This topic is a remarkable one. I got to interview a person that is very well known in the web2.0 and startup industry. I’m talking about Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten. How was this interview made possible? Easy, I just asked him and he agreed.

So without further ado, I present to you, Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten.

Q: If you had to introduce yourself to someone using  only a couple of sentences,  what would it be?

BVZ: Left school age 15. Attended circusschool and art school (graduated cum laude) until I started my first business. Sold that after 2 years. Then started and sold another business. Serial entrepreneur.

Q: When and how did you decide it was the right opportunity to start on your own?

BVZ: I grew up wanting to be a millionaire. As a child I was always wondering how I could reach that goal. Even when I dropped out of school or attended art school I always stayed ambitious. When I first came up with the concept for my first company (a redirect service using domains in Tonga: come.to, go.to and travel.to) I didn’t have to think about it at all. I was ready.

Q: What are your (person) specialties? And, if you had to describe yourself using tags, what would they be (5 tags)?

BVZ: I’m good at finding out what is new and I’m good at getting people motivated. I generally find out about an idea and them assemble a team around me to work with. I give away a lot of shares very soon and hope to work with people who are just as ambitious and eager as I am.

tags: innovative, ambitious, original, optimistic, serendipity

Q: Do you have a background in computers or design work? What sort of mentors have you had in this business?

BVZ: My background is in art and that has helped me enormously. In art school one of the most fundamental things you learn is how to look at things in a different perspective. The ‘Think Different’ slogan pretty much sums it up. I’m good at looking at things in a different way.

I have a lot of mentors and people I learn from. I try to pick up useful stuff from everyone. I sometimes quote my biggest enemies. I might not like them personally but that doesn’t stop me from learning from them

There are also a few older guys who I can call day and night if I have an issue. That has been great too…

Q: How do you market your business(es) ?

BVZ: In every way I can. I really think that any marketing should be based on getting loyal followers. I can spend hours helping one customer because I know that every minute I invest in that one person will make him more dedicated to the product or service I’m promoting. Every single customer that you win over will become an ambassador for my service. Its the opposite of mass marketing. Of-course I also know a lot of journalists who I approach personally and who i try to persuade to write about my stuff.

Q: Has your web presence helped your business in any way?

BVZ: My personal web presence has helped me a lot. My blog is well read and I have found a few business-partners and many contact through it.

Did you ever think of giving up?

BVZ: No.

Q: Do you consider yourself to be successful?

BVZ: I am very happy with the work I do. Success is usually measured by how much money you have or have made. I became a multi millionaire before I was 30 and lost millions just after I became 30. I have set up several companies where people now earn money to support themselves. I’m in a position where I can dream up ideas and get to try them out. I also work with a lot of young entrepreneurs who are shaping the future and I get to help them shape it. So do I feel successful? Oh yeah…

Q: Do you have any employees and if so, what do they say about you?

BVZ: I have more partners than employees and I don’t really know what they say about me. I hope they say nice things and think I am an inspiration and make them ambitious and feel powerful.

Q: Can you tell us what an average workday of Boris looks like?

BVZ: I come in in the morning after I drop my girls off at school. Then I start working through my email, maybe write a blogpost. Then we have lunch at the office and talk about projects that we are planning or doing or new ideas we came up with. Everybody loves a new idea so there is always to room to say ‘What if…’ and then pose a scenario.
After that I work on the projects that need attention. We also have some of the companies we own shares in here in the building so about every 30 minutes somebody comes up to me with a question, some advice or just a story. I talk, and listen, a lot every day. At five I usually leave to make dinner at pick up my kids. After they sleep I sit on the couch with my girlfriend and work on my laptop until 12.
Other days I do lectures, meet with CVs or start-ups or  visit the occasional networking meeting. I’m chairman of the dutch Interactive Professionals Association so we have some meeting for that every month and I always go to OpenCoffee on thursday. On Friday my kids are free so I take the day off and do stuff with them.

Q: What was you very first business (startup)?

BVZ: V3.com - Redirect Services

Q: What advice can you give to someone who wants to start his business?

BVZ: Start.

A lot of people talk and plan endlessly without every doing anything.
The biggest challenge is to just start.

Q: What are some of the books you recommend entrepreneurs to read?

BVZ: Everything by Guy Kawasaki is fun. Definitely read ‘Never Eat Alone’ and ‘How to win friends and influence people’. I also liked ‘Juice: the creative fuel that drives world class inventors’ but that one is really for people who do innovative work. Most of Seth Godin’s work is great too. I would also recommend reading some Douglas Coupland, Chuck Palahniuk and Douglas Rushkoff just to train your mind on thinking different and because they are great fun…

Q: Those just starting out in this business are always curious about how much money they can make. How much have you made?

BVZ: We sold V3.com for 21 million dutch guilders which translated to about 11 million dollars. I owned 33% of the company and we got paid mostly in shares. The scanned company I sold to dutch KPN for an
undisclosed sum. I made a few hundred thousand in total on that deal.
It all seems like a lot but the shares I received for V3 became pretty worthless before I could sell them. The other issue is that I make money once every few years, if I’m lucky. The money I have is spent on living, eating and starting new companies. Next to that I also do an occasional speech or lecture somewhere for money. So how much do I make? Sometimes a lot and often nothing.

Q: What tools do you use out there on the web that you find useful? Are you a devotee of any of the “Web 2″ tools?

BVZ: I use WordPress for my blog, GetClicky.com for stats and Amazon to buy books, Google for search, BaseCamp for project management, Plaxo and LinkedIn for my contacts and Answers.com to look up a lot of works. I also use WikiPedia a lot and upload all my photos to Flickr.com. We use Google Calendar to manage our combined calendars at the office.

I use Mail on my MacBook pro to manage my mail and a Blackberry Curve when I’m away from my computer. I surf in Safari and Firefox and use iCal and Addressbook. I also have Delicious Library to manage my 159
books and 307 dvds and Safe Place to keep my 299 passwords.

Q: What do you think about the current flurry of Internet startups?

BVZ: I love it. I am really happy that there is room to come up with seemingly crazy ideas and just run with it.

Q: Do you think “Web 2.0″ is a real thing or just the same old in a different package?

BVZ: It is both. Sometimes I think it is just an excuse to feel good about the web again. But it is also a new way of looking at webservices as applications and more.

Q: Do you have any plans for the future regarding new startups - business ideas?

BVZ: We have new ideas every day. Some ideas turn into projects and some projects turn into companies. I can’t imagine ever not having any plans regarding future new start-ups…

Q: How much time a week do you spend behind a pc or laptop?

BVZ: Every hour and minute of the day I’m am either behind my Mac or holding my Blackberry. I’m almost always online and working.

Q: Do you spend a lot of time contemplating about your future (retirement)?

BVZ: In a certain way. I think a lot about where I am heading and what the strategy for our company should be. But I don’t think of retiring or doing something else with my life.

That’s it folks.
Again, I’d like to say thank you to Boris for granting me this email-interview.
If you enjoyed this casual electronic questionnaire as much as I did, then please cast a vote on Digg.