http://www.biggersmall.com Fertilizer for Small Business Growth Mon, 10 Nov 2008 22:06:49 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/11/10/my-favorite-books-on-direct-marketing/ I, like most entrepreneurs, have "entrepreneurial ADD".  I can't stop thinking about businesses to start. In order to be able to sleep at night, I had to force myself to come up with a filter I could use to narrow in on ideas that had sticking power (for me personally, not ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/10/12/my-criteria-for-choosing-a-business-to-pursue/ Alexander Muse of Texas Startup Blog wrote a great post on the dedication required to get past the initial phase of starting a business. I've never heard anyone point specifically to 13 months as a benchmark before, but I like his line of reasoning. I can say that I completely ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/07/08/a-great-post-from-alexander-muse-on-sticking-it-out-during-the-initial-start-up-phase/ Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson wrote a series of posts on the contents of a terms sheet, how to negotiate the key points, etc.  It's a very thorough look into the terms of start up investments and a must-read for anyone looking to raise money. MRC http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/07/05/a-great-resource-for-entrepreneurs-looking-to-raise-funds/ I'm captivated by the differences in people's mental game when it comes to crunch time - whether that be in sports, business, or any other high-stress situation.  As an entrepreneur, I always try to stay alert to my mental game because I know it has a huge impact on how ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/06/24/the-eye-of-the-tiger-how-important-is-mental-toughness/ Getting good feedback from your employees gets harder and harder as you grow.  In addition to the “layers” that get created in the organization, employees seem to be more intimidated by the boss when they’ve been brought into the company at a later stage and perhaps don’t get as much ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/05/15/great-online-tool-for-capturing-employee-feedback/ I never would have imagined that a monitor 6 inches larger would save 2.5 hours per week - that's a ton!  I use two monitors; I wonder if the results get multiplied, or at least increased.   Read his post here. http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/03/15/very-interesting-post-by-tim-ferriss-of-4-hour-workweek-large-monitors-save-a-ton-of-time/ Thanks to Mark for another great post that boils things down to a pretty simple level! A lot of people make being successful in a start up look like some sort of hocus pocus, but it usually comes down to following some simple rules and executing every day. You don't ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/03/14/great-post-by-mark-cuban-on-rules-for-a-start-up/ Warren Buffet always remarks that all he is looking for in an investment is a long-term competitive advantage. If you've ever read any books on starting a company, or asked an investor for cash, you've no doubt been reminded that your business should have a competitive advantage. But what exactly is a ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/03/09/what-hiking-in-boulder-taught-me-about-competitive-advantage/ If you are in business in any way, you should read everything from him that you can get your hands on.  I am always amazed by how much I learn and how simple he makes the toughest concepts seem. This is a link to notes from an interview with him - ... http://www.biggersmall.com/2008/03/01/i-love-reading-what-warren-buffett-has-to-say/