Iconic Advice Archive

Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg...

Diva Startup Tips: @LadyGaga, @JLo, @Cher, @KatyPerry, @MariahCarey & @NickiMinaj
August 27, 2012 | 1 Comment
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg and Michael Dell. Make no mistake, successful entertainers are entrepreneurs. They must compete with tens of thousands of other performers who are all pursuing the same customer dollars. At the outset of their careers, they are forced to market themselves with little to no budget and differentiate their product so that they gain adequate attention without alienating too many potential customers. It is too easy to say that an artist’s success is simply a matter of luck. Although a handful of performers achieve their goals soon after launching their careers, for most, preparation meeting opportunity is what leads to their success. In fact, many of the same precepts which lead to a startup’s success are also precursors to a performer’s stardom. You do not have to enjoy (or even respect) the music, costumes and outlandish behavior of pop-culture divas to learn from their entrepreneurial tenacity and drive.

Continue Reading...
This part two of a series; you can access part one HERE. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include:...

More Startup Tips From The Beatles
March 27, 2012 | 2 Comments
This part two of a series; you can access part one HERE. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Dell and Larry Ellison. I recently reviewed Richard Courtney and George Cassidy's published business book, Come Together – The Business Wisdom of The Beatles in the first entry of this series. Although the Beatles' phenomenal career encompasses numerous startup lessons, many of the anecdotes cited in Come Together are trivial, while others are painfully obvious. However, despite the book's shortcomings, it contains a number of insightful lessons emerging entrepreneurs can apply to their startup careers.

Continue Reading...
While working, I often listen to YouTube videos in the background, much like a podcast. Depending on what I am working on and the degree...

At NeXT, Steve Jobs Balanced Reality Distortion With Startup Realities
March 14, 2012 | 6 Comments
While working, I often listen to YouTube videos in the background, much like a podcast. Depending on what I am working on and the degree to which the video is compelling, my focus on the video’s content fades in and out. Occasionally a video compels me to take a break and devote all of my attention to it. This occurred while I was listening to the embedded video below. I found this video compelling, because it provides insights into Jobs as an internal leader, rather than the externally facing, reality-distorting CEO. With that said, I realize that whenever a camera is involved, everyone’s behavior changes. Thus, if you are looking for rants, screaming tantrums or derisive putdowns, you will have to look elsewhere. Rather than an imperious Jobs, the video shows him addressing his team’s emotional rollercoaster; from the initial euphoria, to the harsh realities of life at a startup. This process is complicated by the external reality distortion which Jobs was concurrently propagating outside of NeXT. This is an important balancing act for all startup leaders – one best learned from a master.

Continue Reading...
Article first published as Five Business Tips From The Beatles on Technorati. This part one of a two part series; you can access part two...

Five Startup Tips From The Beatles
March 1, 2012 | 3 Comments
Article first published as Five Business Tips From The Beatles on Technorati. This part one of a two part series; you can access part two HERE. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Dell and Larry Ellison. As any long-time reader of this humble blog knows, I am an ardent Beatles fan. Thus, when Come Together – The Business Wisdom of The Beatles was released, my hopes were high for a great read. Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed. Despite the book’s shortcomings, it contains a number of insightful lessons for budding entrepreneurs. Of the 100 business “lessons” articulated in the book, I highlight a few below that I feel are the most relevant and impactful for entrepreneurs.

Continue Reading...
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg,...

Five Startup Tips From Bill Gates
February 20, 2012 | 6 Comments
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Walt Disney, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Dell and Larry Ellison. For more than 30-years, Bill Gates has been at the pinnacle of the software industry. Like Steve Jobs, Michael Dell and Larry Ellison, he is one of the few startup Founders who remained at the helm of their respective companies throughout their entire maturation process. In addition, like Steve, Michael and Larry, Mr. Gates also failed to graduate from college. I explore this peculiar entrepreneurial career path in further detail in THIS entry.

Continue Reading...
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson,Walt Disney and Mark Zuckerberg.

Nine Startup Tips From Michael Dell
January 30, 2012 | 3 Comments
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson,Walt Disney and Mark Zuckerberg.

Continue Reading...
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, Walt Disney and Michael Dell.   ...

Eight Startup Tips From Mark Zuckerberg
January 23, 2012 | 5 Comments
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, Walt Disney and Michael Dell.    1) Get A Mentor "I started the site when I was 19. I didn't know much about business back then." [Tweet this quote]

Continue Reading...
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Richard Branson. 1. Pressure Helps You Break...

Nine Startup Tips From Walt Disney
January 9, 2012 | 10 Comments
Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Richard Branson. 1. Pressure Helps You Break Through Your Breakdowns "Mickey Mouse popped out of my mind onto a drawing pad 20 years ago on a train ride from Manhattan to Hollywood at a time when business fortunes of my brother Roy and myself were at lowest ebb and disaster seemed right around the corner."

Continue Reading...
Article first published as Eleven Startup Tips From Mark Cuban on Technorati. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include:...

Eleven Startup Tips From Mark Cuban
December 5, 2011 | 2 Comments
Article first published as Eleven Startup Tips From Mark Cuban on Technorati. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Richard Branson. Mark Cuban is a lifelong serial entrepreneur, launching his startup career with a variety of teenage schemes, including buying and selling collectable stamps to pay for college. In 1983 he founded MicroSolutions, a personal computer software reseller and system integrator, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. He steadily grew MicroSolutions over the next seven years and eventually sold it to CompuServe in 1990.

Continue Reading...
Article first published as Eleven Business Tips From Richard Branson on Technorati. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include:...

Eleven Startup Tips From Richard Branson
October 31, 2011 | 7 Comments
Article first published as Eleven Business Tips From Richard Branson on Technorati. Note: This is an installment in the Iconic Advice series. Other installments include: Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs. Last weekend, a friend gave me and my family a wonderful ride in his plane. Departing from Edwards AFB, we flew over the Mojave Air and Spaceport, home of the world’s largest private manufacturer of spacecraft, The Spaceship Company (TSC). TSC is building spacecraft for Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic space fleet.  Despite the fact that the specific date of Virgin Galactic’s maiden voyage remains unscheduled, over 450 citizen astronauts have put down a deposit of at least $20,000 on the $200,000 per-person fare. In October of 2011, the company announced a $4.5 million deal with NASA to use Virgin Galactic spacecraft to conduct experiments, filling the void left by the retirement of America’s shuttle program. It is undoubtedly impressive that Richard Branson has motivated a government organization and hundreds of intelligent, affluent people to commit millions of dollars to secure a service that does not yet exist. Even more striking is that this super-salesman is a self-taught, high school dropout.

Continue Reading...
Page 1 of 212