Category: Startup Business (Page 2 of 19)

Although the market is growing, making robots is hard. In Silicon Valley, venture capitalists like to say software is easy, hardware is hard, and robots are the hardest of all. This is because they require so many different disciplines to build, from mastering the complexities of hardware and movement to develop sophisticated AI. Most startups don’t have the resources or expertise to take on all of these once. Even more challenging than building the robots is building a viable business. Robotics isn’t like software. It’s a costly and difficult business to scale.

Take Beam, the telepresence robot. It looks like a giant iPad on wheels. It can scoot about an office and allow anyone to interact with it or someone else in a remote location. We had several Beam robots at our coworking space, and although they were useful on occasion, it was hard to justify the cost when compared to a $50 webcam. This is one reason Suitable Technologies, the startup that created the Beam robot, ran into trouble. Read More...

Below is a pretty comprehensive list of San Francisco and Silicon Valley coworking spaces:

My friend has a startup, and he hired someone to help him boost sales. When we talked a year ago, he told me that his sales guy wasn’t closing deals.

I told him that it was probably time to let the person go. But my friend is such a nice guy that he gave the guy a second chance, then a third chance, and even a fourth chance.

Finally, my friend had to fire him, but instead of just terminating the employee, he offered him a chance to continue working as a part-time consultant.
Unfortunately, this sales guy turned around and sued my friend for illegally converting a full-time employee into a contractor. Now my friend is stuck in a lawsuit. Read More...

I do lots of business in China, and I can tell you, most Chinese work 996, which means from 9 am to 9 pm six days a week. Many employees are compelled to work 997. And people in the tech industry often work even longer hours. Mike Moritz, the famous VC from Sequoia Capital, said US workers should do the same, but I totally disagree.

Managers need to understand that it’s not how long someone works that counts. What matters is the results of the work. They need to focus on measuring results and not hours. Otherwise, workers will stay in the office a long time but produce very little. Innovation requires creativity and motivation. People can’t be creative 996. They need time to relax, exchange information, and absorb new ideas. In a knowledge economy this is very important.

I don’t buy it when Jack Ma says China’s competitiveness depends on everyone working 996. I think everyone should spend less time working. It’s unhealthy to work 996. I just visited a Chinese company jn Shenzhen at lunch time, and the office was completely dark. Everyone was a sleep at their desks because they work so late at night that they don’t get enough sleep. Read More...

The startup Juicero proved this. In 2016, they launched a high-tech juicing machine. It was a marvel of engineering, complete with a camera to scan QR codes on packs of juice and an internet connection to verify if each pack had expired or not. The company’s founder, Doug Evans, compared himself to Steve Jobs and touted that his juice press wielded four tons of force.

Juicero also solved the problem that plagues so many juicers–preparation and maintenance. Juicing machines are notoriously painful to maintain. Users have to prepare the fruits and vegetables, a time-consuming task, and the machines need to be cleaned regularly, which nobody likes doing.

With the promise of solving these problems, Juicero raised a whopping $120 million and was off to a running start–only to stumble right out of the gate. First, they priced their machine at a ridiculously high $700, later dropping it to $399. But that was just the beginning. Read More...

VCs never like to say…

1. “I can’t remember what you do.”

Always give the VCs a quick refresher when you meet them. Read More...

Here are my motivational tips:

1) Tell your sales team not to sell. Their job should be to educate, inform and help customers. Customers will love them, and they will love their jobs.

2) It’s not how many leads you generate that counts. It’s the quality of the leads. Read More...

Here’s some advice for employees who want to get ahead.

1. What could someone 2-3 levels below you do to earn your respect?

Ask the right questions in a meeting, and you’ll earn my respect. Lots of people want to show off how much they know, but few people listen, think and inquire. Those are the truly valuable people. Read More...

The one thing every entrepreneur must be is bold. You cannot hesitate. You cannot give in to your fears. You must drive yourself forward, relentlessly, no matter what the cost. Even if it means risking everything for which you have worked so hard.  Even if it means losing your company and reputation. You must stretch yourself and seize the day. That is only way dreamers can make reality conform to their will.

Stress is a killer for entrepreneurs. If you are feeling stress, a good strategy is to think deeply about the cause. Then make a list of actions you can take to address the underlying issues. What can you do to solve the problem.

If there is nothing you can do, you need to train yourself to stop thinking about it. You should have a list of things that make you truly happy in your life, and whenever you feel stressed, sit back and think of those things. It actually works.