If weeds were people, they’d be the ultimate entrepreneurs. Stu Heinecke has created a business strategy based on weeds, and it’s quickly taking root in the world of entrepreneurship.

Stu is a business growth strategist and the originator of Weed Strategy™. He is also a keynote speaker, renowned cartoonist and bestselling business author. His first book, How to Get a Meeting with Anyone, was named one of the top 64 sales books of all time. His latest, How to Grow Your Business Like a Weed, introduces a new model for explosive business growth, based on the strategies, attributes and tools weeds use to grow and spread. Stu has been named “The father of Contact Marketing”. He is the Founder of The Total Weed Awards, in collaboration with the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center. 

Stu has had an unusual career arc. Mentored by some of the world’s top cartoonists from Playboy and The New Yorker, Stu has had his cartoons published in The Wall Street Journal and Playboy, among other publications. 

Stu has explored Weed Strategy™ for several years, collecting insights from thought leaders from the worlds of business, government, and entertainment including T. Boone Pickens, Kathy Ireland, General Barry McAffrey, Henrik Fisker, Gareb Shamus, Giovanni Marsico, Esther Dyson, Christopher Lochhead, Nathan Myhrvold, Carmen Medina, Jon Ferrara, and Jonna Mendez. 

What do weeds and entrepreneurs have in common?

Stu Heinecke was stuck in traffic on the Santa Monica freeway when he noticed something that would change his life: There, in between the cracks in the pavement, dandelions were growing.

It was an unlikely place for life. They were even spreading and taking over the cracks, one by one. As he sat in a long line of cars, Stu wondered why weeds thrive in the unlikeliest of places – and what it means for us.

In that moment Stu recognized something vitally important. If entrepreneurs thought more like weeds, we could experience the same explosive growth!

Think like a weed

Weeds are so much more than pests. Weeds are natural disruptors, collaborators and process-builders. If that doesn’t describe the ultimate mindset for entrepreneurs and their teams, nothing does. Imagine operating as a fierce collective, growing out of hardship, and taking over industries in innovative, unexpected ways. That’s the power of Weed Strategy™!

So what exactly is Weed Strategy™? To describe weeds and exceptional entrepreneurs, consider how they operate. They follow a consistent pattern: They always deal with what is, they never do anything without an unfair advantage, they never do anything alone, they always focus on what makes them win, and they thrive in disrupted ground. 

Weeds deal with what is happening right now; They don’t obsess about hypotheticals. Weeds don’t do anything without an unfair advantage; They look for ways in which they already have a leg up on the competition in order to come out on top. They don’t do anything alone; They use their connections to get their needs met. And above all, weeds thrive when they’re challenged. We as founders, creatives, entrepreneurs and self-starters could do well to follow their example.

Weeds are the Ubers, Airbnbs and SpaceX’s of the natural world. Applying Weed Strategy™ to your business can  transform your organization into a fierce collective, fanatically replying unfair advantages that explode the scale of your enterprise. 

Enjoy this episode of The Business of You for actionable insights that will change your life!

Quotes

“I was driving the Santa Monica Freeway. It’s no place for a plant to take root… but there in the cracks in the concrete, I noticed a dandelion. It struck me – how did it get here? What makes weeds so special, hardy and unique? Is there a unified model that they use, and is it something we can use in our businesses?”

“To describe weeds, look at what they do and how they operate. They always deal with what is, they never do anything without an unfair advantage, they never do anything alone – it’s always at scale, they always focus on what makes them win, and they thrive in disrupted ground. All of these statements suggest something about the [business] model.”

“Weeds would tell us – We would probably do well to let your actions lead our emotions, rather than letting emotions lead our actions.”

“Weeds never do anything alone. They’re natural collaborators. They would tell us – you need to team up with the smartest people you know, as fast as you can.”

“We are creating unfair advantages for each other through collaborations.”

“When you observe weeds, you can see that they’re aggressive, urgent, resilient, adaptive, and they’re even optimistic. I’m ascribing something to them when they don’t have emotions, but they function in a way we would if we were feeling optimistic.”

“We want our competitors saying, we can’t get rid of them. How can we compete with this!”

Links mentioned in this episode:

Podcast Resources

Visit Stu Heinecke’s Website at https://stuheinecke.com/ 

Purchase Stu Heinecke’s Book on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Grow-Your-Business-Like-Weed/dp/1632651998 

Connect with Stu directly on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuheinecke/ 

Find Stu Heinecke on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stu.heinecke.1 

Follow Stu on Twitter at https://twitter.com/byStuHeinecke 

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