I accepted a LinkedIn connection request today. And if you know anything about me, that alone should tell you I was feeling unusually generous.

The profile looked decent. Business coach with plenty of experience. Not obviously spammy, actually sort of interesting. Against my better judgement, I figured, why not – let’s give this one a shot.

Connection accepted.

About five seconds later, the message comes in:

“Thanks for connecting. I work with entrepreneurs who want to scale, bla, bla… Out of curiosity, what challenges are you facing in your business?”

I read it. Smiled. Shook my head.

And disconnected.

Total interaction time: maybe 20 seconds. Quite possibly a new personal record for shortest LinkedIn connection ever.

The Pattern

What’s funny is – this isn’t unusual. It’s the default.

Accept a connection request and within seconds you get some version of the same script. Slight variations in wording, same underlying intent: skip context, skip curiosity, go straight to the pitch.

It’s almost impressive how consistent it is. People seem to believe that once you accept a connection, you’ve implicitly agreed to be pitched. As if clicking “accept” is some kind of green light for a templated outreach sequence.

It isn’t.

A connection is not a transaction. It’s not even a conversation yet. It’s just…proximity.

What happens next is what determines whether it becomes anything meaningful or ends 20 seconds later.

Why This Fails

It’s not the pitch itself that’s the problem. It’s what sits behind it.

If your first instinct after connecting is to sell, you’re telling me everything I need to know. You’re not paying attention. You’re not curious. You’re running a script. There’s no intent to connect, no effort to understand, no signal that a real human interaction is even desired. It’s a volume game dressed up as outreach.

There’s no curiosity about who I am, what I’ve done, or whether I even have a business that fits the narrative. No attempt to understand context. No pause to consider whether a conversation might make sense before forcing one.

Just a presumption: I must have a problem. You have the solution.

All delivered within seconds of connecting.

What makes it worse is the positioning. When this comes from someone who claims to be a business coach – someone whose job, by definition, is to understand people, ask better questions, and apply judgment – it becomes self-disqualifying.

Because if this is how you initiate a relationship, what does that say about how you actually work?

There’s nothing strategic about it. Nothing thoughtful. It’s just a sad, desperate attempt to manufacture opportunity out of thin air, without doing the one thing that might actually make it work: paying attention.

And that’s the part that’s hardest to ignore.

What Actually Works

The people worth connecting with tend to operate very differently. They don’t rush. They don’t script. And they certainly don’t assume.

They pay attention.

They take a moment to understand who they’re talking to, what that person has done, what might actually be relevant. Sometimes they don’t say anything at all at first. They observe. They engage where it makes sense. They let context build before forcing a conversation.

And when they do reach out, it feels different.

There’s signal. There’s intent. There’s usually some form of value – however small – attached to the interaction.

One of my favorite rules applies here: the best way to start a partnership is to bring gifts.

Not literal gifts. But something of value.

An insight. A thoughtful observation. A relevant introduction. A perspective that shows you’ve actually paid attention.

Something that says: I’m not here to take. I’m here to contribute.

That’s how real conversations start. Not with a pitch – but with relevance.

Closing

This is exactly why I rarely accept LinkedIn connection requests.

Not because I’m antisocial. Not because I’m uninterested. But because most of what comes next is just so predictable – and low quality.

When I do accept, I’m not looking for perfection. I’m looking for signal. A hint of awareness. A sign that there’s an actual person on the other side, not just a script running.

That’s a really low bar. And yet, it’s rarely cleared.

The irony is that the people who are actually worth connecting with don’t behave this way. They don’t rush the interaction. They don’t try to convert immediately. They understand that relationships – especially valuable ones – don’t start with extraction.

They start with attention.

And sometimes, with something as simple as a small, thoughtful gift.

The post The 20-Second LinkedIn Connection appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

That line stuck with me.

For most of my career, I was obsessed with summits: hitting revenue milestones, landing big clients, shipping products, selling a company. The numbers changed, but the feeling didn’t – each time I reached a goal, I just moved the bar higher.

Eventually, I realized I was playing the same game as Sisyphus – the guy from Greek mythology, doomed to push a boulder up a hill only for it to roll back down, again and again.

No finish line, no rest, no peace.

That’s when it hit me: the point isn’t the summit. It’s learning to enjoy the climb.

My Climb

For years, my entire operating system was goal-driven. I thought in milestones, numbers, and targets.

• Launching the first 100 courses
• Signing up the first 1,000 customers
• Making the first $1,000,000

Every time I hit one of those goals, it felt incredible – for about five minutes. Then I’d reset the target higher. The climb never ended, the summit kept moving, and I didn’t realize I was quietly signing up for a lifetime of pushing the same damn boulder uphill.

In the founder world, especially in groups like Vistage and EO, where I spent years, the unspoken rule was simple:

Grow or sell.

If you weren’t chasing exponential growth or prepping for an exit, you were considered stagnant. Still standing? That meant you were weak. Or worse – complacent.

But I started questioning that dogma. Was constant growth really the only definition of success? What about building something right-sized? A business that ran smoothly, grew organically, kept customers happy, paid its bills, and didn’t give me a heart attack before 40?

That shift was a turning point for me. I realized the endless chase for “more” was an illusion and that true success might just live in the space between hustle and peace.

The Shift – Enjoying the Ride

Once I saw the pattern, I couldn’t unsee it. I realized I didn’t actually need another summit. I needed a new relationship with the climb itself.

These days, I run my businesses differently. There’s no frantic push for growth-at-all-costs, no obsession with valuations or vanity metrics. I run lean, calm, and deliberate. I focus on building things that matter: solving problems people actually want solved.

When something we build lands with a customer – when they send that one-line email that says “This saved me hours” or “Finally, something that actually works” – that hits deeper than any quarterly target ever did.

I get joy out of seeing systems work smoothly, teams happy and motivated, customers served well. That’s the payoff.

Because when you finally stop sprinting toward the next summit, you start noticing how much you were missing along the way: the view, the air, the people who climb beside you.

The business doesn’t own me anymore. I own it. And I enjoy it because it’s built to serve my life, not the other way around.

And to be clear: this isn’t permission to coast. I still have goals, targets, and big ambitions. But I no longer chase them for their own sake. I hustle with intent, not insecurity, driven by purpose, not pressure.

The journey matters more than the summit.

The Message – What Founders Get Wrong

I recently had a founder reach out asking for advice. His company, he said, was “in trouble.”

When I asked what was going on, he told me: “We missed our revenue goal, We only grew 9% instead of 15%.”

I just stared at the message for a second, then laughed. He was in full-blown crisis mode, losing sleep, questioning everything… while I would’ve popped champagne and sent the team home early for a long weekend.

Same situation. Different perspective.

This is where most founders lose the plot – they turn success into suffering. They confuse progress with failure simply because it didn’t match an arbitrary target they made up six months ago in a spreadsheet.

I’ve been that guy – obsessing over growth curves, KPIs, and projections that ultimately meant nothing. It’s a trap disguised as ambition.

Here’s the truth: no one writes books about the view from the top of Mount Everest. They write about the climb, the frostbite, the fear, the perseverance. That’s where the meaning is.

So, if you’re building, chasing, grinding… don’t forget:

The goal isn’t to get to the top.
The goal is to still love the climb once you’re there.

The View That Really Matters

These days, I don’t measure success by how high I’ve climbed, but by how it feels to keep climbing. Am I challenged? Engaged? Curious? Peaceful? If the answer’s yes, that’s success.

I’ve reached plenty of summits in my life – big exits, major milestones, personal goals that once felt impossible. And every single time, after the initial rush, I looked around and realized: there’s no music up here. No parade. No confetti. Just the same mountain wind and the next peak in the distance.

That’s when it hit me: the magic was never at the top. It was in the building, the learning, the experimenting, the failing, and the trying again. That’s where life actually happens.

So now, I choose to climb differently. No panic. No pressure. Just purpose, presence, and perspective.

There may be no books written about the view from the top of Mount Everest, but there are thousands written about the courage it takes to keep climbing.

And that’s the story worth living.

The post Why Are There No Books About The View From The Top Of Mount Everest? appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

From Consultant to Creator

For years, I was perfectly happy as an SAP consultant. I was good at what I did, billed top rates, traveled the world, and worked with some of the biggest companies on the planet helping them implement and configure SAP software.

But once I got married, the constant travel started to wear thin. That’s when my good friend – and fellow SAP expert – Kent Bettisworth told me about a company in Europe that had just started offering online SAP training. This was around 2006, and back then, even SAP itself didn’t offer online training. The idea was unheard of.

Naturally, I had to check it out. What I found wasn’t impressive – the execution was clunky, the content uninspiring. But the spark was undeniable. The idea was right. They just weren’t doing it well. And that’s when it hit me: I could do this better.

So I dove into a world I knew nothing about: online education and authoring tools. I experimented with formats, failed repeatedly, and eventually landed on a model I liked. To my surprise – and relief – people responded well. I built one course. Then another. Then another.

At first, it was just me, in between consulting gigs. But I wanted to test the idea that I could create a revenue stream not tied to my time. By the time I’d created 20 courses, the writing was on the wall: it worked. The business had legs.

From there, I hired SAP experts to draft scripts, instructional designers to build lessons, and voice-over talent to record audio. What started as a side project grew into the world’s largest independent SAP training platform – until SAP itself finally entered the market, knocking us down to #2.

What began as a personal experiment had turned into a scalable company.

Step 1: Start Small and Validate

Looking back, the smartest thing I did was start small. One course. That’s it.

I didn’t spend months writing a business plan. I didn’t raise money. I didn’t build a giant website with dozens of features. I just created a single course and put it out into the world to see if anyone cared.

They did. And that’s when I made another. Then another. Each course was a test. Each one taught me something about what worked, what didn’t, and what people were actually willing to pay for.

The beauty of starting small is that the risk is minimal. If nobody had bought my courses, I’d have wasted some nights and weekends – nothing more. But because I tested early, I discovered a viable business model while keeping my downside limited.

It’s easy for entrepreneurs to get paralyzed, waiting for the “perfect” idea or obsessing over a 40-page business plan. My advice: don’t. Launch early, fail fast, iterate often. That’s how you validate.

Step 2: Build Systems, Not Dependencies

After the first 20 courses, I hit a wall. There was no way I could keep creating everything myself while also running consulting projects. If the business depended on me, it wasn’t scalable – and certainly not sellable.

So I started building systems. I brought in SAP experts to write lesson scripts. Instructional designers to build the actual courses. Voice actors to record audio. Later, a customer service team to handle support tickets. Every piece of the puzzle that once lived in my head was broken down into a repeatable process that someone else could execute.

That shift – from dependency to systems – is what turned my side hustle into a company. Without it, I’d have been stuck in the freelancer trap, just with a fancier product. With it, I had a machine that could scale far beyond me.

This is the difference between running a business and owning a job. If your business stops when you do, you don’t really have a company. You have a dependency.

Step 3: Evolve the Model

At first, the business was simple: I sold individual courses to SAP professionals. It worked – but it was still small scale.

Then I started thinking bigger. What if I could sell bundles of courses to entire companies? That’s when I built a B2B sales team and hired account managers. The shift paid off. We sold a lot of corporate training packages, and revenues climbed fast.

But the real breakthrough – the move that put the company into overdrive – was switching to a SaaS subscription model. Instead of one-off course sales, everything became a recurring contract. Customers signed up once, and their access renewed automatically until they canceled.

That single decision doubled the value of the business. It gave us predictable revenue, steadier cash flow, and a multiple that investors couldn’t ignore. SaaS wasn’t just a new model – it was the turning point that made the business scalable and highly attractive for acquisition.

Step 4: Prepare for Exit

Growth is exciting. But if you ever want to sell, growth alone isn’t enough. Buyers don’t just look at your revenue; they look at how your business runs without you.

That’s where preparation made all the difference. I spent over a year making the company “exit-ready.” Every agreement, every contract, every financial statement was organized and accessible. Processes were documented, teams were trained, and I deliberately made myself less important.

By the time we went to market, the company didn’t need me anymore. And that’s exactly what buyers want to see. They’re not buying your personality or your hustle; they’re buying a machine that will keep running long after you’re gone.

Because we had recurring revenue, clean financials, and a business that ran on systems – not me – we attracted serious buyers quickly. And when the right deal came along, we were ready.

Preparation wasn’t glamorous. It was tedious, detail-heavy, and sometimes felt like a second job. But it paid off in multiples when it came time to exit.

The Playbook for Productizing Expertise

Looking back, the path from consultant to SaaS founder to exit wasn’t magic. It was a series of very deliberate steps:

1. Start small and validate. Don’t wait for perfect. Ship something, see if people care, and learn by doing.
2. Build systems, not dependencies. If the business relies on you, it’s not a business. Process everything.
3. Evolve the model. One-off sales might pay the bills, but recurring revenue builds enterprise value.
4. Prepare for exit. Get your house in order early. Clean financials, documented processes, and a business that runs without you make all the difference.

That’s the framework. It works whether you’re selling training courses, SaaS, or any other form of productized expertise.

The biggest trap experts fall into is clinging to the billable hour. The biggest opportunity is turning what you know into something that scales without you.

I did it in SAP training. You can do it in your industry.

The post How to Productize Your Expertise Into a Scalable Business appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

Why TomcoCapital Went AI-First

At TomcoCapital, we made a decision early on: whenever we face a business challenge or need, we ask a simple question – can an AI-first company solve this faster, smarter, and with less friction than a traditional team? The answer, more often than not, is yes.

After selling my last business and getting a clean slate, I had zero interest in rebuilding the same human-heavy, slow-moving org chart. The world has changed. AI isn’t a gimmick anymore – it’s the competitive edge. That’s why every new portfolio company we launch, acquire, or scale starts with this mindset: automate first, hire later (if at all).

The difference isn’t just about efficiency or cost. It’s about building companies that are leaner, more adaptable, and fundamentally prepared for the business landscape that’s already here – not the one we left behind.

We don’t default to human resources for operational problems. We default to AI. Only after AI has hit its limit do we assign a person—whose time is then focused on strategy, relationship-building, and high-leverage creative work.

The net result: our companies move faster, spend less, and scale smarter. In a market defined by volatility and relentless competition, this isn’t just a cool tech experiment. It’s how you win.

Inside the AI Team – What Our Agents Actually Do

The real power of an AI-first company isn’t just that AI can handle simple, repetitive work. It’s how broad and deep the capabilities now go across our entire business stack.

At TomcoCapital and our portfolio companies, our AI agents aren’t just running social or cranking out blogs – they’re actively replacing or augmenting roles you’d normally need to hire for. Here’s a snapshot of what our AI team manages every week:

• Copywriting & Content Marketing:
  AI writes, edits, and optimizes web pages, ebooks, case studies, and even technical documentation. Our “AI copywriter” can handle everything from product pitches to long-form guides – faster and often with fewer errors than a human.
• Website & Product Updates:
  Want to add a new feature, fix a bug, or update pricing tables? AI writes the copy, generates the code, and often pushes changes live to production. What once took days now takes minutes.
• Customer Support & Service:
  Incoming emails and support tickets are automatically triaged, answered, or escalated – 24/7. The AI doesn’t sleep or get frustrated. Simple inquiries are resolved instantly; complex cases are flagged for a human, who now handles far fewer tickets.
• SEO & Analytics:
  AI reviews all outbound content for SEO performance, suggests improvements, and analyzes traffic/usage logs. We know what’s working and what isn’t, in real time, with actionable recommendations – not just reports gathering dust.
• Sales Operations:
  AI agents help update pricing, research prospects, draft outreach emails, and follow up on leads. Our sales pipeline is more active, more organized, and less dependent on human error.
• Marketing Automation:
  Newsletters, nurture campaigns, and social posts are scheduled, written, and A/B tested by AI. Marketing email copy is customized to audience segments, then launched and tracked – all hands-off.
• Business Development & Research:
  AI finds and analyzes potential business opportunities, identifies new partners or acquisition targets, and even does preliminary due diligence.
• Ecommerce & Product Management:
  Inventory, pricing, and product descriptions are managed by AI. Site changes, promos, and updates go live without waiting for a human bottleneck.
• Personal Productivity:
  My own “virtual assistant” AI manages my calendar, flags key emails, and even prompts me to hit my health goals or follow up on critical projects.
• Recruiting & HR:
  Our recruiting agent can source candidates, screen for basic qualifications, and schedule interviews, though, ironically, we haven’t needed to use it yet.

Bottom line:
Nearly every role below senior leadership can now be at least partially replaced, accelerated, or supported by AI. Our “team” is a real, dynamic roster of digital employees – always on, always learning, and immune to office drama.

What’s Left for Humans (and Why That Matters More Than Ever)

Does this mean people are obsolete? Not even close. The reality is, in an AI-first company, the bar for human contribution gets higher – not lower. AI crushes the grunt work, the repetition, the tasks that used to chew up your best people’s time and patience. But it can’t replace vision, strategy, leadership, creativity, or the human touch required for high-stakes deals and nuanced judgment.

Here’s how we deploy our human capital now:

• Strategy & Vision: Humans set direction, make bets, and decide which mountains to climb. AI can analyze data and suggest tactics, but it can’t replace gut instinct or experience.
• Relationship-Building: From investor relations to key partnerships, trust and persuasion are still deeply human skills.
• Complex Problem-Solving: When a situation is ambiguous, political, or requires cross-domain thinking, you need people—not just pattern-matching algorithms.
• Innovation & Big Ideas: True breakthroughs – whether in product, business model, or go-to-market – rarely emerge from code alone.
• Final Accountability: At the end of the day, a company needs real leadership. Someone has to take responsibility for the big calls AI isn’t built to make.

By freeing humans from busywork, we let them work on what actually drives value and competitive advantage. In fact, our team is smaller, but every person is working closer to the top of their skill stack.

This isn’t anti-people. It’s pro-talent. When you let AI handle everything it’s good at, you can finally let your best people focus on what only they can do.

Lessons Learned & Advice for Founders and Investors

Here’s the truth from the trenches: building an AI-first company is not a theoretical play – it’s a competitive necessity. And it’s moving faster than even the tech press is reporting. Most leaders are either sleepwalking into irrelevance or tinkering at the edges while their competitors are quietly eating their lunch.

What I’ve learned:

• Don’t wait for perfection: If you hold out for flawless AI, you’ll be left behind. Deploy, test, refine – iterate weekly, not yearly.
• Audit ruthlessly: Every process, every workflow, every department. If an AI tool can do 80% of the job, that’s 80% of time and cost back in your pocket.
• Upskill your humans: The people who thrive here are the ones who can direct, supervise, and quality-check AI. You want operators who treat AI as leverage, not as a threat.
• Expect resistance: You’ll get pushback from people invested in the old way. That’s fine – progress doesn’t wait for permission.
• Measure the right things: Speed, adaptability, and margin matter more than headcount or legacy org charts.

My advice:
Stop thinking of AI as “tech support” and start thinking of it as your operations backbone. Build around it, not on top of it. The companies that win in the next decade will be those who made AI their core operating system, not a bolt-on afterthought.

If you’re still hiring armies for jobs that AI can do better, faster, and cheaper – you’re not building for the future. You’re just adding risk and friction.

The New Playbook – Are You Ready to Compete This Way?

The landscape has shifted. The old metrics – headcount, square footage, layers of management – don’t mean what they used to. The winning formula now is simple: fewer people, more leverage, relentless automation, and the courage to let go of how things “have always been done.”

If you’re a founder, operator, or investor and still building companies the traditional way, here’s your wake-up call. Start treating AI as your first hire, not your last resort.

Audit your processes, challenge your assumptions, and get uncomfortable.
It’s not about being trendy; it’s about survival and having a real edge.

This is exactly what I work on with our portfolio founders and with a select group of coaching clients who are serious about building lean, AI-first businesses that scale with less risk and more upside.

If you’re ready to leave excuses behind and actually transform how you build, book a call with me.

The post Building an AI-First Company: Why We Start With Automation, Not Headcount appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

I went to London Tech Week.

It was loud. It was global. Kicked off with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on stage and Nvidia’s CEO, promising billions in AI infrastructure and a digitally upskilled Britain.

Big energy. Bold headlines.

And yet, as I walked the expo floor, I kept asking myself:

“Does anyone here actually build anything that works?”

I saw beautifully branded booths. Well-rehearsed founders. Slick decks.
One startup was promising advanced blood testing subscriptions with deep biomarker insights. Another claimed to let you spin up AI agents to perform “any task” in minutes.

Naturally, I wanted to see more.

So I went to their websites… and was greeted with the same thing in both cases:
“Join our waitlist.” No product. No pricing. No signal they’ve shipped anything at all.

Let me translate that: “We’ve built a vision, but not a business.”

This wasn’t a one-off. It was the norm.

And it tells you everything you need to know about the current founder mindset: presence is prioritized over progress.

Scene 1: Polished Panels, But Pitch-Drunk Founders

The panels were flawless. The production value was premium.
But beneath the surface, I heard a lot of founder-speak that made my old operator instincts twitch:

“We’re pre-revenue but post-traction.”
“We’re validating monetization.”
“Our next round will unlock growth.”

No it won’t.

I spoke to too many founders who were chasing runway instead of revenue. Decks instead of distribution. Their “traction” was engagement on LinkedIn posts – not paying customers.

If you don’t have your first 100 customers, why are you roaming around London Tech Week?

To raise money? There are better avenues – and smarter ones.
To get publicity? That can backfire hard and fast when a journalist or investor asks, “Can I try it?” and you don’t have a product.

It’s not just premature scaling. It’s delusional signaling, like dressing for a wedding when you haven’t even proposed yet.

Takeaway for Founders:

Start with the problem.

Not the pitch, not the brand, not the slide deck. The real problem – not the one you think sounds hot. If the problem isn’t painful enough to make someone pay you to solve it, there’s no business.

No problem = no customer = no traction = no funding = no exit.

If you can’t clearly explain:

1. Who your customer is
2. What you solve for them
3. How you make money doing it
   
   …you don’t have a startup. You have a hobby with a pitch deck.

Scene 2: Government Grant Chasers

There’s this dangerous narrative spreading in the UK founder ecosystem:

“If we just get that InnovateUK grant / NHS pilot / AI booster voucher, we’ll be good.”

No. You won’t.

The government handing out grants is like an Instagram influencer pitching for likes – a little sad, and it never really turns out to be as good as we all thought.

I met several founders who were months into paperwork and pitch prep for public sector funding – but hadn’t spoken to a customer in weeks.

You’re not building a business. You’re playing bureaucratic lottery.

Takeaway for Founders:

Use grants only to accelerate something that’s already working, not as a lifeline for something that isn’t.

And more importantly:
Don’t let the vague promise of a possible grant distract you from your core mission:
Sign up customers. Solve their problems. Make money.

The market doesn’t care how much you raised. It cares what you built.

Scene 3: AI Wrappers and Investor FOMO

Everyone is building an “AI company” now. But most are just wrappers – a light UX layer slapped over ChatGPT or Claude, packaged with buzzwords and a slick landing page.

I’m not judging from the sidelines on this one. At Tomco Capital, we made the same mistake.

We launched our portfolio company ERPlingo as a ChatGPT-powered SAP support platform. We thought it was the coolest thing since sliced bread. And to be fair, our prompt engineering is solid. Better than most.

But here’s the truth:

ChatGPT is already “good enough” at everything.

Getting someone to stop using ChatGPT and switch to your platform – no matter how niche – is tremendously difficult. You’re not just selling features. You’re trying to overcome default behavior.

We’re actively fixing that right now at ERPlingo.

If you’re building the next hot AI tool, you need to be doing the same – or you’ll be just another wrapper that demoed well but never stuck.

Takeaway for Founders:

AI isn’t your differentiator anymore. Your results are.

Ask yourself:

• Are you solving a problem 10x better than ChatGPT does out of the box?
• Is your tool sticky, indispensable, and revenue-generating?
• Would you switch if you were the customer?

If the answer is no, you’re not building a product – you’re just giving OpenAI free distribution.

Final Thoughts From the Balcony

Being a retired founder gives you a different lens.

You see the games being played. The narratives being sold. The self-delusion being scaled.

London Tech Week had all the ingredients: ambition, innovation, capital. But the most successful founders I know aren’t chasing buzz. They’re ruthlessly focused on fundamentals:

• Solve a painful problem.
• Get someone to pay you for it.
• Build systems that scale you out of the equation.

That’s it. That’s the game. And it’s still undefeated.

For Founders Still in the Arena

You don’t need another round. You need a win.

Pick one number that matters – ARR, retention, CAC payback – and kill anything that doesn’t move it.

If you want someone to call your bluff, rip apart your strategy, and help you scale like someone who’s already exited: I coach a small handful of serious founders each year.

Book a call.

If not, just build something great. And email me when you exit.

The post Confessions of a Retired Tech Founder at London Tech Week appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

What Does “Culture by Design” Mean?

For us, culture isn’t about ping-pong tables or casual Fridays. It’s about fostering an environment where people genuinely enjoy coming to work and are empowered to do their best.

Here’s what “culture by design” looks like at Tomco Capital:

• People first. Always. Not profit, not product, not revenue.
• Work to live, not the other way around. We believe personal life comes first—our work should support and enhance it, not dominate it.
• Location and time independence. Team members work when and where they feel most comfortable, whether that’s at a coffee shop, on a pool deck, or at home.

We don’t track hours, count keystrokes, or obsess over “clocking in.” Instead, we measure progress toward goals. Responsibilities are delegated, not tasks. People are trusted to experiment, make mistakes, and learn. And when challenges pop up, we address them directly with honesty and transparency.

The Pitfalls of Default Culture

A culture by default is what happens when leaders ignore the importance of culture. You might see:

• A team burnt out by unrealistic expectations.
• Toxic behaviors that spread unchecked.
• A disconnect between the company’s stated values and its daily operations.

We’ve seen this firsthand. For example, some customers have tried to exploit our generous trial offers or demanded custom solutions without wanting to pay for them. These unreasonable demands put unnecessary stress on our team. Instead of bending to this pressure, we chose to part ways. Difficult customers can disrupt a healthy culture just as much as a poorly aligned team member.

How We Built a People-First Culture

Here’s how we intentionally designed a culture that works for us:

1. Define Your Core Values

Our culture starts with clear values:

• People come first.
• Work is flexible, but progress is always tracked.
• Transparency and trust guide all interactions.

Every decision—whether it’s hiring, taking on a new customer, or developing a product—is measured against these principles.

2. Hire for Cultural Fit

We’ve built a hiring process that works: Interview for skills, hire for experience, and keep for culture. Skills can be taught, and experience is valuable, but a bad cultural fit can derail an entire team. One negative attitude, one disengaged team member, or one unappreciative customer can infect your business quickly. We cut these issues out fast.

Want to learn more about our approach? Check out our blog post: How I Built a Top-Notch Team for a Small, Unknown Company.

3. Lead by Example

As a leader, I measure every business decision against its potential impact on our team. I’m fiercely protective of our morale and culture. Whether it’s a new policy or a customer request, if it doesn’t align with our values, we say no.

4. Maintain Flexibility with Accountability

We allow our team to prioritize life’s challenges without micromanaging. Need to take an afternoon off for a doctor’s appointment? No problem. Want a long lunch with a friend? Enjoy. Our team knows they’re trusted to get the job done on their own terms. Progress is tracked through clearly defined metrics, ensuring accountability without sacrificing flexibility.

Scaling Culture as You Grow

Maintaining culture during growth is one of the hardest challenges. Here’s how we handle it:

• Reinforce culture constantly. We take time for “non-business” activities like virtual happy hours, silly lunch-and-learn sessions, and celebratory gifts for birthdays or anniversaries.
• Instill culture in leadership. As our team grows, managers and leaders play a critical role in carrying our culture forward. They set the tone for new hires and ensure alignment across the team.

What We’ve Learned

Over the years, I’ve learned two key lessons about culture:

1. Be decisive. If it starts hard, it ends hard. When a team member, customer, or policy doesn’t align with your culture, it’s better to address it immediately. Dragging it out only causes further stress and disrupts the team. This principle is one of my 12 Rules for Business Success—a framework that has guided my decision-making throughout my career.
2. Culture isn’t optional. If you don’t intentionally design your culture, you’ll end up with one by default—and it likely won’t serve your goals.

Advice for Entrepreneurs

If there’s one piece of advice I can give, it’s this: Spend an extraordinary amount of time and effort on building your culture. The rewards? A healthy business, a happy team, and a company where people say, “I get to go to work,” instead of, “I have to go to work.”

Culture is everything. Design it wisely.

The post Culture is EVERYTHING: Building a Business That Aligns with Values appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

Hi, I’m Thomas Michael, and I’ve spent over 25 years in the business world, navigating the tricky waters of hiring top-notch talent. When I started Michael Management Corporation, we were a small fish in a big pond. Yet, we managed to build a team of smart, motivated professionals who helped us become the 2nd largest SAP training provider in the world.

How did we do it? It all boils down to three key principles: interviewing for skills, hiring for experience, and keeping for culture. These principles helped us identify the right candidates who not only had the necessary skills but also fit seamlessly into our company culture. In this article, I’ll share how applying these principles can help you build an amazing team, no matter how small or unknown your company might be.

Principle 1: Interview for Skills

When it comes to hiring, the first step is to ensure that candidates have the skills required for the job. This might sound obvious, but you’d be surprised how often this gets overlooked. My philosophy is simple: if it starts hard, it ends hard. This means that if a candidate’s resume doesn’t clearly demonstrate the necessary skills, they’re not worth considering. It’s ruthless, but it’s effective.

During the resume collection and the first round of interviews, I focus exclusively on the skills required for the position. I don’t get distracted by charming cover letters or impressive but irrelevant accomplishments. Instead, I zero in on the key competencies needed for the role. If a resume doesn’t match up, it’s out. No exceptions.

For example, when we were hiring a new software developer, we received hundreds of applications. Many were from highly educated, well-rounded individuals. But if they didn’t have the specific programming skills we needed, their resumes went straight to the rejection pile. It might sound harsh, but it saved us a lot of time and ensured that only the most qualified candidates made it to the interview stage.

By focusing on skills from the get-go, you set a solid foundation for the rest of the hiring process. It’s a strategy that weeds out unqualified candidates early and keeps the process efficient and effective.

Principle 2: Hire for Experience

Once we’ve identified candidates with the necessary skills, the next step is to focus on experience. We want people who have successfully done the job elsewhere. Experience is a crucial factor because it means they’ve already navigated the challenges and pitfalls that come with the role. They know what success looks like, and they know how to achieve it.

Our hiring process includes 2-3 rounds of in-depth interviews, both with me and with members of our existing team. These interviews are designed to dig deep into the candidates’ past roles and achievements. We ask detailed questions about their previous jobs, the specific tasks they handled, and the outcomes of their efforts. We want to know about their successes and how they achieved them, as well as the challenges they faced and how they overcame them.

For instance, we once needed to hire a Channel Partner Manager. We had many applicants who were successful salespeople, but we ultimately hired someone who had built a partner organization at their previous company. This candidate had the exact experience we needed. They had already been there and done that, which meant they could hit the ground running with minimal training or oversight.

Hiring for experience means not getting swayed by candidates who are smart, nice, or otherwise impressive but lack the specific experience needed for the job. It’s about finding those who have a proven track record in similar roles. By doing this, we ensure that new hires can contribute effectively from day one.

Principle 3: Keep for Culture

This is the most critical principle of all: keeping people who fit the company culture. Skills and experience are essential, but if a new hire doesn’t mesh with the company culture, it’s a recipe for disaster. Culture is everything in a business, especially a small one. Every business has a culture—either by design or by default—and maintaining it is crucial for long-term success.

During the final stages of our hiring process, we pay close attention to how well candidates align with our company’s values, work style, and team dynamics. This involves not only formal interviews but also informal interactions, such as team lunches or casual meetings. We observe how they communicate, collaborate, and respond to the existing team members.

One bad hire can ruin what took years to build. I’ve seen it happen. A new hire who doesn’t fit the culture can disrupt team harmony, lower morale, and negatively impact productivity. If you notice that someone on your team doesn’t click with the culture, cut them fast. It never gets better, and performance improvement plans rarely work in these cases. Be quick and be ruthless.

For example, we once hired a highly skilled developer who had excellent experience. However, it quickly became clear that their way of working and interacting was at odds with our collaborative, open, and supportive culture. Despite their technical prowess, the mismatch in culture caused friction and stress within the team. We made the tough decision to let them go, which ultimately preserved the harmony and productivity of our team.\

By following this principle, we have been able to maintain a strong, positive culture that supports our team’s success and growth. It’s not just about finding people who can do the job, but finding people who can do the job in a way that aligns with and enhances your company’s culture.

Building the Team

By adhering to these three principles—interviewing for skills, hiring for experience, and keeping for culture—we’ve managed to build an exceptional team. This team wasn’t just any team; it was a group of smart, motivated professionals who were aligned with our goals and values. Together, we grew Michael Management Corporation to become the 2nd largest SAP training provider in the world.

The process wasn’t always easy. It required discipline, a clear vision, and the courage to make tough decisions. But the results speak for themselves. Our team was able to innovate, collaborate, and deliver outstanding results because they had the right skills, relevant experience, and a deep connection to our company culture.

Watching our team grow and succeed has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. We didn’t just build a company; we built a community of professionals who supported each other and worked together towards a common goal. This strong foundation allowed us to navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and achieve remarkable success.

Final Thoughts

And there you have it—my philosophy on hiring top-notch people for a small, unknown company. By focusing on skills, experience, and culture, you can build a team that not only excels at their jobs but also fits seamlessly into your company’s environment. This approach helped us grow from a small startup to a major player in the SAP training industry.

Remember, hiring the right people is about more than just filling positions. It’s about building a team that will drive your company forward, uphold your values, and contribute to a positive and productive work environment. So, be ruthless in your initial screenings, thorough in your experience evaluations, and uncompromising in maintaining your culture.

With these principles, you too can build an amazing team that will help your business thrive. Here’s to your success in creating a team of top-notch professionals who will take your company to new heights!

The post How I Built a Top-Notch Team for a Small, Unknown Company appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

I refer to these 12 thoughts as my Rules for Business Success. They were hard lessons to learn but have always helped me avoid problems and avoid problems down the road. So, without further ado, let’s dive into my 12 rules for business success. I promise, there’s something in here for everyone, whether you’re just starting out or a seasoned pro like me. 

Rule 1: If it starts hard, it ends hard.

This is my number one rule for a reason, and it applies to business and life in general. If you bang your head against the wall on day one, chances are you’ll end up with a constant headache by the end.

No matter if you are onboarding a new client, hiring a new team member, or dealing with a new vendor. If it starts hard, it will end hard. For example, early on, when our team grew and we didn’t know much about culture or how to hire properly, we hired people who were late to interviews, didn’t perform well during the interviews, and made onboarding them like pulling teeth. All the warning signs were there, but we hired them anyway. Big mistake, of course, and it ended fast and hard.

Another time we were onboarding a new client. Our early excitement waned quickly when they made unreasonable demands after another. Instead of setting firm boundaries we tried to appease the new client. Big mistake again. In the end, we lost money on this client, they were never satisfied with anything, and we had to let them go.

Lesson learned. If it starts hard, it ends hard.

Rule 2: If you have no assistant, you are the assistant.

Let’s be real: trying to do everything yourself is a one-way ticket to Burnoutville. Population: You. Trust me, I’ve been there. In my early days, I thought I could juggle a million tasks without breaking a sweat. Spoiler alert: I was wrong. Very wrong.

Picture this: it’s 8 AM, you’re knee-deep in paperwork, emails are piling up, and your phone is ringing off the hook. If you’re doing all the admin work, guess what? You’re not the boss—you’re the overworked assistant. And probably not even a good one at that.

The turning point for me was when I finally hired my first assistant. Suddenly, I had time to focus on the big picture, strategize, and actually lead my company. It was like night and day. Delegation isn’t just a luxury; it’s a necessity. Your time is too valuable to be wasted on tasks that someone else can handle faster and better than you. 

Remember, you’re supposed to be steering the ship, not scrubbing the deck.

Rule 3: Nobody likes to be sold to, but everybody likes to shop.

Ah, the delicate art of selling without actually selling. It’s a bit like trying to convince a cat to take a bath—tricky but not impossible. Here’s the thing: people hate feeling pressured, but they love discovering things they actually need (or think they need).

Back when I was pushing SAP training, I learned quickly that hard selling was about as effective as a screen door on a submarine. Nobody wants to hear a sales pitch, but they’re all ears if you show them how your product can make their life easier. It’s about creating an environment where customers feel in control and make their own decisions.

Imagine you’re in a bookstore (remember those?). You’re more likely to buy a book if you can browse at your leisure, read a few pages, and see what interests you. The same principle applies to business. Give your customers the space to explore and discover. Highlight the benefits (and not the features) subtly and watch them come to you.

Rule 4: Don’t sell. Solve problems.

This one is a follow-on to rule #3. Forget about the sales quotas and commissions for a second. At the heart of every successful transaction is a problem that’s been solved. Your job is not to push a product; it’s to offer a solution.

I remember a time when a potential client was ready to walk away because they felt bombarded by sales pitches. Instead of pushing harder, I took a step back and asked, “What’s the biggest challenge you’re facing right now?” That simple question shifted the entire conversation. Suddenly, I wasn’t just another salesperson—I was a problem solver. We ended up closing the deal because I focused on their needs, not my sales target.

When you approach business with a problem-solving mindset, you build trust and credibility. Customers see you as a partner rather than a vendor. It’s a subtle shift but one that makes all the difference. So, put on your detective hat, uncover those pain points, and offer the perfect solution.

Rule 5: Build relationships, not transactions.

If you do well with rule #4, this rule comes next. In the grand bazaar of business, getting caught up in the whirlwind of deals, contracts, and bottom lines is easy. But here’s a little secret: transactions are fleeting; relationships are forever.

Early in my career, I treated every client interaction as a means to an end—a transaction. It wasn’t long before I realized that this approach was not getting us ahead. I started focusing on building genuine relationships, and guess what? The transactions followed naturally. Clients became partners, deals turned into collaborations, and business started to feel a lot less transactional and a lot more meaningful.

Building relationships means taking the time to understand your clients’ needs, interests, and long-term goals. It’s about showing genuine interest and empathy. When you prioritize relationships over transactions, you create a loyal customer base that sees you as a trusted advisor rather than just another vendor. And that, my friends, is priceless.

Rule 6: Quality over quantity. Less really is more.

Ah, the age-old debate: quality vs. quantity. Let me settle it for you right here: quality wins. Every. Single. Time. Standing out means offering something exceptional in a world overflowing with options.

Back when I was running Michael Management Corporation, we focused on delivering top-notch SAP training courses. It wasn’t about cramming in as many courses as possible; it was about making each one the best it could be. Sure, we could have expanded our catalog quickly, but at what cost? Instead, we chose to invest in the quality of our content, and it paid off. Our customers recognized and appreciated the difference, and our reputation soared.

It’s tempting to think that more is better, but in reality, less can be so much more. By focusing on quality, you build trust and create lasting value. Whether it’s a product, a service, or even a business relationship, prioritize excellence over excess. Your clients, and your bottom line, will thank you for it.

Rule 7: Delegate responsibilities, not tasks.

Here’s a nugget of wisdom that took me far too long to grasp: delegation is more than just offloading tasks. It’s about entrusting others with real responsibilities and giving them the ownership to succeed—or fail—on their own terms.

In the early days of my career, I was the quintessential control freak. I micromanaged every little detail, thinking that was the way to ensure perfection. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t. My team was frustrated, I was exhausted, and our productivity was in the tank. The turning point came when I realized I needed to delegate responsibilities, not just tasks. I started trusting my team with entire projects, giving them the autonomy to make decisions and learn from their mistakes.

The difference was night and day. Not only did it lighten my load, but it also empowered my team. They felt more invested, more capable, and more motivated. When you delegate responsibilities, you’re not just handing off work; you’re fostering growth and innovation within your team. It’s a win-win.

Rule 8: You are the product of the people you surround yourself with.

Ever heard the saying, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with”? It’s not just a catchy phrase; it’s the hard truth. Your circle influences your mindset, your decisions, and, ultimately, your success.

In my career, I’ve had the privilege (and occasional misfortune) of working with a wide variety of people. The lesson? Surround yourself with go-getters, innovators, and positive thinkers. They will lift you up, challenge you, and push you to be your best. On the flip side, if you’re constantly around naysayers and slackers, well, don’t be surprised if you find yourself stuck in a rut.

One of my early mentors was a brilliant, albeit slightly eccentric, entrepreneur. His enthusiasm was infectious, and his ability to see opportunities where others saw obstacles was inspiring. Being around him changed the way I approached problems and opportunities. I learned to think bigger, aim higher, and embrace the occasional craziness of the entrepreneurial journey.

So, take a good look at your inner circle. Are they pushing you towards greatness or holding you back? Choose wisely, because their influence is more significant than you might realize.

Rule 9: Embrace change or die like the dinosaurs.

Um, the dinosaurs didn’t really have a chance to adapt to change, but you get what I mean. If you’re not willing to adapt, you’ll be left behind faster than you can say “meteor strike.”

I’ve seen it happen time and time again. Companies that were once industry leaders got too comfortable and resistant to change, only to find themselves obsolete when new technologies or market trends emerged (remember Yahoo?).

When I founded Michael Management Corporation, we constantly evolved our offerings based on the latest SAP training and technology trends. It wasn’t always easy, and it sometimes felt like we were chasing a moving target. But staying adaptable and open to change kept us ahead of the curve and ensured our long-term success.

The moral of the story? Don’t be a dinosaur. Embrace change, seek out new opportunities, and be willing to pivot when necessary. Failure is part of this process, of course. Your ability to adapt is what will keep you thriving in an ever-evolving business landscape.

Rule 10: Customer retention trumps customer acquisition.

Acquiring new customers is like dating—exciting, full of potential, and sometimes a little nerve-wracking. But retaining customers? That’s like a long, happy marriage. It’s where the real magic happens.

When I started Michael Management Corporation, I was obsessed with bringing in new clients. Don’t get me wrong, new business is great, but it’s the repeat customers that kept us afloat and thriving. Think about it: acquiring a new customer can cost five times more than retaining an existing one. Plus, repeat customers are more likely to spend more and refer others to your business.

Once, we had a client who was on the fence about renewing their contract. Instead of launching into a hard sell, we focused on addressing their concerns and showing them the value we had provided over the past year and the milestones they had achieved. Not only did they renew, but they also increased their engagement with our services.

The key to retention is to exceed expectations consistently. Provide exceptional customer service, stay engaged, and ensure your clients know you value them. Remember, keeping a customer is easier (and cheaper) than finding a new one.

Rule 11: Success is not a destination but a journey.

Here’s the thing about success: it’s not a one-time event. You don’t just reach it, plant your flag, and call it a day. Success is a continuous journey, filled with twists, turns, and a whole lot of learning along the way.

In my 25+ years in the business world, I’ve had my share of wins and losses. I founded and sold a successful company, but I’ve also faced my fair share of setbacks. What I’ve learned is that success is not a final destination. It’s about the journey, the experiences, and the growth that happens along the way.

Take, for example, the time when we launched a new training platform at Michael Management Corporation. It was a huge success, but that didn’t mean we could sit back and relax. We kept innovating, improving, and adapting. Each milestone was a step in the journey, not the end of it.

Celebrate your victories, but don’t get too comfortable. Keep pushing, keep striving, and keep growing. Enjoy the journey, because that’s where the real success lies.

Rule 12: Work to live.

Last but certainly not least, let’s talk about balance. Work is important—no doubt about it—but it shouldn’t consume your entire life. The whole point of working hard is to enjoy the fruits of your labor. So, remember to work to live, not live to work.

When I sold Michael Management Corporation, it was a monumental milestone in my career. But it didn’t mean I would just kick back and relax forever. Now, I work on our growing portfolio of SaaS companies under the Tomco Capital umbrella. But here’s the kicker—I also make sure to stop and smell the proverbial roses.

These days, I make time for fun activities. I’m a drummer (sorry, neighbors!), which is a fantastic way to blow off steam. I also dabble in gin-making at Tom’s Spirits. It’s a fun venture, even if it’s hardly profitable. And then there’s my passion for travel. I travel like it’s my job, exploring new places and cultures, which keeps me inspired and grounded.

Balancing work and play isn’t just important; it’s essential. Your work should enhance your life, not take it over. So, work hard, but make sure to play harder. After all, what’s the point of all that success if you don’t get to enjoy it?

Final Thoughts

And there you have it—Thomas Michael’s 12 rules for business success. These rules are more than just catchy phrases; they’re hard-earned lessons from years of navigating the business world. Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned pro, these principles can help guide you toward a more successful and fulfilling career.

Remember, it’s not about the destination but the journey. Surround yourself with the right people, embrace change, and focus on building meaningful relationships. Delegate wisely, prioritize quality over quantity, and always solve problems instead of just making sales. Keep your customers close, enjoy the process, and, most importantly, make sure you’re living life to the fullest. And for god’s sake, remember this: If it starts hard, it ends hard.

So, get out there and apply these rules in your own business endeavors. Who knows? Maybe one day you’ll be sharing your own rules for success. And if you ever need a reminder to balance work and play, just think of me—drumming away, crafting gin, and exploring the world, all while growing a portfolio of promising SaaS companies. Here’s to your journey and all the success that comes with it!

The post Thomas Michael’s 12 Rules for Business Success appeared first on Tomco Capital - Coaching, Advisory & Investments.

On paper, it was everything I had worked toward for years. The transaction closed, the wire arrived, champagne was opened at an hour that would have felt irresponsible in any other phase of my life. For a brief window, there was validation, relief, and the quiet satisfaction that comes from knowing you’ve finished something properly.

But then there was the transition period.

For one to two months after the sale, I stayed involved to help hand things over to the new owners. Operationally, it felt familiar. The calendar was still full. Emails came in. Calls were scheduled. Decisions were still required. In many ways, it wasn’t that different from being a CEO the week before the sale. The machinery was still running, and I was still part of it.

That continuity masked what was coming.

Because gradually – almost politely – the volume started to drop. Fewer emails. Fewer meetings. Calls that used to be weekly became bi-weekly, then optional, then unnecessary. Calendar invites stopped appearing altogether. The dependency unwound itself faster than I expected, and with far less ceremony.

And then one day, without anything dramatic happening, it became obvious:

I was no longer needed.

Not disliked. Not pushed out. Just… irrelevant. Professionally, at least.

It’s a strange sensation to go from being central to a system to being entirely peripheral to it – especially when nothing “went wrong.” The business was fine. The new owners were competent. The machine simply didn’t require me anymore because I had built it this way.

That’s when the real question surfaced – not the celebratory one, but the unsettling one:

Now what?

I find myself facing reality. What am I going to do with my professional life going forward? At my age, I’m too young to do nothing or play golf all day long.

The Itch to Build Something – Without Knowing What

Once the noise finally stopped, something else surfaced almost immediately.

Restlessness.

Not panic. Not regret. But a familiar internal hum – the urge to build, to create, to make something exist where nothing had existed before. That impulse hadn’t disappeared with the sale. If anything, it had been lying in wait, buried under the obligations of transition and handover.

I’ve never been particularly good at standing still for long. At my core, I’m a builder. That’s the identity that survived the sale, the title change, the inbox going quiet. The problem wasn’t a lack of desire – it was a lack of direction.

I wanted to start something again. I missed the early pulse of creation. The energy of shaping a system, designing a tool, solving a problem that mattered to someone. I wanted to feel that quiet excitement of watching something take form under my hands.

What I didn’t want was just as clear.

I didn’t miss meetings.
I didn’t miss administration.
I didn’t miss HR conversations, performance reviews, or managing ever-expanding teams.
I didn’t miss the slow creep of corporate process and political noise that inevitably comes with scale.

Those things had been necessary once. They were never the point.

When I stripped business down to the parts I genuinely enjoyed, a pattern emerged: I loved building systems. Applications. Tools. Solutions that removed friction and helped people do their work better. I loved clarity, structure, and leverage. I loved the early stages – the phase where intent is high and bureaucracy hasn’t yet arrived.

What I didn’t love was what happens after success – the overhead, the weight, the constant management of complexity for its own sake.

That realization was both liberating and unsettling.

Because it left me with a very honest but very uncomfortable truth:
I wanted to build again – but not the way I had before.

And I had no idea, yet, what that actually meant.

Closing

So this is where I am.

The company is sold. The transition is complete. The inbox is quiet.

I know I want to build again – that part is clear.
I know what I don’t want to rebuild – that’s even clearer.

What I don’t know yet is what shape the next thing should take, or what kind of structure would allow me to focus on the parts of building I actually enjoy without recreating everything I don’t.

For the first time in a very long time, there is no obvious next step. No default path. No externally imposed urgency.

Just space.

That’s unsettling and, if I’m honest, slightly exhilarating.

Something will emerge from this. I don’t know what it is yet, or how long it will take. But I can sense that this in-between phase matters more than it appears from the outside.

For now, I’m paying attention

With gratitude,

Thomas Michael

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