A good hard kick in the ass: basic training for entrepreneurs Every day, Rob Adams helps entrepreneurs find true markets for their products, design solid business models, and hire great teams—because that’s what it takes to build a successful company. While this sounds self-evident, far too many entrepreneurs have forgotten these fundamentals. They’ve been influenced by what Adams calls “business porn,” myths lingering like a bad hangover from the easy success days of the late ’90s. These entrepreneurs believe a unique idea is the key to igniting a great business. They think their industry experience already makes them experts on customer needs. They have simplistic, self-defeating illusions about sales, marketing, financing, and more.
They say things like “I have a million-dollar business idea for a new product.” Wake up, says Adams: Good ideas are not scarce—they’re a dime a dozen. Businesses are successful not because of a unique idea but because of extraordinary execution. They offer a better, faster, or cheaper product or service, or they change the way the world solves a problem.
In short, these entrepreneurs need just what Adams doses out in the pages of this book: a good hard kick in the ass. Adams debunks the myths and smashes the illusions—and he knows what he’s talking about, because he stands at the hub of many new startups. His firm, AV Labs, provides entrepreneurs with early financing as well as the management expertise they need to get off the ground.
A Good Hard Kick in the Ass offers detailed, hard-hitting guidance for smart, sophisticated entrepreneurs and established businesspeople alike—along with vivid, in-depth examples of companies that are walking the walk right now. Adams’s straightforward, no-nonsense approach is just what’s needed in the post-bubble economy. |
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Editorial Review - Cahners Business Information (c) 2001In brisk, straightforward prose, venture capitalist Adams systematically destroys most of the misconceptions potential entrepreneurs have about starting a company, and tells them how to cover the basics, from knowing the customer to hiring good employees. Adams explains why a good idea is not necessary for success (good ideas are plentiful commodities; he contends; execution is really what matters); business plans are overrated (since most of the investors who give a company funding spend most of their time evaluating its employees); and most people don't know as much about their customers as they think they do (which is why customer research is vital). Adams's no-nonsense, fast-paced, slightly sarcastic style (think drill sergeant meets MTV veejay) makes this an engaging read, especially for Gen-X and Gen-Y capitalists (e.g., "I have nothing against team-building outings they're necessary. But come on: Cozumel? Get real!"). The focus on tech companies (Adams finances startups and began his own career as a technology executive at Lotus) feels dated, but the underlying advice is sound for all kinds of enterprises. He tends to stress the negative, spending more time on what not to do than offering proactive advice. Still, his book offers an excellent checklist of new-business pitfalls, making it worthwhile for anyone thinking of starting a company. B&w illus. Agent, Daniel Greenberg. (Feb. 5) Forecast: The book's "in your face" title and jacket will attract attention, and its straight-up advice will please readers. All 17 reviews »About the author (2002)Rob Adams is the founder and managing director of AV Labs, an early-stage venture fund providing financing, executive talent, and an acceleration process for technology startups. Prior to his venture career, he was a high-tech executive for eighteen years. He joined Lotus shortly after its IPO and was instrumental in launching Notes and 1-2-3 for Macintosh. He subsequently founded and was CEO of Business Matters, a venture-backed developer of financial forecasting and modeling products, and was an executive with Pervasive Software, a company he helped take public in 1997. For more information, visit www.avlabs.com. Bibliographic information |
