Money isn’t the driving force behind great businesses. Neither is the perfect plan or a groundbreaking idea. What really matters? Seeing problems clearly and having the guts to solve them. After building successful ventures in graphic design, luxury real estate, and app development, Paxton Calvanese learned that entrepreneurship boils down to three simple rules. His unconventional approach strips away the complexity that holds most people back. No fancy frameworks or business school theories – just practical wisdom from years of bringing new ideas to life.
Here are his three key rules to building success.
Rule Number 1: See the Solution
Most people think entrepreneurs chase problems looking for solutions. Paxton sees it differently. “If you listen to any of the great innovators or entrepreneurs, they always use the word ‘I saw’ or ‘I see,'” he notes. The insight usually comes naturally, often when you least expect it. Life has a way of showing us what needs fixing. “You’ll come across deficiencies in this world. I mean, you don’t have to look too far,” Paxton explains. These moments of clarity often connect directly to who you are. “It’s typically based on your personality, your experience, your unique design in life.”
Money makes a poor motivator for the long haul. “It is very, very difficult to be an entrepreneur chasing money because there’s just not enough energy to chase enough money,” Paxton points out. Instead, he found his drive in something deeper. “It’s much more thrilling in life to have an idea that you created, that you’ve seen, and implement it and bring it to the world.”
Rule Number 2: Just Start Moving
Knowledge only gets you so far. Paxton often shares this insight with young entrepreneurs: “There is no book, there is no advice, there is nothing that I could tell a newly married somebody who’s just about to get married that’s gonna prepare them for the experience of marriage or kids.” Some things you just have to live through to understand.
He draws a sharp contrast between education and entrepreneurship. “The problem is in school, many people have this mindset like we’re still in school, where they give us the problem and they tell us all the constraints and everything we have to do, and then we have to find a solution.” Real business doesn’t work that way. “In the real world, we have to find what the problem is too. And it is entirely different game.” Progress happens one step at a time. “You see the next step, and you follow that, and then you go on to the next one,” Paxton explains. This means letting go of the idea that everything needs to be perfectly planned. Sometimes you just have to jump in and figure things out as you go.
Rule Number 3: Trust Your Vision
When it comes to your business vision, outside advice has limits. “There’s only 2 types of people in this world, you and the peanut gallery,” Paxton states bluntly. “You’re the expert in your own vision. You know how you operate. You know your strengths and your weaknesses.” The pressure to focus on competition or quick profits can pull you off course. “There are plenty of temptations to look at the competition or focus on money. And that’s the wrong route,” he warns. This especially matters in the early stages. “If you focus on money too early, you won’t have a good solution because you’re injecting this alternate problem of how do I make money with this?”
Good solutions create their own opportunities. “When you go down a path of following your vision, you will discover all sorts of things that you didn’t see at the very beginning,” Paxton shares. The money often follows naturally. “There could be all sorts of opportunities for monetization as you discover and develop your vision.”
These three rules – see solutions, take action, and stay true to your vision – form the backbone of Paxton’s approach to business building. His experience shows that success doesn’t always follow the conventional path. Sometimes the best move is to trust what you see and start building, even before all the pieces are in place. His approach strips entrepreneurship down to its essentials. No complex frameworks or business school theories – just clear vision, decisive action, and unwavering focus. For Paxton, that’s all you really need to start building something real.
To learn more about Paxton Calvanese and his approach, check out his LinkedIn profile.
