Ambition Today, Startup Stories with Kevin Siskar - #18 Amir Salihefendic Grew The Todoist App From Solo Project To Millions Of People By Bootstrapping

#18 Amir Salihefendic Grew The Todoist App From Solo Project To Millions Of People By Bootstrapping

07/20/16 • 34 min

Ambition Today, Startup Stories with Kevin Siskar

The most ambitious people “Get. Sh*t. Done.” and that is what today’s guest Amir Salihefendic specializes in. Joining us from Portugal, Amir is the founder of Doist, the company which makes the very popular Todoist app. With millions of users, Todoist is one of the top to-list apps in the Apple App Store & Google Play Store. Amir grew up in an entrepreneurial family in Denmark after his family moved from Bosnia. Starting projects seems to have been in Amir’s blood from an early age. When he was fifteen he sold his first website and invested the money he made in a new Macbook in order to start a new business building and selling websites. Later he went on to build Plurk, and fast forward to today, Amir has built Todoist. The to-do list app started as a personal project for just himself, but when he released it on his personal blog to only 300 people, he saw there was immediate demand for it. Todoist has since grown to millions of users. Throughout this episode we discuss how Amir built his company with remote teams, scaled to several million dollars annually in revenue, and also: + How having entrepreneurial parents influenced Amir. + Why scaling too fast can hurt your company if you are not ready for it. + How to keep your life organized and efficient. + Why you should make powerful product features, simple. + The impact that mission, passion and culture can have on a company. + The best characteristics for employee's joining remote teams and where to find them. + How your employees are your biggest investments. + The importance of constantly investing in yourself across all the skill sets you need. + Focusing on high impact work and actively working to avoid distractions. + How to make the most of your To-do list and optimize it. + Why you need to "swallow the frog" at the start of every day. Ambition Today Question of the DayTM: How do you define success? ========== Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: twitter.com/TheSiskar Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar Visit Ambition Today on the Web: www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, Mixergy, Seth Godin, #AskGaryVee, Monocle 24 and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat. Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Previous Episode

#17 David S. Rose Explains How The New Startup Crowdfunding Rules Affect You

On this episode of Ambition Today David S. Rose explains his new book The Startup Checklist, how the new startup crowdfunding rules affect you & angel investing 101. A third generation serial entrepreneur, David's new book The Startup Checklist which is now a New York Times Bestseller. David is also the author of the Angel Investing: The Gust Guide to Making Money and Having Fun Investing in Startups, as well as the Founder and CEO at Gust. A man of many titles: Entrepreneur, Angel Investor, Mentor, and Author; David has had an incredible career starting several businesses. Crain's New York Business has called David "the father of angel investing in New York". Today we learn about how he got started as a founder, became an angel investor, and where he is now as an Author and CEO. We cover the basics of how angel investing in startups works and unpack what the new SEC crowdfunding rules actually mean for startups, your friends, your family and you. We also learn about: + How an Urban Affairs degree enhanced David's views on business. + Why he started Angel Investing. + How NY Angels was created. + How do you set the foundation for a great startup company. + Angel Investing 101. + What is an Accredited Investor. + How Title 3 of the JOBS Act impacts startups and you. + What the new SEC crowdfunding rules mean if your income or net worth is below $100k. + What the new SEC crowdfunding rules mean if your income or net worth is above $100k. + If a founder decides to fundraise from non-accredited civilians, what do they need to know? + What platforms are enabling crowdfunding right now? + How can you invest in startups now. Ambition Today Question of the DayTM: Why does success matter in the first place? Why not just live a simple life in a fishing town? ========== Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: twitter.com/TheSiskar Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar Visit Ambition Today on the Web: www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, Mixergy, Seth Godin, #AskGaryVee, Monocle 24 and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat. Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Next Episode

#19 Paul Polizzotto Transforms Advertising Into Real World Positive Social Change With CBS EcoMedia

From the CBS EcoMedia office’s in New York City, Serial Social Entrepreneur Paul Polizzotto, who is one of the most passionate and dedicated entrepreneurs I know, joins us for episode 19. Paul is the founder and CEO of CBS EcoMedia, which harnesses the power of advertising and transforms it into a powerful engine for positive social change. Paul’s personal philosophy and actions around social entrepreneurship over his lifetime have created an incredible story thus far. His journey started in California when he was younger and used to surf the then polluted waters of Santa Monica Bay. Paul noticed that the existing companies in the contract cleaning industry were improperly discharging contaminated water into the storm drains, which then drained into the bay that his friends and him surfed in. His first company Property Prep helped to improve those conditions through a solution that properly disposed of the contaminated water. He now works to improve the world through his most recent company CBS EcoMedia, which was acquired by CBS and funds the most effective non profit companies that are taking on the most urgent social issues of our time. In this episode we also discuss: + Seeing opportunity around you in the world everyday. + How surfing and risk taking has influenced Paul as an entrepreneur. + What happens at the intersection of art and engineering. + Difference between working hard FOR an idea and working hard ON an idea. + How to be receptive to the right ideas in your life. + Paul’s 4 criteria for knowing if an idea is worthwhile to pursue. + How Paul created the national Adopt-A-Waterway Program in the United States. + Using existing business models to transform other industries. + The partnership with CBS that led to EcoMedia being acquired. + If you get exactly what you want, will you have to courage to follow through with to meet your goals. Ambition Today Question of the DayTM: How should a person take an idea they have and navigate it into reality? ========== Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: twitter.com/TheSiskar Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar Visit Ambition Today on the Web: www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, Mixergy, Seth Godin, #AskGaryVee, Monocle 24 and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat. Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).