On Day One, a start-up is a faith-based initiative built on guesses. Steve Blank More Quotes by Steve Blank More Quotes From Steve Blank The core tenant of what I teach is there are no facts inside the building. When we come up with a new idea, we tend to slide into our own reality distortion field to convince ourselves and others. And that's not healthy. Steve Blank healthyrealityideas Using the Product Development Waterfall diagram for Customer Development activities is like using a clock to tell the temperature. They both measure something, but not the thing you wanted. Steve Blank waterfallstrustdevelopment One of the mistakes we'll make because we're human beings is to believe that your vision is a fact. That's the natural optimism of human beings. Steve Blank optimismmistakebelieve Business plans are the tool existing companies use for execution. They are the wrong tool to search for a business model. Steve Blank executiontoolsuse For students to understand what the future of journalism is going to be, they're going to have to invent it. It's a big idea. We don't know what journalism is going to look like in the next three years, let alone the next 10 years. Steve Blank threeyearsideas I think Uber has an enormous number of moves as a public company, they have a CEO who is exactly the right guy for the transition to Wall Street. All they could do now is screw it up. Steve Blank business There is no evidence the core ride-hailing business is profitable. Steve Blank business Schools reward their students for a combination of intelligence, perseverance, and hard work - in the classroom and on the playing fields. But these metrics don't help kids understand that great grades are not a pass for a great life. Steve Blank perseverancehard-workworklife Customer discovery is the process of translating a founder's vision for the company into hypotheses about each component of the business model and creating a set of experiments to test each hypothesis. Steve Blank customervisionbusinessprocess Face-to-face customer feedback refines or validates every component of the startup's business model, not just the product itself. Steve Blank customerproductfeedbackbusiness At the intersection of food science and technology, food replacement startups are creating substitutes for the basic components of meals as well as replacements for complete meals. Steve Blank welltechnologyfoodscience Products are sold because they solve a problem or fill a need. Understanding problems and needs involves understanding customers and what makes them tick. Steve Blank problemsneedunderstandingproblem When your product solves a problem that costs customers sleep, revenue, or profits, things are definitely looking up. Steve Blank yourlookingproblemsleep The Value Proposition Canvas functions like a plug-in to the Business Model Canvas and zooms into the value proposition and customer segment to describe the interactions between customers and product more explicitly and in more detail. Steve Blank customerdetailvaluebusiness It's worth noting that everything - from the Internet to electric cars, genomic sequencing, mobile apps, and social media - were pioneered by startups, not existing companies. Steve Blank worthsocial-mediainternetmedia The convergence of digital trends, along with the rise of China and globalization, has upended the rules for almost every business in every corner of the globe. Steve Blank rulesglobalizationdigitalbusiness Entrepreneurial education in grades K-12, if it exists at all, still focuses on teaching potential entrepreneurs small business entrepreneurship - the equivalent of 'how to run a lemonade stand.' Steve Blank standgradesbusinesseducation Innovation in an existing company is not just the sum of great technology, key acquisitions, or smart people. Corporate innovation needs a culture that matches and supports it. Steve Blank innovationtechnologyculturepeople The goal of listening to customers is not to please every one of them. It's to figure out which customer segments serve your needs - both short and long term. Steve Blank customershortlisteninglong The business model is both the starting point and the scorecard for Customer Development progress. Steve Blank customerpointprogressbusiness
