Use E-Mail Like a Walkie-Talkie, Not A Bullhorn
Firms make a mistake when they treat email like a bullhorn, a tools for broadcast, instead of a walkie-talkie that enables a conversation.
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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
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 address if you would like to have new blog posts sent to you.
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Christopher Moore’s Coyote Blue
Christopher Moore’s novel, Coyote Blue, is full of observations that I found very applicable to the entrepreneurial roller coaster.
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Mission Often Matters More Than Monetization In An Early Market
In the early market make it your mission to help your early customers. Providing value you can charge for will do more to gain traction than anything else.
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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 Death Stars, 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. If you haven’t set your goals for the next six months now is a good time to write them down.
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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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Dean Kamen on Good Design and Where to Begin
An excerpt from an interview with Dean Kamen in “Imagine Design Create” by Tom Wujec. Kamen suggests entrepreneurs look for outmoded perspectives preventing the use of technologies that are “available, affordable, reliable, functional.”
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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
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 like new blog posts to your inbox.
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Validating Your MVP For B2B Startups at SF Lean Startup Circle Tue-Jun-4
We have been invited back the SF Lean Startup Circle to present our “Validating Your MVP and Value Proposition for B2B Startups” workshop on June 4, starting 5:30pm. This interactive workshop will address: How a B2B startup should think about message, MVP, and launch. Understand who buys your product and how they calculate its value and
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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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