THE LIFE CYCLE OF STARTUPS - PART 1

THE LIFE CYCLE OF STARTUPS - PART 1

Life-cycle thinking permeates much of business and economic theory. Industries have life cycles, products and whole economies have life cycles. Heck, even some have hypothesised that civilisation itself has a life cycle with the likes of Oswald Spengler. While there are other models of viewing the launch of a small business in view of life-cycle thinking I wanted to consider it again but from the perspective of a start up. Michael Gerber's E myth was also acatalyst for this post with his life-cycle on running a small business. My hope for the benefit the reader to have them consider the roles and responsibilities, nay the challenges each phase of the life-cycle you as a founder will likely face.This first Part covers the early stages think the first 12-24 months of the startup.

ARE YOUR FRIENDS BAD-ASSES OR BAD ASS'?

ARE YOUR FRIENDS BAD-ASSES OR BAD ASS'?

So I saw suicide squad... yep, pretty disappointing. As usual however, I like to try and draw some gain from all experiences so during reflection of the film I was reminded of a few thoughts on our social circles. We've all heard that we are the product of those around us, there is even data suggesting that we have a very close trajectory to our 5 closest people, from our finances to our fitness. For the fact that its been talked about to death I'm not going to give much time to it's importance, if you don't already appreciate it, you will in time. I do have some specific things from the suicide squad however.

ARE YOU A PATHETIC MAN-CHILD?

ARE YOU A PATHETIC MAN-CHILD?

Despite having no experience in any other time period, I would say that we live in the most challenging time and culture to be a man. Historically (and unarguably.. though some will try) men's primary role has been to protect and provide for their families and communities. Due to the fact that we are an incredibly intelligent species, we have created a world where those tasks now look incredibly different.

WHY STARTUPS SHOULD CARE ABOUT JESUS MONEY

WHY STARTUPS SHOULD CARE ABOUT JESUS MONEY

Apparently, even at its low estimates, the religious economy in the US is bigger than the global revenue of Apple and Microsoft combined. But still the recent paper by Grim & Grim on the 'The Socio-economic Contribution of Religion to American Society' leaves room for many questions. According to their research, the high value of faith to U.S. society could top $4.8 trillion annually, or the equivalent of nearly a third of America’s gross domestic product (GDP). Their middle-order estimate puts it at $1.2 Trillion which would mean the cohort is the 15th largest economy in the world. This is quite mind boggling.

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REFLECTIONS ON HOW TO SURVIVE IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY POST GFC

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REFLECTIONS ON HOW TO SURVIVE IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY POST GFC

recently was at a conference/forum for future leaders of Indonesia, run by Gerakan Mari Berbagi (GMB) in Jakarta. I have been involved with GMB for just over 2 years now.  I personally spoke briefly, but I want to take you through what the key note speaker, Handry Satriago the CEO of GE for Indonesia, discussed. 

DEALING WITH SATURATED MARKETS, REFLECTIONS FROM A MALL IN JAKARTA

DEALING WITH SATURATED MARKETS, REFLECTIONS FROM A MALL IN JAKARTA

I am currently in Jakarta, Indonesia and had an experience that I thought was blog worthy. Yesterday I went to the Mall Ambassador, it is a maze of shops and people with while not as large or expansive as other malls it is a recommended spot. Like most malls in Jakarta it is quite easy to get lost in the sea of confusion, deals and bargains.  My purpose being there was to have an automatic watch I own repaired.

PENDING MODE: THINGS TO DO WHEN YOU'RE STUCK RAISING CAPITAL

PENDING MODE: THINGS TO DO WHEN YOU'RE STUCK RAISING CAPITAL

No matter how much work you have placed towards raising capital it still can be a challenging road with many dead ends. The classic phrase for every nine 'No's' you will get one 'yes' rings true. Many have written books and blogs dedicated on how to raise your money especially at pre-seed, and seed rounds stages. But I want to discuss what do you actually do if things are moving slow. How can you make the most of the opportunity?