Refreshed, updated, and expanded. Do More Faster provides time-tested advice, tips, and experiences by founders and mentors of Techstars to help entrepreneurs succeed!David Cohen and Brad Feld, leading advocates for entrepreneurs and startups, team up to provide first-time entrepreneurs with the tools, insights, and experiences to help them do more faster. The authors share their decades of experience working with thousands of startup founders and have enlisted the advice of dozens of Techstars startup founders and mentors. Contributors include Tim Ferriss, Eric Ries, Matt Mullenweg (WordPress), Isaac Saldana (SendGrid), and other successful entrepreneurs.Co-founders of Techstars, the worldwide network that helps entrepreneurs succeed, Cohen and Feld recognize the daunting task of creating a sustainable business and have seen first-hand the common mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make over and over. The authors take the complexity and uncertainty of starting a business and distill the critical factors into seven themes: Ideas and Vision, People, Working Effectively, Product, Fundraising, Legal and Structure, and Work and Life Harmony. They share their hard-won successes, failures, and advice for anyone with an idea who wants to create a business.Throughout the book crucial questions are raised and addressed from multiple perspectives.* How important is it to have an original idea?* How is founder conflict handled?* What are the tradeoffs between bootstrapping and financing?Make-or-break decisions like company structure, hiring, and legal consequences are presented in an easy-to-understand style. Do More Faster will elevate your thinking on a range of important topics, help you avoid costly mistakes, and provide you with a resource to consult as you go from idea to successful business.If you have the drive and desire to start a business, need to create a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in your community, or want to spark greater innovation in your organization--don't go it alone. Use the advice, tips, and tactics found throughout Do More Faster to give yourself the best chance of succeeding.

Foreword xiiiPreface xvAbout Techstars xixIntroduction 1Chapter 1 Do More Faster 3David CohenChapter 2 Do or Do Not; There Is No Try 7Brad FeldTheme One: Idea and Vision 9Chapter 3 Trust Me, Your Idea Is Worthless 13Tim FerrissChapter 4 Start with Your Passion 17Kevin MannChapter 5 Look for the Pain 21Isaac SaldanaChapter 6 Get Feedback Early 25Nate Abbott and Natty ZolaChapter 7 Usage Is Like Oxygen for Ideas 29Matt MullenwegChapter 8 Forget the Kitchen Sink 33David CohenChapter 9 Find That One Thing They Love 37Darren CrystalChapter 10 Don't Plan. Prototype! 39Greg ReinackerChapter 11 You Never Need Another Original Idea 43Niel RobertsonChapter 12 Get It Out There 45Sean CorbettChapter 13 Avoid Tunnel Vision 49Bijan SabetChapter 14 Focus 51Jared PolisChapter 15 Iterate Again 55Colin AngleChapter 16 Fail Fast 59Alex WhiteChapter 17 Pull the Plug When You Know It's Time 63Paul BerberianChapter 18 Love Doesn't Scale, or Does It? 67Nicole GlarosChapter 19 Reconciling Vision and Focus 71David CohenTheme Two: People 73Chapter 20 Be Open to Randomness 75David CohenChapter 21 Entrepreneurship Is a Group Sport 79Mark O'SullivanChapter 22 Avoid Cofounder Confl ict 83Dharmesh ShahChapter 23 Hire People Better than You 87Will HermanChapter 24 How to Find and Engage Mentors 91David CohenChapter 25 Hire Slowly, Fire Quickly 99Matt BlumbergChapter 26 If You Can Quit, You Should 103Laura FittonChapter 27 Build a Balanced Team 107Alex WhiteChapter 28 Startups Seek Friends 111Micah BaldwinChapter 29 Engage Great Mentors 115Emily OlsonChapter 30 The Mentor Manifesto 119David CohenChapter 31 Define Your Culture 123Greg GottesmanChapter 32 Two Strikes and You Are Out 129Brad FeldChapter 33 Karma Matters 133Warren KatzTheme Three: Working Effectively 137Chapter 34 Assume That You're Wrong 139Howard DiamondChapter 35 Make Decisions Quickly 143Ari NewmanChapter 36 It's Just Data 145Bill WarnerChapter 37 Use Your Head, then Trust Your Gut 149Ryan McIntyreChapter 38 Progress Equals Validated Learning 153Eric RiesChapter 39 The Plural of Anecdote Is Not Data 157Brad FeldChapter 40 Don't Suck at Email 161David CohenChapter 41 Use What's Free 165Jason SeatsChapter 42 Be Tiny Until You Shouldn't Be 169Jeffrey PowersChapter 43 Don't Celebrate the Wrong Things 173Rob JohnsonChapter 44 Be Specific 179Brad FeldChapter 45 Learn from Your Failures 181Fred WilsonChapter 46 Quality over Quantity 183Andy SmithChapter 47 Have a Bias Toward Action 187Ben CasnochaTheme Four: Product 191Chapter 48 Don't Wait Until You Are Proud of Your Product 193Ajay Kulkarni and Andy CheungChapter 49 Find Your Whitespace 197Raj AggarwalChapter 50 Focus on What Matters 201Dick CostoloChapter 51 Obsess over Metrics 203Dave McClureChapter 52 Avoid Distractions 205Andy SackChapter 53 Know Your Customer 209Bill FlaggChapter 54 Beware the Big Companies 213Michael ZeisserChapter 55 Throw Things Away 215Eric MarcoullierChapter 56 Pivot 219Rob HayesTheme Five: Fundraising 221Chapter 57 There's More than One Way to Raise Money 223Brad FeldChapter 58 Beware of Angel Investors Who Aren't 227David CohenChapter 59 Don't Forget about Bootstrapping 231David BrownChapter 60 You Don't Have to Raise Money 235Joe Aigboboh and Jesse TevelowChapter 61 Seed Investors Care about Three Things 239Jeff ClavierChapter 62 Practice Like You Play 243Alex WhiteChapter 63 If You Want Money, Ask for Advice 247Nicole GlarosChapter 64 Show, Don't Tell 251Brad FeldChapter 65 Turn the Knife after You Stick It In 253David CohenChapter 66 Don't Overoptimize on Valuations 257Kirk HollandChapter 67 Get Help with Your Term Sheet 261Jason MendelsonChapter 68 Focus on the First One-Third 265Brad FeldTheme Six: Legal and Structure 267Chapter 69 Choose the Right Company Structure 269Brad FeldChapter 70 Form the Company Early 273Brad BernthalChapter 71 Default to Delaware 277Jon TaylorChapter 72 Lawyers Don't Have to Be Expensive 279Michael PlattChapter 73 Vesting Is Good for You 283Jon FoxChapter 74 Your Brother-in-Law Is Probably Not the Right Corporate Lawyer 287Brad FeldChapter 75 To 83(b) or Not to 83(b), There Is No Question 291Matt GalliganTheme Seven: Work-Life Harmony 295Chapter 76 Discover Work-Life Harmony 297Brad FeldChapter 77 Practice Your Passion 301Eran EgozyChapter 78 Follow Your Heart 305Mark SolonChapter 79 Turn Work into Play 309Howard LindzonChapter 80 Don't Make Yourself Indispensable 313David CohenChapter 81 Get Out from Behind Your Computer 315Seth LevineChapter 82 Stay Healthy 319Andy SmithChapter 83 Get Away from It All 323Amy BatchelorConclusion 327Appendix 1: The Evolution of Techstars 331Appendix 2: Original Edition's Foreword 345Appendix 3: Where Are the Techstars Companies Now? 349About the Authors 355Acknowledgments 357Index 359