Exponential Technology Counsel

How to convert an idea into a lucrative business

Think of it as an obstacle course – you cannot simply run with reckless abandon.  You have to be aware that you'll encounter hurdles and obstacles. 

When 96 percent of startups fail - maybe it's time to look at your approach to running your company

Knowing what IP adds value

It has to do with an offensive as opposed to a defensive strategy – which marks the difference between a startup and an established company.

There are two reason why 96% of startups fail:  They lack planning and they all follow a mantra that doesn't work.

Patents are useless unless, what you protect appeals to your customers, your competitors, or your potential partners.

MIT has this program on entrepreneurship – with Bill Aulet as the managing director of the Martin Trust center for MIT entrepreneurship.  In fact, he's written a book on the topic. Now, I've become used to seeing articles, philosophies and ideas on startups, innovation and entrepreneurs – all of which make nice treatises but are totally divorced from the real world – and as a result I typically ignore or discard them.  Therefore it is refreshing when I actually come across something that is really good – that could, in my opinion provide a very practical set of tools or thought processes for someone contemplating a startup. And with that in mind I want to mention and discuss Aulet's book entitled Disciplined Entrepreneurship. Listen on…

When it comes to startups and entrepreneurs with little funding - I've spoken in the past about the value of patents and how effective – or rather how ineffective - they really are if you cannot afford to go to court. I proposed a methodology that avoids your going down this path in the first place, but sometimes, try as you might to keep your nose clean, you get screwed. So you need to hammer out a settlement...  The first thing to recognize is that you're not negotiating in vacuo where you're pitting your claim of loss against what the other side would like to pay in damages.  You are weighing that number against a third element: what a court or a jury would likely find – both as regards guilt and as regards damages.  Will you succeed in your infringement or product defect claim, and what is a jury likely to award?  And then ask yourself, what will it cost you and the other side in money, resources, and time, to go to court? After that it's a matter of finding an attorney that will take

"We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them." – Einstein