Ep. 034 - Why I Started My Consulting Career During the Worst Recession in History… and Why It Might be Relevant Today
The 2008 recession is remembered fondly by very few people, but for Gary Gamp it presented the perfect opportunity to start a business.
14 years down the road, he’s in the perfect position to share his advice for those looking to go it alone, particularly with the similarly recessive economic outlook we’re seeing on the horizon…
George Clode turns the tables in this episode as we grill Gary on why being mentally broke can be the perfect motivation, the top tips for a successful new business, and how to overcome impostor syndrome as an entrepreneur.
Key takeaways from this episode:
You need a strong reason to go it alone
Networking & personal brand are paramount
Do what you say
Highlights:
“I always wanted to work for myself, and it took me 25 years to find a way to de-risk working for myself and give up the alleged trappings of being a senior manager with a high profile, and now I know it doesn't matter.” - 3:50 - Gary Gamp
“Being ‘mentally broke’ could paralyse you into doing nothing, because you're so worried that you’ll never get off the ground, or in my particular case it made me hungry. Particularly in the recession, it made me hungry because it created a sense of urgency.” - 5:25 - Gary Gamp
“The thing that's made the most difference to the growth of my business has been networking, but there's no point networking unless your personal brand is at the right level, and you maintain it.” - 7:20 - Gary Gamp
“I think it's natural to feel impostor syndrome, but get over it quickly, because whatever you're doing, you've always got value. Don't be arrogant about it, but you can always add value, and if you're not adding value you shouldn't be doing it. But I think you will, and it's natural to feel that way.” - 13:15 - Gary Gamp
“I think being likeable is so misunderstood; it’s absolutely vital. I'm not saying you manipulate people to like you, but blimey, you’ve got to try hard, because some people are difficult to build a relationship with. People need to like you enough to want to build a relationship. If they don’t like you they're gonna be ‘too busy’.” - 16:15 - Gary Gamp
“The easiest way to make money during a recession or any time is to talk to people about their issues, and they have to genuinely be their issues, not the things you think are their issues, and it's heightened during a recession.” - 18:15 - Gary Gamp
“I'm setting expectations and I've got a very clear set of deliverables and objectives that I'm working towards. Other things will come at me, and I won't say no to them, but I'll go back to them and say ‘I'm working on this. I can work on that if you want, I can get someone else to do that, but this is what I'm working on, I'm going to deliver it’. Then you have to be impactful early.” - 20:35 - Gary Gamp
“When things didn't work for me, I was trying too hard. I was desperate, and there's nothing worse than the whiff of desperation - it’s a kind of repellent. I talked about running into Trafalgar Square with a loaf of bread and chucking it at the birds. That's exactly what you're doing. Don't chuck bread at people!” - 23:25 - Gary Gamp
Links & References:
Gary Gamp: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garygamp
George Clode: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeclode
