INTERVIEW with Brian Armstrong, Internet Entrepreneur, Author

Hey guys - today you are in for a treat. Every now and then, I'll interview someone who's been successful as an entrepreneur - either in the internet, real estate, stock, or brick-mortar business.

Today, we have Brian Armstrong, who has taken time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions.

Brian is an American internet entrepreneur currently living in Buenos Aires, Argentina. After graduating from Rice University with a computer science degree, he left his high-paying corporate job to work for himself & achieved financial freedom at the age of 23.

He started the websites UniversityTutor.com, BuyersVote.com, and FeedmailPro.com. His personal blog is at StartBreakingFree.com.

Brian has authored, "Breaking Free: Fire Your Boss, Toss Your Alarm Clock, and Double Your Income with an Easy Transition into Self Employment" (Click on the link to purchase his book). He is also an active speaker & writer & has written articles for sites such as ProBlogger.net, LifeHack.org, and GordieRogers.com.

Without much ado, here's Brian!

1. How did you get started in entrepreneurship?

I think it's always been in my blood. In 5th grade I started selling candy at school. I could buy pieces in bulk for 10 cents and the kids at school would buy it for 25 cents. It was great until some teachers got wind of it and I got called into the principals office. I'm not sure why, but they weren't too happy about it! In high school I tried several companies from reselling computer hardware to starting my own web design firm. There were more in college and beyond. I guess I haven't stopped.

2. How long have you been an entrepreneur?

Probably since 5th grade or so. I've always thought it like that and looked for opportunities.

3. Did you always know that you wanted to be an entrepreneur - was it a sudden "aha" experience/moment, or was it a gradual realization?

I don't think I always knew. I've tried lots of things over the years from corporate America to strange jobs. Entrepreneurship was a good combination of something I both enjoyed and was good at. It was a slow realization and I think I'll be exploring this question for my entire life. Entrepreneurship is a huge field with tons of different things I could do. It feel right for now.

4. What experiences - successes, setbacks have you experienced along the way & what have you learned from them.

There have been a lot. I've started lots of project (or businesses) that completely failed, and I learned something valuable every time. In fact, here is a list of 9 businesses I started which failed:
http://www.startbreakingfree.com/363/9-businesses-i-started-which-utterly-failed/

Here is a quick overview of how I now think about entrepreneurship:
1. Most of the stuff you try won't work, and that's ok
2. Invest as little time and money as possible to get your idea off the ground and test it out (then if it doesn't work, no big deal try the next one)
3. When you have an idea you're excited about, get going on it right away, if you wait around too much you'll lose your motivation
4. You don't need a business plan or investors or any of that. Do a quick Google search to see what else is out there and if you still like it a day later, get to work
5. Start cheap (particularly anything online) by outsourcing the site, using free wordpress templates, or giving a programmer equity for his work (or learn to program it yourself)
6. DON'T take on business partners and DON'T take on investors for web businesses, boot strap. You need to be the one in control of your destiny, not bogged down in drama managing other people's expectations.
7. Once you have one that starts to work, don't be ADD and continue rushing off to start a new business every day, force yourself to stay focused and really make that one blossom
8. Entrepreneurship is an emotional roller coaster...you will doubt yourself and wonder if you made the right decision on a regular basis. Get around other like minded people as often as possible to stay mentally tough.

5. What do you say to the "naysayers"?

There haven't been any really. My parents weren't crazy about the idea of me quitting my job to wok for myself, but that's understandable. The biggest person you have to worry about motivation-wise is yourself I think. You have to realize you're attempting something very difficult and if you fail a few times on the way that is to be expected. In fact, it's more than that...it's REQUIRED to get to success. If you want it bad enough, you'll keep at it.

6. You specialize in web startups, why/how did you come to choose this sort of business?

My background is in computer science so it was a natural fit. Also, I like the low cost the web startups. It's an amazing medium to work in because you can throw up an idea in two weeks, and even launch an entire company for $10 that has the potential to be used by people all over the world (I've detailed how I've done this on my blog). When you compare this to other mediums, it's not even close. For example, if you're launching a bio-tech startup you need to rent lab space and equipment, if you're building something mechanical you need to cut metal in a machine shop. You can run up costs very quickly to "experiment" and if you don't get it right the first time you might be out of money. With web startups that's not the case. They're very forgiving if you do it right and keep your costs low until you're cash flow positive.

7. What are the critical skills needed to become an entrepreneur - personal, business skills?

That's a good question and I'm not really sure. Probably the most important part is to just love it and really want it. If you have that you can pick up any skill you need along the way.

But as for a list of skills, I'd say getting the basic of accounting is helpful (try this post). The basics of marketing is always good (I particularly liked this book). And then I would just read a ton of what other successful entrepreneurs are doing. I read as many of their blogs as I can and reach out to them personally when needed. I find these sources of information to be much more valuable than any MBA textbook.

8. What are you currently working on?

My latest project is FeedmailPro.com where I'm making a better, cheaper alternative to Aweber.com in the blog newsletter space. BuyersVote.com is less of a business and more of a community site where I'm helping people make better buying decisions. UniversityTutor.com is the company I've had the longest.

9. Where do you see yourself in 10 yrs? What is the long-term vision for your business?

Ultimately I'd like to continue to build websites that people are getting a ton of value from, with potential sales along the road as they mature. I'd LOVE to one day build a site that has the reach of gmail or craigslist, or a site on that order of magnitude. Selling one of them for $100 million wouldn't hurt either. My other passion is helping other entrepreneurs break free and start their own companies as well, so I could see that playing a bigger role down the line as well.

10. Where do you see the greatest opportunity for entrepreneurs?

200 years ago it was the industrial revolution
100 years ago it was the birth of mass media (TV, radio, newspaper, etc)
right now it's still the internet and technology revolution. To me, that's the greatest opportunity for our generation.

Some other technologies I see playing a bigger role down the line? Genetic engineering, robotics, artificial intelligence, and anything having to do with renewable energy. Not all entrepreneurship has to be technology focused however.

11. What do you do outside of business, to balance your life/work?

Lately not much! :) But seriously, I'm enjoying traveling (having businesses online allows this nicely) at the moment. I've tried lots of different hobbies over the years, like salsa dancing, brazilian jujitsu, and acting.

Brian can be contacted on his personal blog at StartBreakingFree.com, where he writes about entrepreneurship and his latest projects.

That's it!