words of wisdom @ age of 80

Ok that 80 years old veteran happens to be Eugene Kleiner ,founder of Fairchild Semiconductor, and formarly with KPCB , a numero uno VC firm.

Anyways, this is what he has to say(read Kleiner’s Laws)

1. Make sure the dog wants to eat the dog food. No matter how ground-breaking a new technology, how large a potential market, make certain customers actually want it.
   
2. Build one business at a time. Most business plans are overly ambitious. Concentrate on being successful in one endeavor first.
3. The time to take the tarts is when they're being passed. If an environment is right for funding, go for it. Eugene, more than anyone, knew that venture capital goes in cycles.
4. The problem with most companies is they don't know what business they're in.
5. Even turkeys can fly in a high wind. In times of strong economies, even bad companies can look good.
6. It's easier to get a piece of an existing market than to create a new one.
7. It's difficult to see the picture when you're inside the frame.
8. After learning some of the tricks of the trade, some people think they know the trade. This reflected some of Eugene's own humility; he recognized that many venture capitalists thought they were experts when they had just a bit of knowledge.
9. Venture capitalists will stop at nothing to copy success.
10. Invest in people, not just products. Eugene always respected founding entrepreneurs. He wanted to build companies with them not just with their ideas.

Incidently, there are 2 indians @ KPCB. One the inimitable Vinod Khosla, whose intro page contains couple of pdfs and ppts on VC, and another Ajit Nazare, who intrigues me more than his colleague . Kudos to you both!!

angu

"A product is something made in a factory; a brand is something that is bought by the customer. A product can be copied by a competitor; a brand is unique. A product can be quickly outdated; a successful brand is timeless."

Stephen King, WPP Group, London