Brad Feld - Do More Faster India

1 Cover

2 Foreword

3 Preface Organization of the Book

4 About Techstars

5 Foreword to Do More Faster India

6 Do More Faster India

7 Why Entrepreneurs in India Need Techstars

8 Mentor‐Backed Entrepreneurship in India Mentors Are Humans, Not “Gods” Reach for the Stars, But Don’t Settle Mentorship Is Not One‐Sided It’s Not Impolite to Have “Asks” for a Mentor It’s Okay to Fire Each Other

9 Legal Tips for Indian Startups Location, Location, Location Need Financing? You Need the Right Structure Employee Stock Options Valuation Good News for Startups When in Doubt, Seek Legal Advice

10 Introduction

11 Chapter 1: Do More Faster

12 Chapter 2: Do or Do Not; There Is No Try

13 Theme One: Idea and Vision Chapter 3: Trust Me, Your Idea Is Worthless Notes Chapter 4: Start with Your Passion Chapter 5: Look for the Pain Chapter 6: Get Feedback Early Chapter 7: Usage Is Like Oxygen for Ideas Chapter 8: Forget the Kitchen Sink Note Chapter 9: Find That One Thing They Love Chapter 10: Don’t Plan. Prototype! Chapter 11: You Never Need Another Original Idea Chapter 12: Get It Out There Chapter 13: Avoid Tunnel Vision Chapter 14: Focus Chapter 15: Iterate Again Chapter 16: Fail Fast Chapter 17: Pull the Plug When You Know It’s Time Chapter 18: Love Doesn’t Scale, or Does It? Chapter 19: Reconciling Vision and Focus

14 Theme Two: People Chapter 20: Be Open to Randomness Chapter 21: Entrepreneurship Is a Group Sport Chapter 22: Avoid Cofounder Conflict Chapter 23: Hire People Better than You Chapter 24: How to Find and Engage Mentors Note Chapter 25: Hire Slowly, Fire Quickly Chapter 26: If You Can Quit, You Should Chapter 27: Build a Balanced Team Chapter 28: Startups Seek Friends Chapter 29: Engage Great Mentors Chapter 30: The Mentor Manifesto Chapter 31: Define Your Culture Notes Chapter 32: Two Strikes and You Are Out Chapter 33: Karma Matters

15 Theme Three: Working Effectively Chapter 34: Assume That You’re Wrong Chapter 35: Make Decisions Quickly Chapter 36: It’s Just Data Chapter 37: Use Your Head, then Trust Your Gut Chapter 38: Progress Equals Validated Learning Chapter 39: The Plural of Anecdote Is Not Data Chapter 40: Don’t Suck at Email Chapter 41: Use What’s Free Chapter 42: Be Tiny Until You Shouldn’t Be Chapter 43: Don’t Celebrate the Wrong Things Chapter 44: Be Specific Chapter 45: Learn from Your Failures Note Chapter 46: Quality over Quantity Chapter 47: Have a Bias Toward Action

16 Theme Four: Product Chapter 48: Don’t Wait Until You Are Proud of Your Product Chapter 49: Find Your Whitespace Chapter 50: Focus on What Matters Chapter 51: Obsess over Metrics Chapter 52: Avoid Distractions Chapter 53: Know Your Customer Chapter 54: Beware the Big Companies Chapter 55: Throw Things Away Chapter 56: Pivot Note

17 Theme Five: Fundraising Chapter 57: There’s More than One Way to Raise Money Note Chapter 58: Beware of Angel Investors Who Aren’t Chapter 59: Don’t Forget about Bootstrapping Chapter 60: You Don’t Have to Raise Money Chapter 61: Seed Investors Care about Three Things Chapter 62: Practice Like You Play Chapter 63: If You Want Money, Ask for Advice Chapter 64: Show, Don’t Tell Chapter 65: Turn the Knife after You Stick It In Chapter 66: Don’t Overoptimize on Valuations Chapter 67: Get Help with Your Term Sheet Note Chapter 68: Focus on the First One-Third

18 Theme Six: Legal and Structure Chapter 69: Choose the Right Company Structure Chapter 70: Form the Company Early Chapter 71: Default to Delaware Chapter 72: Lawyers Don’t Have to Be Expensive Chapter 73: Vesting Is Good for You Chapter 74: Your Brother-in-Law Is Probably Not the Right Corporate Lawyer Chapter 75: To 83(b) or Not to 83(b), There Is No Question

19 Theme Seven: Work–Life Harmony Chapter 76: Discover Work–Life Harmony Chapter 77: Practice Your Passion Chapter 78: Follow Your Heart Chapter 79: Turn Work into Play Chapter 80: Don’t Make Yourself Indispensable Chapter 81: Get Out from Behind Your Computer Chapter 82: Stay Healthy Chapter 83: Get Away from It All

20 Conclusion

21 Appendix 1: The Evolution of Techstars Notes

22 Appendix 2: Original Edition’s Foreword

23 Appendix 3: Where are the Techstars Companies Now?

24 About the Authors

25 Acknowledgments

26 Index

27 End User License Agreement

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2 Table of Contents

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