1) What are you currently doing with your life?

I’m running a website called Streetbank.com – it is a website that lets you see what your neighbours will lend you or give away – essentially it’s a giant garden shed, tool-kit, fancy dress chest, DVD library and skills bank. 

2) What did you do before this?

I worked for a big, well respected headhunting business, working nine to six ish. I worked on some really interesting appointments like the CEO of a football club and a chief advisor for the then Foreign Secretary.  I liked the work but I was always playing second fiddle to my more senior colleagues and so wasn’t growing and developing as a person. It was all a bit too comfortable.

3) What was your moment of truth?

I became friends with my downstairs neighbours through borrowing things off them. It started with a pint of milk and then they needed chairs for a party, then they lent me an old laptop and in the end we took the walls of the garden down. Later I saw someone on my street using some hedgecutters which I needed for my overgrown hedge. It seemed to me ridiculous that there were potentially hedgecutters in every house in the street but they would only be used for one afternoon a year. But that sparked an idea – and that idea developed into Streetbank.  

4) How did you plan for it?

I wrote a one page document outlining the idea. Because I didn’t know anything about websites I pestered my friend, Ryan, who did. We met up every couple of weeks over about six months and then we recruited a web developer to start building the idea. 

5) What have been the best and worst things about making this happen?

There are loads of good things. I like being able to have an idea and make it happen – and make it happen really quickly – and the feeling that it is possible to do anything – there is no one to say you can’t do that!

There are very few truly bad things. Mostly the bad things are also good things – like feeling a bit out of your depth or doing a radio interview where you say something dumb are also good because you grow at the same time. 

6) What was the best advice you have received

If something is worth doing it is worth doing badly. (When Streetbank launched it worked but it was very rough and ready. We’ve spent the last 18 months improving it.)

Don’t take no for an answer. (or try asking a slightly different question.)

Listen to your customers – but don’t necessarily do what they say.

Don’t do an MBA – start a business. I’ve done an MBA and started a business. I’ve learnt much more from starting my own business - and for me it was much cheaper. 

7) What resources or information have you found really helpful?

The book “What colour is your parachute” – it helps you work out what you really want to do and provides a road map of how to make it happen. “The Beermat Entrepreneur” – a great advocate of the one page business plan.