You never have complete information, if you do it’s a choice not a decision. You have to evaluate a decision in the context of the information that was available at the time. “Good Decision, Bad Outcome” When I first heard someone use this phrase it took a few weeks to sink in. Too often we […]
Good Decision, Bad Outcome Read More »
There is a strong temptation for founders to prioritize their efforts on the basis of “What is the simplest thing we could do here to prove this hypothesis about our product or our business?” It’s often more fruitful to consider what evidence would disprove your hypotheses and what is the simplest thing you could do to
Spend Some Time On How To Disprove Your Hypotheses Read More »
Here is another excerpt from my September interview with Gabriel Weinberg. This one is focused on what to do when you encounter a B2B prospect who is excited about your product and this is only the first or second time this has happened with someone who wasn’t a friend or prior associate. The short answer
What To Do When An Early Prospect is Excited Read More »
Entrepreneurs sign the front of a paycheck. They take prudent risks and create functional businesses that provide value to customers, employees, suppliers, investors, and partners.
Entrepreneurs Sign The Front Of A Paycheck Read More »
Mark Zimmerman’s Zhurnaly (“Russian for Journal”) ) is food for the soul. The wiki format allows him to blend a journal, a runner’s diary, a commonplace book, and short essays. I enjoy his insights and his exploration Zen and ongoing self-improvement. It’s worth reading whenever you want to renew your gumption.
Read Mark Zimmerman’s Zhurnaly to Renew Your Gumption Read More »
A collection of quotes of interest and use to entrepreneurs: these quotes for entrepreneurs were identified in October 2010.
Quotes For Entrepreneurs–October 2010 Read More »
There are categories of knowledge that are not written down, yet. They include observations that have not been curated but drive intuition-based decisions, first hand stories of events–successes and failures–that have not been filtered and sanitized but still offer insight and explanatory power. They are important because they are sources of competitive advantage. Knowledge That
Knowledge That Is Not Written Down, Yet Read More »
E-mail is not a conversation. I have to remind myself of that from time to time. When I am deadlocked with someone and tempted to send one more e-mail to clarify or I find myself getting angrier I have to remember to take a five minute walk around the building and pick up the phone.
E-Mail Is Not a Conversation Read More »
Inspired by Eames’ “Powers of Ten” I explore the scope and scale of plans and activities based on duration. I take a one hour duration as the starting point and look at a factor or 10,000 in each direction: from 1/300 of a second to 10,000 hours.
Scope and Scale of Plans and Activities Read More »
Here are the daily headlines for thousands of news sources, sites, and blog feeds. Service Discontinued
EDA Knowledge Portal Headline Screenshot Read More »
I do this all the time for Clients. I really should do it for ourselves. Below are projects we have help work on with our clients. Here is a roundup of coverage for our clients.
Clients In The News Read More »
Patrick Groeneveld is the CTO at Magma and the Vice Chair in 2011 of the Design Automation Conference. He also chairs the DAC Strategy Committee for 2011 and he has asked me to take part, representing user and startup concerns in the planning process. My objective is to foster an exploration of some of
Need Input on the Design Automation Conference Read More »
EVENT ADVISORY for San Jose, CA – Sean Murphy, CEO at SKMurphy, will host the “Will Work For Equity – the World of Startups” panel discussion at the 2010 Silicon Valley Code Camp at Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, CA. The panel will outline important tips and issues to consider if you are investing your
“The truth is, start-up-land is littered with mavericks, iconoclasts, dropouts, and misfits.” Sramana Mitra in “The Real VCs of Silicon Valley” Entrepreneurship is Involuntary I have come to the conclusion that most entrepreneurship is involuntary. Either someone is an entrepreneur from the time they are young, which was my personal experience, or they are thrust
Mavericks, Iconoclasts, Dropouts and Misfits Read More »
Every bootstrapper has a limited budget for attorney’s fees. Attorneys can help you foresee problems and craft contract language, which looks remarkably similar to English but is in fact code that is executed by the legal system. Use them to protect valuable assets–intellectual property, source code, revenue streams–not create them. A small digression If you
The Limits of Legal Self-Help Read More »
If you are considering joining a startup or are in the process of building out your initial team I am moderating a panel at Silicon Valley Code Camp with three startup CEO’s that you should find helpful. It’s scheduled for Sunday October 10 at 2:45pm and you can sign up here. We will explore: Practical
“Work For Equity” Panel at SVCC Set For Sun-Oct-10 2:45pm Read More »
Pete Tormey moderates the Dublin/Pleasanton Bootstrapper Breakfasts® (along with Richard Moerschell) and fills in from time to time in San Francisco as well. I asked him what he felt some key benefits attendees gained at a breakfast and he sent me a great three minute podcast that I have embedded below. He identifies three benefits
Pete Tormey on the Benefits of Attending a Bootstrappers Breakfast Read More »
A review of Michael Malone’s “The Future Arrived Yesterday: the Protean Corporation.” Malone believes that successful companies of the future must find a way to continuously and rapidly change almost every one of their attributes but retain a core of values.
The Future, Arriving Yesterday, Remains In Constant Motion Read More »
A hunger for certainty will not help an entrepreneur make timely decisions or manage the level of ambiguity and uncertainty they need to navigate through.
We Cannot Sate Your Hunger For Certainty But We Can Increase Your Odds of Success Read More »
I apologize for this detour from our exploration of entrepreneurial issues, but this anniversary of my complete confusion is one that I continue to observe, still attempting almost a decade later to make sense of it. I am old enough to remember what I was doing when I learned that John Kennedy had been assassinated.
Take a Minute to Recall 9 Years Ago Read More »
