Stuck In The Middle Seat: The Five Phases To Becoming A Midcareer Entrepreneur

by Stephen E. Gerard

Overview

Don’t fear failure … fear regret!

Have you ever felt stuck in a professional rut?

It’s something nearly everyone experiences at some point in their life. After years of climbing the corporate ladder, you just don’t feel that sense of fulfillment anymore.

As an employee-turned-business-owner, Stephen Gerard understands your pain, and in Stuck in the Middle Seat, he explains how you can free yourself from the daily grind and find real success as an entrepreneur.
Inside you’ll learn about the five phases each entrepreneur passes through on their way to the top as well as the twenty-one individual laws within the phases. The five phases are: •The Idea Phase •The Launch Phase •The Growth Phase •The Emotional Phase •The Over-The-Hump Phase
Full of real-world examples from his own life and the lives of other entrepreneurs, this book is a must read for anyone looking for concise and powerful lessons to take their business to the next level.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781950863471
Publisher:	Advantage Media Group, Inc.
Publication date:	01/19/2021
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	6.25(w) x 9.25(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

STEPHEN E. GERARD, After spending twenty years with large Fortune 500 companies and then early internet start-ups, Stephen E. Gerard decided to become a midcareer entrepreneur at the age of forty.

His first start-up from scratch, TGaS Advisors, has sold over $200 million of professional services to the pharmaceutical industry and operates on an international scale. The company was sold, reacquired, and then sold again for an excess of $100 million between 2010 and 2018, and it was named to the Inc. 500/5000 a prestigious five times. Stephen is a current owner, investor, and advisor to a number of entrepreneurial businesses across the world, and he travels extensively to help support and manage those businesses.

Stephen has an MBA from Monmouth University, where he currently serves on the board of trustees, and a BS from Rider University. Stephen currently splits his time between New Jersey and California with his wife and family.

Table of Contents

A Story about the Title for the Book xvii

Preface xxi

Phase I The Idea Phase: Getting the Right Idea and the Right Business Model 1

Law 1 The Idea: Do It for Love 3

Law 2 Refining the Idea: Whittling Away at It 9

Law 3 Describing the Idea: Precision Matters 14

Law 4 Adapting It: You Never Get It Right from the Start … so Adapt It! 20

Phase II The Launch Phase: Starting the Business 31

Law 5 Now It Gets Real: Lunching, Selling, and Closing! 33

Law 6 Fail Fast and Fail Forward: Just Keep Moving 46

Phase III The Growth Phase: How to Get It Moving 53

Law 7 Decision Makers: Finding the Corner Offices 55

Law 8 The Phone Never Rings: Take Action 69

Law 9 Being Accountable versus Hopeful or Lucky 78

Law 10 Providing Written Business Proposals: Dos and Don'ts 85

Law 11 Knowing You're onto Something: Three Is the Magic Number 103

Phase IV The Emotional Phase: Riding the Roller Coaster of Emotions 113

Law 12 You Are on Your Own. And That's OK! 115

Law 13 Embanassment and Pity: Your New Best Friends 120

Law 14 Highs and Lows and the In Betweens 127

Law 15 The Bermuda Triangle of Emotions: Balancing on the Head of a Pin 133

Law 16 Resilience and Being Hardheaded: The Difference 145

Law 17 Don't Try to Fake Things: People Know! 153

Law 18 The Golden Moments: This Is Why You Do This! 159

Phase V The Over-the-Hump Phase: At Least for Now 163

Law 19 The Law of Twos: Try and Ignore It, but It's Going to Happen 166

Law 20 Metrics, Metrics, Metrics: Scaling Takes Measuring 176

Law 21 Putting It Back into the Business: Double Down 180

Some Thoughts on Being a Midcareer Entrepreneur 189

Entrepreneurship versus Intrapreneurship: Noting the Difference 189

Why Midcareer Is a Great Time to Become an Entrepreneur 192

Epilogue 195

About the Author 197

Acknowledgments 203

Editorial Reviews

I wish Steve wrote this book twenty years ago before I embarked on my first start-up venture—a great resource full of practical and considered advice for anyone embarking on taking the leap. He’s giving a fantastic head start in these pages.”
—Nathan Omodei, director and CEO, The Leisure Collective International, Australia

“While the world was telling me how successful I was, Stephen has been there whispering in my ear, ‘This is great and all, but you know you could do better.’ Now, thankfully, he’s written a book to help cut through the BS. In a world of ego, I think you will find Stephen to be a refreshing pause that will make you, just like he has for me, stop, pause, think, and be honest with yourself.” —Wil Reynolds, founder, SEER Interactive

“Born out of Steve’s own hustle, brilliance, and failures, Stuck in the Middle Seat is an explosion of ‘aha!’ moments that will jump-start your entrepreneurial spirit and steer you clear of trip wires along the way, in a no-nonsense business perspective.” —Gina Montana, wealth advisor

“I’ll forever remember a strategy planning map that Steve provided me when setting up my own business that I have passed onto every manager I have had since. Everything with Steve was simple—his questions, his solutions, his advice, his mission, and his goals. Steve’s self-belief oozed from every pore, and we share a common disdain for wasting time and lack of focus.” —David Thompson, CEO, Envision Pharma Group, UK

From the Publisher