Advice from “Mr. No Problem”

He's earned the nickname “Mr. No Problem” around his office in Dubai! The truly trailblazing Art Pirrin and Bill Bennett had a great chat the other day about intrapreneurship and his tips for keeping cool in high-stakes work. 👇

Art dreams big, isn’t afraid to ask tough questions, and doesn’t give up or get stressed out if things don’t go according to plan. As intrapreneurs, we have to have an open mind, be prepared for anything and be willing to fail over and over again in order to achieve the most uniquely valuable goals.

Does this sound like you? If so, make sure to check out the rest of the interview below!

On Rapid Growth

We had a 5 year plan. We actually got cut off at the end of 3 years. But, we did actually have more sales, more production, more volume in 3 years than we even probably would do in 5 years. So, it was mega successful. The company went from a €500,000 a year turnover to €65 million a month. 💰

On Handling Stress

Any of these situations, which can become very problematic or stressful. If they're in the business environment, I don't consider them stress for me. It's a game. 🎮

On Preparation

If you go into one of these meetings, and you want to present something or explain or show something, you have to anticipate what they're going to ask you. You've got to be prepared to answer that on the spot. 🧑‍🏫

On Challenging the Status Quo

If you ask somebody a question like “why do we do this like this?” Or, “why is it done like this?” A very standard response is “because that's just the industry standard.” Or, “that's how we've been doing it for the last 50 years.” Most people are very comfortable with that. I look at it exactly the opposite way. If that's how we've been doing for the last 50 years, shouldn’t you consider that there might be a newer, better way of doing it. 🆕

On Never Giving Up

First of all, you've got to have the initiative, and you've got to have the interest and the desire. It's not going to work if you don't have the drive. You've got to keep an open mind, and think anything is possible. Ultimately, don't give up. If it doesn't work the first time, try it again. 🎲

On Keeping an Open Mind

I think what I am always good at is keeping an open mind. A lot of people have a nickname for me: I'm "Mr. No Problem." Anytime anything that happens, it's not a problem. We'll find a solution.

On Making Work Fun

For me, work is something that I don't want to do. But what I do is something that I actually have fun with, so it's a game. 😃

On Failing in Order to Succeed

You have to fail in order to succeed. Failure is important. That's a really really difficult concept to digest if you don't understand it. But once you understand it, it’s really powerful. 💪