David Clearwater - Akina Foundation

David Clearwater – Akina Foundation

Social enterprise – solving social and environmental problems with business – using business for good.

How to startup

Desirability – do people want this thing?

Feasibility – Can I make this thing?

Viability – Can I make a business out of thins thing?

What you need

Purpose

Capability – what do I need in my team to make this happen?

Support – money, physical resources etc

What your startup needs

Business model – the design of  how the product works - the execution of this and the resources needed – how will it be made etc how will it be done

Business models

What you are doing it

Why are you doing it

Who are you doing it for

How are you doing it (money etc)

You can find a business model that already works and copy this, or you can do something new and make up the model yourself

Ways to screw up

10. Do it solo – all about teamwork

9. Put ego ahead of the work – don’t put what you want ahead of what your team      or the customer wants

8. Don’t assume the product will sell itself

7. Want money to get started

6. By not listening to advice

5. Listening to advice – following opinions – don’t feel obliged to follow the advice that you receive

4. Invent something that is already invented – if you move into a market that already exists e.g. taxis and uber – find the needs that haven’t been met, ways to make this faster/better (E.g. uber not payment at end of ride, you can see how far away the car is, they come to your exact location)

3. To learn nothing from other people

2. Avoid the customer – don’t be afraid of the customer – need to take their feedback and relate it to your needs.

1. Avoid the hard stuff – don’t shy away from the stuff that is the hardest

Things that work

10. Run the numbers early – what is it going to cost to start, how much to keep going – how much will people spend on the product?

9.  Master the art of compromise

8. Strive for awesomeness – make the product 10 times better instead of 10% better

7. Painkillers and vitamins – easier to make a business with a product that solves a pailful problem

6. Make your users awesome – focus on the customers and things that matter to them.

5. Know yourself – what are you good at, what do you like doing, what can you get paid for?

4. Empathise – get to know the customer and how you can make their lives better

3. Invest in relationships – relationships open doors

2. Build superhuman team – building the right team makes a difference – who does the numbers, who does the selling etc – identify these people in your group as if you don’t have them it will show!

1. Do what you love

Startup myths

5. Have an awesome idea, find rich investors, make great startup

4. Business is about making money

3. Startup world is fast moving

2.

1.

What matters

Team

Customer

Where to begin

Work for an entrepreneur

Work in a bigger organisation

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