How To Set Up A Business In 47 Minutes
A distilled blueprint from 35+ years of entrepreneurial lessons, including the $30 million Help Bank success story.
Main Areas
- Strategic Location & Environment
- Purpose-Driven Ideation
- Lean Operations & Resourcefulness
- Collaborative Ecosystem
- Strategic Selling & Fundraising
- Legal & Financial Diligence
1. Strategic Location & Environment
Location isn't just a backdrop—it can dictate success or failure.
- Start anywhere but aim for opportunity. Where you start may decide your success.
- Access to capital: e.g., San Francisco is where the VC money is.
- Hong Kong for low tax (15%) & proximity to manufacturing (Shenzhen).
- Dubai, Bali, Thailand for tax benefits & lifestyle.
- "Expensive cities are expensive for a reason — talent & money live there."
- Your environment shapes your mindset & drive for innovation.
"Should start with where should you live, as crazy as it sounds... because there's no work-life balance."
2. Purpose-Driven Ideation
It’s about solving problems, not just filling market gaps.
- “What problem does your idea solve? Solving problems equals money.”
- Avoid the "market gap" trap — it’s about your deeper drive to push through hard times.
- The nurse analogy: build something you’d do even if unpaid.
- Future businesses thrive by building purpose-led communities (Blue Ocean strategy).
- The "Would you do it for free?" test reveals your true mission.
"Imagine a property agency that gives all profits to fund the homeless. That’s a billion-dollar, purpose-driven idea."
3. Lean Operations & Resourcefulness
Cost control is freedom. Resourcefulness fuels survival and growth.
- "Get your costs down." No big house mortgage or car loans.
- Use equity over salary to test commitment — build a team that cares.
- Don't monetize immediately. Example: Airbnb started by giving accommodation for free.
- Fund your business indirectly: wash cars, clean pools — anything to bootstrap.
4. Collaborative Ecosystem
Your partners, clients & even competitors can help build your empire.
- Partner with competitors — "1 + 1 = 11."
- Let clients co-invest or fund your expansion into new markets.
- Learn to say "no." Protect cash flow with 50% upfront & strict 15-day terms.
5. Strategic Selling & Fundraising
Play the long game — position yourself as indispensable.
- Don’t be eager to sell — leverage scarcity to negotiate power.
- "Ask for advice, you’ll get money. Ask for money, you’ll get advice."
- Vet your investors — the wrong fit can ruin you.
- Map potential acquirers early. Keep them engaged via newsletters.
- Hire fundraisers with the right network — fundraising is often who you know.
- Plan for MBOs (Management Buyouts) & small fish acquiring big fish.
6. Legal & Financial Diligence
The “boring stuff” protects your dream from implosion.
- NDAs can’t truly protect ideas — execution is your moat.
- Always register & maintain company accounts properly. Investors look here first.
- Trademark your company name immediately — it’s cheap insurance against disaster.
Conclusion
Build your business rooted in purpose, lean principles, and strategic relationships. Challenge conventional wisdom, solve real problems, and stay nimble. Above all, understand your “why”—because that’s what keeps you in the game when things get hard.
FAQ: How To Set Up A Business In 47 Minutes
1. Where is the most strategic place to start a business, and how important is location?
The speaker emphasizes that while it's okay to start a business anywhere you can (even from your mom's spare room if necessary), the location can significantly impact its success or failure.
For example, Silicon Valley (San Francisco) is crucial for tech businesses seeking venture capital. Hong Kong is ideal for manufacturing and accessing the Asian market, offering benefits like no double taxation. Shenzhen, often overlooked by Western entrepreneurs, is a hub for manufacturing and patents.
Beyond practical considerations, the speaker highlights the importance of surrounding yourself with innovation and people who encourage entrepreneurial spirit. Expensive cities are often expensive for a reason – they attract people with money, both as clients and investors.
He also suggests considering lifestyle benefits: Dubai for its 0% tax in the Web3 space, Bali and Thailand for lifestyle businesses and manufacturing. Ultimately, he argues your chosen location can greatly influence wealth and success, recommending you go "where the money lives" and the opportunity thrives.
2. How should an entrepreneur formulate a business idea into a workable model?
The core principle is to identify and solve a "problem." Instead of asking "what will you do when you grow up," the more empowering question is, "what problem do you want to solve?" The speaker asserts that "problem-solving equals money."
Beyond problem-solving, many businesses fail because they lack a deeper purpose. A strong purpose, like a nurse's commitment to patient care, provides motivation to persevere. The speaker’s own agency, Fluid, succeeded not by filling a market gap but by his genuine purpose to help entrepreneurs, reflecting his own struggles starting at 15.
Also, consider what you would "do for free" every day, which aligns with your passion. Building a community around your business is crucial. Future successful businesses will use this community advantage to create "Blue Ocean Strategy" — an uncontested market space driven by purpose, not competing in crowded markets.
3. What are the essential steps on the "road to monetization" for a new business?
The first step is to "get your costs down." Practice extreme frugality: sell unnecessary assets, live cheaply (even with parents or in your office), and always ask if expenses reduce costs or improve freedom. Hire by offering equity, which tests commitment to the purpose.
The initial business idea doesn't need to be the first income source. Offer core services for free or pay-what-you-want to learn from clients. Airbnb funded their platform by selling cereal boxes, showing creative ways to support the core business.
Finally, strategically say "no" — to wrong hires, partners, and clients. Maintain tight credit: 15-day payment terms, 50% deposits. Most failures are from cash flow issues, not lack of sales. Also avoid the wrong investors who could block future fundraising or exits.
4. How can entrepreneurs effectively sell their company or raise money, and what mistakes should be avoided?
The speaker stresses that selling and raising funds are linked. Rule #1 for selling: "do not want to sell your company." If you don’t need to sell, you’re stronger in negotiations. For raising money: "don’t ask for money; ask for advice." Investors prefer investing in those open to learning.
Do due diligence on investors. The best pitches focus on your vision and how investors can add value, not immediate terms. The "three steps to any sale" are: likeability, mutual need, then the deal.
Prepare by identifying potential acquirers or investors early and keep them aware of your business. Many raise funds from clients or competitors who later acquire them. Management buyouts (MBOs) empower teams. Sometimes, a "small fish" tries to buy a "big fish," only to be acquired themselves, flipping the script.
5. What are the key legal and accounting considerations for a new business?
Though not a legal expert, the speaker says these "boring things" are vital. Always seek professional advice. About NDAs, he warns: "paper accepts ink" — if someone wants to steal your idea, they will. Best defense? Execute fast. He doesn’t sign NDAs, relying on trust and the other party’s due diligence.
Proper accounting and registration are non-negotiable. Do paperwork right, including shareholder agreements, to avoid blocking future investments or sales. Make tracking receipts and finances a daily habit.
The single most critical legal step is securing your trademark. If someone owns your name, they can force you to shut down and give up profits ("passing off"). Trademarking is cheap insurance that shouldn’t be delayed, at least in markets where you accept money.
