The Start-Up J Curve: The Six Steps to Entrepreneurial Success

The myriad of questions the author asks in each chapter are reminiscent of those I’ve been asked by PE and other investors in the multiple enterprises I’ve been part of or run. The book, while not the easiest read, is a very useful one for anyone thinking about starting up ANY business (not just tech) or looking to raise money. Love touches on both the soft and hard skills necessary. He also has been there and done that - which is critical. A decent adder to your business library.

The Start-Up J Curve should be a must-read for anyone who is thinking about starting a small business, as well as long time entrepreneurs who are focused on innovation and continued growth. I started my small business in 2003, and really wish this book had been available at that point.Reading this book helped me understand why certain things happened as my business evolved and I see now (as a result of this book) some things that could have been done differently that would have had a positive impact.Even though I have now been in business for more than a decade, I feel like the information I learned from reading this book will help me and my company continue to grow and become more successful moving forward. And, it was great to see that my company is not the only one that ended up pretty far away from its original business plan - and that there is a good reason why that happens.It is wonderful to have access to expert advice from someone like Howard Love, as his perspective is really unique. He has had the experience of working through the start up process for his own companies, as well as in the position of being an investor. He is able to provide insights that someone who hadn’t seen all sizes of the startup process – and what happens afterwards – would not be able to do.I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about entrepreneurship. It would be ideal to read it before starting your business, then re-reading it or referring back to it along the way, particularly when you are feeling frustrated with how things or going or experiencing a decline or growing pains.I know time is always a concern for busy small business owners, but the time you spend reading this book is definitely time well spent. I suggest considering it professional development/training. It is an easy read. It is written in a very conversational tone so it goes quickly and is easy to understood. I read it from cover to cover in about 4 hours on an airplane.

I was very impressed with the book, from valuable content to how easy it was to read author's great insights of the start up evolution though the J curve. It really maps out well the steps that every Entrepreneur should know and understand to navigate the process of starting up and growing the business.What I really appreciated about the book, is that author openly describes his experiences, struggles and victories as an entrepreneur and also gives advice from prospective of an angel investor. That gave me a better understanding of what each party in this eco-system needs and what each one gets out of the J curve steps. I wish I had this book to guide me when I embarked on launching my Interior Design business in 2008, as I didn't know there was a predictable pattern that all business go through and that I'm not an odd ball struggling thought the J curve.Just to name few highlight areas of many; from understanding many types of personality and mix of strength and weaknesses that can be successful in starting / growing the business (even though popular media and articles list only certain mix of traits as desirable and required). Then the morph phase where he has highlighted that even most successful entrepreneurs didn't nail their business right away and had to significantly change the direction to get it right. Then it was great to understand clear outline of the distinction between "missionary" and "mercenary" types of CEO and founders since there is so much glorifying in media going on about mercenary types who are ruthlessly making money while sometimes not considering to leave this World as a better place (though that is changing with the new generations). I was always feeling that is a less desirable route in growing the business.Overall, this book is so full of great advice that is easy to follow, and I know I will be going back to it to re-read it, as it is hard to find a good, and honest start up guidance that is easy to digest, and make sense of when you going through the steps of J curve.

This is such an excellent book for those of us who have either had the inkling to start of business or those of us who are already battling our way through it. I've started four businesses in the past, three of them failed, one of them I handed over to a partner after getting it profitable because I was taking on huge amounts of stress and started having health issues.What's the saying? "If I knew back then what I know now..." If I had this book back then, I would have failed the same way, but it would have taken me longer. Yes, that is the truth, inevitably we will all fail at our first business, some of us more so. But if you're taking over a family business or you're part of a new department that's an offshoot of your R&D department, then you need to read this.When I started reading this, I could pinpoint exactly where my businesses failed and at what stage of the model they failed. I picked up this book because I would love to go start something again (it's addictive), but I want to start something that I know will follow a predictable pattern and know what do to once I get there. This book has been nostalgic for me because it brings back memories of all the things that did go wrong and it gives you specific advice on what to do to fix it.Before you start your business--whatever it may be--I would recommend that you consult this book and learn from the author's deep rooted experience in (what I would consider) a science and masterclass in business.

Business MODEL Generation ( Alex Osterwalder )Founder's DilemmasLead Right for YOUR Company's TypeDefinitive Business Plan ( Richard Stutely )How to Measure ANYthing ( Hubbard )Focus ( Al Ries )22 Immutable Laws of Branding ( Al Ries )Combo ProspectingHow the World Sees YOU ( Sally Hogshead - this is important for all HR decisions )Corps Business: the 30 MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES of the US Marines ( by senior Forbes editor David H. Freedman:he wanted to know *why* the Marines weren't dysfunctional the way everybody else is...So, he called 'em up & asked if he could study 'em & write a book on it...They, being Marines, said "We could learn something here: let's do it.".That book includes a number of principles that are fundamental to good *parenting*:GrowTheGood! if someone just did a mission & got 30 things wrong, but 1 thing right, whichever side you *focus* on, you *reinforce*.If you want to reinforce CAN, focus on what they got right.This was validated by an article that NewScientist did on the English Rugby team wanting to go study the Aussies,to discover *why* the English had failed to beat them for 2 decades...It turned out that the key difference was the English put-down-culture vs the Aussie OfCourseWeCan culture.Same lesson, totally independent context. Proven, as far as I am concerned: Positive feedback is the ONLY method for growing capability fast.or how about...TellEmWhatAndWhyThenGetOutOfTheirHair&LetEmDoItTheirOwnWay! ( the Marines phrase that as "Rule By End-State & Intent"The Army is famous for "There is the Right Way, the Wrong Way, & the Army Way:You will NOT do it the Right Way.You will NOT do it the Wrong Way.You will do it the Army Way!If it moves, Salute it!If it doesn't move, & is moveable, move it!If it doesn't move, & it isn't moveable, paint it!"Obviously, the Marines don't have any interest in making Marines mechanical idiots,so that whole paradigm was thrown away from them.By requiring everyone to figure-out their own How, the best diversity of capability is maintained in their people.Anyways, it's a good & helpful book. : )

Libro che avrei voluto leggere qualche anno fa. Ovviamente la curva a J non è applicabile a tutti i contesti, ma è sicuramente il miglior framework sul ciclo di vita di una startup che abbia visto. Da leggere assolutamente anche per chi si occupa di design o IT: la lezione sarà utile anche a loro.

Fun to read, simply written and informative. I highly recommend it to budding entrepreneurs. Go for it as there is value in The book

Gives you a sense of understanding about startups . . .recommend reading this book. I would also suggest reading Zero to one by Peter Thiel

this book is an excellent end to end guide for every entrepreneur out there or any person who wants to be an entrepreneur.