A Dozen Lessons for Entrepreneurs

October 23, 2017
Griffin (Charlie Munger: The Complete Investor), a business writer who formerly worked in private equity, offers valuable lessons for entrepreneurs in this astute compilation of best practices. Griffin identifies and interviews 12 successful venture capitalists and business coaches worthy of providing singular advice, including Steve Blank, founder of Epiphany and Convergent Technologies; Marc Andreessen, cofounder of Netscape; and Mary Meeker, a partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers. Griffin quotes a dozen pearls of entrepreneurial wisdom from each and offers short explanations to provide context. Lessons include “recruit the best person you can who knows how to create an innovation culture” (from Bill Campbell, who transitioned from football coach at Columbia to Apple marketing v-p) and “the best entrepreneurs don’t know what they don’t know so they attempt the impossible” (from venture capitalist John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers). Griffin himself prizes the contrarian approach to investing, which means going “where other investors and business founders are not looking.” This perceptive guide captures instrumental advice that serious entrepreneurs would do well to adopt.