Start-up Lessons
In light of the increased amount of startup activity percolating up in the area these days, I thought I would weigh in with my 2 cents worth of advice to the novice entrepreneur. To be sure, six years of running a business doesn't qualify me to be an expert in anything, but I've had a few hard lessons driven into my thick head from the school of hard knocks. So here goes...

Start-up Lesson No. 1 - Do it Yourself
When you start a company, there is no shortage of consultants and advisors who come out of the woodwork who will promise to raise money for you, to introduce you to big companies, to get you grants, to negotiate deals, whatever you need. It is tempting to put your faith in these practitioners...after all, they usually have more gray hair, more credentials and better connections than you.

Or so you would think... but before you go spending your hard-earned venture capital dollars or Aunt Sally's retirement fund, just know that really the only two types of service providers you need when starting out are a good accountant and a good lawyer. If they are good, they will naturally attract other good people around them (e.g., the aforementioned investors, companies, partners, etc.) that can help you.

OK, once you have those two types on board, you need to work like hell to figure out who the customer is for the product or technology you are developing and get close to him/her as soon as possible.... Spend as much time talking to people OUTSIDE the company as inside - the more time you spend talking to your own people the higher the probability you start drinking the company kool-aid and trip off into the land of unreasonable assumptions. I'm not saying to ignore your team - communication is important. But make sure you don't reject what the market tells you just because it doesn't fit with your paradigm. You have to go to the mountain...the mountain doesn't come to you.

Next time - how building a business is like doing yoga...