I’ve done it. 
Almost every entrepreneur I know has done it. 

Invested more than they expected and
more than they should
on a hungry little start up
that eventually did not succeed. 

I learned the hard way what
Jennifer Openshaw in her book The Millionaire Zone
says most successful people do…
knowing before they start,
“how much they’re willing to risk”
and not going beyond that. 

What about the…
“if I only spend x more,
I’ll earn y more” thinking? 

She states that’s
“the problem with a lot of entrepreneurs. 
They’re always looking at what they can make
rather than what they’re willing to lose.”

Lately there has been focus on quitting,
quitting the big idea,
quitting quickly, etc.
so when do I know when to quit?  

Based on missed benchmarks. 

Over a year ago, I started up a new venture. 
I had benchmarks for testing and for implementation. 
Cost benchmarks
(I had a price ceiling so 
margins could only move so much),
time benchmarks (production)
and sales ramp up benchmarks
(in writing so I couldn’t fudge with them). 

The first two, the venture aced. 
The third?  It bombed. 
I tweaked.  Still bombed. 
I tweaked a few more times. Bombs away. 
So I folded and moved onto the next venture. 

Was it a difficult decision? 
Of course it was. 
But it had to be made. 

Barney is the big purple dinosaur,
loved by children the world over. 

Was Barney being purple a random choice? 

I don’t think so. 
In surveys,
75% of pre-adolescent children
prefer purple over any other color. 

In package design
shades of a
color of sky are hotly debated. 
Why? 
Because it matters. 
Every single aspect of the product matters.

August is a frustrating time
for project managers. 
Fall launch deadlines are fast approaching
and team members are either on vacation
or wishing they were on vacation. 

Oprah told BBC Newsnight about some of her
Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy For Girls
project issues. 

“I gave up the project for a time
because it was just so frustrating. 
I ended up continuing only
because they were going to put
my name on the school anyway…
If my name is going to be on it,
then I’m going to have some control
over what’s going to happen.” 

Problems are part of project management.
Even Oprah’s power and money can’t eliminate that.

In Guy Kawasaki’s interview
with Redfin’s Glenn Kelman,
Kelman says that most entrepreneurs
focus on the Eureka moment
when they should be focussing on hard work. 

“If you don’t believe you have
any reliable competitive advantage,
you’re the kind of insecure person
who will work your competition into the ground,
so keep working.” 

I tell myself “one more.” 
I’ll send out “one more email”. 
I’ll write “one more post.” 
I’ll write “one more page.” 

Combine those one more’s
and you have a competitive advantage.