Start Before You Are Ready
We sit down with entrepreneur and branding guru Kendrick Co, Founder of Antidotebranding, Lagu, Early Bird Breakfast Club, and many more! In this episode we talk about his journey as a businessman and branding creative; and the values one must acquire to succeed in business and in life!
Kendrick Co graduated Masters in Marketing Communications at 2006 then went to work for an advertising company. Even back then, he really envisions himself to work deeply into branding which wasn’t this widespread and known unlike today. He wasn’t able to work on that field right away because of the lack of background on it. But after being unemployed for months, at the age of 23, he decided to start his own company. “I don’t know yet what I am doing this time. It took me awhile to start getting clients.”, as Kendrick says picturing the start of his career.
Kendrick On Starting His Venture
How did you figure out it was what you wanted to do?
I’ve been really interested in entrepreneurship for the longest time. I started looking around and searching for my prospects. How I thought about it? It’s out of necessity. I really had to go out there! (KC)
The industry of branding has really changed this past couple of years. And right now, personal branding has been more accepted to talk about it now because of the rise of different social media platforms that caters to showcase talents that could need brandings. Personal branding is your reputation.
How important is branding nowadays?
Branding is the most important aspect of the business more than marketing. If you do your branding really well, you don’t need to spend more on marketing or advertising. It will be easier for you to market because you have a story to tell. (KC)
From everything that Kendrick works with, we can see tinges of his love for the country. And he actually says that seeing all these problems, through his products, he always want to find ways on how to improve this world with his own means.
“If you do your branding really well, you don’t need to spend more on marketing or advertising.”
Advice for Young Entrepreneurs
What would you tell someone who want to star a venture?
Start with the concept of Ikigai: know what you’re good, where can you make money from and what does the world needs. Know the answers to these questions and that’s where you draw your path. It’s so easy to get pulled into different directions when you don’t know yet what you want to do. Spend time with yourself and ask “What makes you happy? What makes you fulfilled?” (KC)
Most people want to leave their current job because they want to start something, but actually it’s about finding out what we should be doing first. If we don’t know yet who we are, what makes us happy, fulfilled, what our skill sets are, and we don’t know yet how to turn it into business, then maybe, we need to spend more time reflecting and thinking.
What is the first investment you made that has helped you?
In terms of equipment, there’s nothing big I had invested since I have some resources before, but it’s really investing in yourself, in really learning about branding, business, etc. Sometimes it doesn’t make sense, but you have to give your all to whatever you’re doing right now because you don’t know how will it help you down the line. Go to the process. Let yourself go through the hard process. Where were you are right now, work as much as you can. (KC)
Millennials are dubbed as job hoppers. They get the reputation that they like to quit before the job is done because they’re afraid of discomfort. And some people don’t want to work for free. But in reality, we should be humble, get that opportunity, and work on our skills and connections first because at the end of the day. As what Kendrick says, we don’t know how these things will work for us and will help us along the way. And a lot of people right now also want to pursue the business side because it's not the money that we make, but it’s really the legacy that we will make and leave for our children and our family and the effect that we will make on other people. These things will really fuel one to start a venture.
“Everything that you go through in life can either be a lesson for you or something that pushes you towards a direction that you want to be at. ”
What would be your advice to younger people?
If you know what you want to do, ready or not, just start because you really won’t be fully prepared. You won’t really be ready enough. Entrepreneurship is like jumping off a cliff and assembling your parachute all the way down. Even people who have doing business over the years are still assembling their parachutes. You really won’t have all the answers anyway so don’t bother try to figure out the complete puzzle before you start. Whatever you have right now, start and see what it leads. (KC)
“Entrepreneurship is like jumping off a cliff and assembling your parachute all the way down. ”
From Episode 45 of Adulting with Joyce Pring: “START BEFORE YOU ARE READY FT. KENDRICK CO”:
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Adulting With Joyce Pring is the How-To’s of your 20’s told by a 20-something, traversing through life expectantly and with gusto!
Episode summary by Chiara
Soli Deo Gloria!