Book Review: The Art of the Start

I read The Art of the Start recently. I'd read some of Guy Kawasaki's stuff in the past and found it humorous and easily digestible. The book promised to address not only entrepreneurship but also intrapreneurship as well, which is a little more relevant to me.

Overall, I give the book a B+. It's accessible, and hits on the main points, and does so in Guy's usual tell-it-like-it-is fashion, with some humor to flavor it. However, it really is aimed more at entrepreneurship and the intrapreneurship part is only touched on in a couple sections briefly.

Also, I have to say that it feels like a rushed and/or sub-optimal effort by Kawasaki. There are a lot of recycled jokes and anecdotes, which is OK to a degree. There are also a lot of broken metaphors, or anecdotes that don't directly illustrate the thing Kawasaki's trying to demonstrate.

If you are trying to start a business, or are thinking about it, and want an accessible "first steps" kind of guide, the book can serve in this capacity. Other folks will probably find it less useful.

The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything

Book Review: Reality Check

I just got done reading Guy Kawasaki's latest, Reality Check.

I have some mixed feelings about it, but overall it's got enough value in parts of it that I can recommend it.

The book is a loosely compiled series of essays, top ten lists (a favorite format of his), and interviews. Much of it is repurposed from his blog and he states as much early in the book. This makes it easy to read, as each chapter is small, accessible and quickly digestible. However, it also means the flow is somewhat disjointed, and some parts feel really shoe-horned in there.

A few of the chapters are real gems though, and justify the price of the book on it's own. In particular:

• The art of intrapreneurship: A chapter on starting revolutions with large established companies. (BTW, it's almost a blueprint of how Larrabee got started within Intel)
• The chapters on evangelism, pitching and slide decks are must-read for anyone that does any of this.
• The inside scoop on Venture Capital law, in which he does a Q&A with a VC attorney on 'stuff an entrepreneur should know.
• A chapter in which Glen Kelman of Redfin does a full disclosure of his estimated and actual costs for the first year they were in business, with notes on why they over or underestimated pieces.

Just a few examples, but that list should be enough to decide if this book is for you.