I ran across this article from Entrepreneur.com called, “Mark Cuban’s 12 steps for startups” and I found that it was quite helpful. Here are the most important highlights that I personally got out of the article:
1. Don’t start a company unless it’s an obsession and something you love.
2. If you have an exit strategy, it’s not an obsession and
3. Never hire a PR firm. A public relations firm will call or email people in the publications you already read, on the shows you already watch and at the websites you already surf. Those people publish their emails. Whenever you consume any information related to your field, get the email of the person publishing it and send them a message introducing yourself and the company. Their job is to find new stuff. They will welcome hearing from the founder instead of some PR flack. Once you establish communication with that person, make yourself available to answer their questions about the industry and be a source for them. If you are smart, they will use you.
All in All, it was a refreshing article offering up some tips that I haven’t seen repeated in other related articles which means it must be good! Read the full article. There may be some highlights that you’ll find helpful for your own startup.
