Do More Faster
TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup
Published on 19. November 2010
Book
Hardback
336 pages
978-0-470-92983-4 (ISBN)
Description
Practical advice from some of today's top early stage investors and entrepreneurs
TechStars is a mentorship-driven startup accelerator with operations in three U.S. cities. Once a year in each city, it funds about ten Internet startups with a small amount of capital and surrounds them with around fifty top Internet entrepreneurs and investors. Historically, about seventy-five percent of the companies that go through TechStars raise a meaningful amount of angel or venture capital. Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup is a collection of advice that comes from individuals who have passed through, or are part of, this proven program. Each vignette is an exploration of information often heard during the TechStars program and provides practical insights into early stage entrepreneurship.
* Contains seven sections, each focusing on a major theme within the TechStars program, including idea and vision, fundraising, legal and structure, and work/life balance
* Created by two highly regarded experts in the world of early stage investing
* Essays in each section come from the experienced author team as well as TechStar mentors, entrepreneurs, and founders of companies
While you'll ultimately have to make your own decisions about what's right for your business, Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup can get your entrepreneurial endeavor headed in the right direction.
TechStars is a mentorship-driven startup accelerator with operations in three U.S. cities. Once a year in each city, it funds about ten Internet startups with a small amount of capital and surrounds them with around fifty top Internet entrepreneurs and investors. Historically, about seventy-five percent of the companies that go through TechStars raise a meaningful amount of angel or venture capital. Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup is a collection of advice that comes from individuals who have passed through, or are part of, this proven program. Each vignette is an exploration of information often heard during the TechStars program and provides practical insights into early stage entrepreneurship.
* Contains seven sections, each focusing on a major theme within the TechStars program, including idea and vision, fundraising, legal and structure, and work/life balance
* Created by two highly regarded experts in the world of early stage investing
* Essays in each section come from the experienced author team as well as TechStar mentors, entrepreneurs, and founders of companies
While you'll ultimately have to make your own decisions about what's right for your business, Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup can get your entrepreneurial endeavor headed in the right direction.
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Brad Feld | David B. Cohen
Do More Faster: Techstars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup
TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup
Book
07/2019
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Wiley
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Additional editions
E-Book
10/2010
Wiley
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E-Book
10/2010
Wiley
€22.99
Available for download
Persons
David Cohen is the founder and CEO of TechStars. He previously founded and successfully exited several companies and is now an angel investor in over 100 Internet startups.
BRAD FELD is a managing director of Foundry Group, an early stage venture capital firm. He has been an early stage investor and entrepreneur for over twenty-five years.
BRAD FELD is a managing director of Foundry Group, an early stage venture capital firm. He has been an early stage investor and entrepreneur for over twenty-five years.
Content
Foreword.
Preface.
About TechStars.
The Seven Themes You Must Master.
Theme 1: Idea and Vision.
Trust Me, Your Idea is Worthless.
Start With Your Passion.
Look for the Pain.
Get Feedback Early.
Usage is Like Oxygen for Ideas.
Forget the Kitchen Sink.
Find That One Thing They Love.
Don't Plan. Prototype!
You Never Need another Original Idea.
Get It Out There.
Avoid Tunnel Vision.
Focus.
Iterate Again.
Fail Fast.
Pull the Plug When You Know It's Time.
Theme 2: People.
Don't Go It Alone.
Avoid Co-Founder Conflict.
Hire People Better Than You.
Hire Slowly, Fire Quickly.
If You Can Quit, You Should.
Build a Balanced Team.
Startups Seek Friends.
Engage Great Mentors.
Define Your Culture.
Two Strikes and You Are Out.
Karma Matters.
Be Open to Randomness.
Theme 3: Execution.
Do More Faster.
Assume That You're Wrong.
Make Decisions Quickly.
It's Just Data.
Use Your Head, Then Trust Your Gut.
Progress Equals Validated Learning.
The Plural of Anecdote is Not Data.
Don't Suck at Email
Use What's Free.
Be Tiny Until You Shouldn't Be.
Don't Celebrate the Wrong Things.
Release at a Specific Time.
Learn From Your Failures.
Quality Over Quantity.
Have a Bias Towards Action.
Do or Do Not, There is No Try.
Theme 4: Product.
Don't Wait Until You Are Proud of Your Product.
Find Your Whitespace.
Focus on What Matters.
Obsess Over Metrics.
Avoid Distractions.
Know Your Customer.
Beware the Big Companies.
Throw Things Away.
Pivot.
Theme 5: Fundraising.
You Don't Have To Raise Money.
There's More Than One Way To Raise Money.
Don't Forget About Bootstrapping.
Beware of Angel Investors Who Aren't.
Seed Investors Care About Three Things.
Practice Like You Play.
If You Want Money, Ask for Advice.
Show, Don't Tell.
Turn the Knife After You Stick It In.
Don't Over Optimize On Valuations.
Get Help With Your Term Sheet.
Focus On The First One-Third.
Theme 6: Legal and Structure.
Form the Company Early.
Choose the Right Company Structure.
Default to Delaware.
Lawyers Don't Have To Be Expensive.
Vesting Is Good For You.
Your Brother-in-Law is Probably Not the Right Corporate Lawyer.
To 83(b) Or Not To 83(b), There Is No Question.
Theme 7: Work/Life Balance.
Discover Work Life Balance.
Practice Your Passion.
Follow Your Heart.
Turn Work into Play.
Get Out From Behind Your Computer.
Stay Healthy.
Get Away From It All.
The Evolution of TechStars.
What Motivated Me To Start TechStars?
Why TechStars Started in Boulder.
How TechStars Came to Boston.
How TechStars Came to Seattle.
So You Want To Start TechStars In Your City?
Appendix A: The TechStars Companies.
About the Authors.
Acknowledgements.
Index.
Preface.
About TechStars.
The Seven Themes You Must Master.
Theme 1: Idea and Vision.
Trust Me, Your Idea is Worthless.
Start With Your Passion.
Look for the Pain.
Get Feedback Early.
Usage is Like Oxygen for Ideas.
Forget the Kitchen Sink.
Find That One Thing They Love.
Don't Plan. Prototype!
You Never Need another Original Idea.
Get It Out There.
Avoid Tunnel Vision.
Focus.
Iterate Again.
Fail Fast.
Pull the Plug When You Know It's Time.
Theme 2: People.
Don't Go It Alone.
Avoid Co-Founder Conflict.
Hire People Better Than You.
Hire Slowly, Fire Quickly.
If You Can Quit, You Should.
Build a Balanced Team.
Startups Seek Friends.
Engage Great Mentors.
Define Your Culture.
Two Strikes and You Are Out.
Karma Matters.
Be Open to Randomness.
Theme 3: Execution.
Do More Faster.
Assume That You're Wrong.
Make Decisions Quickly.
It's Just Data.
Use Your Head, Then Trust Your Gut.
Progress Equals Validated Learning.
The Plural of Anecdote is Not Data.
Don't Suck at Email
Use What's Free.
Be Tiny Until You Shouldn't Be.
Don't Celebrate the Wrong Things.
Release at a Specific Time.
Learn From Your Failures.
Quality Over Quantity.
Have a Bias Towards Action.
Do or Do Not, There is No Try.
Theme 4: Product.
Don't Wait Until You Are Proud of Your Product.
Find Your Whitespace.
Focus on What Matters.
Obsess Over Metrics.
Avoid Distractions.
Know Your Customer.
Beware the Big Companies.
Throw Things Away.
Pivot.
Theme 5: Fundraising.
You Don't Have To Raise Money.
There's More Than One Way To Raise Money.
Don't Forget About Bootstrapping.
Beware of Angel Investors Who Aren't.
Seed Investors Care About Three Things.
Practice Like You Play.
If You Want Money, Ask for Advice.
Show, Don't Tell.
Turn the Knife After You Stick It In.
Don't Over Optimize On Valuations.
Get Help With Your Term Sheet.
Focus On The First One-Third.
Theme 6: Legal and Structure.
Form the Company Early.
Choose the Right Company Structure.
Default to Delaware.
Lawyers Don't Have To Be Expensive.
Vesting Is Good For You.
Your Brother-in-Law is Probably Not the Right Corporate Lawyer.
To 83(b) Or Not To 83(b), There Is No Question.
Theme 7: Work/Life Balance.
Discover Work Life Balance.
Practice Your Passion.
Follow Your Heart.
Turn Work into Play.
Get Out From Behind Your Computer.
Stay Healthy.
Get Away From It All.
The Evolution of TechStars.
What Motivated Me To Start TechStars?
Why TechStars Started in Boulder.
How TechStars Came to Boston.
How TechStars Came to Seattle.
So You Want To Start TechStars In Your City?
Appendix A: The TechStars Companies.
About the Authors.
Acknowledgements.
Index.