
What have been the keys to success in your business? What do you believe are the keys to success?
We are still a very small##comma## but growing company having just launched our first product. We have gotten to this point by extreme persistance##comma## vision##comma## and willingness to make unconventional choices.
What kind of relationship do you establish with your customers or clients?
N/A
What types of marketing do you employ?
N/A – We are just starting
Do you employ any web or online marketing?
Technology has definitely played a large role. As a virtual epublishing company##comma## technology has helped us:
1. Create interactive web site
2. Create innovative ebooks
3. Use software (ACT##comma## Quickbooks) to automate our business.
What role does trust play in business or in your organization?
My largest mistake has been not preparing and planning enough for what could go wrong. This repeated mistake cost my partner and I over $10##comma##000 in a matter of a few months in high school.
Now##comma## before I do anything I do a pre-mortem by making a list of what could go wrong and how I could avoid it happening.
Did you struggle with starting your own organization or venture? Why did you decide to begin on your own?
The position occurred happenstance. When I was 16##comma## my friend and I created a web site and submitted it to the search engine. We hadn##aps##t really planned out a full business. We wouldn##aps##t have known how to. A few weeks after submitting the site to the search engines##comma## we got our first client for $1##comma##000. With that momentum##comma## we devoted our resources to making the company growing.
What books or resources would you recommend for individuals starting off now?
Napoleon Hill: Think and Grow Rich
Robert Kiyosaki: Rich Dad##comma## Poor Dad
Do you notice any trends in the marketplace? If so, what are they?
I see startup costs getting lower for entrepreneurs as a result of technology.
I see the rate at which change occurs increase exponentially.
Do you believe networking and contacts are important? If so, how?
Networking as a rule of thumb is extremely important. Key to networking is being very willing to give. I spend a large part of time strategically volunteering for individuals and organizations that I would like to build relationships with.
What do you think about contracts and other legal obligations? Are they important in your business?
Success comes from wanting something bad enough and being willing to work hard enough to get it.
If there is one thing that would sum up your advice to new entrepreneurs, what would it be?
I think that the academic setting can be a very powerful platform to success. However##comma## to leverage this platform as an entrepreneur##comma## I think we need to be creative and pro-active. Student entrepreneurs can use the fact that the school has a stake in their success to their advantage by leveraging the school##aps##s resources to become one of its major success stories.
What, if any, final advice do you have for new entrepreneurs?
I believe anybody can be extremely successful if they follow their passion and purpose full-heartedly##comma## above all else.
