510: How to Create Pain Killer Products | Guy Kawasaki
May 3, 2024
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Guy Kawasaki, a tech evangelist and author who shaped the startup landscape at Apple with Steve Jobs, shares invaluable insights after eight years. He discusses what creates 'painkiller' products that truly resonate with customers and emphasizes the importance of addressing real pain points. Kawasaki reflects on the growth mindset of remarkable individuals and humorous anecdotes, like being mistaken for Jackie Chan. He also explores the significance of resilience, evangelism marketing, and the surprising lessons from failure that all entrepreneurs can learn from.
Creating painkiller products requires a deep understanding of customer needs and often involves working backwards from feedback for successful innovation.
Embracing a growth mindset and achieving small successes are crucial for building confidence and resilience in entrepreneurial journeys.
Deep dives
The Value of Tough Leadership
Working under demanding leaders can be a significant learning experience for entrepreneurs. Despite the common perception of Steve Jobs as a difficult boss, the insights gained from his tough coaching have proven invaluable over time. The speaker reflects on how such leaders compel individuals to constantly prove their capabilities and push their limits. This mindset can cultivate resilience and a growth-oriented perspective essential for success in business.
Navigating Career Transitions
The journey from one career to another can often be unpredictable and challenging. The speaker discusses their early career in the jewelry business and how the sales skills learned there laid the groundwork for future success in technology and entrepreneurship. Embracing a growth mindset allows for adaptability and reinvention, key traits that can lead to new opportunities. Even when faced with numerous rejections, persistence and flexibility in career aspirations can ultimately lead to significant achievements.
Creating Exceptional Products
The fundamental driver behind successful products is a deep understanding of customer needs. Innovators often start by building what they want to use themselves, ensuring that the product has genuine market demand. Alternatively, working backwards from customer feedback can guide product development more effectively than pushing personal preferences onto the market. This principle distinguishes successful ventures, like Canva, which effectively addresses real pain points experienced by users rather than simply offering a polished version of existing products.
Confidence Through Incremental Success
Building confidence is a gradual process that requires achieving small, manageable goals. Entrepreneurs are encouraged to start with low-risk projects to gain initial victories, which serve as stepping stones to larger ambitions. This approach allows for skill enhancement and willingness to take on greater challenges over time. By celebrating small successes, founders can cultivate resilience and a stronger belief in their capabilities.
At 67, Guy Kawasaki is still evangelizing about products. After building a tech career at Apple under Steve Jobs, Kawasaki set out on a winding career path, including founding startups, giving viral Ted Talks, investing in unicorns like Canva, and writing 16 books. Eight years after his last podcast appearance, Nathan Chan catches up with Kawasaki to distill his decades of wisdom down to the essential functions of creating a painkiller product that people love.
In this interview you’ll learn:
The two key functions of entrepreneurs
Why remarkable people have a growth mindset
When Steve Jobs tricked Guy while working at Apple
Getting mistaken for Jackie Chan
What makes a mission-led a**hole worth working for
How to create painkiller products for customers
To build confidence in small successes
Why failure is okay, but you should try and prevent it
What is evangelism marketing and how to use it for business
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