Four keys to success in any career, but especially as an entrepreneur, are: self-mastery, expertise, connections, and perseverance.
Self-Mastery, Expertise, Connections, and Perseverance Read More »
We see a number of entrepreneurial opportunities for innovation in medical care in practice areas where the patient pays for outcomes.
Entrepreneurial Opportunities for Innovation in Medical Care Read More »
Two key tasks we help early stage teams with are preparing for and executing successful negotiations. Honesty in negotiation is key to a long term deal.
Honesty in Negotiations Read More »
We had a situation earlier this week where a potential competitor started to use the name of a client’s service for a similar offering. Fortunately the client had registered the trademark it last year and we were able to politely bring this to the incipient competitor’s attention. They have notified us that they will stop
Cost Effective Approaches to Trademarks Read More »
There is something very seductive about a ramjet engine, it has no moving parts, and all you need to do is pour jet fuel into it: the fuel catches fire and generates a tremendous amount of thrust. This is the attraction of the two sided market. Just get enough “users” or “prospects” or “buyers” and
Be Wary of Relying on a Ramjet For Early Growth Read More »
It’s hard to believe that I still walk around handing out pieces of paper to new people that I meet. Of course when you wanted a nice resume in 1980 you had to have it typeset–no laser printers yet–so sometimes things do change. What follows is a list of changes by decade for what has
What Goes On Your Business Card in 2010? Read More »
An actual situation of a business planning example with decisions that are similar to what many entrepreneurs have to make.
Real Business Planning Example: Re-Scheduling a Workshop Read More »
This was my 2010 plan for making this blog more useful for entrepreneurs. (I have updated it Apr-8-2023 to reflect my progress thirteen years later.)
How Can I Make This Blog More Useful for Entrepreneurs? Read More »
Eric Ries has asked me to help out as a mentor for B2B startup teams at the Startup Lessons Learned Conference on Friday April 23 from 8AM to 6:30PM. It’s quite a line-up and even if you don’t plan to travel to San Francisco there will be a number of streaming video sites that will
Startup Lessons Learned Conference April 23 Read More »
Three selections from the book of Ecclesiastes using the New Jerusalem Bible translation. Chapter 3 from the Ecclesiastes–popularized in the Byrds version of “Turn! Turn! Turn!“–begins with “There is a season for everything, and a time for every occupation under heaven:” but I think 3:3 A time for tears, a time for laughter, a time
Inspiration From Ecclesiastes For Bootstrappers Read More »
I have been wrestling with this concept of the expertise driven company for a while now. I welcome any feedback on the model, I believe that it’s an elaboration of the hypothesis set around customer discovery and validation with a small amount of what’s involved in the early stages of founding team formation. The concept
Are You Building An Expertise Driven Startup? Read More »
You can follow @skmurphy to get these quotes for entrepreneurs hot off the mojo wire or wait until the end of the month when they are collected on the blog. Enter your E-mail if you would like new blog posts to your inbox.
Quotes For Entrepreneurs – March 2010 Read More »
A “killer instinct” that allows you to focus and prioritize is helpful, but if it blinds you to win-win outcomes you will not succeed as an entrepreneur. Killer Instinct In “Killer Instinct” Rafael Corrales writes: “There are no plus-minus stats to measure a player’s ruthlessness, his desire to beat his opponent so badly he’ll need
Killer Instinct Can Blind You to the Value of Partners Read More »
Tien G. Nguyen suggested three filters for a good business idea: Solve a problem that he has personally. Solve a problem that customers will pay you immediately to solve. Solve a problem that is a real one for customers. What I think he is looking for in #1 is a problem that he has some
Solve Real Problems That People Will Pay For Where You Add Unique Value Read More »
I was delighted when Bill Meade, President of Basic IP Management, Inc. agreed to an interview about managing innovation and intellectual property (IP) to maximize profits. Bill served as Intellectual Property Manager and Future Products Manager at Hewlett-Packard, where he “lit the fire” that moved HP from #18 in US patenting to #3. He has
Inventors & IP Management: Bill Meade Interview Read More »
I had an e-mail exchange with William Pietri (@williampietri) back in October that I am reproducing here with his permission. I believe that it highlights a set of issues around “being in the grip of a vision” in a useful way. William Pietri: I’m wondering how Lean Startup founders handle attacks of vision. Do you
Moving From Vision to Engagement With Prospects Read More »
To grow the business founders must assess the task relevant maturity of each employee’s experience with a particular task to manage them effectively.
The Business is Everyone’s Business (Part 2) Read More »
Startups face time pressure and resource scarcity, they need to cultivate effective collaboration among everyone on the team to compensate. They need to act as if the business is everyone’s business. Jack Stack’s “The Great Game of Business” offers some useful models for fostering a shared understanding of the current challenges to enable effective joint
The Business is Everyone’s Business Read More »
In “Moore’s Law Beats Customer Feedback” Chris Morris highlights a quote by Jensen Huang from an April 8, 2009 talk at the Stanford Technology Ventures Program on “Favoring Moore’s Law Over Customer Feedback” (Mr. Huang has a number of talks available on Stanford’s Entrepreneurship Corner): “Sometimes you have to ignore your customers and follow Moore’s
Listening to Customers Read More »
Create and Deliver Surprisingly Compelling Software Demonstrations “Do The Last Thing First” — the recipe for a Great Demo! When: Friday, April 9, 2010 8:15 am – 5:00 pm Advanced Topics PM Session: 1 – 5pm (see below) Where: Moorpark Hotel, 4241 Moorpark Ave, San Jose CA 95129 Cost: $560 This is an interactive workshop
Great Demo Workshop on April 9 2010 Read More »
