Nine Things Successful People Do Differently - Heidi Grant Halvorson
Learn more about the science of success with Heidi Grant Halvorson’s HBR Single, based on this blog post. Why have you been so successful in reaching some of your goals, but not others? If you aren’t sure, you are far from alone in your confusion. It turns out that even brilliant, highly accomplished people are pretty lousy when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. 1. To seize the moment, decide when and where you will take each action you want to take, in advance. 3. Fortunately, decades of research suggest that the belief in fixed ability is completely wrong — abilities of all kinds are profoundly malleable. The good news is, if you aren’t particularly gritty now, there is something you can do about it. 7. To build willpower, take on a challenge that requires you to do something you’d honestly rather not do. 8. 9. If you want to change your ways, ask yourself, What will I do instead?
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Best 101 Entrepreneurship Quotes Ever · 14 Clicks
I’m a big fan of quotes. I could read them all day long. Some quotes can shift your entire mindset on something while others are just nice to bring up in conversations. I’ve spent the last two years (off and on) compiling 101 of my favorite entrepreneurship quotes around success, failure, leadership, wisdom, humor, money, practicality, motivation, and a smattering of entrepreneurial proverbs. Success Quotes Failure Quotes “Failure defeats losers, failure inspires winners.” Leadership Quotes “Leaders don’t force people to follow, they invite them on a journey.” Wisdom Quotes “The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts.” Humorous Quotes “I think it’s wrong that only one company makes the game Monopoly.” Money Quotes “Formal education will make you a living. Practical Quotes
10 Blogs Entrepreneurs Need to Be Reading
See the 2012 edition: 10 Must Read Blogs for Entrepreneurs (2012 Edition) #1. The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur Site: What it is: Mike Michalowicz provides entrepreneurs and small businesses with tips on everything from starting a business to networking to marketing and health care. Why you should read it: Mike not only provides great tips but he provides great tips from REAL people. #2. Site: What it is: Written by a panel of small business owners, the site offers tips and advice on everything business related. Small business trends really covers EVERYTHING! #3. Site: Run by two brothers, Matthew and Adam Toren, Young Entrepreneur is exactly what it sounds like; a site dedicated to young entrepreneurs. Between blog posts, forums, polls and interviews with other small business owners, the site offers fantastic content. #4. Site: Why you should read it: #5. #6. #7. #8.
Remaking a maritime masterpiece - latimes.com
She is 96 years old, all bones and little skin. Her ribs are split and rotted in places and stained by rust. Nonetheless, she is a slightly fearsome presence, commanding her surroundings like a T. rex in a natural history museum. When the Shawnee first hit the water in 1916, she was a striking beauty — a 72-foot sailboat made of old-growth oak and Douglas fir, African mahogany, naturally curved hackmatack and gleaming teak. Her hull had the seductive curve of a wineglass. Now the Shawnee sits partially dismantled in Newport Beach, where master shipwright Dennis Holland is working to restore the boat to her original glory. "I'm a slave to her," says Holland, 66. Some of his neighbors feel they are too. That's because the Shawnee is dry docked in Holland's side yard, between his home and a workshop, its bow jutting out toward the street, its stern overlooking a neighbor's pool. Holland has walked this gangplank before. Building the Pilgrim of Newport was an epic undertaking.
10 Common Mistakes That Startup and Small Companies Make
Young companies have small margins for error. Mistakes made early on can sink a company before its gets off the ground. Below is a list of 10 common mistakes made by young, small companies. Over the next few posts, I will expound on these ideas; for now, here is the list : “Drinking Your Own Kool-Aid” – Overestimating the Enthusiasm for Your Product/Service – thinking your product is more special than your customers perceive. In the entrepreneurial spirit of “under-promise and over-deliver,” here are two more mistakes young companies make: Never Finishing the Product – the “never time to do it right, but there is always time to do it over” syndrome. Disclaimer – as the veteran of six startup companies (two that were successfully sold), these are mistakes I have seen time and again.
How to pick a co-founder - Venture Hacks
Naval · November 12th, 2009 Update: Also see our 40-minute interview on this topic. Picking a co-founder is your most important decision. It’s more important than your product, market, and investors. The ideal founding team is two individuals, with a history of working together, of similar age and financial standing, with mutual respect. The power of two Two is the right number — avoid the three-body problem. One founder companies can work, against the odds (hello, Mark Zuckerberg). Two founders works because unanimity is possible, there are no founder politics, interests can easily align, and founder stakes are high post-financing. Someone you have history with You wouldn’t marry someone you’d just met. One builds, one sells The best builders can prototype and perhaps even build the entire product, end-to-end. The seller doesn’t have to be a “salesman” or “business guy”. Aligned motives required Pay close attention — true motivations are revealed, not declared. Don’t settle Pick “nice” guys
How to Start a Startup
March 2005 (This essay is derived from a talk at the Harvard Computer Society.) You need three things to create a successful startup: to start with good people, to make something customers actually want, and to spend as little money as possible. Most startups that fail do it because they fail at one of these. And that's kind of exciting, when you think about it, because all three are doable. If there is one message I'd like to get across about startups, that's it. The Idea In particular, you don't need a brilliant idea to start a startup around. Google's plan, for example, was simply to create a search site that didn't suck. There are plenty of other areas that are just as backward as search was before Google. For example, dating sites currently suck far worse than search did before Google. An idea for a startup, however, is only a beginning. Another sign of how little the initial idea is worth is the number of startups that change their plan en route. People What Customers Want Should You?
