This book talks about the life cycle of a tech startup starting from its establishment to its selling value. It covers everything a tech entrepreneur needs to be equipped with. To make it simple, I share three key parts: People, Patent, and Profit.
People, Patent and Profit
People
At the beginning of the book, Bernd, the book’s author, shares the mindset and attitude a tech startup owner needs to be equipped with. What impresses me most is that starting a company relies not only on persistent dedication but also on an adaptive and fully managed plan to decide when the cut-off point is or how to allocate the resources regarding risk management.
Second, it talks about the establishment of the team. Who are the teammates you want to have? A group of people who can complement each other enhances the resilience of the company under uncertain and various business environments. Also, think twice or even more when incorporating friends or family members with whom you have a good relationship into a team, since the relationship could develop into something you haven’t thought of before. If you cherish the relationship you have with them, running a business together could put this relationship at risk. More importantly, do not sacrifice the minimum lifestyle. We run a business to help people, and we should not sacrifice ourselves to the point of causing more pain in this world. This is the same for job searching.
Patent
Bernd introduces different types of patents. Since maintaining or applying for a patent is costly, especially for a tech startup in the initial stage, there are tips to keep the patent rights at a lower cost. The key takeaway I got is not to worry too much about the technology barrier you want to build or are afraid of violating. If you are too small, nobody might care about you; if you are too big, you will have the resources to handle the patent conflict cases. Despite this, knowing each type of patent and planning in advance could help shield the company from unexpected attacks, from my point of view.
Profit
In the middle of the book, it gets more challenging to read when it comes to different methods of planning compensation and how to get funding. For the funding, there are old and new investors. Different groups of investors could lead to the complexity of the negotiation when it comes to the company’s next step and benefit allocation.
