Imagining the machine
Photo by zigazou76 You’ve probably been there: a meeting where there’s a great idea to make a new feature. “Wouldn’t be great if…” is often the trigger to a neat, as yet unproven idea. So how can you get more…
Entrepreneurship Starts with Asking Someone to Buy
Remember to ask for the sale. You’ve probably heard these words of advice many times – whether in the context of a prospective deal, a request for a favor, or in an interview prep – and the first time you…
Why I wish Jelly were more like whiteboarding
You may have heard of the new app Jelly – it’s a simple idea, really – that people would rather share questions with each other through pictures and then use those pictures to elicit discussion. Find answer to important things, the…
The balance between too hard and too easy
Like you, I have lots of accounts for applications. And I usually remember the passwords (ok, maybe not always). To avoid this problem, I use two factor authentication whenever possible. Two factor authentication is the use of an external token…
Duct tape and baling twine are essential tools for your startup
Think Like MacGyver Using duct tape and baling twine, you can build almost anything you need. It won’t be pretty, and it’s a good metaphor for finding a way to create a solution for an unknown problem. The first step…
Now, generate 100 ideas
When I was in drawing class in college, my professor asked us to make 100 drawings. “Why would we want to make throwaway drawings?” we asked. The answer he gave stuck with me: “because you don’t know which ones are…
The magic in products is knowing what to leave in
Reading Mark Suster’s excellent post on product design left me with this thought – what if more products were literally designed by the customer? As a thought experiment, leave aside any skepticism you have about the customer making bad choices…
You are the product
Be outraged. Facebook is no longer allowing you to hide and not be found in searches. Instagram is including ads in stream and getting rid of the ability to stop auto-play. LinkedIn is selling your “endorsements”. Google is reading your…
Starting from the empty page.
A blank page is a prison and the ultimate freedom. When the paper is blank there are no constraints. Anything can happen and a masterpiece feels (tantalizingly) within reach. Yet making the first line is the most important line because…
