Loading...
Answers
MenuThere is this billionaire that I know. I need a job but I am too afraid to ask him for one, plus he is located on a different continent.
We meet once and got along well. I told him that I am working successfully with some of my projects, but the reality is that by now most of them have crashed. I am worried that when I tell him about my failed projects I will lose the credibility I have with him. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Answers
Hi,
I have worked with, interviewed, and sold to extremely successful people following a few simple principles. It can be scary, but preparation will help you manage the fear.
Here are my thoughts:
First, consider why you want to work for him. How will you benefit from a job with him? Don't assume that it is a good fit for you just because he is a billionaire. Are you doing it just because you need income? Or do you want mentorship? Get really clear on why this would be good for you.
Once you are convinced that this is a good fit for you, think about why it would be valuable to him. Why would working for him be a mutually beneficial situation? Are there any gaps in his business that you would be able to fill? Do you see an area that would be improved if you were working on it for him?
Once you have determined that working together would be a good situation for both of you, then ask for a phone or video chat meeting. From here, you want to have some quality questions for him that both demonstrate your expertise and help you confirm it is a good fit.
One last piece of advice: The purpose of your meeting with him is not to convince him to hire you, it is to find out if it is a good fit for both of you. This mindset will help you make a decision together instead of you being at his mercy.
If you would like extra help with the specifics, I would be happy to have a call with you. I have done this many times, and I know that it can be intimidating. Let me know if I can help in any way.
What kind of job are you looking for? Show him you are a forward thinker and are capable, and surprise him by taking action. Maybe you see something that needs a fresh eye or input ie copywriting, design, or a system restructure. Impress him.
Just ask. I doubt he's never had a project go sour, so admitting an idea (or two) didn't work out doesn't hurt your credibility. Honestly, it might HELP your credibility.
One of my closest friends landed his first writing job at 19 by emailing the then-editor of his favorite magazine and asking, "How can I get your job?"
I thought he was nuts. No way he'd get a response. But he did. And then he got a job offer.
I also went to a friend of mine, the CEO of a large company — after turning down a job offer years ago — asked him if he'd still be interested in working with me. I had to swallow my pride to do it. But he was, and I got a long-term contract that's hugely improved my quality of life.
If you never ask, you may protect your pride, but you'll definitely never get the job. So you really have nothing to lose: if you ask, you might not get the job; if you don't ask, you'll definitely not get the job.
You're probably better off playing the odds, and I'd say your odds of getting a job are significantly higher if you take a chance, be honest about your situation, and ask. :)
Good luck!
I have had plenty of opportunities to convert "failures" into opportunities to
learn and grow - which they are, one way or another.
Remember neither failure nor success is ever final...
Here are two things to consider:
Q1: What did you learn from those failures? No one will dish for you failures, but most will respect you for having
transparency and clarity about what you learned and how you will apply this learning to your future goals.
Instead of asking for a job - ask yourself:
Q2: "How can I add value to him / his company/companies? (You'll want to do research around this)
When you are able to answer that cogently - and how what value you can offer is in alignment with your future goals and trajectory, then I would consider yourself ready to craft a communication to him to reach out with a clear offer and request.
I hope this helps, and would be happy to talk more if you feel inspired.
Best,
Mathias
Don't assume the billionaire is the best person in general for you to be talking to about your path or next step or he/she will have The Thing for you any more than someone you know very well or in your closer network.
That said if he/she has company(s) then find one you fit best in and perhaps a role that they are looking to fill that you fit well. Then apply for it or reach out to other people that are in that company.
Once you apply or connect THEN ping your billionaire with "hey just wanted to let you know, I've always be intrigued with your success/companies etc and I applied (or trying to connect with) to join...."
I think you have a powerful opportunity here. Yes, he is a billionaire, but that means he is also human. Communication is a powerful tool, so this will be a great learning experience regardless of the outcome.
I would just reach out to him and let him know all of the things that you learned on your projects, what you did to try to save them, what you are interested in now, and then tie that into what he is doing (do your homework). If you tell him how you can fix HIS problem then he will be open to your work.
Worst case scenario, you are in the same situation. This is just a good way of acting in a place of diplomacy. Boldness, yet humbleness.
Also, because you are feeling the way you are about this particular individual, I would challenge you to start having conversations with "power players" on a weekly basis. This will help you to get out there, get some bumps and bruises, and play in the arena.
I can help you come up with a full "grand strategy" if you are interested.
Everyone puts on their pants one leg at a time, so we're all roughly the same.
Just ask him if there's some task he just has a hard time getting done, that maybe you can help him accomplishing.
If not, ask him to just let you know if something comes up.
I've had many conversations like this over the years. Sometimes a conversation cooks/percolates for years, before the person converts to a client.
So...
Be relaxed. Just ask.
Oh... And ask a massive number of people.
Here's a trick...
Target looking for 100 no answers. (Geez, I think I heard this in Amway in another life.) Once you have 100 no answers, you have enough yes answers to have a very comfortable income.
Related Questions
-
What do you recommend I should invest my time and knowledge into at 18, that will impact my future for the better?
What's your end goal? Do you want to be a great employee? Or a business owner? What kind of a business owner--hands on, or Olympian? Big differences. Specialized skills are what's necessary for being a great employee or hands-on business owner. If you want to be a leading, delegating, deal-making business owner, then you need a different skill set. In either case, simply knowing what you want and being able to articulate it will put you ahead of 99% of the pack. Most people have no idea what they want and drift from thing to thing...their next job is similar to their last, or the first one that was offered to them... You can literally shave years off your career path by being ultra-clear on your target and going straight for it. I've had employers create custom roles for me four times. Each one knocked several years off my career path. It's why I was a production manager with six supervisors and over 150 floor employees reporting to me at 26. I created that job, by sending the employer a package detailing my plan and requirements. Want to partner with the best to learn specialized skills? Sell them on the idea of why they need to hire YOU and only you. Want to learn the art of deal making, delegating and other soft skills? Sell the right kind of business owner on why they need to hire YOU and only you as their assistant. Get IN. Once you're IN, you will get a completely different view of the world. For example, I worked for a national electrical wholesaler for four years. A guy was an accounting clerk when I started, and after awhile he got promoted to assistant to the GM for an area with 11 branches. That guy instantly got access to all the high level data and IN on the decision making at that level. He got to see the issues, information, solutions, and people who played at that level. Near the end of my time there I did a stock tracking project and worked with him. On my first day, I was shocked to see all this data. I was suddenly IN. Nobody else in my department got to see this data. And it was "no big thang" for these head office guys; they worked at this level every day. Set your target and get IN. I bet you cut 10 years off your learning curve by doing so.JK
-
What habits, discipline, or behaviours do you practice in your daily routine to promote the most productive schedule?
One of the biggest things I do is "time chunk". Time chunking – and fine tuning the practice – allows me to work with optimum productivity. It’s worth trying in some form or another because it removes a decision from the process of doing: what to do and when to do it. Another set of practices I put into play are outlined in my manifesto: http://productivityist.com/blog/the-way-of-the-productivityist-a-manifesto I talk about a lot of other strategies over at my website, and in my e-book "The Productivityist Workbook".MV
-
Starting a Startup, still in concept and idea phase, How to put what progress/accomplishments on resume?
This is a good route to take and the same one I took after leaving undergrad. An MBA is for the birds, anyways ;) First things first, take credit where credit is due! You're a founder now it sounds like, and you're working on your first MVP I'm guessing (hoping?) as well. At the very least, get together some sketches, etc... as well. You'll definitely want a prototype in order to feel "whole." So, more importantly, just list this startup's name as a part of your career in your resume as you would when working for any other company. When asked, be completely truthful, and let your exuberance and fascination with being a self starter shine through. These few factors alone will signal to any future employer that you would be a valuable asset to have on their team, but you may find that you enjoy working for yourself a bit too much before then ;) Have you setup a corporation or LLC yet? Or are you using a partnership (assuming this is all U.S. based)? Once you have your business' infrastructure in place, things will definitely feel more official as well. Also, be sure to incorporate NOW rather than later to avoid any major legal headaches. Feel free to message me any time if you'd like to chat further. Cheers, LaraLL
-
Quitting job with after 5+ years and no references because I had to sue my employer. How can I manage this situation with my future employers?
Remember having a friend in a similar situation. This was my advice in that moment: -Make a list of the top 50 clients you had in the consulting firm, choose those which you had a close relationship and can actually talk about you (not fake it) -Call them and ask them if they believe you did a good job and if they were satisfied with your services. If the answer is yes, then here you have two options 1-Ask them if you can use them as reference. Don't talk about your ex employer. He doesn't matter. This is between you and them. Don't talk bad about him/her, it doesn't help. If they say yes, you are up to a start 2-If you ask and they say no, then you can make a decision. You can put them anyways and they will be called by your interviewer (not necessary they would talk to him or say good things, it's a risk) or you can just name the companies without a persons name or contact info Hope this helped! Good luckJC
-
How can a failed 40 year old tech entrepreneur find a job at a startup?
Carolyn's points are spot-on. Tactically speaking, I would suggest that you make contact with the recruiting partners at the top VCs. Greylock, a16z and others have partners specifically focused on helping their portfolio companies with recruiting. Cold calls and emails with a "I'm an entrepreneur that has built two companies, one of which grew to X in Y time, and the other grew to X in Y time. I'm interested in exploring opportunities within your portfolio who are looking to scale-up their growth and sales" should get some discussions initiated with these recruiting partners. Stage of company matters too. You're more likely to find a fit with a company who is post a $1m seed raise and already scaling-up. I'd also think a lot about what role you're interviewing for. The problem with a generalized entrepreneurial background is that it can be perceived as "jack of all trades, master of none." So in order to improve your resume, you might be best to be 2nd to a great growth lead or be the first hire under a VP Sales. Also, I'd suggest that you research the ages of the founders. If they are under 30, they are more likely to be biased to hire younger talent, but over 30, that bias often swings the other way. I'd recommend you call Carolyn if you want help on how best to present yourself to prospective employers. I'm happy to talk to you about your background and experience and recommend more specifically the kinds of companies and roles that might be the best fit for you. Best of luck!TW
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.