Hot Seat

Acknowledgments

This book has spanned four years. In that time, I started Sparkbuy, sold it to Google, left Google, launched Robot Turtles, and founded Glowforge. There was never a dull moment.

But there are greater forces at work than my typing fingers. And while I’m sure I’ll be terribly embarrassed by some overlooked omissions, I’ll try to cover them as best I can.

First, a huge thanks to the team at O’Reilly for their unwavering support over the many years of this project. From Tim and Laurie, who got the ball rolling at FOO camp, to Angela and Mary, who helped me finally push the book out the door, I am so grateful for the opportunity to work with you on this project.

Next, I want to give tremendous thanks to the incredible entrepreneurs who helped me with this book. There are so many fantastic stories of success and failure, perseverance and retreat, that have inspired me over the years. To the people who appear in this book and to those whose stories influenced it indirectly, I owe a tremendous debt to you for sharing a window into your triumphs and pains. I also want to thank the companies that have let me be a part of their journey as an advisor or investor; the firsthand experience of working with incredible entrepreneurs has been a source of ongoing wisdom and perspective.

The entrepreneurial community in Seattle is small and tight-knit. Before AngelList and VC bloggers there was coffee, and I am ever grateful to all the wise entrepreneurs and investors who spent time ...