Cognaize director's tips for business success: Set goal, gather good team, don't be disappointed by failures, work with love

Set a goal, gather a good team, don't be disappointed by failures, do the work only with love, and pursue the goal. This is the formula that has guided Al Eisaian—who founded five companies, and is currently the Co-Founder and Board Member of InteliAir, CEO & Board Member of Cognaize Holdings Inc., USA—throughout his life.

"So where I sit, it's a great time to pursue it. Don't let the initial material limitations limit you," he says, adding that unlike 20-25 years ago, there are unlimited opportunities to acquire knowledge in today's world.

According to Eisaian, in order to be successful in business, one must learn not to feel uncomfortable with uncertainty, which usually causes fear. "But if you can transform that fear into action, then it's not fear anymore," he adds.

Eisaian says that you don't need to know a lot about the industry to start a company, but you do need to love it and be inspired by what you're trying to create.

“The process of starting companies is always something that is not necessarily coming out of my head, it's coming out of my heart. Every company that I've started, it's because I wanted to do something that creates value, first and foremost for Armenia, but then for the world," he says.

As per Eisaian, there is no need to be afraid of making mistakes and failures because every mistake teaches a person something.

"When failure happens, I change the definition of failure to lessons so there's no failure, there are just lessons. So every failure is teaching you something and if you are honest with your vision of what you're creating then what you can do is that every failure is like 'oh I'm getting closer to my goal,'" he says.

Good team is essential

Gathering a good team is also an important condition for creating a successful company; it all depends on the people with whom you build the company around the specific idea. Eisaian says that he likes to watch how people go through the complicated and difficult path of following their vision.

"Because so many challenges come up, it is very difficult and normal human beings just quit. They're like: 'it's too much work, too much uncertainty.’ So the humans that actually stay with the process, stay with a very difficult learning process, they're very special," he says.

Of course, having a good team alone is not enough to succeed; you need to create an environment where people can do their best work. And when that environment is created, people go to work with great enthusiasm, work hard, and work becomes something like a game for them.

"I always tell people 'it's okay if you're not enjoying it. Never stick around in a job that you know you are doing for money only. No matter how much money you earn. Because it becomes meaningless," he notes.

According to him, it is also important that the team members freely express their opinion and dialogue takes place, which makes the work even easier.

"When you have the dialogue it becomes their mission, it becomes everybody's mission," he emphasizes.

When asked what his favorite project is, Eisaian says all of them, even those that did not achieve financial success, because with those projects he achieved some goals that are more than financial success.

"I love the company that I'm working for. Otherwise, I just don't work on them. So it's very difficult for me to say which one and every team is special, customers are different. As long as I get to play the game of creation and I get to play with the people that I like and enjoy and respect, it's a favorite start,” says Al Eisaian.