John Nash on “Make Something that People Want”
Video and an edited transcript from the “Make Something that People Want”” briefing by John Nash at the Aug-24-2022 Lean Culture meetup.
Books
Leslie Odom, Jr. on Failing Up
Leslie Odom, Jr.’s “Failing Up” is an autobiography written at what I hope is the midpoint of a long and successful career. He has a lot of practical advice gleaned from performing that I think is very applicable to entrepreneurs.
Andrew Grove on Recognizing Reality
An excerpt from Andrew Grove’s “Only the Paranoid Survive” shows Grove and Gordon Moore recognizing reality and exiting a money losing business, the memory business that had brought Intel so much early success.
Time Capsule: Freakonomics Book Review from 2005
I review Freakonomics by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner, suggest other books at the intersection of economics, systems analysis, and everyday life.
Eliza Calvert Hall: Piecing a Quilt is Like Living a Life
An excerpt from “Aunt Jane of Kentucky” by Eliza Calvert Hall that explores piecing a quilt as a metaphor for making the most of your life.
Book Club: Traversing the Traction Gap by Bruce Cleveland
In “The Traction Gap” Bruce Cleveland explains how to find a minimum viable product and grow a company with a repeatable sales process.
“The Ship that Never Was” from “Skunk Works” by Ben R. Rich
“Skunk Works” by Ben R. Rich is a worthy sequel to Kelly Johnson’s “Kelly: More Than My Share of It All.” It brings the story of the Lockheed Skunkworks, founded by Johnson, up to 1995. There are a number of lessons for technology entrepreneurs.
Etienne Garbugli on Opportunities: Finding New Products
Etienne Garbugli looks at finding product opportunities, and how entrepreneurs deliver value and gain a foothold inside businesses.
Sean Murphy Interview with Etienne Garbugli for the LeanB2B Podcast
Sean Murphy was interviewed by Etienne Garbugli on “Working Capital: It Takes More Than Money” for the March 9, 2021 LeanB2B Podcast.
Phil Liao Reviews “Working Capital: It Takes More Than Money”
Phil Liao reviewed “Working Capital: It Takes More Than Money” in January 2021, here is his full review with more context on his experience as an entrepreneur.
Entrepreneurs Cannot Rely on a Cookbook or a Manual
Entrepreneurs starting their first business often hunt for a cookbook of recipes to make sense of a journey that is alternating between bewilderment and frustration. But startups fight for existence in a competitive and evolving environment, where changes in the technical or social substrates can invalidate their strategy or enable competitors without warning.
Bob Biglin’s Review of Working Capital: It Takes More Than Money
Bob Biglin, CEO of the Center for Advanced Emotional Intelligence, offers a review of “Working Capital: It Takes More than Money.”
Brendan McAdams on Sales Craft: Proven Tips to Elevate Your Sales
“Sales Craft: Proven Tips, Tactics and Ideas to Elevate Your Sales” by Brendan McAdams is a quick read, well written and clearly based on practical experience.
William Eleazar Barton: The Parable of the Icebergs and the Fog
There are several insights for bootstrappers in William Eleazar Barton’s “The Icebergs and the Fog.” It’s a “Safed the Sage” parable published in 1925
Austin Kleon’s “Keep Going” Offers Practical Advice on Perseverance
Austin Kleon’s third book, “Keep Going,” contains a wealth of practical advice for how to persevere and how to summon the energy and to start over with new creativity.
Austin Kleon on Making Lists: To-Do, Ideas, and Do’s & Don’ts
Austin Kleon has a short section, “Make Lists,” in his new book, “Keep Going.” He offers several suggestions for different types of lists; I have selected four to explore in some detail because I think they are most appropriate for entrepreneurs.
Key Lessons From Priya Parker’s “The Art of Gathering “
Here are six practical lessons from Priya Parker‘s “The Art of Gathering.” It’s a great book that provides both practical and conceptual guidance for anyone who is planning or hosting a meeting.
Napoleon Hill on Principles for Success in Business and Life
Napoleon Hill wrote “The Magic Ladder to Success” in 1930. Despite being a con man and failure for most of his life, Hill was able to accurately summarize a number of common sense rules for success. I have tried to pull out some key insights in this blog post, leaving out a number of other …
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This is Your Brain on Music
Daniel Levitin’s “This is Your Brain on Music” offers an interesting mix of insights based on research, interviews with musicians, and his own experience.
Revisting Neuromancer After Three Decades
Neuromancer, William Gibson’s first novel, was published in 1984. It helped to establish the cyberpunk genre of science fiction: a dark future where computing, communication, and artificial intelligence technologies were dominant, complemented by significant medical advances, large inhabited satellites in Earth orbit, and considerable drug use. I recently re-read it and was struck by how things …