The Bootstrapper's Guide to Launching New Products

By Darren Dahl * Discovering the value of lean product development and minimum viable product

One of the most gut-wrenching moments for a company is the rollout of a new product. A significant swing and miss can break a company's momentum -- and maybe its bank account. Unfortunately, after months or even years of development, many companies discover that customers aren't willing to buy their new wares. That's why some entrepreneurs are trying another approach to product launches: marketing a product online before spending much on research and development or inventory.

Consider the method used by TPGTEX Label Solutions, a Houston-based software company that specializes in bar codes and labels for manufacturers and chemical companies. Like many companies, TPGTEX rolls out new products several times a year. But instead of spending the time and money to develop products on spec, TPGTEX creates mocked-up webpages that list the features of a potential new product -- such as a system for making radio-frequency identification, or RFID, labels -- along with its price. Then, the company spends no more than a few hundred dollars marketing the product through search engines and to the contacts in its sales database and LinkedIn. It isn't until a customer actually clicks or calls to place an order that TPGTEX's developers will build the software. "We do not develop a product until we get a paying customer," says Orit Pennington, who co-founded the six-employee company with her husband in 2002. Development time is typically no more than two to three weeks, and it generally takes just a few orders to cover development costs.

Play to Your Strengths: Adapting Your Writing Software to Your Writing Style

By Kelly Hanson *
Ever feel like writing is a hopeless battle? I’ve been re-reading the Harry Potter series this summer as a break from dissertation research, and while drafting this post on writing software, Mad Eye Moody’s voice from Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire popped into my head. While discussing an upcoming battle with a dragon during the Triwizard Tournament, Mad-Eye  gives Harry two pieces of advice:  “play to your strengths” and “use a nice, simple spell that will enable you to get what you need.” 

While no one here at GradHacker has actually fought a dragon, I think everyone in graduate school has felt like Harry at one time or another. Whether it’s your first seminar paper, your dissertation proposal, or your final chapter, writing can feel as daunting as the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. Luckily, Mad-Eye’s advice still holds true for the graduate school writing process: play to your strengths, and use a nice, simple tool to get what you need. In other words, write in a way that works with your style, feelings, and writing process, and use a writing software that plays to your writing strengths.

Build On Your "Underlying" Strengths When Adapting

By  Ben Casnocha * 

Play to your strengths. It’s common advice, and it makes sense. People go farther by figuring out what naturally comes easy and organizing their activities accordingly, instead of working overtime to compensate for weaknesses. The problem is that when people think about making career moves they often interpret “strengths” in a narrow industry context.

For example, say you’ve spent a decade in finance. You’ve developed serious experience, expertise, and industry connections. If you’re trying to build on your strengths, the right next career move would be to leverage these abilities into some other job in finance.

Yet, you might not like finance. You may not be thriving. Perhaps your calling is elsewhere. But because you want to leverage the soft assets you’ve built up over time, you stick with it. This is how many people end up working the same industry for years on end. In part, they were “building on their strengths.”

7 Ways to Promote Yourself When You're Introverted

As long as you're sharing your work with other people--the right people--then you're marketing. Because really, all marketing is is communication. And even introverts know how to do that, even if it's in small doses.

By Paul Jarvis *

You have something to say. 

You've been saving it up for a while now, being patient, listening, taking notes, and researching.

You want your voice to be heard, but you're scared to open your mouth.

Reading about self-promotion and marketing is interesting, but it totally doesn't jibe with what you think will work for you or how you think you should share your work.

Sharing, talking, and putting yourself out there take a lot of energy, and most of the time you'd rather just focus on your work. Plus, you're a private person, so sharing isn't something you're typically comfortable doing.

So, how do introverts market their work?

My story

A lot of people assume I'm an extrovert because I'm not shy. I associate more with introversion because I am energized by being alone--in both my work and free time.

Why Introverts Now Rule the World

"I'm certainly not trying to hate on extroverts. I'm simply suggesting that it's time to rethink the qualities we value in business. The tendency has been to favor the boisterous, loud, whirlwind energy of extroverts. Instead, we need to take into account those introverted underdogs. They are the ones, with their thoughtfulness and creativity, who we'll see pulling the strings in our increasingly more digital-oriented age, the one in which they were born to rule."

BY Larry Kim *

Twentieth-century Americans were bottle-fed on the importance of needing to "prove themselves." Extroverts, with their brash and gregarious manner, were the golden children. They excelled as intense, borderline manic individuals showcasing their charm and charisma, Wolf of Wall Street-style. Loud, proud, and ready to get things done, it was their time to shine.

As you can imagine,   introverts weren't too thrilled. However, just as Mufasa predicted in The Lion King, the sun has set on their time, and is now rising again, with introverts as the new kings.

It's time to bow before the introverts reading in the corner. Why?

1. Introverts are superior storytellers.

"Storytelling" is a hot topic these days, and introverts are old pros at telling a yarn. More reflective and thoughtful by nature, introverts are often skilled writers and content creators, making them golden geese in our current age, which prizes top-notch content. J.K. Rowling, Abraham Lincoln, and even Dr. Suess are believed to be (or have been, in their time on earth) introverts. Rock on lone wolves!

Google Founders Talk About Ending the 40-Hour Work Week

Google cofounders Larry Page (left) and Sergey Brin do a fireside chat with VC Vinod Khosla.

By Seth Fiegerman *

It's not often that Google's two founders do a joint interview, so when they do it's worth paying attention.

Larry Page and Sergey Brin conducted a fireside chat late last week with Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures, about everything from self-driving cars and artificial intelligence to health projects and the unnecessary complexity of government.

Page, currently Google's CEO, discussed the need for business leaders to maintain a 20-year vision instead of a 4-year vision and revealed the criticism he got from Steve Jobs ("You guys are doing too much stuff.") He also tackled a couple hot-button issues, including his belief that society doesn't actually need everyone to work full-time anymore.

'Altrocentrism': how and why it can be the latest recipe for success

By C.J. Bolster (Businessweek)

I have evaluated countless job candidates, many with MBAs. By the time their résumés reach my desk, I assume they have the basic job skills, earned a solid GPA, and racked up an impressive list of extracurricular activities. What differentiates a standout candidate from the pack is whether he or she has the altrocentric leadership skills needed in business.

What is an “altrocentric” leader? In contrast to the egocentric leaders of the past who relied on formal authority to get results, altrocentric leaders keep their egos in check and see themselves as one integral part of a greater whole. They have a more intuitive understanding of the contextual nature of leadership and an empathetic ability to attract, retain, and motivate the increasingly diverse, independent, and remote workforces of the future.