The Startup Checklist

PrefaceWhy Every Entrepreneur Needs This Book . . . Instead of the Other 93,210 Books on Entrepreneurship

“To open a business is easy, to keep it open is an art.”

—Chinese proverb

ENTREPRENEURS HAVE BEEN STARTING COMPANIES without reading instruction books since the first Phoenician trader bought his first ship over 5,000 years ago. And for those who do want some guidance, Amazon would be pleased to sell you any of the 93,210 books listed in its “start a business” category, many of which are quite good. So why is there a need for yet another startup book?

Because this book is designed for a very specific type of business starter: the entrepreneur who is deliberately setting out to create a scalable, high-growth business designed for the twenty-first century, a business that will likely hire employees, issue stock options, raise money from outside investors, grow rapidly, and eventually either be acquired by a larger company or “go public” through an initial public offering. It turns out that starting that kind of business gets very complicated, very quickly. Making even small mistakes at the beginning can cause problems at every later step along the way.

I've been starting companies myself for over 45 years as a serial entrepreneur (more than half a dozen of them), and as an active business angel investor I have personally funded and advised over 100 others. I've founded, taught in, or advised many of the country's leading entrepreneurship training programs, and, as the founder ...