GOOGLE'S NIGHTMARE: European Court Rules That People Have A 'Right To Be Forgotten'

People in Europe can now ask Google to delete sensitive information from its internet search results, a European court ruled on Tuesday.

The European Union Court of Justice ruled that people should have "the right to be forgotten," which includes erasing traces of their digital past from the internet.

The ruling was sparked by a complaint from a man in Spain, who claimed to the Spanish data-protection agency that an auction notice of his repossessed home that appeared in Google's search results infringed his privacy.

Mario Costeja Gonzalez initially filed the complaint in March 2010 against Google Inc., Google Spain, and a major Spanish newspaper that had published an announcement regarding the auction notice in 1998, according to court documents published by the European Union Court of Justice. 

Gonzalez's situation is one of 180 in Spain in which complainants have requested Google delete their personal information from the web, Reuters reports.

Here's what the court papers say in regard to requesting that information be removed from Google:

If, following a search made on the basis of a person's name, the list of results displays a link to a web page which contains information on the person in question, that data subject may approach the operator directly and, where the operator does not grant his request, bring the matter before the competent authorities in order to obtain, under certain conditions, the removal of that link from the list of results.

Viviane Reding, European commissioner for justice of fundamental rights and citizenship, posted to Facebook that the ruling is a success for personal data protection. 

"The data belongs to the individual, not to the company," she wrote. "And unless there is a good reason to retain this data, an individual should be empowered—by law—to request erasure of this data."

Google's Nightmare

A Google representative sent us the following comment via email regarding the decision:

This is a disappointing ruling for search engines and online publishers in general. We are very surprised that it differs so dramatically from the Advocate General's opinion and the warnings and consequences that he spelled out. We now need to take time to analyze the implications. 

The European Union Court of Justice's decision means more than just a simple policy change for Google.  The ruling could mean a complete overhaul in the way Google indexes the internet, according to David P. Fidler, professor of law at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law. 

"It's just sort of an astonishing possibility that Google is looking at, to play this sort of role in whether or not the individual has the right to be forgotten," Fidler said. "I can imagine Google is saying 'we don't have any idea what the implications of this are.'"

Fidler pointed out that if one specific case in Spain could play such a heavy role in this ruling, there's a possibility that Google will face a giant influx of requests to take information down following the decision. Every individual has a different idea of what privacy means, Fidler said, which leaves Google with the daunting and overwhelming task of juggling the public interest versus privacy. 

"Google has to sort of figure out this balancing," he said. "It's potentially a nightmare of epic proportions for Google." 

Irina Raicu, internet ethics program director at Santa Clara University, said that there's no straightforward answer when determining whether or not this is a positive step for the internet.

"It's hard to say that anything is good or bad for the internet overall," she said. "It obviously impacts some people and not others."

Raicu pointed out that this idea of erasing your digital past wasn't an issue until search engines became so prominent. 

"I think we have to recognize that search engines themselves change the status quo," she said. "Some information used to have a certain shelf life. Now with the internet and the web, it's like 'Groundhog Day' all over again." 

It's too early to determine how this could affect Google's operations in Europe, but Fidler emphasized that the outcome could potentially be severe. If Google gets slammed with requests to strip links from its search results, the company may be forced to put more resources toward maintaining its search engine in Europe. 

"We don't know at the moment in terms of the implications, but that's why I can imagine Google's head is spinning," he said. "The consequences could be very expensive and very administratively burdensome."

How To Cultivate Confidence When You Weren't Born With It

Every time I read an article about what women need to do to get ahead in the male-dominated tech world of VCs and startups, I cringe. The prescription feels simplistic, but this is not a simple problem.

Fiona Murray’s recent Boston Globe Magazine piece, “Playing by the Rules,” recommended wearing a uniform, speaking confidently, networking and watching sports to get ahead. Don’t get me wrong — I am sure these tactics can help, and the research is fascinating (she found that “companies pitched by men were about 40 percent more likely to receive funding than those led by women”). But should we all just become avid football fans? I, for one, will take a thoughtful David Sedaris essay in The New Yorker over football any fall Sunday.

At the heart of Murray’s recommendations is the fact that women need to take action today while we work on solving the broader education, political and economic issues we face. Here are the bleak facts we already know:

• Just over 20 percent of all engineering degrees go to women (National Academies Committee on Women in Science, Engineering and Medicine).
• Only 4.2 percent of VC funding goes to women (Stanford University’s Clayman Institute for Gender Research).
• Women hold only 4.2 percent of Fortune 500 CEO positions (Catalyst).
• Women hold 18.3 percent of the seats in Congress (Center for American Women and Politics).

One of my favorite VCs once said that it’s just as important to be convincing as it is to be right. Confidence breeds success. We need to do a better job at mentoring women in confidence strategies. In a piece for Forbes, Dr. Candida Brush wrote, “In contrast to young men, young women are less likely to see opportunities, have a higher fear of failure and therefore, less likely to engage in entrepreneurship.” HSBC USA Chief Executive Irene Dorner echoed this when she talked about the problem of the “sticky floor” in The New York Times.

But confidence is teachable. It’s not something anyone is born with. When I quit my job to start InkHouse, my business partner and I would joke that we were faking it until we made it. We weren’t faking our knowledge about PR campaigns. We were faking the confidence of a much larger organization as we asked clients to take a bet on our nascent agency.

I won’t pretend to know how to solve this very large problem, but in my small microcosm of the business world, I have seen the following tactics work for the women who succeed. As female entrepreneurs, we have a responsibility to foster the next generation by teaching them to:

• Speak up and speak confidently. Don’t save your ideas for post-meeting emails to your boss. If you have a seat at the table, show that you deserve it.
• Walk into a room like you belong there. Smile, hold your head up, make eye contact, offer a firm handshake, and don’t mess with your outfit. First impressions are made in seconds, and they are based predominantly on non-verbal cues.
• End thoughts as statements, not questions. If your voice goes up at the end of a statement, it sounds like a question and conveys uncertainty.
• Eliminate the words “I think” before a recommendation. “I think” is a subliminal disclaimer that your idea might not be a good one. State your recommendation as though it is fact and others will consider it more seriously.
• Become comfortable with silence. After articulating a recommendation, let the idea percolate. Be comfortable letting your audience thoughtfully consider your point. Don’t fill that thinking space with chitchat.
• Be present. Listen first, and then formulate your response. Pay attention to the people in the room. Are they confused, interested, distracted? Base your next statement on their cues, not the thought you’ve been waiting to blurt out.
• Find a way to say no by saying yes. We’re accused of taking on too much, and never saying no. There is an eloquent and productive way to say no. It could simply be that saying yes means you must put another project on the back burner. Lead with the yes, and follow up with the caveat.
• Practice speaking in front of a large room. The only way to keep that warmth from coming up your neck and into your face when you present is to do it over and over again. Eventually, it will become second nature.
• Do your research first. Lead with the facts. Knowledge inspires confidence. And knowledge confers authority onto your recommendations.
• Use your personality to your benefit. Do not try to morph yourself into a man, or someone else’s vision of a successful career woman. Even if your boss is dictating the points you must make in a critical meeting, say them in your words. Only then will you deliver the message well.
• Seek feedback selectively. If the meeting felt good to you, it probably was. Asking for needless feedback is not something a confident man would do. In the business world, no news is often good news, so take it as such.
• Don’t default to apology in the face of scrutiny. Apologize only when you have done something wrong, not because someone doesn’t like your idea. You only have to own the mistakes you actually make. In all other scenarios, listen to the other person’s point of view respectfully, and calmly present your challenge.
• It’s okay to say you don’t know. Find out the answer and come back with a solid recommendation. Of course, you should make sure that you know the answer nine times out of 10.

I will end with some good news. For every 10 men starting a business, there are eight women who are doing the same. Let’s make it 10 for 10.

via businessinsider

Why do startups fail

Entrepreneurial activity has gone up by over 25% in the last few years. However, according to Statistic Brain, 25% of startups will fail within the first year. This rate goes up over time, with 71% failing by their 10th year. Why do so many startups fail?

In this article, we will look at (1) why so many startups fail, and (2) how you can avoid making the same mistakes.

REASONS WHY STARTUPS FAIL

The reasons for the high failure rate in the startup world can be attributed to one of three things: the team, the product/market fit, and the resources available. We’ll look at these one by one, and explore the various problems within each issue.

PROBLEMS WITH THE TEAM

If you interview 10 fast growing startups, 9 out of 10 will say their biggest challenge is attracting top talent. It starts with the founders, is driven by vision and culture and great companies NEVER compromise in maintaining high technical and cultural bars. - Michael W Ellison

• The inexperienced founders are running things; Over 30% of companies fail because their management was not experienced enough to handle issues likefinances, hiring, and marketing. Take a look at the startup culture. 20-year old CEOs are building products and raising venture capital. Innovation comes naturally to younger people, especially in today’s technology driven world. But are these innovative young minds ready to take over day to day management?Being a founder of a startup and being its CEO are two different things. Often, people assume that the founder will become CEO, but this is where they are mistaken. The founder should only become CEO if he/she is qualified enough to take on the role. They may not have the experience required to take on tasks like expansion planning, underestimating budgets, and lack of planning or inventory issues.

• The team is not flexible enough; Most startups have specific goals in mind they want to achieve. However, with the fast-changing online landscape, these plans might need to be re-visited, and having a team that cannot adapt to these changes will lead to failure. Roles might need to change, responsibilities might be re-assigned, and the team structure might also be up for debate. Most startups are not able to adapt quick enough to the changing market requirements, and therefore go under.

• The team was not built keeping requirements in mind; Early on, it is important to define the core requirements the startup has of its team members. Buffer is a great example of a company that puts its customers first, and each team member they hire must fit into their company culture. This basic requirement means that each hire they make is made keeping in mind the specific requirements they have of their employees – they must be able to keep customers happy. Many startups don’t think about the main requirements or values they have for their culture. These are important things to think about, and hiring based just on experience is often not the best way to go for a new startup that has to keep culture fit and even flexibility in mind.

• Team members are over or under-experienced; Why would both under and over experience be an issue in startups? Let’s look at both sides of the issue. Startup founders, when hiring new talent, can overlook experience in favor of personalities, comfort level, lower salaries or even relationships (hiring friends or family). This inexperience can be a massive issue later on if the startup starts growing because these inexperienced team members do not have the experience in their roles required to take the growth the next level. When team members are hired on a budget, and lack experience, they may also not be willing to commit the time required to learn new things, since they don’t feel they are being compensated enough. The other side of it is an extremely experienced team, which is being paid top dollar for their work. Why would they cause failure for a startup? Simply by being too expensive, and using too many resources. Imagine paying every member of a team the most competitive rates in the market, all before the startup has made a single sale. A team like this needs to be able to deliver results extremely fast to compensate for the huge amounts of money being spent on hiring them.

PROBLEMS WITH PRODUCT/MARKET FIT

One of the key lessons I learned is that great startups have a blindingly obvious, ideally really large and painful problem that the company is trying to solve. Solving this problem should drive almost every decision in the startup. – Vinay on Vitoto’s Failure

• Market isn’t big enough to sustain high growth; Ever had a great idea for a product, but then realized you have no idea who’d buy it? This is a common problem with startups where they get ahead of themselves, do not research the market (and potential for market growth) and end up spending too much on a product that cannot find enough consumers to sustain growth. When the total market for a product has a natural ceiling on it (let’s say 10,000 people), how can you hope to sustain growth?

• Enough people do not know about the product; Great product, excellent team behind it, but no one knows (and therefore buys) it. This is a common problem with startups that don’t know how to budget properly for marketing (since it can be expensive) and are not able to take advantage of social media channels to spread the word. All marketing need not be in the form of paid advertisements, since the cost for these can go through the roof at times. But inexperienced team members can often face the problem of not knowing how to spread the word about the product to the right people, and thus market.

• Product doesn’t fill a growing need; The first things investors want to know is the problem your product will solve. If you can’t answer this, you’re going to have trouble, not just raising funds, but also attracting customers. Why do products need to solve a problem? Because eventually you are going to be interested in monetizing, and if the product isn’t filling a gap in the consumer’s life, they aren’t going to be willing to pay for it. Investors need to ensure a future return on investment, so they are very interested in products that have a big market/monetization potential.

• Too much competition; As bad as it is to launch a product that doesn’t have a market, it can be tougher to launch one that has a market but it is already saturated with the same kind of product. When you launch a product with a lot of competition, you need to be able to differentiate it from the rest. It needs to solve a problem none of the other products are able to address, or do it better.

PROBLEMS WITH RESOURCES

Whether it’s bank loans or venture capital, the process of raising money is draining, miserable, and distracting from the process of actually building something. Not just your business, but you, are constantly on trial. It has the same effect on the psyche as a lawsuit. – Michael O. Church

• Not enough funding; While bootstrapping a startup is common nowadays, a lack of funds is a serious detriment to success. A lack of funds is the biggest reason behind why startups cannot hire the right people for the initial team, since they cannot provide enough incentives to attract them. The startup also needs funds to be able to market, and also spend on equipment for product development.

• Too much funding; Who would have thought too much money was a bad thing? Startups that raise a huge amount of money right off the bat, but are not strategic about spending it, will often end up hiring too many people (or people that are too expensive) before they can support them as a company. Money also gets wasted on nice-to-haves that have no return on investment – like company retreats and perks like laptops or smart phones. Raising too much money also makes the team lazy, and they might not realize that the funds will run out if the startup cannot start showing returns on the initial investment.

• Poor management of resources; Having a great leadership team can prevent this, but an issue that strikes both startups with over and under funding is poor management of those resources. Resources like money are limited. If a company is flush with cash, it needs to manage it to ensure the money is used over a period of time – strategically. If it has too little money, it obviously needs to be able to prioritize funding.

• Not being able to convince investors of the value of the product; Raising funds is one of the biggest challenges a founder faces. Investors are looking for a few specific things from startups that they want to invest in, but there often isn’t enough time available to show them the value of the product in one meeting. Unfortunately, one meeting is often all you will get. Just because you are passionate about a product does not mean the potential investor will be just as passionate. Issues like poor presentation skills, lack of detail, poor appearance or even poor timing can be factors in why an investor walks away from a meeting.

HOW TO AVOID STARTUP FAILURES

It’s probably obvious by now, but a great idea isn’t all you need for a successful startup. There are many things that can lead the startup to failure. What can you do to avoid making these mistakes?

RESEARCH THE MARKET

Market research is the first thing you must do before starting up. You research might lead you to believe your product can be tweaked to match the market requirements, or be presented in a different way, or even marketed in a specific manner. Market research prior to launch, or even launch planning, is a crucial step that can help you avoid many mistakes.

Take your time with research, look at different competing products, and analyze market growth. How much would the average customer be willing to pay? Can you build a sales funnel by offering free features up-front, and providing an option to upgrade their account later?

This is also the only way you can avoid entering a marketing which has no, or little, potential for growth. For founders who come across this problem in their market research, the best thing to do is re-assess the product, and re-vamp is for a different market.

HAVE A CLEAR VISION FOR YOUR STARTUP

What is your goal for your startup? Where will it be in 5 years? 10 years? What future improvements can you see in it?

You need a clear vision for where your startup is going, because you are going to need it to convince:

• Investors to invest
• Team members to truly commit
• Customers to buy

A startup that cannot convince these three groups has no hope of succeeding. So make sure you sit down and think hard about how you are going to convince each of these groups to sign on. You can visualize your vision using words, pictures, video, or any other media you can think of, but it must be easy to explain to another person.

HIRE PASSIONATE PEOPLE

A team that is passionate about their jobs will always give you 100%. There is no better way of ensuring your people are on-point with sales, marketing, and even product development. Hiring your first few team members based on their passion for the product (while keeping expertise and personality fit with the remainder of the team) is a great way to make sure your team will be off to a great start.

FOCUS ON THE PRODUCT AND CUSTOMERS

A passionate team will find it very easy to focus on two core things: the product, and the customer. But as a founder you must be willing to drive this attitude down from the top. Your team will look to you for guidance, and if you aren’t passionate about the product, or truly motivated to help your customers, you will soon see the same lack of enthusiasm in your team.

You should also keep this in mind while researching your market. If you are truly passionate about solving a growing problem, you will do well to hear what your customer – or potential customers – have to say about how it can be solved. Get involved in A/B testing with your product development team. Take out the time to answer customer support tickets. Both these things will help you connect better with your core focuses.

FIND GOOD MENTORS

A great mentor is like a light on a dark stormy night. As a founder, you will have a lot of days where you won’t know up from down, want to quit and move to a desert island. A great mentor will be able to guide you through the toughest parts of starting up a new company: raising funds and finding the right team. Don’t think you can go it alone, and start looking for people in the same industry who might be interested in advising you as you go along the road.

HAVE THE RIGHT PERSON PRESENT THE RIGHT THINGS TO INVESTORS

The best startup teams (yes, teams!) have two kinds of people. The people who are passionate about product development, and the ones who can sell it to others. This second group is just as important as the first one, and ideally your co-founder (if not you) is great at schmoozing with the investors.

Investors want to be able to visualize success and growth. They want to see charts that show them they will get a great return on their investment. Be ready to show this to them. Help them visualize the product in the way you see it. Learn how to transfer your passion for the product to them early on and you will have no trouble fund-raising.

Convincing investors to part with their money in one short meeting is an art, and while founders do get better over time, they need to be able to get a few key things right

Include the following things when presenting to potential investors:

• Product
• Product Demand
• Business Growth
• Goals
• Profit
• Sales
• Expenses

With careful planning and organization you can make sure that your business does not fail. Be prepared for things to change in your company as it grows. As your company expands your employees must be prepared to change the original goals, plans, cost, duties and obligations to support your new company. This is the same for you – you cannot build a business and expect your employees or partners to run the show for you.

As an entrepreneur you cannot just flip a coin and hope that luck is on your side.  You have to make it happen.

via entrepreneurial insights

What Truly Great Bosses Believe

The most successful bosses--and the ones employees respect and follow most easily, and who are most likely to be promoted--tend to share the following eight core beliefs:

1. Business is an ecosystem, not a battlefield. 

Average bosses see business as a conflict among companies, departments, and groups. They build armies of troops to order about, demonize competitors as "enemies," and treat customers as territory to be conquered.

Great bosses see business as a symbiosis through which the most diverse company is most likely to survive and thrive. They create teams that adapt easily to new markets and can quickly form partnerships with other companies, customers, and even competitors.

2. A company is a community, not a machine.

Average bosses consider their companies machines with employees as cogs. They create rigid structures with rigid rules and then try to maintain control by pulling levers and steering the ship.

Great bosses see their companies as collections of individual hopes and dreams, all connected to a higher purpose. They inspire employees to dedicate themselves to the success of their peers and therefore to the community--and company--at large.

3. Management is service, not control.

Average bosses want employees to do exactly what they're told. They're hyper-​aware of anything that smacks of insubordination and create environments in which individual initiative is squelched by the "wait and see what the boss says" mentality.

Great bosses set a general direction and then commit to obtaining the resources their employees need to get the job done. They push decision-​making downward, allowing teams to form their own rules, and intervene only in emergencies.

4. Employees are peers, not children. 

Average bosses see employees as inferior, immature beings who simply can't be trusted if not overseen by a patriarchal management. Employees take their cues from this attitude and expend energy on looking busy and covering their behinds.

Great bosses treat every employee as if he or she were the most important person in the firm. Excellence is expected everywhere, from the loading dock to the boardroom, and as a result, employees do their best work for themselves, the boss, and the company.

5. Motivation comes from vision, not fear. 

Average bosses see fear--of getting fired, of ridicule, of loss of privilege--as a crucial means of motivating people. As a result, employees and managers alike become paralyzed and unable to make risky decisions, even when those decisions are crucial to the survival of the firm.

Great bosses inspire people to see a better future and how they'll be a part of it. Employees work harder when they believe in the organization's goals, truly enjoy what they're doing, and (of course) know they'll share in the rewards.

6. Change equals growth, not pain. 

Average bosses see change as both complicated and threatening, something to be endured only when a firm is in desperate shape. They subconsciously torpedo change until it's too late.

Great bosses see change as an inevitable part of life. Though they don't value change for its own sake, they know that success is possible only if employees and organizations embrace new ideas and new ways of doing business.

7. Technology offers empowerment, not automation. 

Average bosses adhere to the old IT-centric view that technology is primarily a means of strengthening management control and increasing predictability. They install centralized computer systems that remove decision-​making power from the employees.

Great bosses see technology as a means of freeing people to be more creative and to build better and stronger relationships. When working with the IT group, they adapt back-​office systems to the tools, such as smartphones and tablets, that people actually want to use.

8. Work should be fun, not mere toil. 

Average bosses buy into the notion that work is, at best, a necessary evil. They fully expect employees to resent having to work, and therefore tend to subconsciously define themselves as oppressors and their employees as victims. Everyone then behaves accordingly.

Great bosses see work as something that should be inherently enjoyable, and therefore believe one of the most important jobs of a manager is to, as far as possible, put people in jobs that make them happy, so more work gets done.

Shortcut: Believing as great managers do

• BUSINESS is an ecosystem, so cooperate, don't fight.
• COMPANIES are communities, so treat people as individuals.
• MANAGEMENT is service, so make others successful first.
• EMPLOYEES are your peers, so treat them like adults.
• MOTIVATE with vision, because fear only paralyzes.
• CHANGE is growth, so welcome rather than shun it.
• TECHNOLOGY eliminates busywork and frees creativity.
• WORK is fun, so don't turn it into a chore.

via inc

The Best Advice for First Time Entrepreneurs

First time entrepreneurs can easily get overwhelmed with the plethora of advice, books, blogs and ideas out there on how they should be, look and feel about their startup.

In this article, we’ve tried to provide the best advice for entrepreneurs available out there. We’re going to focus on different stages through the article, (1) planning, (2)execution, and (3) general. Of course, a lot of these tips can be applied to different stages, rather than just the one they are categorized under.

(1) ADVICE FOR PLANNING STAGE

There are many things that are more important while you are planning your startup. Let’s look at some advice that applies at this stage.

IT’S A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT

Anybody who’s in the startup game to build a real business with staying power must realize that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Plan accordingly or you’ll fizzle out. Work at a pace that’s sustainable for the long term. – Todd McKinnon

You’ve probably heard this before. What’s the difference? As a runner, I can tell you that a marathon requires extensive planning and forethought, as well as restraint during the actual run. If you give it your all in the first few miles (a marathon has 26.2), you will have nothing left for the rest of the race. In fact, the recommended rule is that the first half of the marathon be run a little slower than the second half.

How does this apply to entrepreneurs? Don’t spend all your money in the first few months, before you have a guaranteed cash flow. Don’t hire too many people at the start, but build a core team initially and add more people as the business starts giving a return. Don’t work 24/7 for the first 3 months and then spend 6 months recuperating.

FIND GREAT MENTORS

If you are looking to make your way in business, try to find a mentor. If you are in a position to share the skills you have learned, give something back by becoming a mentor yourself. – Richard Branson

Mentors are going to be a guiding light for you when things get tough. Whether you’re planning hiring, marketing, product development or looking for the perfect co-founder, having a mentor who can advise you is going to help you make the right decisions. Find a mentor who has experience in this industry, and can help you overcome your weaknesses. Having a mentor who has a great network he can promote your company to is an added benefit.

FIND A GREAT CO-FOUNDER

A co-founder can help you fill the gaps your weaknesses leave in the management team. Don’t be afraid to look for someone who has a different business focus (for example, you could work on product, and they could take care of marketing). However, do look for someone who has the same passion for the product as you do, and who believes in your overall vision for the company.

DO WHAT YOU LOVE

The thing about following your passion is that you can align in with whatever you’re doing. People are always looking for the technology companies that have increased sophistication and that are easily scalable. But, let’s face it: passion is scalable. –Adriana Lopez

If you’ve read this far, you probably have a great idea you are passionate about. That’s one of the most important things. You must be doing something you are passionate about, that you won’t feel like abandoning when the going gets tough. Try and create something that solves a problem you feel passionate about solving. If you’re passionate about the product, it will make it that must easier to sell the vision to investors, customers, and even your team.

HAVE A GREAT ELEVATOR PITCH

You never know when you’ll meet a potential investor, or even potential customer. Be prepared with an elevator pitch. It’s a summary of what your startup does and the problem it solves, but it needs to be short and sweet, about the length of an elevator ride. Think and write out what you’d want to let people know if you only had a minute, and then practice it.

BE PREPARED TO PROVE YOURSELF

First time entrepreneurs tend to be young, but at the minimum, they seem inexperienced. Startups tend to be run by young people, and investors sometimes see this as a disadvantage. Be ready to prove that you’re capable of running the show, and that your team has the expertise it needs to get their job done.

HAVE A CLEAR VISION

Before you can even start planning, you need to have an over-arching vision for your product or company. Once you start planning properly, it might change a bit, but you should be sure of what it is you want to achieve, or the problem your product will solve. Break it down into measurable goals that will help you measure how far you’ve come or how successful you’re being. Whether it is 5 sales in the first quarter or 50, you need to have an idea of how far you’ve come.

SET S.M.A.R.T. GOALS

Slightly connected to the last point, but also different. You need to learn how to set S.M.A.R.T goals. These are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-Bound. Once you have these goals, you can increase your focus on reaching them. Set goals for different areas of your company, from HR to sales.

(2) ADVICE FOR EXECUTION STAGE

You’re done planning; now you’re ready to start hiring, marketing and selling. Here are some things to keep in mind.

BE LEAN

Most first-time entrepreneurs confuse being lean with being cheap. Don’t be cheap. You need to learn how to prioritize spending and spend on the essentials from day one, but company retreats might not be an essential. This will vary for each business model. Remote teams, for instance, need to be brought together at least once a year because it helps boost morale. Company retreats might not be as important if all of your staff sits in one location. Learn how to tell the difference between the important and not-so-important expense for your business model.

HIRE THE RIGHT PEOPLE

People will make or break your company. When you start out, hire the first 50 people yourself. Don’t depend on someone else (an HR manager perhaps) to start hiring independently, because regardless of their capability to take on the job, the company is too small for you to not be involved in each hire. Hire the people who are passionate about the product or company, hire the ones you fit into your company culture, and hire them at the right time. The right team is everything.

One of the first hires you might want to consider is an office manager to take care of day to day tasks like mail management, office bills, catering etc.

DON’T OUTSOURCE YOUR CORE COMPETENCY

Anything Core you should keep in-house, anything Context you should outsource. For example, Porsche (the car manufacturer and a company that seeks perfection) will never outsource designing and manufacturing the engine, however they are happy to outsource tires and mirrors. – Via StartupQ8

If you’re selling software, don’t outsource part of your product development. You will lose control over one of the most important things to your business. Remember not to outsource your core competency. Hire the right people to take care of it in-house.

BUILD A COMPANY CULTURE

Thinking your company culture will evolve over time is a mistake. It might, but it might not end up being what you want. Sit down with your co-founder and figure out the kind of culture you want in your organization. List the ways you can develop it in your hires, or the traits your new hires must have to fit in. Many companies have a culture handbook that new hires will be asked to follow. Focus on this at the outset to have a motivated team in the long run.

BE TRANSPARENT

“Lots of traditional, widely accepted, and perfectly legal business practices just can’t be trusted by customers, and will soon become extinct, driven to dust by rising levels of transparency, increasing consumer demand for fair treatment, and competitive pressure” – Don Peppers and Martha Rogers in Extreme Trust: Honesty as a Competitive Advantage

Be transparent with your team, consumers and investors. Being transparent builds trust. Your team will feel more involved in the management if you are open with them about your plans and vision. Some companies go as far as to have open discussions about salaries and processes. Buffer recently shared their earnings dashboard with the public. Openness and transparency can be great things in a startup. Embrace them.

KNOW YOUR STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

You may be very comfortable acknowledging your strengths, but what about your weaknesses? It is best to know your weaknesses before you start out, because you will be building a management team that fills those gaps. In fact, your co-founder can be a great yin to your yang.

Don’t take on responsibilities that you know require something you cannot deliver on. For example, if you are not creative, maybe you need someone else working on product design? It’s important to write down all the things you can’t do, and find the right people to do those things for you.

(3) GENERAL ADVICE

Some advice applies to you, no matter what stage your startup might be in. Let’s look at some things you should be keeping in mind, no matter what you’re doing.

NETWORK. NETWORK. NETWORK.

You never know who you will meet at a lunch or dinner that could end up being an investor, mentor, or even the perfect new hire. Always opt to meet new people when possible. Attend events in the same industry, log onto webinars, and read other people’s work. Twitter and LinkedIn are great tools to network with likeminded people virtually.

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH POSITIVE PEOPLE

“Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they look for a place to dump it. And if you let them, they’ll dump it on you.

So when someone wants to dump on you, don’t take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Believe me. You’ll be happier.” – David J. Pollay

You’d be surprised by how many people will be negative, just to be negative. Unfortunately, there are many people who have a negative mindset, and it seeps through to other people. Surround yourself with happy, positive people instead. Negative people can be difficult to deal with, and take up too much energy to manage/interact with. People who like to focus on the positives are a better support for you when you start out with a new business.

STAY HEALTHY

While this doesn’t just apply to entrepreneurs, first-timers are more likely to work 20 hour days and then face burnout. Focus on your personal growth and fitness along with your professional journey. Take time out every day to exercise, meditate, and eat the right things. Everyone is different, and some people prefer yoga while others feel better after a weight-lifting session, so we won’t be biased. Anything you need to do to stay healthy, and focused, should be a priority.

ASK QUESTIONS. LEARN.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” Mahatma Gandhi

Never stop asking questions. Be they about your product and company, competition, or even personal growth related questions – ask. You can never be too old to learn new things. You can never read too much, or spend too much time on improving yourself. Read every day, follow thought leaders and read their blogs, network with people that interest you, and take part in new and exciting opportunities.

BE OK WITH FAILURES, AND KNOW WHEN TO QUIT.

Sometimes you’ve just had enough. Know when you have reached that point, and quit. Knowing when to give up is just as important is giving it your all at every point before then. Don’t be afraid of failure. Failure will often teach you the hard lessons you need to learn to make your next startup a success.

via entrepreneurial insights

10 Shakespeare Quotes Every Entrepreneur Should Read

I realize William Shakespeare as business guru may be an unconventional interpretation of the poet and playwright. But why not take inspiration where you can find it? Shakespeare's legacy persists across these many centuries precisely because his words lay themselves open to discussion, enjoyment, and usefulness despite changing contexts and time periods. Each generation, different people read Shakespeare anew and find fresh purpose and meaning in these enduring, familiar turns of phrase.

Courtesy of the Bard, here are 10 quotes to use as memorable motivators and robust reminders for yourself and your teams.

1. "Brevity is the soul of wit." (Hamlet) 

Whether running a meeting or giving a speech, be a standout speaker by keeping it short, sweet, and striking. Enough said.

2. "Go wisely and slowly. Those who rush, stumble and fall." (Romeo and Juliet) 

The breakneck pace of our world today sometimes leads to injudicious decision making. There's everything to be said for being nimble--but rushing for the sake of proclaiming agility is foolhardy. Be measured. The time spent thinking through all possible scenarios and consequences is well spent--whether it's considering a difficult conversation with your boss or a new pitch to a prospective client.

3. "Strong reasons make strong actions." (King John)

A good, solid rationale--backed by data and experience--most often encourages the best outcomes, in business and in life. Don't get so married to an idea that you have to work hard to justify it. The best strategies, ideas, and plans are supported by powerful foundations of fact.

4. "We know what we are but know not what we may be." (Hamlet)

Use introspection to shine a light on yourself as you are right now--beauty spots, warts, and all. But also maintain an unshakable belief in yourself. Know that with hard work and perseverance, you can become more--even much more--than you are today.

5. "Things won are done; joy's soul lies in the doing." (Troilus and Cressida)

This is perhaps the most perfect summation of the entrepreneurial spirit you could read. Conquering the mountain is sweet, but the real satisfaction comes from the struggle up to the pinnacle and the progress you make along the way.

6. "I like not fair terms and a villain's mind." (The Merchant of Venice)

Some deals really are too good to be true. Trust your instincts--if you get a bad feeling about a person you're dealing with, even if you can't pinpoint precisely why, pump the brakes. Do more due diligence.  Call people. Get more information (then more and more) until you know for sure if your instincts are borne out or wildly off target.

7. "How far that little candle throws his beams!" (The Merchant of Venice) 

When you're deep in the day-to-day details, it can be hard to remember how all the tasks and work set before you will add up to something bigger and better. Our momentary frustration often robs us of the ability to believe in the big picture and keep going. This excellent expression of optimism reminds us that even small things have a mighty impact.

8. "How poor are they that have not patience? What wound did ever heal but by degrees? (Othello)

If you're a leader, patience is particularly essential. It's important as you listen to a nervous junior team member describe a new idea, or hear an explanation by a senior lead whose project is not going well. It's a quality you need as you consider the direction of a company or team--and what must happen to get where you want to go. It's useful in the day-to-day scrum of business life, when it helps you let go of the little irritations that threaten to derail and deflate you.

9. "And oftentimes excusing of a fault doth make the fault the worse by the excuse." (King John)

Excuses are weak. When you mess up, own up. Be remorseful about the mistake or transgression--and be energetic about making it right. This is true for the midlevel manager, the brand-new hire just out of college, and the CEO.

10. "It is a tale…full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." (Macbeth)

We've all met business boors before--full of bluster and boast, offering very little substance to back up their assertions. But sometimes it can take time to identify one on your team, particularly if they're exceptionally persuasive and easygoing. Key signs to watch for: a person who always has a great idea (or 10) but can never seem to execute. Is there always one reason or another for the lack of progress? Big promises of great things on the horizon? Time to start a serious conversation.

Whose words do you find inspiring?

via inc

7 Ways To Tell If A Millennial Is Depressed

Whether they're stressing out over landing a job, finding a mate or repaying student loans, 20-somethings have plenty on their plate that could bring their mood down.

Although the 20s are typically considered the years of exploration and having fun, depression in young adults is not uncommon.

Young adults are saying goodbye to childhood and adolescence, and trying to make their own way while dealing with frequent change and uncertainty, which could trigger feelings of sadness and irritability.

Going off into the world, establishing a clear identity, developing a capacity for intimate relationships, and forming a foundation to build a future career and adult life are all part of the challenges to people in their 20s that could make them vulnerable to depression, said Dr. Stuart Goldman, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Boston Children's Hospital. [5 Controversial Mental Health Treatments]

What's more, those in their early 20s are dealing with these challenges before their brain is fully mature. The prefrontal cortex — the part of the brain involved in reasoning and controlling impulses — finishes developing about age 25.

Most people who have a genetic vulnerability to depression, typically experience their first episode of the condition between ages 14 and 24, Goldman said. "The vast majority of people with a depressive episode in this age group will have a recurrence within five years of the first episode," he said, reflecting the recurrent nature of the illness.

To determine whether a 20-something might be depressed, Goldman described some common signs and symptoms in this age group.

A lack of enjoyment. Losing interest in once-pleasurable activities is a telltale sign of depression, Goldman said. People in their 20s might still go out with friends, but they may not enjoy themselves or have fun. Or they may isolate themselves and be less sociable, withdrawing from their peers and spending more time alone.

Low energy. "People with depression feel hopeless," Goldman told Live Science. And with a loss of hope often comes alack of motivation. Feeling persistently down seems to drain energy and increase fatigue, making it harder to get out of bed or keep up with usual activities.

Reduced concentration. A mind filled with negative thoughts and a pessimistic outlook could lack focus and be indecisive during a stage in life when people are faced with important choices about careers, moving to a new city, gaining financial independence and pursuing romantic relationships. Poor concentration and inattentiveness while in college, on the job or in the military can further erode self-esteem.

Early morning awakenings. Depressed 20-somethings may find themselves frequently waking up at 4 or 5 in the morning, unable to fall back asleep. People with depression may have abnormalities in levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, Goldman explained. Young adults with depression often have higher cortisol levels in the early morning hours, which disrupts sleep.

Increased alcohol consumption or use of other drugs. To ease the pain and loneliness of depression, some young adults may turn to alcohol or other drugs as an escape or to numb their pain.

"Be honest with yourself about substance abuse," Goldman said. "Don't just say everybody else is doing it." Having a close confidant, whether it's a friend or life partner, can help in recognizing a problem and doing something about it, he said.

Less interest in sex. During a time when others may be frequently hooking up or looking to settle down, someone with depression may have less interest in sex, or a reduced sex drive.

Weight changes. People with depression can have a shift in their weight, in either direction. Some people lose weight because they lose their appetite and have less interest in eating, but others put on pounds, using food as a form of self-comfort.

For parents of young adults, seeing their child struggle with depression is a challenge for them, too. Goldman reiommends that parents shift their role from "managing" their kids when they are 18 to 20, to becoming "consultants," starting at age 21 and beyond, available to provide a young person with guidance and support.

He said parents should remember that "young adults need to have the capacity to make decisions on their own."

The important message for 20-somethings is that "depression is a really treatable illness," Goldman said.

Via businessinsider