Meet Your Local Entrepreneur- Patrick Cutliffe

As part of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2019, SERC's Enterprise and Entrepreneurship team have conducted a series of interviews with local entrepreneurs to inspire the next generation.

This interview is with Patrick Cutliffe, the Founder of BuzzStart Academy.

What is your business, product or service?

BuzzStart Academy is the solution to the ever-widening digital skills gap. The company was set up to plug the ever-increasing digital skills gap within the global economy. BuzzStart launched April 2019 in partnership with Facebook to roll out their digital skills training programme across 6 European countries.

Collectively, the 15+ specialist trainers at the company have trained well over 300,000 people in digital marketing. They provide training daily for some of the world's largest brands including Google, Facebook and Microsoft.

Although we currently specialise in Digital Marketing, we plan to evolve into other specialist subjects as the business begins to grow. For 2020, our mission is to raise funds and focus our resources on fast-tracking the digital skills recruitment pipeline, replacing outdated education delivery formats with new and innovative delivery methods.

Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you came to run your own business(es)?

That leads me onto my biggest success to date. I’ve had much success on my journey including credits for doing sound for multiple Hollywood movies. I’ve shared A&R panels with Bob Geldof and Nigel Grainge (one of the worlds’ most respected Artist and Repertoire people).

I’ve pitched and raised tens of thousands of pounds and built a team and a business. I’ve delivered keynote speeches for Google and I’ve trained over 30,000 people worldwide in Digital Marketing for Google, Facebook and Microsoft.

Recently I’ve launched my second major business, which is a training academy called BuzzStart Academy. I’m currently in partnership with Facebook and Microsoft and I do a lot of work for Google also. I’ve grown the company in 6 months and delivered across the entire UK and Ireland and hired 15+ trainers. I’m only getting warmed up. For 2020, I’m currently putting in a bid for a fund in Manchester for upskilling the digital economy and future workforce. This bid, if successful, will have significant positive impact on my objective trajectory to upskill and train 20 million people by 2023.

My biggest success to date?

I’ve overcome anxiety, which has had a hold on me my entire life. I’ve worked on myself for years with self-help books, mindfulness and pushing my boundaries daily to overcome my greatest fears. A few years ago, I was terrified to speak to two strangers at the same time. Today, I can stand on a stage and speak and train thousands and I have.

My anxiety hasn’t gone away completely but I can manage it to the point where my heart isn’t trying to crawl out of my belly button. So, I would say overcoming anxiety and my deepest human flaws and fear have been my greatest achievements. Without achieving those, I would never have achieved any of the other things I have.  

Have you had any mishaps along the way? How did you overcome them?

Yes, too many to mention. I picked myself up, stopped feeling sorry for myself and went again. I used mindfulness for quieting my brain and that’s where I’ve found my greatest ideas and ambitions. Steve Jobs used to walk around the block. I use mindfulness. I’ve overcome fear, failure, loss and many other things as we all do and experience. The secret is to LEARN from every experience you have in life and turn your negatives into positives.

If you do not take your learning and apply it the next time around, you will stay on the basement floor. If you apply your learning and work hard and never give up, eventually, you will move to the next floor and then the next and the elevator will begin to pick up speed. The beauty of it is that the building has infinite floors, but you don’t want to stay stuck to the bottom. So, on that note, please enjoy your journey in life. Stress less and love what you do more. If you’re doing your bit daily, it all adds up.  

What have you learnt in running a business that you wish you had known before you started? 

I’ve learned mainly to put myself first. This might sound selfish but trust me it’s probably the best thing you’ll ever do, if your intentions are to help other people, you can only help others when you help yourself first. Therefore, remove negative people from your earshot. Ignore the naysayers, they’re everywhere and only reflecting their own internal rot. Believe in yourself and your journey.

Look around at the world and know that everything you see apart from nature was ideated and created by a human being. If you have the money, take a trip to New York City or Dubai and look around and open your eyes to the possibilities. The human race is incredible and we wouldn’t have any of the amazing products or services we have today if it wasn’t for entrepreneurs and ideas people like you!

What key pieces of advice would you give to students who are interested in setting up a business?

Go for it. A recent report has shown that the average age of successful entrepreneurs across all industries and verticals is 42 – 45 years old. There is a reason for that, and I understand it now better than I did in my late 20s / early 30s.

Think about the building and the floors and the elevator and plant that in your brain. Your brain moves up the floors as you try things and learn from them. Much like as a child when you learned to walk. You fell hundreds or thousands of times before you straightened up and were able to walk unhindered.

Please

1. come up with an idea
2. test it out and use the design thinking process
3. get some customers and ensure they’re willing to part cash
4. find a mentor to guide and inspire you
5. believe in yourself
6. never stop or give up because your first one or 100 ideas might not be the one but you will get there. You will pivot many times.
7. have fun.  

Do you have any advice regarding finance and funding?

If you have a product or service that people are willing to pay for, you have a business. It’s that simple. You then need to figure out how to scale and grow your business without going too slow or too fast towards burn out. Always have cash flow. Cash flow is King. My motto has always been to bootstrap my own business and figure out a way to grow my business without taking loans or other people’s money.

I still believe in this as it’s much harder and you learn a lot more and the elevator doesn’t drop 10 floors when the money disappears because you have all the knowledge over someone who’s had investment injected early days. I’ve achieved this with my new business and I do not owe anyone any money. Debt is a nasty cancer on our society and your subconscious so if you can avoid it, please do.

Any final thoughts?

I’m proud of you. Be proud of yourself.

-Patrick