February 2012
23 posts
Why I Do Unsmart Things
I have this fundamental belief.
And this belief often leads me to do unsmart things.
The heart of this belief is that if something I’m doing is going to succeed, then I have to do every possible thing to make it so. Now, doing so doesn’t ensure success but ultimate success is predicated on it. Call it necessary, not sufficient.
For better, but occasionally for worse, this belief...
“The internet is increasingly reshaping our economy from one of huge corporations...”
– Chris Dixon
…and all those income streams represent an economic and cultural shift unlike any we’ve seen in our lifetime.
The Problem With "Innovation"
Last week while prodding a pitching entrepreneur on his competitive landscape I rattled off potential competitor after potential competitor in order to gauge his reaction. After appeasing me for a few of them he paused, mid-sentence, a little befuddled. Then he stopped altogether.
A little exasperated, he said something along the lines of:
Startups don’t compete with airlines by...
Don't Overplan Your Life
The other day I stumbled across an old presentation I gave to the Strategy Department at the BYU Marriott School back in 2008. As I flipped through the deck, I came across a slide that took me back to a specific moment a defining piece of advice was dispensed.
It was 1999 and I had life all figured out. I’d be graduating with a Philosophy degree and headed straight to law school where I...
“GitHub wasn’t supposed to be a startup or a company. GitHub was just a tool that...”
– @defunkt
Talk to Us About Your Problems
Before lean startups there was lean manufacturing. And Toyota was the laboratory where many of these lean principles were tested for the first time at scale.
So, I’ve been reading up on some of the first hand experiences that came from that formative time that these lean principles were being implemented. In doing so, I came across an exchange between a Toyota manager, James Wiseman, and...
To AMR On Our Anniversary
One week after our first date, I knew I wanted to marry AMR.
Two months after our first date I proposed with a $10 cubic zirconia ring (I believe Eric Reis would call that a minimum viable product).
Three and a half months after our first date we were married. That was 16 years ago today.
It was a powerful thing to feel something so instinctual, so clear, at such a young age.
It was the first...
“Don’t look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement one...”
– John Wooden
Agreeable Guys* Finish Last
A few weeks back, David Hornick wrote a great piece in Wired UK titled, Nice Guys Finish First. Eventually. In it, he talks of his life’s goal as that of being a successful VC without having to be a jerk. He cites a recent study which paints the picture of a successful leader as someone combative, authoritarian, dominant. The study stands in stark contrast to his stated goal so David posits...
Rise of the Independents
DHH put up a provocative post the other day questioning the societal norms of the startup culture. This isn’t a new rant for him or the 37signals crew, but he touched on a few things I thought worth amplifying. From the post:
The problem is that most “exciting new company” lore is intermingled with that of Startup Culture™. This means it’s hard to find your identity when it doesn’t match...
Internet Culture is Just Culture
On my ride to the train station this morning I was tuned into Al Jezera radio. As my mind drifted between the broadcast and my plans for the day I heard the host of the show detailing the role Facebook was playing in an upcoming election in India. A reference point that several years ago would have felt very inside baseball was dropped in passing. As if any cultural event of an significance was...
On Becoming a Leader
I’m not a big football fan, but there was a piece written about Eli Manning that grabbed my attention in the wake of his teams’ Super Bowl victory last night (note- the article was written in August).
Apparently, Manning was asked if he was the same caliber quarterback as his competitor for the Super Bowl ring last night, Tom Brady.
“Are you in the Tom Brady class? Are you in...
What's In a Number?
I’ve not been able to shake a recent exchange I had with an entrepreneur.
Though very interesting, their company was quite early, hardly launched and pre-funded. As we talked, their enthusiasm began to bubble and proceeded to boil over. Our conversation soon turned to their very aggressive fundraising strategy and I began to push back on the thinking behind it. After a fair bit of back...
