RS044: Setting the Bar Higher: Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals for 2016

Today Dave and Craig discuss their wins, losses, and near misses in 2015 and what they’re particularly looking forward to in 2016.  There are no small goals on the board today. Everything is swinging for the fences, and going for broke.

As we review the podcast in its first year, a bunch of wins stand out.  To begin with we’re having an absolute blast with the show, and couldn’t be happier with the people we’ve met and the connections we’ve made along the way this year.  It’s exposed us to so many new opportunities, grown our personal and professional boundaries immensely, and finally allowed us to meet in person a few months ago at Rhodium Weekend.

There are a few things we can do better, and we’re certainly going to be focusing on those in 2016.  Namely we are not sharing the messages that we’re putting together nearly as well as we could be.  A few tweets here and there just doesn’t cut the mustard.  Be on the lookout for email newsletters, some bonus goodies for being part of the email list, and a couple of live shows this year.

As far as our personal goals there were a mix of wins and losses, but overall a very positive year in the rearview mirror.

Dave

With SupportVine being a big player in his goals at the onset of the year it’s a bit tough to call the entire year a success, but there is no doubt that shutting down development of SupportVine was the right thing to do.  After a well learned lesson in product validation, Dave is moving his focus towards a multipronged approach to leaving the consulting world:  build and acquire.

Whether it’s building out a larger portfolio of WordPress related plugins and products, growing the products he already has, or acquiring a separate SaaS app, lots will be changing in 2016.  There are just so many good options for Dave to take in his exit from the corporate world, and one of them will be a great chance to move on.

Craig

With 2015 being the first year of PodcastMotor overall it has to be classified as a success.  With monthly recurring revenue nearing $10k/mo and the vast majority of the workload being delegated to the team he’s put together, it sure sounds like a win.  Granted there is plenty of room for improvement in the growth column, and he’s going to be addressing that after the first of the year.

The recent acquisition of two large content/ads sites will prove to be a nice bump in monthly income instead of just burning through savings as the end of jobs continues to draw near.  These sites along with PodcastMotor should provide the necessary funds the family needs every month, and with plenty of room for grown in both categories, the sky could be the limit.

Being Thankful

Overall you really would be remiss if we didn’t take a moment to give thanks for all that we have.  Without sounding like a softie, we really are blessed with a great many things, and this time of year is a good time to reflect on that.  Whether it’s the podcast, friendships we’ve made in the last year, business wins or near misses, let’s take time this holiday season to acknowledge what rocks in our lives, what we can do a bit better, and look forward to 2016 with the excitement it deserves.  We sure are!

Enjoy the show this week? Leave us a five-star review on iTunes and tell us why you love our podcast. If not, send us feedback via Twitter  @RogueStartups  or leave us an email at  podcast@roguestartups.com. We look forward to hearing from you.