OUTWORK EVERYONE | Brutally Honest Business Advice from Billionaire Mark Cuban

Summary

In this engaging script, the speaker emphasizes the importance of hard work, continuous learning, and strategic preparation in the business world. They stress the need for entrepreneurs to outperform competitors through effort and knowledge, highlighting the pitfalls of complacency. The speaker also shares insights on identifying potential for success in entrepreneurs, the value of education in business fundamentals, and the importance of self-awareness and a healthy dose of paranoia to stay ahead in the competitive landscape.

Takeaways

• 🏆 Outworking others is crucial for success. The speaker emphasizes the importance of working harder, being smarter, and being better prepared than everyone else in any industry.
• 🧠 Lack of brains and effort is identified as the primary reason for failure. People often do not put in the necessary work or learn about their industry, leading to their downfall in competition.
• 💡 Success in business requires continuous learning and adaptation. The speaker stresses the importance of staying ahead by always learning more about the industry and business.
• 🤝 Being well-prepared and knowledgeable about one's business is essential to outperform competitors who may also be well-informed.
• 🔮 Entrepreneurs should have a healthy level of paranoia about the competition, always anticipating and preparing for others' moves to stay ahead.
• 🎓 Education, particularly in business fundamentals like accounting and finance, is important for entrepreneurs. It provides the necessary language and understanding to navigate the business world effectively.
• 📚 Learning how to learn is a critical skill that the speaker highlights as more important than any specific knowledge gained in school, due to the ever-changing nature of business.
• 🚀 The speed of business growth depends on understanding one's skill set and the company's life cycle, knowing when to slow down and when to ramp up efforts.
• 💼 The speaker shares personal anecdotes about the importance of doing the work oneself, from making sales calls to picking up trash, setting an example for others in the organization.
• 🤔 The quality of questions an entrepreneur asks can reveal their level of preparation and understanding of their business, which can be a predictor of success or failure.
• 🔄 Continuous learning and the thirst for knowledge are vital for staying competitive. The speaker warns that not learning can lead to being overtaken by others in the industry.

Q & A

What is the key to success in any industry according to the transcript?

Outworking everyone, being smarter, a better salesperson, and better prepared than everyone else are the keys to success.

What does the speaker suggest is the number one reason for people's failure in business?

Lack of brains and effort, meaning they don't do the work, they don't learn, and they're not prepared.

Why is it important to understand your competition in business?

Understanding your competition is crucial because they know your business as well as you do, and if they know more, you're likely to lose.

What does the speaker emphasize about the importance of continuous learning in business?

Continuous learning is vital because if you're not learning and someone else is, they will outperform you.

How can you determine if someone is likely to succeed as an entrepreneur in a short interview?

You can tell by their passion, focus, and preparation, and by how many of the 1000 influencing factors of a business they've addressed.

What does the speaker suggest is a sign of a potential failure in entrepreneurship?

Asking basic questions that should have been known beforehand indicates a lack of preparation and could be a sign of potential failure.

Why does the speaker believe in having a healthy level of paranoia in business?

A healthy level of paranoia helps anticipate other people's moves and prevents underestimating the competition.

What is the speaker's opinion on the importance of formal education for running a business?

The speaker believes that understanding subjects like accounting and finance is crucial, and formal education can provide that foundational knowledge.

What skill did the speaker find most valuable from his time at Indiana University?

The speaker found the skill of learning how to learn to be the most valuable, as it's essential for adapting to the ever-changing business landscape.

How does the speaker approach the growth of a business?

The speaker emphasizes the importance of understanding your skill set, finding the right place to use those skills, and then going for it, starting with getting the first customer.

What is the speaker's view on the idea that 'perfection is the enemy of profitability'?

The speaker agrees with the idea, suggesting that it's not necessary to wait for a perfect product to start making sales, but rather to focus on what customers are willing to commit to.

Outlines

00:00

💼 The Importance of Effort and Knowledge in Business Success

The speaker emphasizes the significance of hard work, continuous learning, and preparation in achieving success in any industry. They stress that outworking and outsmarting competitors is crucial, as is having a deep understanding of one's own business and industry. The speaker also highlights the importance of being able to anticipate and outmaneuver competitors, suggesting that a lack of effort and knowledge are the primary reasons for business failure. They share their belief that one can quickly assess an entrepreneur's potential for success by their passion, focus, and level of preparation, and they advocate for a healthy level of paranoia as a driver for continuous improvement and adaptation to the ever-changing business landscape.

05:00

🎓 The Value of Education in Entrepreneurship

The speaker discusses the importance of formal education, particularly in subjects like accounting, finance, and marketing, for aspiring entrepreneurs. They argue that having a foundational understanding of these areas is essential for running a business effectively and making informed decisions. The speaker also shares their belief that learning how to learn is a critical skill, given the constant changes in the business world. They touch on the topic of business growth, suggesting that the speed of growth depends on understanding one's skill set and the life cycle of the business. The speaker also shares personal anecdotes about their early business ventures, illustrating the value of hands-on experience and the hustle required to build a successful enterprise.

Keywords

💡Outwork

Outworking refers to putting in more effort and work than others to achieve success. In the video's context, it's about surpassing competitors by dedicating more time and energy to one's business. The speaker emphasizes that if someone else is willing to outwork you, they might take away your success, highlighting the importance of constant effort and hard work.

💡Salesperson

A salesperson is an individual who sells goods or services. The script mentions being a better salesperson than others as a key to success, indicating the importance of sales skills in business. The speaker implies that effective sales can differentiate one's business and contribute to its growth and success.

💡Preparation

Preparation in this context means being ready and equipped with the necessary knowledge or materials for a task or situation. The video emphasizes the importance of being better prepared than others as a strategy for success in business. It suggests that thorough preparation can provide a competitive edge.

💡Competition

Competition refers to the rivalry between individuals or businesses striving for the same objective or market share. The transcript discusses the inevitability of competition in business and the necessity to understand and outperform competitors. It is a central theme, illustrating the need for continuous learning and improvement to stay ahead.

💡Lack of Effort

Lack of effort is identified in the video as a primary reason for failure. It denotes an insufficient commitment to work or a task. The speaker criticizes those who do not put in the necessary work to learn and excel in their industry, which is a key message of the video, emphasizing the importance of dedication and hard work.

💡Brains

In the context of the video, 'brains' symbolize intelligence, knowledge, and strategic thinking. It is mentioned alongside effort as a critical factor for success. The speaker suggests that smart work, or using one's intelligence effectively, is as important as hard work in achieving business success.

💡Paranoia

Paranoia, in the business context of the video, is a healthy level of concern about competitors and the market. It is portrayed as a driving force that pushes one to stay ahead and be proactive in anticipating and countering threats. The speaker uses it to illustrate the importance of vigilance in business.

💡Accounting

Accounting is the systematic recording of financial transactions related to a business. The speaker argues that understanding accounting is fundamental for running a business, as it provides insights into financial health. It is presented as a necessary skill for entrepreneurs to manage and grow their ventures effectively.

💡Learning

Learning, as discussed in the video, is a continuous process of acquiring new knowledge and skills. The transcript emphasizes the importance of having a thirst for learning and the ability to adapt to the ever-changing business landscape. It is a key component of the speaker's philosophy on business success.

💡Commitment

Commitment in the video refers to the assurance or promise from customers to engage with a product or service. The speaker talks about seeking commitment as a way to validate and grow a business, illustrating the importance of building trust and reliability with customers.

💡Season Ticket Holders

Season ticket holders are customers who purchase tickets for all games of a sports team for a season. The speaker uses this term to narrate his personal experience of building a customer base from scratch for the Dallas Mavericks, emphasizing the importance of direct engagement and personal effort in business growth.

Highlights

The importance of outworking others and being smarter and better prepared to increase one's chances of success.

The saying 'work like someone is trying to take it all away from you' as a driving force for success.

Lack of brains and effort as the primary reasons for failure in business.

The necessity of understanding one's industry and competition to succeed.

The value of continuous learning and knowledge acquisition in business.

The ability to assess an entrepreneur's potential through a 5-10 minute interview.

The significance of passion, focus, and preparation in evaluating an entrepreneur's potential.

The importance of asking the right questions as a reflection of one's preparation and learning.

The concept of 'paranoia' as a motivator for continuous improvement and competition awareness.

The role of self-awareness in understanding one's strengths and weaknesses in business.

The dismissal of the idea that dropping out of school is beneficial for entrepreneurship.

The necessity of understanding accounting and finance as fundamental to running a business.

The benefits of formal education in learning the language of business.

The importance of learning how to learn as a key takeaway from higher education.

Strategies for increasing the speed of business growth, including understanding one's skill set and market needs.

The concept of 'perfection is the enemy of profitability' and the importance of releasing a product to gain customer feedback.

The method of seeking low-hanging fruit for initial customer commitments to fuel business growth.

Personal anecdotes of starting businesses at a young age and the lessons learned from early entrepreneurial experiences.

The belief in the combination of natural talent, discipline, and focus as key to success in any field.

Transcripts

Whatever industry you pick if you outwork everybody,

if you try to be a little smarter than everybody,

if you try to be a better sales person than everybody,

if you try to be better prepared than everybody

you've got your best chance

because if you don't do it and somebody else does

you know, I have this saying,

work like someone is trying to take it all away from you.

You know, work like, actually work like someone is spending 24 hours,

working 24 hours to take it all away from you.

And that's kind of the way I look at it.

What would you say is the number 1 reason why people fail?

- Lack of brains, lack of effort - Lack of brains, lack of effort?

Yeah, they just, they don't do the work, they don't learn, you know.

When you walk in the room, when you start a business

and you start to talk about somebody,

you're never in a vaccum with no competition.

You know, unless you're just extremely lucky

and if there's going to be competition

that means somebody else knows your business

as well as you do when you get started.

And if you walk into a competitive environment

and they still know more about the business than you do,

more about your customers you're going to lose.

But most people don't consider that

they don't do the work, they don't learn more about their industry

they don't know even about their business, I mean...

and so you've got to put in the effort

to know more about your industry than anybody else.

Umm... and that's- that's the brains part and that's the effort part as well

because look, if you're competing with me

you- you better know what you're doing otherwise I’m going to kick your but

You know, and you're not going to outwork me.

And so you know, the combination is usually what kills businesses

early on more than anything else.

You could within a 5-10 minute interview say,

this dude is not going to make it as an entrepreneur?

Yeah, I mean I can, I can typically tell.

Right. I can tell, umm...

by their passion, I can tell by their focus,

I can tell by their preparation.

You know, there's a whole realm of things in any business.

Here, you know, here's- here's the business you're in

and here's a thousand things that influence

whether or not you're going to be successful.

You know, through my experience in businesses

I can put myself in his position and say, okay

here are 900 of the 1000 things he has to be aware of

and then go through and ask

and by how many of those or her...

issues they've been able to address already

that kind of gives me a sense of how hard they're willing to work.

You know, and I can tell by the questions they ask me

so all I have to do is say "Okay, what do you want to know?"

and you know when they start saying "What should I do?"

- They ask you? - Yeah, yeah and that's fine, right?

And I want them to ask questions but... you know, people like to say

you know, the only stupid questions

are the ones you don't, the ones you don't ask and that's not right

right? Because the questions you ask tell me, tell whoever

more about you than anything else you do.

Because in particular, it tells me about your preparation.

If you ask me questions about just basic things that you should have known

and you should have down to a science

that's going to disqualify you almost more than anything.

If you're not always learning, if to this minute

if- if I’m not continuously learning,

if I’m not just absorbing as much as I can absorb

someone else is going to kick my butt

right? So you talked about paranoia

the greatest source of your paranoia should be knowledge.

If someone else knows more than you do

and if you're not learning, if you don't know to learn, if you don't know how to learn

if you don't have a thirst for learning and acquiring information

you're- you're SOL.

Do you think there needs to be a healthy level of paranoia?

- Absolutely. - There needs to be?

Oh yeah, I mean, I always say, you know

for every one of my businesses I say what would I do to kick my own butt?

Right, so whatever business you have

there's somebody trying to put you out of business.

There's somebody trying to to take a bite out of your business

and it's better for you to figure out how they're going to do it

rather than they do it.

And so yeah, that's being paranoid and so you have to be paranoid,

you have to anticipate other people's next moves.

And you can't ever, you know, downplay the competition.

I was at a business plan competition this morning for, at a college

and they were kind of being dismissive of the competition

and so you can't ever do that.

You know, they're out there trying to take you down

and they're not just going to sit still and if you're good, really, really good

you're going to inspire them to work even harder, faster, better.

And so, you have to be you know, very self-aware of what you're good at

and what other people are good at

and you know, a healthy dose of paranoia makes a big difference

I mean, is very helpful.

Let's transition to a different subject with college

- You went to IU? - Yep.

Right, now you got a lot of people that...

say, forget about school, you know, drop out of school.

- They're idiots, they're idiots. - So you think they're idiots,

- tell me why? - Umm...

If you're going to have and run a business,

if you don't understand accounting you're already behind the 8-ball.

Can't you hire a guy that's, that knows how to run-

but then, they still have to communicate to you.

Your accountant might tell you you're profitable

but your cash is going down.

You know, not understanding um, that breakdown

and- and when you don't...

do you think you need college to learn that?

Yeah, I think you do, right? Because it may not, for some people...

look if you're so self-motivated

that you can take an online course in accounting and teach yourself everything

you're way ahead of the game anyways but most people aren't.

I don't care if you go to a community college and take accounting

and spend 99 bucks for the class.

Just you know, spending the money forces you to be more obligated to do it

but accounting, finance, lesser extent marketing,

sales if the school offers that

these are all... that's the language of business.

And so while it's possible to teach yourself these things

and while it's possible to hire them

when you're starting your own company

you don't want to have to spend money hiring an accountant.

Well, let me tell you about if you've gone through all these classes

probably you don't have to hire a lawyer to incorporate, right?

You can probably figure it out yourself.

And so your cost of opening up a business drops

but even more important than all that that's- that's the blocking and tackling

that's the language of business.

You know, the thing I learned at Indiana that was more important than anything else

I learned how to learn.

And learning became far more important to me

because the one certainty in business is that it's always going to be changing.

How does one entrepreneur increase the speed

and areas that they can increase?

- There's certain things you can't control- - Speed in what way?

- Speed of growing your business. - Alright.

- So how fast can I grow- - Yeah, I mean it just depends

you've got to know your own skill set right?

And you've got to know how that fits within your company's life cycle.

You know some companies are slow, slow grind

and you just have to understand that

and you've just got to bide your time until it starts to click

and then grow with it quickly.

You know, if you're trying to release a product that needs to be ubiquitous

you've got to go as fast as you can

- and- and then, you know, - Release a product

yeah, yeah, and- and you know, there's a lot of people who say you know,

"perfection is the enemy of profitability"

right and that doesn't mean you have to wait until it's a perfect product.

It really just depends on what the product is, is it you know a barber shop

right? Is it an app, is it a service, is it a product

but you know, the- the key is looking for the low-hanging fruit

what are the... what are...

what customers are willing to write you a check or commit to it?

You know, so that they're willing to integrate it into their daily lives

or integrate it into their daily business.

And so getting a commitment either through time or revenue

is typically what I look for.

And so if I can get a commitment then I’m- I’m going to be able to learn,

I’m going to see how they use it so they sustain usage.

And then once I get the next one

you know, hopefully it came a little bit faster than the first one

then I can ask for referrals and then the next one, then the next one.

And I just try to ramp it up.

You know when I bought the Mavs we had no season ticket holder base

and so literally it was a matter of just

putting a list of former season ticket holders in a white pages back then

you know, on my desk next to my phone and making phone calls

- You? - Yeah, me.

Yeah, because if I’m not going to do it how can I expect someone else to do it right?

So just get on the phone, "Hey this is Mark Cuban

- I’m the new owner of the Dallas Mavericks." - Unbelievable.

You know, "I’d like to invite you back for-" -Unbelievable.

It's not though, this is my business-

But you- what you- you can't get regular sales guys or something

to make those calls once they get to a quarter?

You're a guy that's a billionaire you're making those calls.

Well, but that's all, you know, that's fine and good right?

Because everybody's got their own goals, right.

But still I don't want anybody at the Mavs

to be able to say, well, he's not willing to do the work, right.

There's you know, if I walk around I’m picking up all the papers

I’m not saying, go get that picked up, I’m like,

Okay, that's trash, I’m picking it up.

So, but in terms of speed of growth it's really...

you got to get that first customer first.

And then when you get that first what did you learn, reiterate

get that next customer.

And then hopefully as you learn more and more through the process

then the next one, the next one, the next one becomes come by even faster.

I alluded to it earlier about entrepreneurs being born or built

you know, and I think there...

I knew I was wired to be excited about business

how or why I don't know but...

you know, and there's certain guys they have the genetics to jump out of the gym

right? Certain guys you know, that...

you know, when they golf they have the muscle memory and the discipline

you know Dirk Nowitzski may not be the most talented guy in the NBA

but his discipline and his focus to do what's necessary to be successful,

he's willing to do and combine it with being 7 feet tall and being skilled

you know, it makes him an amazing basketball player.

So it's understanding what your skill set is,

finding the right place to use those skills

and then going for it.

You know, will that make you 250 grand?

It depends if you pick the right industry

you know, I started my first business when I was 12

I was buying and selling baseball cards, buying and selling stamps

anything I could do to make money. I was hustling and trying to do so

I was in the business but I- not so much where it was...

all my friends were into it with me, so they wouldn't know.

- Baseball cards. - Yeah, baseball cards

you name it, I mean I grew up in Pittsburgh

and so I would, probably even less than 12 years old I would

go up buy a bunch of baseball cards that I collected

and I would package

I would say okay, you're guaranteed to have a Pittsburgh Pirate in this package

and I would charge three times as much

and I’d set up on this park bench

down in the park down in Scott Township where I grew up

and I’d have these little sales

and it was great I made money and I mean it was...

you know, I learned as much about business

when I was 9, 10 and 12 as I learned any other time.