From College Student to Startup Success: Get Sh!T Done's Alex Batdorf Shares Her Career Journey and Networking Tips
Photo courtesy of Alex Batdorf
After starting two companies from scratch, 30-year-old Get Sh!t Done founder & CEO Alex Batdorf knows a thing or two about achieving success through building connections. For this month’s Network to Net Worth issue, she shares how she broke old-school networking habits, got out of her comfort zone and has made the most of Zoom happy hours. Batdorf’s mission has been to give female entrepreneurs access to the blueprints, gain the know-how, and receive the tools for scaling successfully on their own terms. Here are her top tips for making it all work for you.
Get Out of Your Comfort Zone
At 19, Batdorf co-founded her first company. Without any business experience, she put together a team, started developing the product, and pitched investors. Although that company failed, she would later go on to co-found her second company, ZipFit Inc. (acquired), which successfully raised venture capital.
What has played a major role in her success has been a longstanding commitment she made to herself to expand her network beyond her comfort zone, which started when she was an undergrad at the University of Chicago. This extended both on and off-campus.
“What’s moved mountains for me and accelerated my progress was investing in connections,” Batdorf said.
Long before she started her first business, Batdorf loved networking and worked to hone it as a skill. Whether it was grabbing a coffee or going dancing, Batdorf made sure to keep those connections strong. She learned by acquiring numerous connections, she would be able to somehow connect the dots later.
“Fast forward [to after undergrad], and now when I’m raising capital for my next company, I can call [my contacts] because I know that they’re at this trading firm or this investment firm…,” she said.
Today, at Get Sh!t Done, she said many of those connections continue to be vital when supporting and empowering her clients in scaling their businesses. This was all possible because she made an effort to get to know others and expand her network to work in her favor.
Value Transparency
Batdorf is passionate about founders having optionality instead of being stuck between small or unicorn. She believes in creating longevity for women-led businesses through her F*ck 4% Initiative. The initiative is based on the statistic that women-owned businesses generate only four percent of total revenue despite owning 42 percent of businesses, according to a 2019 American Express Report. Also, the revenue gap between Black and all women-owned businesses is alarming — $24,000 and $142,900, respectively, despite Black women owning businesses in higher numbers compared to other women of color. “The gap between African American/Black women-owned businesses’ average revenue and all women-owned businesses is the greatest of any minority,” according to the AMEX report. “That is the systemic fundamental barrier. If we don’t get over that, f--- the funding conversation!,” Batdorf said. “We’re not enabling and empowering women to grow companies that can sustain and scale!”
Batdorf believes that through transparency and strategy, existing companies can successfully scale and thrive long-term. She has observed men entrepreneurs being open about both their successes and failures and encourages women to do the same. “I don’t care about more women starting businesses until we can nurture ones in the current system and usher them through,” she added.
Everyone Has Something to Offer as a Mentor or Mentee
The zenith of many networks starts with mentors and mentees, however, some young entrepreneurs or college students may feel like they don’t have anything to offer. One of Batdorf’s first experiences with networking involved driving her mentor (and future investor) from Chicago to Michigan for a biking trip.
“I didn’t have anything to offer on a social context, because he was in the upper echelons. But what I could offer was [a drive],” she said. And when they arrived, she was suddenly thrust in a room with top entrepreneurs and businesspeople, some who were on the same lists as Oprah, she added.
“I see this a lot, especially with women. [We think] we’re not ready yet. [We think], ‘until I get here, then I’ll be worthy.’ But no, you’re worthy now! There’s always something you can provide, even if you’re not at that person’s level,” Batdorf said.
Whether it be as a babysitter or a driving buddy, networking can turn into recommendations, which can turn into an opportunity. So whether engaging as a mentor or mentee, Batdorf always ends each conversation by asking, “How can I support you?.”
Be Authentic
Rather than simply taking someone’s business card or resume, Batdorf has pushed for authenticity, especially during the pandemic, when working with entrepreneurs for GSD. This has resulted in some pretty refreshingly transparent responses. When one woman expressed the financial instability she experienced as a child during a GSD accelerator, many other attendees could relate.
“We’ve now had three cohorts from our accelerator during the pandemic...If anything, what COVID taught me is that a lot of people are wearing [figurative] masks all the time, especially women. And something we talk about constantly in the Get Sh!t Done tribe is, ‘realness is greater than niceness’ - period point-blank.”
Rather than exchanging simple pleasantries all of the time, Batdorf hopes that COVID will result in a new, more transparent style of networking. “Women are asked to be nice, put on a smile...and we carry so much, especially women of color...and now...you have a collective trauma on multiple fronts,” she said, noting the simultaneous social, political, and mental health crises. “So what I saw [being] the most powerful as far as networking is showing up...as your real a-- self.”
Photo courtesy of Alex Batdorf
Create Boundaries
Although it may sound counterintuitive, create boundaries while connecting. “Women have a tendency, because we’re naturally nurturers, [that] we pour so much into other people, [but you have to] create boundaries. When you’re making connections with people, it should also be something that fills you, [and] not just to connect with someone to connect,” she said.
Reset Your Focus
Even in the midst of your career, you may have to reset your focus and prioritize your network. While building her second company, Batdorf was prioritizing growth and scaling her business. She missed those essential connections that had made her first company so successful, so she decided to prioritize people. “When I looked up one day I was exhausted in my own company. I resented what I was doing. And...I denied myself what makes me run. And I think what makes people run is connection. That’s the biggest thing.”
Although social media is a vital part of making connections in today’s world, it shouldn’t be the sole mode of communication. “People are the ones making deals. People are the ones referring people to positions. People are the ones that do all of that. There’s no technology that’s going to replace that,” she said.
Since that has been a challenge for all during COVID-19, Batdorf started hosting a virtual Kicka-- Queens Happy Hour as a way for women entrepreneurs to connect and, more importantly, vent. They’ve been so successful that the group has decided to continue the Zoom event post-COVID.
There’s No ‘One Size Fits All’
Most importantly, Batdorf wants people to know that it’s OK to march to the beat of your own drum. A self-proclaimed night owl, Batdorf works best between 9 PM-2 AM, prioritizes meditation, and concludes each day with a ‘joy percentage.’
By taking care of herself, then she can empower her team, create a stronger network and offer more to her clients. “My essential goal every single day is maximizing for joy because that makes me the best version of myself and the best leader to lead this company,” she said.
About the Author
Mary Anderson is a multifaceted media professional with a passion for storytelling. In addition to writing for InStyle, Fashionista, and Harper’s Bazaar her work has been highlighted on The View. Connect with her on her website.