This is a book about how to build a company around product which solves a certain problem. How to find, validate such problems, how to build a proper product adressing all the issues, how to talk to initial customers and how to build a team which will thrive following such an approach.

The book became classic and this is actually definition of something becoming classic: it doesn’t get outdated. This book is still valid good 17 years after being published and, even more, it still serves as a good book to reflect on.

In very general way it is similar to Venture Deals in regard of providing a thorough and extensive framework to understand and manage complexity in a certain field. It allows to build a system of coordinates for understanding processes and, more importantly, to understand what might be actually happenning in a company given certain facts. Of course it also covers the part what to do with such an understanding.

Another really valuable finding is the Bibliography which may serve an inspiration for a reading list for someone looking to expand the knowledge in areas of business strategy, marketing, law, finance and enterpreneurship in general.

Worth reading to anyone who learned about customer development through articles, courses, lessons and videos and hadn’t read this book yet.

This is a thorough and definitive book giving an overview of how actually venture capital works. It covers fundraising process from data room preparation to M&A deal details (or tips on dealing with Investment Bankers).

But it wasn’t the details on various points of Term Sheets nor prospects of JOBS act or Rule 506 (b) which I find most useful and insightful. It was an overall vision of Deal which emerged in my brain after reading this book. Now I can definetely see the Deal as a beautiful construction of risks, expectations, negotiations and paperwork finlazing the vision which can be rigoriously discussed and bargained about.

Now I see whole story of common and preferred stocks, liquidation preferneces, venture debt and warrants as tools for laying out the prioritization of interests, which are connected to risks which parties are taking on on different stages of a company lifecycle.

And on top of that, authors mention that it can make total sense to play a Fornite match during dull negotions while adversary might be trying to drown you in details.

Worth reading to anyone who’s going to be involved into one more venture deal anytime soon.