Comments on: How to Build a Company for $12,107.09 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/ Entrepreneurial Leadership and Management . . . and Other Stuff Sun, 05 Feb 2012 18:29:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Will http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4252 Will Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:30:50 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4252 Dave, Fewquid, excellent points. I totally agree. To put both together, it doesn't take into account opportunity costs which, for Guy Kawasaki, are quite high. Fewquid, you're thoughts about GK leveraging his position is right on. Most lesser-known mortals couldn't have achieved the same goals at twice the cost. Love the Picasso analogy. Dave, Fewquid, excellent points. I totally agree. To put both together, it doesn’t take into account opportunity costs which, for Guy Kawasaki, are quite high. Fewquid, you’re thoughts about GK leveraging his position is right on. Most lesser-known mortals couldn’t have achieved the same goals at twice the cost. Love the Picasso analogy.

]]> By: Will http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106309 Will Thu, 07 Jun 2007 23:30:00 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106309 Dave, Fewquid, excellent points. I totally agree. To put both together, it doesn't take into account opportunity costs which, for Guy Kawasaki, are quite high. Fewquid, you're thoughts about GK leveraging his position is right on. Most lesser-known mortals couldn't have achieved the same goals at twice the cost. Love the Picasso analogy. Dave, Fewquid, excellent points. I totally agree. To put both together, it doesn’t take into account opportunity costs which, for Guy Kawasaki, are quite high. Fewquid, you’re thoughts about GK leveraging his position is right on. Most lesser-known mortals couldn’t have achieved the same goals at twice the cost. Love the Picasso analogy.

]]> By: fewquid http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4212 fewquid Thu, 07 Jun 2007 05:51:38 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4212 The problem is that the number isn't real. I think it is pretty misleading of Kawasaki to make the claim that $12k is all it took and imply that any entrepreneur can do the same. Yes, only $12k was "spent", but it was Guy Kawasaki spending it. I don't mean that he is some kind of Warren Buffet-esque genius, but he has access to, and exploited, more marketing leverage than any typical entrepreneur could possibly hope for. TechCrunch coverage alone has been enough to get companies started, never mind the rest of the hoopla throughout the blogosphere and beyond. It reminds me of the urban legend about Picasso sketching a portrait on the back of a napkin for a persistent fan. When he told her the price was $5000, she was shocked and pointed out that it only took a minute to draw. To which Picasso replied "No, it took me my whole life". In this case, Picasso is an overly kind comparison, but my point remains: almost all companies live or die by their ability to attract customers a.k.a. marketing. Truemors is a blog-bait idea from someone with extensive access to the media. And that kind of access is (a) rare and (b) typically expensive. I'm a fan of Kawasaki works such as "The Art of the Start", but I think it is pretty disingenous of him to actively promote the pretence that that anyone could have started a company just like this for only $12k and had the same level of initial success. The problem is that the number isn’t real. I think it is pretty misleading of Kawasaki to make the claim that $12k is all it took and imply that any entrepreneur can do the same.

Yes, only $12k was “spent”, but it was Guy Kawasaki spending it. I don’t mean that he is some kind of Warren Buffet-esque genius, but he has access to, and exploited, more marketing leverage than any typical entrepreneur could possibly hope for.

TechCrunch coverage alone has been enough to get companies started, never mind the rest of the hoopla throughout the blogosphere and beyond.

It reminds me of the urban legend about Picasso sketching a portrait on the back of a napkin for a persistent fan. When he told her the price was $5000, she was shocked and pointed out that it only took a minute to draw. To which Picasso replied “No, it took me my whole life”.

In this case, Picasso is an overly kind comparison, but my point remains: almost all companies live or die by their ability to attract customers a.k.a. marketing. Truemors is a blog-bait idea from someone with extensive access to the media. And that kind of access is (a) rare and (b) typically expensive.

I’m a fan of Kawasaki works such as “The Art of the Start”, but I think it is pretty disingenous of him to actively promote the pretence that that anyone could have started a company just like this for only $12k and had the same level of initial success.

]]> By: fewquid http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106308 fewquid Thu, 07 Jun 2007 05:51:00 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106308 The problem is that the number isn't real. I think it is pretty misleading of Kawasaki to make the claim that $12k is all it took and imply that any entrepreneur can do the same. Yes, only $12k was "spent", but it was Guy Kawasaki spending it. I don't mean that he is some kind of Warren Buffet-esque genius, but he has access to, and exploited, more marketing leverage than any typical entrepreneur could possibly hope for. TechCrunch coverage alone has been enough to get companies started, never mind the rest of the hoopla throughout the blogosphere and beyond. It reminds me of the urban legend about Picasso sketching a portrait on the back of a napkin for a persistent fan. When he told her the price was $5000, she was shocked and pointed out that it only took a minute to draw. To which Picasso replied "No, it took me my whole life". In this case, Picasso is an overly kind comparison, but my point remains: almost all companies live or die by their ability to attract customers a.k.a. marketing. Truemors is a blog-bait idea from someone with extensive access to the media. And that kind of access is (a) rare and (b) typically expensive. I'm a fan of Kawasaki works such as "The Art of the Start", but I think it is pretty disingenous of him to actively promote the pretence that that anyone could have started a company just like this for only $12k and had the same level of initial success. The problem is that the number isn’t real. I think it is pretty misleading of Kawasaki to make the claim that $12k is all it took and imply that any entrepreneur can do the same.

Yes, only $12k was “spent”, but it was Guy Kawasaki spending it. I don’t mean that he is some kind of Warren Buffet-esque genius, but he has access to, and exploited, more marketing leverage than any typical entrepreneur could possibly hope for.

TechCrunch coverage alone has been enough to get companies started, never mind the rest of the hoopla throughout the blogosphere and beyond.

It reminds me of the urban legend about Picasso sketching a portrait on the back of a napkin for a persistent fan. When he told her the price was $5000, she was shocked and pointed out that it only took a minute to draw. To which Picasso replied “No, it took me my whole life”.

In this case, Picasso is an overly kind comparison, but my point remains: almost all companies live or die by their ability to attract customers a.k.a. marketing. Truemors is a blog-bait idea from someone with extensive access to the media. And that kind of access is (a) rare and (b) typically expensive.

I’m a fan of Kawasaki works such as “The Art of the Start”, but I think it is pretty disingenous of him to actively promote the pretence that that anyone could have started a company just like this for only $12k and had the same level of initial success.

]]> By: Dave http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4154 Dave Tue, 05 Jun 2007 18:08:13 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-4154 It's important in calculating these costs to include the opportunity cost of all labor (including the founder) if you're going to understand what is happening. The capital from this has to come from somewhere - in this case, people are giving up cash for equity, so in effect you're raising capital by paying people with stock (again, including the founder). It’s important in calculating these costs to include the opportunity cost of all labor (including the founder) if you’re going to understand what is happening. The capital from this has to come from somewhere – in this case, people are giving up cash for equity, so in effect you’re raising capital by paying people with stock (again, including the founder).

]]> By: Dave http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106307 Dave Tue, 05 Jun 2007 18:08:00 +0000 http://www.2-speed.com/2007/06/how-to-build-a-company-for-1210709/#comment-106307 It's important in calculating these costs to include the opportunity cost of all labor (including the founder) if you're going to understand what is happening. The capital from this has to come from somewhere - in this case, people are giving up cash for equity, so in effect you're raising capital by paying people with stock (again, including the founder). It’s important in calculating these costs to include the opportunity cost of all labor (including the founder) if you’re going to understand what is happening. The capital from this has to come from somewhere – in this case, people are giving up cash for equity, so in effect you’re raising capital by paying people with stock (again, including the founder).

]]>