The Art Of The Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide For Anyone Starting Anything

Penguin, 2004 - Business & Economics - 226 pages

A new product, a new service, a new company, a new division, a new organization, a new anything—where there’s a will, here’s the way.   It begins with a dream that just won’t quit, the once-in-a-lifetime thunderbolt of pure inspiration, the obsession, the world-beater, the killer app, the next big thing. Everyone who wants to make the world a better place becomes possessed by a grand idea.
But what does it take to turn your idea into action?    Whether you are an entrepreneur, intrapreneur, or not-for-profit crusader, there’s no shortage of advice available on issues such as writing a business plan, recruiting, raising capital, and branding. In fact, there are so many books, articles, and Web sites that many startups get bogged down to the point of paralysis. Or else they focus on the wrong priorities and go broke before they discover their mistakes.   InThe Art of the Start,Guy Kawasaki brings two decades of experience as one of business’s most original and irreverent strategists to offer the essential guide for anyone starting anything, from a multinational corporation to a church group. At Apple in the 1980s, he helped lead one of the great companies of the century, turning ordinary consumers into evangelists. As founder and CEO of Garage Technology Ventures, a venture capital firm, he has field-tested his ideas with dozens of newly hatched companies. And as the author of bestselling business books and articles, he has advised thousands of people who are making their startup dreams real.   From raising money to hiring the right people, from defining your positioning to creating a brand, from creating buzz to buzzing the competition, from managing a board to fostering a community, this book will guide you through an adventure that’s more art than science—the art of the start.

What people are saying

Review: The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything

User Review  - Stacy Holmstedt - Goodreads

Lots of good advice here -- work to make meaning instead of money, position your product to be personal, base your PowerPoint slides on the oldest person in the room. It felt a bit like we're swerving ...

Review: The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything

User Review  - Sorin Popa - Goodreads

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Contents

• The Art of Starting: 3
• Articulation: 27
• The Art of Positioning: 29
• The Art of Pitching: 44
• The Art of Writing a Business Plan: 66
• Activation: 77
• The Art of Bootstrapping: 79
• The Art of Recruiting: 100
• The Art of Raising Capital: 119
• The Art of Partnering: 151
• The Art of Branding: 167
• The Art of Rainmaking: 192
• Obligation: 209
• The Art of Being a Mensch: 211
• Afterword: 217
• Index: 219

About the author

Guy Kawasaki is the managing director of Garage Technology Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm for high-technology companies, and a columnist for Forbes. Previously, he was an Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, Inc. A noted speaker and the founder of various personal computer companies, Kawasaki was one of the individuals responsible for the success of the Macintosh computer. He is also the author of seven books, including Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. He has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Art Of The Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide For Anyone Starting Anything
• Contributor: Guy Kawasaki
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Penguin, 2004
• ISBN: 1591840562, 9781591840565
• Length: 226 pages
• Subjects: Business & Economics / Entrepreneurship; Business & Economics / Investments & Securities / General; Business & Economics / New Business Enterprises