Thinking of starting a business? This list is for you. It was last updated on 27 December 2014. First, some definitions:

“A startup is an organization formed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model.” — Steve Blank

“A startup is a company designed to grow fast.” — Paul Graham

“A startup is a human institution designed to deliver a new product or service under conditions of extreme uncertainty.” — Eric Ries

I found that in meeting with more founders, the same answers tended to come up surrounding product, pricing, equity, hiring, strategy and marketing.

What follows is a curated collection of startup resources that I found indispensable on my startup journey.

Basics

Start with Paul Graham's pie fallacy: wealth is not finite. You can create wealth by making something people want.

Know about The 18 Mistakes That Kill Startups.
Apply the scientific method to product development. The lean startup offers a path toward a minimum viable product:
[pdf] The Four Steps to the Epiphany by Steve Blank. Or buy the book.
[book] The Lean Startup by Eric Ries
[video] This Week In Venture Capital with Eric Ries, author of "The Lean Startup".
[video] Episode #199 of This Week in Startups with Eric Ries, hosted by Jason Calacanis.
[book] Read The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber and avoid the common pitfalls of small businesses.

Usability & Product Design

[book] Read Don't Make Me Think by Steve Krug to understand how to design simple user interfaces.

Equity

The Equity Equation by Paul Graham
Joel's Totally Fair Method to Divide Up The Ownership of Any Startup by Joel Spolsky
The Co-Founder Mythology by Mark Suster

Dole out equity with vesting according to risk taken. Have a pre-nup.

Strategy

Should you grow fast, or organically? Read Strategy Letter I: Ben and Jerry's vs. Amazon by Joel Spolsky
Are you building a product or a platform? Strategy Letter II: Chicken and Egg Problems by Joel Spolsky
Barriers to entry are explained in Strategy Letter III: Let Me Go Back! by Joel Spolsky
The 80/20 rule doesn't apply to features, so read Strategy Letter IV: Bloatware and the 80/20 Myth by Joel Spolsky
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz.

Pricing

Camels and Rubber Duckies by Joel Spolsky
Don't Just Roll The Dice by Neil Davidson

Profit (Advanced)

[book] Understand the various types of profit by reading The Art of Profitability by Adrian Slywotzky.

Read the Greats

You would do well by reading everything ever written by these great entrepreneurs:

There's a lot more, so I'll keep updating this post over time with more curated content.

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So You Want to Start a Startup Published Fri Aug 29 02:00:00 SAST 2014