I had a great conversation with a first timer after today’s Bootstrapper Breakfast in Sunnyvale. He was a serious entrepreneur who had been bootstrapping for two years and he said, “Real recognizes real, this is the first entrepreneur Meetup I’ve been to where I have been able to talk about my challenges and get practical advice. […]
Bootstrapper Breakfast: Real Recognizes Real Read More »
Founders need leads and deals. Don’t pick give-aways that bury interest from real prospects. Have a real conversation and only exchange cards or scan a badge if there is real interest.
Don’t Let Give-Aways Bury Interest From Real Prospects Read More »
Customer discovery interviews are essential to testing key B2B product hypotheses and understanding your target customers’ needs. Broadly there are five ways that you can reach out to potential customers for a discovery conversation. All of them assume that you have a clear picture of who your target is and a few key questions that
5 Ways To Start Customer Discovery Interviews Read More »
Alexander Jablokov‘s first novel, “Carve the Sky,” has a number of elegantly phrased observations and insights. It’s science fiction, set about four centuries hence in a world where humanity has survived a nuclear war and expanded into the Solar System at least as far as the Asteroid Belt. Here are six excerpts that I found
Six Excerpts From “Carve the Sky” Read More »
Bud Caddell (blog “What Consumes Me“) is someone I have been following for a while. He started a new consulting company and I thought I would reach out to see if there were partnership opportunities. He is in his 30’s but suddenly feeling his mortality–see “The Merchant of Death is Dead“–so his application process asked
Connect With Your Purpose Read More »
These quotes for entrepreneurs were curated in December 2014.
Quotes for Entrepreneurs–December 2014 Read More »
The following is excerpted from the December section of Abe Martin’s Almanack for 1908 by Kin Hubbard. Hubbard tells a story of a family reunion at Christmas–that must be at least partly autobiographical–from the point of view of a young man who has been estranged from his family returning home with his new wife. Like
Kin Hubbard on a Family Reunion at Christmas Read More »
The Philadelphia Startup Leaders Manifesto is a great example of why federated entrepreneurship is a good model for a startup ecosystem. I have reproduced it here with some observations on our startup stages model, the Bootstrapper Breakfasts®, and Silicon Valley.
Federated Entrepreneurship in PSL Manifesto Read More »
Michael Fern, Edith Harbaugh, Steve Hogan, and Sean Murphy discuss the Innovator’s DNA experimenting skill.
Webinar Replay: Innovator’s DNA Experimenting Skill Read More »
Jeff Allison, former VP of Engineering at Cisco Systems joins us to discuss the Innovator’s DNA observing skill.
Webinar Replay: Innovator’s DNA Observing Skill Read More »
Sarah Gray, Ethan Thorman, and Mark Cook join Steve Hogan and Sean Murphy to discuss the Innovator’s DNA Questioning skill, offering lessons learned asking questions to foster innovation.
Webinar Replay: Innovator’s DNA Questioning Skill Read More »
Christoph Guetter suggests in “The eye is a window to the brain; but who’s looking?” that the micron scale resolution of optical coherence tomography (OCT) for in vivo cross-sectional imaging of the human retina may allow earlier and more accurate diagnoses of several common neurodegenerative disorders: Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and amyotrophic
OCT Offers Insights That Used To Require an Autopsy Read More »
Are you struggling with how to do B2B customer interviews? Join us Thu-Jan-29-2015 in Sunnyvale for From Customer Interviews to Enterprise Sales Workshop
Prepare & Practice B2B Customer Interviews Jan-29-2015 Read More »
The desire for economic freedom and autonomy drives many entrepreneurs. Bootstrappers would rather work for customers than investors, choosing the discipline of the competitive marketplace over the wisdom and caprice of the boardroom. “Life is too short to work at a job you hate, but everyone has to do something someone else is willing to
Seven movies to watch to renew your sense of wonder with interstellar travel, alternate universes, and our first steps into space.
Movies to Renew Your Sense of Wonder Read More »
It’s OK to ask a B2B prospect if they would use your product during customer discovery. Just don’t to stop at “Yes” and assume validation or a likely sale.
It’s OK To Ask “Would You Use This?” in Customer Discovery Read More »
Bruce La Fetra of La Fetra Consulting for a conversation on customer interviews. We compared notes on qualitative conversations versus quantitative surveys and exchanged tips and tricks. Bruce presented some great insights on how to organize findings and how to take best advantage of insights gleaned from interviews.
Customer Interviews: How To Organize Findings Read More »
Here are my notes from tonight’s Professional and Technical Consultants Association (PATCA) meeting on “Handling Difficult Client Scenarios in an Agile and Effective Manner.” It was a candid discussion among primarily experienced consultants about real situations that were challenging–and frequently painful. Several good suggestions for preventing and managing challenging customer situations:
Preventing & Managing Challenging Customer Situations Read More »
Managing sales people is a straightforward proposition: you get what you reward. Analyze the compensation package and ensure it isn’t encouraging what you don’t want or discouraging what you do. If you are unhappy with commitments the sales team is making you need to make it clear who needs to review and sign off on
Managing Sales People Read More »
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Quotes For Entrepreneurs–October 2014 Read More »
