Disciplined Entrepreneurship Workbook

STEP 0How Do I Get Started? Should I?

Before you start this 24-step journey, you first want to know two things:

1. Do I want to start a company?
2. Do I have an idea or technology that I can do a Market Segmentation on (Step 1)?

Starting a company is not easy—it’s the exact opposite. It will be really, really difficult and humbling throughout the journey. So do you really want to start a company? How do you optimize your chances of reaching a satisfying reward at the end? What kind of preparation do you need so that you start out with your eyes wide open, fully understanding what a startup entails and having done everything you can to increase your odds of success?

By the Book: See pages 15-21 of Disciplined Entrepreneurship for basic knowledge on this step.

In Step 0 of Disciplined Entrepreneurship, I said that people interested in entrepreneurship typically either have an idea, a technology, or a strong interest in entrepreneurship. I discussed how someone without an idea or technology can think about what knowledge and skills they have and what ideas/technologies might flow from there.

Here, I emphasize unequivocally that if you’re looking to radically impact the world, you need not just an idea or technology, but you also need a passion to keep going through good times and bad. You’ll also need cofounders who can help round out the skills and knowledge leading the company. ...