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The Lean Startup by Eric Ries

August 5th, 2012

The Lean Startup is a guide book by Eric Ries for enterpreneurs on how to build a successful startup using lean methodology. In fact, The Lean Startup is a business approach coined by Eric Ries that aims to change the way that companies are built and new products are launched

The book cover has this statement: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses.
It sounds so much like software development with continuous development or continuous deployment, and it actually is. Something similar to agile software development but to create a successful business.

About Author
Eric Ries is an entrepreneur and author of the popular blog Startup Lessons Learned. He co-founded and served as CTO of IMVU, his third startup which has today has over 40 million users and 2009 revenue over $22 million, and has had plenty of startup failures along the way.

Chapters
The chapters in this book are divided into three distinct parts, namely VISION, STEER and ACCELERATE.

The Lean Startup calls on building a minimum viable product instead of trying to achieve perfection with a product that could never be delivered or results in something that is not wanted by customers. He also encourages the usage of validated learning, learning from testing fundamental business hypotheses (or leap-of-faith assumptions), then take next actions based on the results of such experiments.

The second part of the book goes into the details of the Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop which repeats the validated learning and lead the startup’s engine of growth into higher gears.
However, it is also good that the author warns about being happy with vanity metrics. Instead of looking at vanity metrics, a startup should look at actionable or auditable metrics.
While every startup strives for success, it is also common for startups to reach a junction where a decision need to be taken on to pivot or to persevere. This book has a chapter dedicated to pivoting.

The third part goes into details about startup acceleration or growth. However, the author also uses examples from Toyota lean production that stops its manufacturing line whenever a problem is encountered to avoid chain effects on the production. There are many instances where Toyota lean model is used in this book.
The book then ends with a chapter on Innovation, as typically for large organizations, they tend to lose in innovation, creativity and growth.

Marvin’s Take
I got to admit that Lean methodology is not new to me, so a book titled ‘Lean Startup’ rings a bell and I really do not expect to learn anything new other than how to bootstrap a startup, run it with the lowest costs and etc.
I actually bought the book because I thought the price was cheap. At $15, I bought it to see what else is in store.
I was totally wrong that there is nothing new to learn about lean startup. This book does not teach you how to bootstrap or run at lowest costs, but everything else that might have skip the eyes of most entrepreneurs.
Unless you are already a millionaire startup and have a few large organizations under your stable, this book might be useful for you.
Even if you own a couple of large enterprises, some tips in here might prove beneficial too.

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Richard Branson Revealed: Bloomberg Game Changers

June 27th, 2011

Richard Branson, is the founder of the Virgin Brand, conceived the Virgin Group in 1970 and has since gone on to grow very successful businesses in sectors ranging from mobile telephony to transportation, travel, financial services, media, music and fitness.

Tips: You can save your time from reading his books like these, because if you have 25 minutes to spare, this video interview is all you need.

Don’t get me wrong. Reading is still good, the books have more details, but this short interview basically just got all the bases covered in the shortest manner.

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Screw It, Let’s Do It – Richard Branson

November 16th, 2010

Screw It, Let’s Do It is another easy reading book by Richard Branson.

This is the second book by Richard Branson I have read, the first one being Business Stripped Bare – Richard Branson.

So here goes my personal review of this book by the chapters:

Chapter 1. Just Do It!

This introduction chapter talks of how he was shaped to be an entrepreneur in the early days of his life, from running a magazine during his schooling days to the embarking of various challenges like breaking record with a boat and manning a stratospheric balloon.

Chapter 2. Have Fun!

He who works all day is miserable. He who plays all day doesn’t pay his bills. The bowman hits the mark, as the sailor reaches land, by having different skills and knowing when to work and when to relax.

From this chapter, you will get to learn that Richard is one that works hard and play hard as well. He tells the story of how he managed to secure his personal island, Necker Island in the Caribbeans for £180,000.

Chapter 3. Be Bold

Be bold but don’t gamble, is the idea of making calculated risks, in business and also adventures. This is where he briefly shared about how Virgin Airlines started, including venturing into the business of trains and also the most glamorous space venture, Virgin Galactic.

Chapter 4. Challenge Yourself

This chapter talks about how he can’t let go of any challenges, including on the bet on how he would be able to learn swimming on a road-trip. There was also another hot-air balloon adventure which gone awry, that doesn’t diminish his interests in keep flying in a balloon at all.

Chapter 5. Stand On Your Own Two Feet

This short chapter talks about Richard buying back the shares of Virgin making it a private company again.

Chapter 6. Live the Moment

Again, Richard make another attempt in a hot-air balloon race in 1997, this time trying to go around the world and how he cheated death again as the balloon crashed into the sea.

Chapter 7. Value Family and Friends

Among his business ventures, Richard was assisted by friends and family, including his best friend Nik. His parents were very supportive in his ventures and dreams. He also had an Auntie who mortgaged her house so that Richard could buy a manor house!

Chapter 8. Have Respect

Respect is how to treat everyone, not just those you want to impress.

Richard reveals how he paid for getting caught by Customs for tax evasion from selling cut-price records. Not doing anything illegal was his watchword since then.

Chapter 9. Gaia Capitalism

Gaia is the Greek version of “Mother Nature” or the Earth goddess. Al Gore met with Richard in the late summer of 2006 and he instantly got intrigued by the scenario of global warming. This led to some ideas and a $3 billion pledge to develop biofuels.
This might sound ironic that an airline company’s boss is trying to go green, but Richard’s excuse was that it doesn’t make sense to stop his planes from flying as people will always want to fly and somebody with no ‘green’ sense will just fill the gap.

Chapter 10. Sex Appeal

Straight from the mouth of Richard, that sex appeal is a useful tool in business as he made a naked appearance in Times Square, New York to promote the Virgin cellphone.

Then also came Kate Moss which Virgin Mobile in UK signed her up for their advertisements.

Richard also believe in using sex appeal for the Virgin image using Pamela Anderson for the image of Virgin Cola.

And this just made me remembered how Richard went windsurfing with a model on his back. 🙂

Chapter 11. Be Innovative

Richard also reveals here about his first sexual experience, although not into the details, but he was having some nocturnal frolics with his headmaster’s eighteen-year-old daughter! OMG.

Other than that, he was also being innovative in getting new routes for his airline as well as how he maneuver his ways over other airlines like Singapore Airlines and British Airways. It sure isn’t easy to run an airline and being innovative is certainly one of the pre-requisites.

Chapter 12. Do Some Good

This chapter talks about his intervention in politics, how Richard helped free British hostages (with the assistance of King Hussien of Jordan) held by Saddam and flew them out with his plane.

Chapter 13. Pow! Shazam!

Richard shares about his dream of flying civilians to space starting 2010 with Virgin Galactic’s spaceship. This is said to be the world’s first space-flight for civilian passengers program.
For a ticket that costs $200,000 and deposits starting from $20,000, any healthy person can reserve a space for this spaceflight.

Chapter 14. Think Young

Citing stories from Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and Bill Gates, Richard talks about having a youthful approach to life and also about The Elders organization.

This book is good if you have not read any of Richard Branson’s books before. As I have read Business Stripped Bare – Richard Branson, some stories in this book was not new. Most of the chapters did not really went much into the secret of his success and how you can turn it into your individual goals. It is more or less his autobiography, and there are some room to be filled-in in the future it seems. 🙂

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