The Mission Newsletter, 2/27/18

This originally appeared in our M-F newsletter.

You cannot have a happy ending to an unhappy journey. ―Abraham Hicks

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News That Matters

ICYMI: We’ve updated our newsletter format! We are combining our two daily newsletters (‘The Best…’ and The Mission News) to create one ultimate daily newsletter. 🎉 🎉

Love it, hate it? Let us know your feedback by responding to this email. 😊

Health

There’s a stigma around mental health that discourages adults from seeking help. Unfortunately, this also affects children that need help. Two in three depressed teens do not get the care they need… it is time we change how we view and treat mental health disorders.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued updated guidelines for screening teenage depression: “What we’re endorsing is that everyone, 12 and up, be screened … at least once a year.”

Wealth

Check out this list of fastest growing franchises of 2018. You may be surprised to see who made the cut. The top three are :

1. Dunkin Donuts
2. 7-Eleven
3. Planet Fitness

And of course, another growing market is that of bitcoin. Meet some of the young ‘Bitcoiners’ who invested in the coin as young as 12 years old and are now already millionaires

“Finman says he started investing in Bitcoin — the emerging currency that seems to be minting a new millionaire every day — when he was 12, and claims he had enough to sell off $100,000 worth of it by the time he was 15. A few years after that, at 17, he got into streetwear. (Some time after the release of Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo, is where he places it.) In the roughly 18 months since then, Finman’s stockpiled streetwear at the rate of an A-list rapper.” -GQ

Wisdom

Trauma isn’t what happens to you, it’s what happens inside you.” –Gabor Maté

We’ve raved about Dr. Gabor Maté before, and recently he was featured on Tim Ferriss’s (amazing) podcast. Give it a listen:

Dr. Gabor Maté — New Paradigms, Ayahuasca, and Redefining Addiction

Tech Trends

What do drones and fashion have in common? Apparently, The Dolce & Gabanna Runway.

Tech has so many fun uses! Want to see some more? Check out The 2018 New York Toy Fair. :D

Marketing Trends

Great brands make real connections. And sometimes making those real brand connections requires a bit of… rebranding. Introducing: Jane Walker

Tweet the Tip of the Day.

The Best of The Mission

The Best Book we are Reading…

What rules, laws, and theories hold our world together? At the intersection of real and theoretical lies the true ‘fabric of reality’.

Read the book: The Fabric of Reality — The Science of Parallel Universes — and Its Implications by David Deutsch

The Best Movie we are Watching…

Jennifer Lawrence is in a new hit and it’s at the top of our ‘go-see-in-theaters’ list. Watch the trailer: Rd Sparrow

Already seen it? Give us the inside scoop! Respond to this email with your thoughts.

The Best Podcast we are Listening To…

Adventure is out there… Linguistic adventure that is.

Aren’t words just so cool!? Some of them have double means, sound alike, or mean completely different things when combined with other words. Anyone else think that’s so freakin’ neat!?

…Or maybe that’s just me… 🤓

Well, if you are a fellow word nerd, then join me in obsessing over this amazing podcast by Helen Zaltzman: The Allusionist

Also, if you like Helen or want to learn more about her, we recommend checking out her fun TED Talk titled ‘The evolution of the written word across time.’

Mission Driven

A spotlight on mission-driven companies and people.

Patagonia connects people with clothing and clothing with the environment. They seek to impact the environment as little as possible during the entire lifecycle of their products and only promote sports that don’t require a motor.

Their mission is to: ‘build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, [and] use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.’

Read more about what they do and why.

Find Your Mission

Learn about career opportunities at mission-driven companies.

Duolingo is hiring! Want to be a part of a cool tech company making language learning fun (and easy)? They’ve got all kinds of positions available; including teaching, engineering, business, and more! Apply here.

Check out yesterday’s question.

Our Media

The Mission is a new kind of media company. We publish stories, videos, and podcasts to help smart people get smarter. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram or learn more about us here. We’d love to connect!

Custom Podcasts

The Mission helps mission-driven companies build trust and connect with customers in a new way.

We create custom podcast sponsorships for enterprise companies. To learn more about why companies like Salesforce trust us to produce results, connect with our team here.

Fashionable Drones, Young ‘Bitcoiners’, and Linguistic Adventures was originally published in The Mission on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Keemia Ferasat, the founder and CEO of Style Salute, a mission-driven digital media company focused on the positive power of women that now attracts 140 thousand unique visitors a month, across the web, mobile, social and video. Ferasat founded Style Salute with the goal of building a destination to inspire and encourage women to feel, see, and own their power.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! What is your “backstory”?

I’ve loved “creating” since I was a little girl and in high school, I fell in love with style, not just fashion style but the idea of personal style.

I graduated from the University of Southern California and almost immediately launched KEEMIA, a women’s ready-to-wear line. By our second year, we were selling in over 50 boutiques across the US and abroad, as well as with online retailers such as revolveclothing.com. KEEMIA was featured in leading publications such as ELLE, Vogue, Marie Claire, Brides, Daily Candy, InTouch, and Lucky, and more. It was incredible, but I started to feel an itch to start something new, something that helped shape women’s lives for the better, though I didn’t know what I wanted it to be yet. I exited KEEMIA in 2012 and took some time to figure it out.

During that time, I entered a graduate program in communication and media with an emphasis in new media technologies, and I became completely obsessed with new media and was thirsty every day to understand the business of media better. At the same time, everything was going digital, including the traditional print publications that had featured KEEMIA. But in many ways, even though so much was changing in media, women’s media publications (which are in essence a reflection of women today) were still very much the same as they were 10–20 years ago. They were still focused almost exclusively on fashion and beauty.

The media landscape lacked a voice for the modern woman —

one that addresses other daily issues women face, such as pay disparity, mental and physical wellbeing, home ownership, and career advancement, in addition to fashion and lifestyle. There was this delta and this gap between women craving content that helps them navigate their everyday problems and media companies helping guide them. And so, I launched Style Salute in January 2017 as a new voice in the media market, one that inspires and encourages women with the tools to lead smarter, more stylish and confident lives.

Our goal is to provide thought-provoking content that leans into the confidence, creativity and ambition of the female millennial woman. As Style Salute’s CEO and founder, it’s my goal and my personal mission to create content and experiences that inspire women, express progressive ideas, and celebrate individuality through an inclusive vision of what style and beauty looks like and what stories are worth telling.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you started your company

It has been incredible to watch Style Salute grow, and the success we have seen is in huge thanks to a wonderfully supportive community of readers. I didn’t know just how many people would take interest in our site when we launched; I just knew there were like-minded people who agreed there should be a revamp of how women’s interests are positioned in the media. I was in for a surprise.

I first felt it at our launch party. The site had been live for a month, and the party was meant to just be a small gathering of friends and family at the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica. But, the online invitation was public and, as soon as the event began, I saw a hundred people in line. I found it incredibly liberating from a creator perspective to be able to create content and publish it that quickly and have it reach and touch so many women. It was a truly humbling experience, and it gave me and my team the confidence to move forward.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

When Style Salute first launched, women’s media was still largely dedicated to fashion, beauty and celebrity, with other verticals — such as news, politics, money and career — only being found in niche or mainstream media titles. And, even though Style Salute was set up with focus on style, we started to see real success thanks to our unique approach to women’s content.

Style Salute’s unique offering is we aim to cater to a wide and diverse range of women’s interests, including the best career advice, tips, and lessons from female leaders across a variety of industries. This is probably the most important and the most powerful generation of women that has ever existed, and we women care about much more than just fashion and beauty. Accordingly, Style Salute aims to create motivational content in a variety of verticals through the lens of personal style.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?

I was most influenced by my remarkable parents. My father immigrated to The U.S. from Iran in the 1960s and founded a transportation company that is now celebrating 43 years in business. My mother, the first fierce female role model in my life, also started a successful business while raising three young children. My parents’ unwavering faith in me, and the example they have set has been the foundation for everything I have achieved.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

Here at Style Salute, we’re all about the positive power of women and in giving back to our community. I regularly mentor young entrepreneurs as they develop their unique business idea and make plans to finance their passion project. I know they do not have funds to hire a consultant and sometimes just need an experienced friend who can walk them through their options.

In terms of the giving back, I can see that Style Salute is having a true effect on women’s lives. So often I hear stories and I get tweets from our community members who, because of us, decided to ask for a raise or take on a creative hobby and were able to better manage how they went about doing it thanks to our content.

There is no greater reward than feeling like you’re changing lives for the better.

And at risk of overselling Style Salute, you could say that everything we do is meant to bring goodness to the world. We have a certified yoga instructor and meditation expert (also a full-time lawyer) who writes our articles on mindfulness because we believe emotional and mental wellbeing is key to pursuing all the other goals in our lives; we also have a financial expert who writes our articles on how to make the most of the money you make and take control of your finances. And, Style Salute’s mission of empowering women will ultimately bring goodness to the entire world.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I launched my Start-Up” and why. (Please share a story or example for each.)

1) Inexperience is an asset.

Inexperience can, ironically, be an extraordinary asset to an entrepreneur. When I launched my first company, I did not know the first thing about merchandising or sales. In fact, I started my KEEMIA because I had coincidentally made my own dresses growing up and, by happenstance, lent the dresses to a fashion show. Following the fashion show, buyers from prestigious boutiques asked if I was taking orders for the following season. At the time, I did not know the first thing about pattern-making or size grading. I just nodded and said, “yes, of course.” If I had known, I may not have accepted their orders. Yes, it was an uphill battle to deliver on that first order, but I learned a lot and was far more prepared the next time the orders came in.

2) Don’t be afraid to fail; you will fail.

The best founders and CEOs deal with setbacks. As Elon Musk says, “Failure is an option here. If things are not failing, you’re not innovating enough.” I wish I had known this early in my career and wasn’t so hard on myself.

To be honest, I think I fail literally every week. In the world of startups, nothing is ever perfect. For ever 4 triumphs, there is 1 failure. Everything you’re trying to do never completely works. Even if it’s not a personal failure, I always take accountability for my team because after all it is my company.

I’ve learned to stay focused on all the things that aren’t failing; to celebrate the wins. The new growth. The new partnerships. The new recruits. And I’ve learned not to let fear of failure keep me from trying something new or taking a risk. Every failure has taught me something else about how to succeed, and the way I see it as long as we are learning from our failures, we’re consistently getting better and smarter at our business, which drives us to innovate more.

3) Focus on long term goals.

When building a business, you should focus on long-term goals/ After all, the short-and medium-term goals are usually already set in stone and being acted upon. Setting long terms goal is a strategy that will allow you to get good at sensing change and will enable you to create more opportunities for smarter strategic moves. For example, Style Salute launched in January 2017, however, it has been a long-term goal of ours to translate the SHOP/Style Salute section of our site into a mobile app and to work directly with our best performing retail partners. With this goal in mind, we have strategically built out the shopping pages on the website and we know what goals and objectives to focus on.

4) Know your audience well, inside and out.

Nobody likes to be type-casted. Know your audience intimately. Know their daily routines, their desires, what they spend money on, and what turns them off. Know them so well that you will be predict what they want next.

5) Pick something you’re passionate about

It sounds so cliché, but picking something you’re passionate about is everything. You have to personally be driven by the mission of your company and what you’re doing. As an entrepreneur, we live our work and, and it’s important to have a mission and personal purpose that can serve as your motivations through the triumphs and setbacks.

Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this.

This is a tough one. There are so many people I would love to meet! But, if I have to choose one person today, it would be Arianna Huffington. For me, meeting Arianna Huffington wouldn’t be just about learning from her success, it would be hearing more about her personal stories and set backs and what she learned from them. She spoke at my college graduation and I remember sitting in my seat, under the scorching sun at the University of Southern California thinking, I want to be like her.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

“Inexperience Is An Asset” 5 Tips For Female Founders With Keemia Ferasat CEO Of Style Salute was originally published in Thrive Global on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Steven Auerbach, CEO of Alegeus, the leading consumer healthcare funding platform, about how he’s helping empower consumers to manage their ever-growing responsibility for their healthcare finances. According to data from Aite Group, consumers will spend about $477B in out of pocket medical expenses in 2018. I therefore checked in with Steven to hear how he and his team at Alegeus are helping alleviate this problem via engagement and education.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! What is your “backstory”?

Growing up an only child in an adopted family had its challenges and benefits. Looking back, the healthcare system wasn’t as helpful as it could have been due to its poor positioning and design. Through my experience and that of my family, I became fascinated in understanding how to make something work better and passionate about supporting consumers within the healthcare system. The intersection of these two personality traits drove my career to work in this space, and now I am at the pinnacle of my career helping consumers confront the most common challenge in healthcare today — affording medical costs.

So what exactly does your company do?

Alegeus empowers consumers to better manage their healthcare finances. We are the market leader in consumer-directed healthcare (CDH) solutions, powering more than 30 million consumers and 225,000 employer groups. We offer the most comprehensive platform for the administration of healthcare benefit accounts (including FSAs, HSAs, HRAs, etc.) and the industry’s most widely-used benefit debit card, accounting for $9.1 billion in consumer healthcare payments annually. The platform also offers powerful engagement solutions that help consumers get the most value out of their healthcare dollars.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Growing internal talent is a passion. Our ACEs program is a yearlong mentorship program for the company’s most talented and promising employees. Each participant works alongside an executive to develop and execute a project that moves the business forward. One such graduate implemented a business strategy to increase adoption and usage of account-based products within the company’s existing client base, resulting in a promotion and new offering on our platform.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

We celebrate success at Alegeus. When we landed a major new logo, we had a Luau Day across our offices with hula dancers, leis, Hawaiian print shirts — the works. The senior management team thought it would be a good idea to replicate the hula dance, and let’s just say that staying on beat isn’t their strong suit.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?

There are three people that come to mind when I reflect on who has made the greatest impact on my career:

1. Katherine Booker: At ChannelPoint, Katherine asked me to manage 120 people, and I couldn’t picture myself in this type of role. She said “You can handle this; you will be great. Call me if you need help, but you won’t need to.” Her words validated that she had more confidence in me than I had in myself. Following her advice, I took the position, pivoted my career, and uncovered my passion to impact employee talent.

2. Dave Astar: I worked with Dave at United Healthcare. He is by far one of the smartest business executive I’ve interacted with. He has an unparalleled passion for data and accuracy and only tolerates the most efficient and scalable processes. This taught me the value of using analytics to steer a company in the right direction.

3. Tom Erikson: I worked with Tom at a private equity firm, and he taught me a key to success that sticks with me to this day. As a CEO many-times-over, Tom said “the person in the market wins, and the person in the office loses. Get close to the market and your competitors and you will always make right decisions.” As a result, I spend a substantial amount of my time out in the field.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

Outside of empowering consumers to take a more active role in their healthcare, I try to help bring goodness to the world by grooming the amazing talent at Alegeus. We hope to empower our employees to be more successful than they can imagine.

Because Alegeus is growing rapidly, associates can rise to director and VP levels quickly. Individuals are taking advantage of this and living up to their potential. In Q3 of 2017, we promoted 40 people.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became CEO” and why?

1. Get the right team in place, fast: Having the right people in the right role is the #1 indicator of success. We use a “fast fail” approach at Alegeus. Without this, the business stalls and both the company and our clients feel it.

2. Have confidence in results and a conviction to build the future: Many times, businesses must take a leap — build a new facility, invest in a different product — before revenue is recognized. To see the opportunity come to fruition, it takes confidence and conviction. We opened our Orlando office in January of 2016, and I wanted to start with a large facility. There were concerns about the size of the space and the time it would take to expand to fill the space. I trusted my decision, and I’m proud to say that as of the first of this month, we have doubled the size of our Orlando office.

3. Trust but validate: As CEO, employees often tell you what they think you want to hear. While I trust my employees, I still check behind the scenes to confirm we operate with our eyes wide open. I do this by pressure-testing the business, such as calling clients direct, listening to support calls, going to client visits, or rotating through our product experience.

4. Everyone is in sales: Associates across Alegeus understand that revenue supports the business. Regardless of the specific role, we are all here to service our customers and do it exceptionally well. When clients are happy, revenue flows.

5. Blur the lines of business and family: Being the CEO of a growing company, I get to know every employee on a personal level. It feels like I have adopted a family. These relationships help build trust and loyalty amongst the Alegeus family and it gives me a deepened level of empathy and understanding

Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this :-)

Hands-down, Richard Branson. I admire his fascinating career as a successful risk-taker with numerous marquee brands and even some unsuccessful ones. He is not only a great business person but also a great human being. He understands marketing, sales and entrepreneurism, and he has the confidence to create amazing brands and experiences.

“Have Confidence In Results And A Conviction To Build The Future” Words Of Wisdom With Steven… was originally published in Thrive Global on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

“There is strength in vulnerability.”

I had the pleasure to interview Sam Bernards, CEO at Purple, one of the fastest growing mattress companies that is revolutionizing the comfort industry. Purple has grown from 30 to 600 employees in less than two years and is on track to becoming the next billion-dollar-company in Utah.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! What is your “backstory”?

I’ve always had an affinity for entrepreneurship. I’ve been involved with eight companies as a founder, co-founder, or part of the starting team — and most of them failed. I’ve got the battle wounds on my back from those failures. I’ve been through the earliest of early stages and the maturest of global organizations. I’ve seen the unique strengths and common challenges throughout. I believe entrepreneurship is about creating opportunities and taking advantage of market circumstances, and there are opportunities everywhere to make a difference.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

Recently my team and I were talking to a major U.S. retailer about a potential partnership. Our beds are really unique, so I encourage everyone I meet with to lay down on the mattress for a minute or two, so they understand the product. This big-wig retailer CEO laid down, and then never got up. We had the whole meeting — everyone in suits talking serious business — with this CEO laying down on a Purple® Bed the whole time. It was a hilarious sight to see, but speaks to how ridiculously comfortable our beds are.

So what exactly does your company do?

We are a comfort technology company. We combine innovative material science with highly engineered design to make the most comfortable products in the world. Right now, our hero product is a mattress, which we sell direct-to-consumer. We also have an amazing pillow, seat cushions, sheets, and other sleep-related products. Currently, we’re working on expanding our offerings so we can bring comfort to people during every minute of their lives.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

We manufacture our Purple material — called Hyper-Elastic Polymer™ — at our two production facilities in Utah. We own the formula and the design of our products, which means there is literally nothing else like our products on the market. Unlike most mattress companies that just use some combination of foam and memory foam, we have a patented technology on our bed. And that technology, which is the product of 20 years of engineering, has been designed to make pressure a non-issue and maximize comfort.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?

I’ve been fortunate to have many mentors throughout my career, but there are two who stand out. Sid Krommenhoek and Jeff Burningham at Peak Ventures have that rare combination of grit, hustle, vision and fearlessness. They pulled me in and together we created what I still view as one of the best venture capital groups in Utah.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

At Purple, we have a big goal to help one billion people feel better through our products. We have many opportunities to do that through our patented technology that has a long and successful medical history, our bed donations to people in need, and through our humorous commercials that bring smiles to people’s faces.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became CEO” and why?

There is strength in vulnerability — When you deal with human emotions in challenging environments where mistakes are being made and there are extraordinarily high expectations, there is power in being human and vulnerable with your team and being able to say, “I don’t know, let’s figure it out together.”

Alignment of the executive team is critical — They fundamentally have to believe what we are achieving in the moment. The power of alignment is incredible and it cascades out through the entire company. A tiny deviation has huge ramifications.

Entrepreneurship can feel like the zombie apocalypse — I’ve always had a soft spot for the zombie apocalypse. There’s something about the extreme odds being against you and having to find a way to prevail anyways that draws me in. I didn’t realize how much entrepreneurship would feel the same way.

Find ways to connect better — It’s a challenge being a CEO. Every single second of my day is occupied by other people, and that environment makes it difficult to interact with the 600 employees at Purple. I’ve had to find ways to connect and be available even when I can’t give everyone face time who needs it.

Team is everything — When a team is in motion, magic is in the air, and it makes my heart soar. The Purple t-shirt I wear everyday is the same shirt everyone on our production floor wears. Something as simple as feeling like one united team creates a sense of comradery, cohesiveness, connection and hustle on the manufacturing floor that I don’t see in a lot of offices.

Some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this :-)

Jeff Bezos is a true entrepreneur. He can envision a better future and inspire teams to change the world. He’s had great success, but has achieved much of it through encouraging patience, and helping people to see the vision he sees. That spirit ignites my imagination and inspires me.

A CEO Who Is Revolutionizing The Comfort Industry was originally published in Thrive Global on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Starting up your own company is just the beginning of an incredible journey.

Is starting your own company worth it? Definitely!

Usually, it doesn’t work. More startups fail than succeed. Only a small percentage of startups will become unicorns — the rest will be donkeys.

But when you do achieve success — creating a profitable, sustainable business — it’s remarkable. I’ve had the good fortune to learn this first-hand at WordStream, the company I founded.

Success will look different for everyone. But here are 21 signs of success you will experience on your startup journey.

Once you start seeing these 21 things you’ll know that your company is well on its way to success — or maybe you’ll realize you’ve actually already made it.

1. Hiring Employee #1

I knew my company was on its way after I hired my first employee and began a period of serious business growth. In the early days, nobody wanted to join my one-man show. But life became much easier after establishing some early wins and communicating a vision talented people could buy into!

2. Series A Funding

I knew my company was on its way when I no longer had to spend all of my own money building it and work in a Panera Bread for the free WiFi. A Series A Round is the first real validation of your vision. Someone thinks your company is worth millions and is willing to give you money to get a piece of it. Little did I know that this was merely the beginning of a long journey!

3. Consistent Sales Performance

I knew my company was on its way when we started making 2–3 sales per day. Early on, it was very uncomfortable when halfway through the month there were zero sales or maybe one sale. People were super stressed when a week went by without a sale. But reaching this point of consistent sales performance was so great!

4. $1 Million Per Year in Revenue

I knew my company had made it when we were making $83,333 per month, or $1 million per year. This was a BIG deal — we hit this milestone within our first year or so!

5. Your First Award

I knew my company had made it when I won my first award. In 2009, the MITX Technology Awards named WordStream a finalist in the online advertising category. We didn’t win. I was bummed — but disappointment quickly turned to elation when we won an unannounced award category — the MITX Promise Award at the end of the evening for being a promising early stage startup. Now my company wins so many awards it’s kind of ridiculous!

6. Industry People Know You

I knew my company had made it when people in my own industry came up to me and knew who I was. I didn’t have to introduce myself. This happened at the first marketing conference I ever attended — SMX East — in 2013. It was at this point I realized the millions of people who read our blog were people in real life and knew about my company — a great feeling!

7. Joining Inc. as a Columnist

I knew my company had made it when I became a regular Inc. columnist. Up until that point, the whole process of publishing was difficult. It involved pitching editors to get their attention. Now things are reversed — editors of various publications pitch me on why I should write for them!

8. Appearing on Television

I knew my company had made it when a Fox Business News producer emailed us an interview request. They wanted me to appear on national TV after I published a timely and newsworthy article. Success means making your own luck — it’s amazing what a lot of time and hustle can do!

9. Your Drink Deliveries Are THIS BIG!

I knew my company made it when we got a drink fridge and soda deliveries were this big. Twice a week!

10. You Don’t Know All Your Social Media Followers

I knew my company had made it when I didn’t personally know most of the people who interacted with our social media accounts. It used to mostly be industry friends, my mom, and my wife who would engage with our stuff on social media — now I have no clue who half these people are!

11. Profitability!

I knew my company had made it when, just over two years ago, we finally started making more money than we spent (EBITA!). Most businesses — even massive companies — have yet to make a dime. Until you get to this point, you have to worry about your burn rate (e.g. you’re burning $200,000 to $300,000 a month more then you brought in for the month). Now we’re making money every month!

12. A Ping Pong Table!

I knew my company had made it when I discovered we had a ping pong table. What a great surprise!

13. You Hire an In-House Recruiter

I knew my company had made it when I looked at my 2015 budget and it required the hiring of one employee per week — and an in-house recruiter to find those people. I was like “whaaaaaat?” But it was totally worth it. Hiring someone in-house was 4x cheaper than paying outside recruiters!

14. You Have In-House Training Staff

I knew my company had made it when we hired people whose entire job was to train the people who handle our sales and customer success. It’s kind of like being the Battlestar Pegasus from the TV show “Battlestar Galactica,” which had self-contained production facilities for new Vipers and Raptors to make up for any combat losses. Yes, we basically have an entire training company within our main company!

15. Who Are These People?

I knew my company had made it when I no longer knew everyone who was working for my company. I know most of them, of course, but once we grew past 100 employees (we’re currently 200 strong and growing) and started having offices on three different floors, and people starting every week, and me traveling for business, it became almost impossible to know everyone anymore!

16. Team Building = Renting an Island

I knew my company had made it when we rented a Boston Harbor Island for a company party. This team building effort would have seemed pretty kooky a few years ago, but when you have 200 employees (and if they each bring a guest or two) then it starts to make more sense!

17. Your Company Doesn’t Need You

I knew my company had made it when it got to the point that my company no longer needed me. My company doesn’t skip a beat if I’m not in a meeting or, more importantly, when I’m on vacation with my family!

18. Spending Millions for Office Space

I knew my company had made it when we started spending millions for office space in Boston. My Series A round was just $4 million and I thought that was an unfathomable amount. Now we spend almost as much in rent.

19. 26 Conference Rooms? Seriously?!

I knew my company had made it when I counted the total number of conference rooms at the new WordStream offices: 26. What!?

Holy moly! I think the new wordstream offices have 26 conference rooms!

20. Random People on the Street Recognize You

I knew my company had made it when one of my Uber drivers said he recognized me. He told me he reads me all the time on Medium — how crazy is that?!

21. Getting Acquired or Going Public

No, this one hasn’t happened yet for me, being acquired or going public is a sure sign your company has made it.

Building a startup isn’t just about making tons of money. As a founder, it’s about creating value in terms of the utility you provide to customers, the jobs you provide to your employees, and the promises you made to your investors.

I might think I’ve created a lot of value, but I’m biased. Being acquired is a really strong validation from an external perspective. In the case of going public, it’s even more valuable because your value isn’t being decided from a single perspective — it’s the market’s perspective of the value you’ve been able to create!

Have you seen any of these 21 signs of success? What other signs of success have you experienced during your startup company journey?

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About The Author

Larry Kim is the CEO of Mobile Monkey and founder of WordStream. You can connect with him on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Originally Published on Inc.com

Here Are 21 Signs Your Company Has Made It was originally published in The Mission on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.