I’m Mailchimp Co-Founder Ben Chestnut and This Is How I Work
If you’ve ever listened to a podcast, you’ve heard of Mailchimp. (“Mail … kimp?”) We spoke to Ben Chestnut, CEO and co-founder of an email newsletter and marketing platform that has grown to half a billion dollars in revenue without venture capital . Ben reveals the email habit that was at the heart of his early recruiting policies.
Location : Atlanta, Georgia. Current place of work : CEO and co-founder of Mailchimp. Current mobile device : iPhone X. Computer : Macbook Air. One word that best describes how you work is “Why.” I always ask why and make sure people understand why decisions and strategies.
First of all, tell us a little about your past and how you got where you are now.
I grew up in a small town in South Georgia. My father was in the military and my mother ran a hairdresser in our family kitchen. As a child, I helped by sweeping my hair and emptying ashtrays at the end of the day.
My mom worked very hard. I remember that she had a file cabinet with names and records of all of her clients. Today I call it CRM. I saw firsthand how difficult it is to run a small business and how useful it can be. That still motivates me today – Mailchimp exists to empower small businesses and help them grow.
Tell us about a recent work day.
Every day is a little different, but here’s a typical Monday.
5am: wake up, check the weather, my calendar and news on my phone 5:45: drink coffee, check email 6:30: make breakfast for my sons and then take them to school 8am: ride the peloton 9am: go in the office 10:00 am: My team updates me on weekly news 10:30 am: Chat with the executive team to talk about high-level updates and obstacles 11:00 am: Meet with our VP of design to discuss the customer service project 12:00 pm: Lunch at my desk and then go for a walk around Atlanta 2pm waist : Meet our new hires for the “co-founders of the chat” where Dan and I talk about our company’s history and answer any questions 3PM: Email Catch Up 4pm: Send a memo to our employees thankful for the good quarter and reminding them of MailChimp’s strategic plan. 6:00 pm: Go home to spend time with your family.
What apps, gadgets or tools can’t you live without?
As for personal qualities , Strava to track my cycling and Audible audiobooks. I rely on GSuite and Slack for my work. In general, my favorite tool is the OLFA Slimline knife . I used it in design school instead of the X-Acto knife. I keep them at home and in my car. These are the most comfortable knives!
How is your workplace arranged?
My workspace is pretty sparse. I have a comfortable meeting area with a laptop and stickers on my desk. There is a lot of conversation going on in my office, but the work itself takes place in other people’s offices and we have dedicated presentation areas so I can make it easier to work without whiteboards, monitors or gadgets.
What’s your best shortcut or life hack?
I am very picky about how to host my apps on my iPhone. The very first home screen is optimized for my morning routine. This screen * only * has the most important apps for me in the morning, so I never fill this screen to the max.
Typically, the most important applications are in the top and bottom row for quick visual identification and access. Medium applications are located on the sides, while the rest are in the middle. At the very top are the apps that I use when I wake up for the first time.
At the top left is the weather app, because I need to know how to dress boys for school and myself for workday. Then my calendar, so I’m ready for appointments at work. Then this is the News app, so I know what’s going on in the world. Then Trello so I can keep up with strategic initiatives. The bottom row contains the apps I use for my morning workouts, Strava and Apple Music, which I can listen to while I work out. The last 2 apps are Audible and Podcasts for my morning driving.
In the very bottom dock of shortcuts, I try to keep the camera app in the lower right corner so that I can quickly find it and take pictures of my kids or any wildlife I spotted while riding my bike. I never have to search for this app.
All the other screens on my iPhone are a mess, but this home screen is beautiful.
What’s your best way to hack email?
In the early days of Mailchimp, I collected emails by category (design errors, accounting problems) and used the volume in each of those categories to determine who I needed to hire next. If I had a hundred design emails, I knew it was time to hire a design leader.
Tell us about an interesting, unusual, or challenging process you have at work.
I like the throw hat over the wall tactic. This comes from a speech by John F. Kennedy at the opening of the Center for Aerospace Medicine. The idea is that when you embark on a big project or initiative, sometimes you just have to throw your hat over the wall. Then you strive to overcome any difficulties, climb the wall and get to your hat. For me, this usually means that you need to get your MVP and figure it out from there.
Who are the people who help you achieve results, and how do you rely on them?
My entire executive team. They own their territories and I rely on them every day. When I’m on vacation or out of the office at an event, I don’t have to be tied to the phone or worry about missing out on something important. I know the team has it.
How do you keep track of what you need to do?
Notes.
What’s your favorite side project?
Mountain biking and health care. This is something that I did not have time for when we were at the initial stage of building a business and constantly worked. I now find time to exercise, eat well, and take care of myself.
What are you reading now or what do you recommend?
The Multipliers by Liz Wiseman is a great book on leadership. I also love How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler. I give advice to my children when they are young so that they can read books faster and enjoy reading them more.
Who else would you like to see to answer these questions?
Chris Tompkins. She is the former CEO of Patagonia and a conservationist who protects millions (!) Of acres of nature in Chile . You should follow her Instagram .
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
My mom used to say, “Become your friends.” It’s true – over time, you start to reflect the people you interact with. This inspired me to choose some really good friends who will be my role models and will inspire me.
What problem are you still trying to solve?
Last year, we added new features to Mailchimp and became a omnichannel marketing platform for small businesses, not just email. We are in the process of changing the position of our business, but we must keep the trains operational while we plan new routes for the future. I recently read a book on this topic called Double Conversion . Double conversion is the perfect way to describe our current task.