College vs. Startup
Some thoughts on college vs. startups, the panels are sliced up from “Students” by Randall Monroe. This is which is a dream that I still have. I find it a marker for being under pressure.
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skmurphy
Use E-Mail Like a Walkie-Talkie, Not A Bullhorn
I don’t think it’s a new trend but one new service that I recently signed up for asked me to take a short survey about how I felt about their product and what I planned to do. They E-Mailed it from a “no-reply” email address and I realized that an answer I had stuffed into
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The Lego Box Presentation Method
The Lego Box Presentation Method is to put meaning before detail. When Lego sells a Starfighter the picture on the box show it fully assembled, not the 560 multi-colored pieces and a collegiate dictionary-size book of assembly directions.
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If You Knew How Hard a Startup Would Be
A new startup is often driven by a desire for autonomy, self-expression, and lifelong learning. Or it’s a creative solution to a lack of alternatives. Albert Hirschman observed that “creativity always comes as a surprise to us” which led him to suggest “the only we can bring our creative resources fully into play is by misjudging
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Set Your PowerPoints on Stun
The best product demo is a conversation driven by mutual curiosity. Don’t set your PowerPoints on stun. Your goal is to learn more about a prospect’s current situation and needs while they want to learn more about your product and services and how you can help them.
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Quotes For Entrepreneurs–July 2013
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Christopher Moore’s Coyote Blue
Christopher Moore’s Coyote Blue Christopher Moore’s novel “Coyote Blue.” is full of personal observations and asides that I found very applicable to the entrepreneurial roller coaster. In his author’s note he writes: Do you ever get the feeling that forces unseen are messing with your life? Yeah, me too. And there is little doubt that
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Mission Often Matters More Than Monetization In An Early Market
Q: I am a newly minted entrepreneur who has been developing a technology product for an emerging market (state-legalized marijuana) that is proving especially hard to crack. I am a long-standing business strategist who understands and appreciates the imperatives of customer development, however have been very unsuccessful in getting business owners and consumers to open
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Summer Reading for 2013: Applying Ecosystem Models To Business
It’s time for another summer reading list, this year I am focused on ecosystem models: systems thinking informed by biological metaphors.
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Even For Demanding Markets, An MVP That’s a 70% Solution is Often Good Enough
Stripping the least useful third of the features requested allows you to deliver a 70 percent solution much more rapidly that’s often good enough.
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Time Capsule: ValencePoint Executive Summary July 19, 2004
This is a time capsule from nine years ago. We worked part time on a side project we called ValencePoint from late 2003 until mid 2005. We used the technology internally with clients and at one point acted on a suggestion to make a funding presentation which led to the creation of this executive summary.
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MVP: Are You Building a Death Star?
Empires build a Death Star, Rebels build X-Wing fighters If your startup’s minimum viable product is a Death Star you are doing it wrong.
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Podcast with Pete Tormey: Bootstrapper’s Delegation Checklist
Pete Tormey and I did a short podcast on a delegation checklist. We wanted to help bootstrapping entrepreneurs decide what tasks it made the most sense to delegate in an early stage startup.
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Before You Can Score You Must Have A Goal
“Before you can score you must have a goal” Greek proverb If you haven’t set out your goals for the second half of 2013 this would be a good week to huddle with your team and advisors and come up with at least the top three to five. Photo credit: All Day by Max Murphy
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Byron Wien’s Lessons Learned in 80 Years: Seven for Entrepreneurs
7 Tips for Entrepreneurs from “Lessons Learned in 80 Years” by Byron Wien. The best is “Don’t try to be better than your competitors, try to be different.”
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Making Adjustments at the Half for 2013
The four day 4th of July weekend is a good excuse to take a break from the day to day pressures of bootstrapping, reflect on your goals for the year and what you have accomplished and learned so far…and perhaps make some “adjustments at the half.”
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Quotes For Entrepreneurs–June 2013
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Quotes For Entrepreneurs–May 2013
A collection of quotes of interest and use to entrepreneurs: these quotes for entrepreneurs were identified in May 2013. You can follow @skmurphy to get these hot off the mojo wire or wait until these quotes for entrepreneurs are collected in a blog post at the end of each month. Enter your E-mail if you would
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Paul Spaan Offers 3D Printing Show & Tell Fri-May-24 at Mountain View BB
Join other entrepreneurs for serious conversations about growing a business based on internal cash flow and organic profit at a Bootstrappers Breakfast®. Paul Spaan, CEO of Spaan Enterprises, will offer a seven minute briefing on “3D Printing For Bootstrappers” and circulate examples of prototype products he has printed. Paul’s briefing will be followed by our regular roundtable
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Reminder: Successful Consulting Engagements With Startups at IEEE-CNSV Tue-May-21
Quick reminder: I will be moderating a panel on “Successful Consulting Engagements with Startups” at the May 21 IEEE-CNSV meeting. I volunteered to pull this panel together after a long thread on the CNSV e-mail list June about the topic. I have been fortunate to attract three knowledgeable and experienced engineers to take part in the
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