Group items tagged

good list of insights from entrepreneurs on first startups and how tough it is to get going--I can identify with a lot of them

interesting observations on Susanna and Jonathan Gebauer's reflections on blogging for six months (March 23, 2015).

nice blog post by Sean Smith on Copyblogger for content marketing for an inground swimming pool business and an online marketing business. Explains that responding to questions in a blog post is great way to educate and engage with potential customers.

Interesting blog post bu Elizabeth MacBride, April 5, 2013, on virtual partnerships, 5 secrets 1. must have the same agenda 2. you actually like the person 3. complementary skill sets or traits 4. open lines of communications 5. good legal underpinnings Excerpt "Our number-one rule - and the glue that holds our partnership together - is keeping the workload manageable. We don't take on too many clients, and we don't hold ourselves to unrealistic standards for production. "Our business is focused on helping people navigate a big, ongoing trend-the shift from traditional jobs to an economy built around freelance, contract and temporary work. Pulling all-nighters at the business and cutting ourselves off from the rest of the world, as we might at a venture-capital backed startup, doesn't seem like the right way for us," Pofeldt says. "Why not enjoy one of the best parts of freelancing: the freedom to have an active life outside of work without apologizing for it?" Barry "CB" Martin and Larry Gaian are food writers and marketers-for-hire who met via their common networks. "This year I started several new ventures," Martin wrote via email. "I asked him to be a sounding board. On one of the ideas, he was thinking along the same lines so we decided to combine forces." They're working together under the moniker Guys In Aprons, asking food companies to hire them to write recipe posts and interview expert chefs."

Interesting article by Megan Hughes, March 23, 2015 on how inventers are racing to meet the needs of baby boomers with personal behavior tracking/assessment devices (Fitbit and others) to help boomers enjoy good health for as long as possible. Boomers are afraid of losing their independence according to market assessments that drive new tech development for this age group.

Far ranging channels for learning

article in INC on definition of entrepreneurship by Howard Stevenson, HBS professor, captured in book Breakthrough Entrepreneurship by Jon Burgstone. "Entrepreneurship is the pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources currently controlled."

interview by J. D. Harrison on 2/6/2015 with with Tim Westergren, founder of Pandora. Their business model--"a series of lily pads to keep them afloat"--took them about four years to develop to finally point it toward individual consumers to start using Pandora. The rest is history and a lot of money!