Making a business stand out requires extensive planning and forethought. When that venture is on the smaller side, it must excel in not only being unique, but strategic. SCORE Princeton, the local chapter of the national nonprofit organization with a network of experienced mentors, is enlisting the help of leadership coach John Patrick Vasturia for a free Zoom webinar to tackle the necessary tactics for success.
Besides breaking down the basics, the event will focus on the value of proper yet realistic leadership, expanding on core values that Vasturia continues to foster through his second career of professional advisement.
“Creating a Business Model & Plan for your Small Business” takes place Thursday, May 19, at 6:30 p.m., with registration and more information available at princeton.score.org/event/creating-business-model-plan-your-small-business.
“We try to keep it pretty fundamental, so that people can get a realistic sense of what work is involved when you’re going to start your own business. A lot of people think that it’s ‘hey, I’m going to start my own business, I’ll be my own boss, this is going to be great’ — and it is sometimes, but many times, it’s pretty hard,” he says.
Vasturia, who is an active SCORE mentor, worked in the property and casualty insurance industry for 35 years, spending a bulk of his time at Munich Reinsurance America in various leadership roles. From 1989 to 2019, he rose to several presidential titles after being active in management and production underwriting positions.
Vasturia now has a coaching business of his own, Seabright Leaders, which he established in 2020 after becoming certified in “Stakeholder Centered Coaching” from Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching.
With his experience in mind, for the upcoming session, Vasturia aims to share methods that help set a business apart from others in what is always a ruthlessly ambitious market.
“We talk about competition, and what people will face, and we do spend a decent amount of time on how you differentiate yourself,” he says. “Many people go into business, and sometimes they forget that there’s competitors, because they have this great idea.”
“But one of the big reasons people fail is because they don’t respect and acknowledge their competitors, and then ultimately, they don’t differentiate themselves,” Vasturia adds, pointing out that this is where thinking in advance can be crucial.
“Once that business plan is in place, it doesn’t mean it never changes. It means it’s a roadmap, and you’re trying to see where you are on a regular basis. That roadmap can really help you and the other people around you see where you’re going, and then measure your success,” he says.
Vasturia, a resident of Medford in Burlington County, has a bachelor of arts in history from the University of Pennsylvania. His professional trajectory from college to coaching is diverse, and informs the webinar, as well as his principles.
“It’s about constantly learning, curiosity, and trying to always be in that growth mode. So you’re lucky if you have opportunity, and I’ve been very fortunate to have opportunity, and those opportunities have always given me a chance to be more curious and to constantly lean, and be challenged.”
The SCORE Princeton event will also address fears or concerns that those starting out might have. “People around the virtual table,” as Vasturia refers to the webinar’s setting, may identify with others’ insecurities, then find a sense of camaraderie knowing that they are not alone in worrying over business decisions.
A report published by the SBA’s Office of Advocacy in 2021 noted that from 1994 to 2019, “an average of 67.6 percent of new employer establishments survived at least two years. During the same period, the five-year survival rate was 48.9 percent, the 10-year survival rate was 33.6 percent, and the 15-year survival rate was 25.7 percent.”
Referencing these numbers as background, Vasturia explains that if potential business owners can think realistically and understand reasons why a business could fall apart, they can look at the inverse, executing the contrary of what failed to work efficiently. An example of a common mistake is a lack of thorough business planning.
“If businesses tend to fail because of lack of business planning, then the opposite might be true that if I actually have a good business plan, or one that I really worked on, I increase my chances of being successful,” Vasturia explains.
Vasturia says his approach is different from other methodologies.
“The real difference in Stakeholder Centered Coaching is that the leader relies heavily on the consistent input and feedback from their stakeholders to help the leader identify their objectives and develop action steps to support the leader’s development. This is why a leader who is serious about their development must have discipline, courage, and humility,” he says.
Just like his work with SCORE, the founder, chief executive officer and managing partner of Seabright Leaders helps coach people one-on-one, assisting a range of employees from entry level to senior ranks on their journeys.
“We really try to look forward. I try to work with leaders who really want to get to that next level, leaders who are fortunate enough to work for a company that will invest in them and their development. Many times, we try to identify a specific objective or behavior and set up goals around achieving those behaviors, or a specific set of action steps that meet those goals,” he explains.
“I think being coached and growing as a leader really comes down to being humble, disciplined, and curious, so it’s really important to have those qualities when you’re trying to develop,” Vasturia continues. “The truth is, in my opinion, the leader doesn’t necessarily have to have all the answers, and the leader doesn’t have to be the smartest person in the room. But what the leader needs to do is have a vision, and be able to articulate that vision to the people who are their stakeholders, the people who will eventually be their customers, or people who would eventually be their employees, and people who could be their partners as far as helping them build the business, whether it be suppliers or different relationships.”
Influenced by this perspective, the presentation relies on timeless principles that, even in the wake of the pandemic, remain fundamental — so much so that the marketplace or societal situation are mostly inconsequential factors, Vasturia says.
He continues that while elements of the plan might change, such as assumptions leaning towards the conservative side due to “a state of transition,” the groundwork remains the same, allowing the webinar’s content to be universal.
“The whole purpose is to connect with our clients and to share knowledge and to try to engage them in a conversation about succeeding in business,” Vasturia explains. Participants are encouraged to ask questions and provide insight in a “two-way information share” that benefits everyone.
In terms of takeaways, Vasturia emphasizes the value of motivation.
“I think it’s a lot around planning and discipline,” he says, while the other is drive, or having a reason for pursuing the enterprise in the first place. “You’re going to have ups and downs in your business, and there’s going to be days when you just either don’t want to do it, or can’t believe how hard it is, so you have to go back and make sure you have a good ‘why.’”
Depending on the audience, Vasturia’s webinar might shift to reflect their needs.
“There’s a different personality to every presentation, because the questions can be different, the audience is different, and they may want to focus on something else,” he says, but priority is to instruct others on business models and plans. “If I can get through those types of things, and convince people that these are very important considerations for them, then I feel like then they have a realistic perspective going forward.”
At the end of the session, attendees can approach Vasturia to seek out additional guidance through further mentoring, inviting more nuanced conversations related to business issues that may not be covered in the prepared material.
It’s all essential to Vasturia and SCORE’s mission to keep business owners informed.
“We want people to know that we have knowledge and resources that can help them, so that’s one of the biggest messages we have,” Vasturia says, noting the wealth of knowledge that SCORE mentors are open to sharing. The website is full of resources at princeton.score.org, and it has specific information for those curious about exploring mentorships.
Small businesses need guidance. Vasturia knows he can help build up those behind them, one plan at a time, to shape the people at the helm, from coaching, to mentorship, to personally modeling the spirit of growth himself.
“The leader has to, in my opinion, be very focused on the future and has to be focused on execution,” he says of the ideal candidate. “[You show] that you can handle different things because you’re always learning. It’s about curiosity.”
