SEVEN PARALLEL CONSULTING
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Business, Innovation, Startup, You
Startup is for BUSINESS. Not for revolution. (Click)
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A business is at the core continuous, profitable sales in a market.
The five core basis of startup: first sale, eventually scaling, industry positioning, profit, exclusivity.
No business on earth happened casually. Just having a company and good will will not produce business.
Startup is a full contact experiential experience, not a "clever thinking and then viola" scheme.
Marketing. It is 90% of work
Marketing is find market and go to market to meet. Marketing differs from sales, advertising, promotion.
Find market first. Then you can worry about advertising, sales, promotion.
Fantasy and Myth Busters
The society and media simplifies many things and present many Fairy Princess fantasies. These hurt the startup process.
The business suits and consultants are just side employees. They are career managers who run business and eventually to ground, but not starting.
Garage-to-riches fantasy
Fan social networking marketing
Build-it-and-they-will-come fantasy
On-line fan base as achievement.
Quality, Pricing, Value, Marketing, Brand
The Startup Experience will change you and the way you view and interact with other humans.
It Will Take You Two Lives
The Startup Experience will change you and the way you view and interact with other humans.
There is no EGO in Entrepreneur, There is no "I" in leader, and there is no "I think" in startup.
Your productive life starts when you know the ONLY ONE THING you would do and people love.
School-Experience-Failure-Choice
Experience-Choice-Offer-Sustained Marketing-Lots of Sales
Veteran Business Starting Techniques
For most young entrepreneurs, both staring and business are new. So when you start a business, learn top techniques from pros.
Positioning and industry selection. Initial Niche. Name-brand-legal. Partner First. Scaling and Ceiling. Pricing. Naming. Sales First. Company Second. Find Market.
BM, BP, ECOSYSTEM, VP should flow naturally.
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Focus, Offer, Value, and Audience, and Size
Business is continuous, profitable trade of value. What do you offer? who you make your offer? Listen to What People Want, in a Market.
Leave your study and go to market.
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Starting up a new business, a new company and building sales is insanely fun and difficult. It requires the founder to be brave, to have passion and vision, to have experiences, and to have relentless drive when no one cares and no one agrees. Ironically, this is the only time to sneak up on established companies.
First Sale First. Company Second.
Once you have an offer, a market, and sales, build the company. Don't build a company and wait for business to happen. Don't try to solve a small problem or satisfy a hidden need. That is like a boy trying to be Jordan.
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Don't expect to offer someone your best and see it gladly accepted by the world. This does not happen.
The Necessity of Failures
Life, business and startup is made up of delicate steps that can not be skipped or done in reverse. First thing first. Entrepreneurs dare to focus. After many failures, you learn to choose. Funny no one would teach you, and you won't have listened either.
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So entrepreneurship is hard. You have to bravely take a stand on something no one believes in, build prototypes, and endure all the failures to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Funding and Investment
Funding is important. It is like a blind date bonanza - you want to know the hidden rules.
The cost of doing business. The process and cost of building a business.
Culture, Faith and People
The Startup Experience will change you and the way you view and interact with other humans.
You can not be for startup but hate business.
Even if you don't like working with people, you must work with a partner, investors, and talented employees.
Business and Management Stuff Condensed
Essential business concepts explained in interconnected and delightfully straight fashion.
At the core, it is just like opening a stall in a busy market to sell your goods.
Offer-Audience-Value-Marketing-Brand
Cost-Price-Value-Positioning
Supply Chain-Cash Flow
Need-Want-Stable Revenue-Transactions
Remember a business is not some fancy strategy and leadership show.
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Power Tools for Startup
1.
HOW TO CHOOSE A BUSINESS TO START.
Don't try to start a wrong business or a bad business. A template to evaluate if you are selecting correctly.
* Choose carefully. But never RE-CHOOSE.
2.
HOW TO FILTER YOUR IDEAS TO AVOID A SMALL ONE.
A useful planner you can use to refine your idea and pick out weakness.
Don't fall in love with your one idea.
Don't start if you don't have to.
Once you start, don't stop and don't change your choice.
3.
HOW DOES INVESTORS LOOK AT YOU.
A template for auditing your business and business plan.
4.
IS HE THE ONE? CRITERIA FOR A CO-FOUNDER
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A cofounder is critically important. Without the cofounder, you are just a solo road show and work horse. Here is a list you need to use to evaluate if someone fits the bill of a co-founder.
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5 STEPS TO DESIGN A BIG IDEA
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Not all problems are same. Not all contributions are equal. Design a business with big potential disruptive impacts.
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All the help you can get
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A list of resources, including videos, blogs, etc.
7.
Powerful Book Shelfs
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Books on innovation are like a handbook for driving a car - it is useless. They all contain useful advice in hindsight though. Here are some good ones that is helpful for clearing your head. They "burst your fantasy bubble" or "give you a spank".