A friend forwarded me a link to this presentation — So You Wanna Do A Startup, Eh? I liked it so much, I thought I’d do quick post with some brief commentary.
Highlights:
- Slide 30: “Seek Mentors and Allies. This is the most important point I make in this entire presentation.” Why it’s listed as bullet 5 on slide 30 is beyond me, but it is nevertheless a key point. I’m doing some startup advisory work of l ate and I certainly believe that some friends with experience, wisdom, and connections can go a long way towards helping a new venture head down the right path and avoid some obvious mistakes.
- Slide 11: Five myths about startups, particularly myth 2 (the average tech startup founder is a 25 year old Ivy league dropout) and myth 5 (location doesn’t matter)
- Slide 30: Ask rejectors for feedback. Critical.
- Slide 36: Too funny!
- Slide 40: I love the Venn diagram and also note that the delusional aspect that enables founders to do the impossible in starting companies can lead to problems later on.