A Day In The Life Of A Founder At YourNegotiations.com
Gerta's day as co-founder of YourNegotiations.com is anything but typical; the work is constant, involving client communication ("clients are pinging me left and right"), content creation for platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram, and prioritizing tasks through daily check-ins with a virtual assistant—a system inspired by Tim Ferriss's productivity methods—to maintain focus amidst the demands of running a business.
Negotiation, Entrepreneurship, Client Communication, Content Creation, Productivity
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Gerta Malaj
Founder
YourNegotiations.com
Wellesley College
MIT
Mathematics, Data Science, Statistics
Coaching, Speaking & Writing
Entrepreneurship and Business Owner
International Student, Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Immigrant
Video Highlights
1. Gerta's work is not a typical nine-to-five job; she's constantly engaged with her business, highlighting the dedication required in entrepreneurship.
2. She emphasizes the importance of client interaction, which includes calls, emails, and messages, demonstrating the need for strong communication and interpersonal skills.
3. Gerta uses daily meetings with a virtual assistant to manage priorities, suggesting that effective time management and organizational strategies are crucial for success as a founder.
Transcript
What does a day in the life of the co-founder of your negotiations.com look like?
There's no typical day, to be honest. I can speak more generally about what it looks like. You asked earlier what a typical week looks like or if it's a nine-to-five day. There's no such thing.
When you're a founder, you are on all the time. That's why it's important to really love what you do and be passionate about it, because you're going to be doing it and thinking about it constantly.
Some of the things I do consistently are talking to our clients. As I mentioned, we have online courses: one is live, and one is self-paced. Both involve one-on-one calls with me. I also do one-on-one work with clients directly. Clients are always pinging me with emails, texts, WhatsApp messages, and voice messages. I'm constantly responding to clients, including phone calls. As an introvert, those are the hardest for me.
I also create content. We're trying to put more free content out there, primarily on Instagram and LinkedIn. We're also going to invest more time in our newsletter to spread the word. Many people don't know the fundamental things about negotiations, and we've received feedback like, "Wow, it changed my life," even from our free content. That's very rewarding, so I put out a lot of free content.
While talking to clients, I might be writing an article for LinkedIn or managing our Instagram account. I might post something like a meme or an article about negotiations and add my thoughts. That takes up my time.
I also have podcast interviews, speaking engagements, and talks with various communities. We always make sure to stay on top of our priorities. We have two daily meetings with our virtual assistant: one at 10:00 AM and one around 3:00 PM. The 10:00 AM meeting is about priorities for the day. The 3:00 PM meeting covers progress and what you'll recommit to.
It might sound excessive, but it really helps us stay on top of our priorities. When you're running your own business, you'll be pulled in many directions. It's hard to know exactly what to work on when you're your own boss. You need to recommit to your priorities every day and remember what you need to focus on. That has been a game changer.
A quick tip on that: I was inspired to set this in practice by Tim Ferriss, a huge podcaster. He said he hired someone to watch him work. If he got distracted, this person would remind him, "Hey, go back to what you were working on." I didn't want to be that extreme, and I can't afford a whole human sitting there with me. But having these two meetings with our virtual assistant has been a game changer.