Art of Starting - Guy

That’s the name of his new book.

People came in from out of the country (lots of people from Canada).

The cover of his book is a stock photo from an online service.

He likes to use the top ten format, cause it gives the audience an idea of how long you’ll suck for.

But he has a top 5 this time, there aren’t ten principles for starting.

  • Make meaning : not money, money is an outcome of making meaning (preserve something good, right a wrong, etc). During his Apple stint he didn’t hold to this principle, but he’s learned it over time.

  • Make mantra : simpler than a mission statement. So that if you ask anyone what the company does, they know IMMEDIATELY. Group design of the mission statement sucks, it ends up just being a flimsy woordy statement that no one remembers. Everyone uses the same kind of words. Not worth it for a small company, make a mantra.

    • Disney - fun family entertainment

    • Nike - authentic athletic experience

  • Get going : the key is not slides and word, it’s actually getting going. Think Big. Think 10x better, thing creating a new curve. Jump to a completely new curve. Find soulmates. There is a myth around sole entrapreneur. You should want to plorize people, the worst thing is indifference. You want people to either love it or hate it. Design different. “I want one” is one alternative. “My employer counldnt/wouldnt”. “What the hell, it’s possible, lets build it” - like Motorola with cell phones. “There must be a better way”.

  • Define a business model : He wants just one more bubble, but if that bubble doesn’t appear you need a business model. “Who has you money in their pocket, and how do you get it”. Have a very exact and simple plan. Copy someone elses model. Ask women what they think about your business model. Men have killing coded into their DNA, and men will always say it sounds good. If they really think its a bad idea, they see it as a great way to kill the competition.

  • Weave a MAT : starting a company is very much like a blasting site, the MAT keeps debris in. M Milestones, proof of concept, comple design, prototype, ship testable version. A Assumptions - test your assumptions in realtime (performance of product, test market size, how many sales call can a person make, what is the conversion rate, what num of support calls, prices of parts and supplies). T Tasks - major tasks necessary to hit milestones (renting office space, find key vendors, payroll, legal docs, insurance policies)

That is the art of the start.