61: Don't Do Stuff You Hate with Isaac Morehouse

This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Isaac Morehouse. Isaac is creator and founder of Praxis, a really unique startup that has created a solution for the new world of an old and tried and true path to success - apprenticeship. Praxis connects potential employers with people to apprentice with them starting their careers and getting them a full time job in 12 months or less with no degree required.

In the information age, the old advice of go to college, get good grades, find a safe-secure job, and work for 40 years just doesn’t fly any more. We are in the age of the entrepreneur and being an apprentice is one of the best ways to learn the systems and path to success where you can eventually go out on your own. For me and probably you, the word apprentice conjures up visions of blacksmiths and bricklayers with their apprentice in tow, but in reality, they are mentorships, a sort of one of one mastermind.

And in today’s world, it’s not blacksmiths anymore, it’s is building businesses and systems online, creating new solutions, apps, and a host of other things.

And that is why Dave wanted to have Isaac on the show. Praxis is bypassing college as the best way to get from student to career. They train young people with an intensive 6-month professional bootcamp, then place them in startups for a 6-month paid apprenticeship.

Praxis grads have a 98% employment rate out of the program, with average pay over $50k. And most of them do not have degrees entry level roles like sales, marketing, and operations.

www.DiscovePraxis.com

www.isaacMorehouse.com

It started for Isaac while he was in college. Isaac worked for a telecommunications company installing cable 3 days a week while going to school. And while in school he was hit with a realization. He was making good money in his work and turning around and spending it all on school to get a piece of paper that basically says because you have it, you are statistically better than someone without it to higher. You can get all of the things that go into the piece of paper for free – just not the paper. He thought, there has to be a way to be able to do the same thing without the cost of getting the piece of paper and that is how the idea for Praxis was born. Over the next decade, he brought it to fruition. ​

At the 7 min mark, Isaac talks about the mental journey and the winding random road that weaves through the way to creating and bringing an idea to reality. He goes into the way the subconscious helps us to achieve the goals we give it.

Isaac goes on to talk about learning and makes some good points:

• There is a difference between “Just in Time Learning” and “Just in Case Learning.”
• Most of the things you learn are just in case and you never need it.
• What would happen if you focused on the things you know you need to learn to solve a real problem just in time to solve it?
• You can learn anything and do it so fast when you are interested in it and have a use for it in your life.

What should people know about apprenticeships today?

• The best opportunities are in startups and early growth stage companies
• Companies want more than just an employee
• Companies want people they can invest in that will help grow beyond their initial role and help the company reach its potential and value
• Companies want people who take an interest in the overall success of the company – essentially those that think like an entrepreneur and owner.

Isaac finds that young, raw talent is the best fit. He uses the “sleep in your car” test. If you are willing to sleep in your car and do what it takes to get what you want in life, you are the type of person that is most successful in an apprenticeship role.

At the 27 min mark Isaac and Dave talk about the shift happening with the way jobs are viewed and how we approach work.

• The internet has given people a way to learn anything that you can learning an institution, but also provide a vehicle for them to showcase their talents like never before.
• Showing is better than telling and now you can see what people are capable of by what they have created about themselves on all the different platforms that exist today.
• You can be your own credential and don’t need 3rd party validation to succeed like was needed not too long ago.
• You don’t have to wait any more for a degree to showcase yourself and that changes everything.
  • This decentralization is disruptive

What have you learned about taking effective action and overcome fear and inertia?

• People have to go through a “de-schooling” of sorts
  • You don’t have to wait until you reach a certain level or gain a certain knowledge to get going
  • You don’t need someone to validate you or tell you that you are good enough
• A good exercise is to write a blog post and publish it every day for 30 days
  • This causes you to do something every day 7 days a week and not being afraid to ship it out to the world.
  • This helps turn creativity into a discipline which is critical for success in today’s age.

Thoughts on Entrepreneurship

• It’s incredibly brutal – in a good way
• The tough days are more than the good days, but the good days waaay outweigh the amount of bad days
• You are always overcoming challenges. Isaac early found his model was actually illegal and was totally defeated – but played a game on how to change the model and make it work. That is the key – to always be looking for the way to overcome and get around the obstacles.
• Find GOOD people!
• Focus on getting one good paying customer over perfection or little things like having your website all set or your product even finished. Once you find 1 paying customer, you are business. Biggest

Lesson Learned?

Don’t do stuff you hate. Period. And there is a difference between hate and hard. Don’t be afraid of hard work or things you want to do. The things you truly hates drain your energy and stifle your growth. Removing them forces you to find things or people to better fill the gaps and take on the areas that you are not fond of. This allows you to focus better and maximize your talents. ​

At the 44 minute mark, Isaac talks about overcoming the challenge of going a different direction than people think you should go.

Book Recommendation: The Act of Creation by Arthur Koestler

 

Best Quote: “Don't mistake hate for hard...Don't do what you hate, but do what you love, even it is hard.”

 

Isaac's Misfit 3:

1. Don’t do stuff you hate
2. Don’t’ have goals in the traditional sense. Instead, focus on one thing you can do every day to add value to yourself or your company or any area of your life.
3. Don’t have a lot of beliefs. Instead choose a very small amount of beliefs that you truly believe and are core to you and who you are. Be open, but don’t compromise those core beliefs.