A Good Hard Kick in the Ass

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Buy "Four Steps to the Epiphany" by Steve Blank and "A Good Hard Kick in the Ass" by Rob Adams. Before you do anything else, read them both cover to cover.

You should read stuff that tells you the most important stuff you don't know. So -- what do you know? Depending on that you should read different material. I liked "A Good Hard Kick in the Ass" when I read it a few years ago. I've also read many of the books in that article. The business book business is strange: seems like you can read a lot without really learning much of anything. The laws of marketing and laws of branding books are good, as is "The Innovator's Dilemma" (The sequel didn't seem as good to me for some reason). Something I've tried that might be a good gift idea is business CDs -- you can load them up in your I-pod and take them on your morning run. Hard to do that with a book. One thing to remember is the rule of 3: read at least three books attempting to solve the same problem that you are facing. Not only will it give …

…lways is. But as far as keeping a friend? He's a teacher, right? Why don't you sell him on the idea about learning how other startups succeed? I'll never forget reading "A Good Hard Kick in the Ass" several years ago. It completely changed the way I understood how startups work. Perhaps you could sell him on the idea that you're feeling a little frustrated, and perhaps other teams out there have learned something that might be useful to you guys. I also liked "Founders at Work" which I read a while ago. I wouldn't bury the guy in material -- after all, if you give him too much he'll just blow it off. But I'd find some text that made the case and _was presented by another person who is an authority_. That way, it's not a you vs. him deal, it's just a couple of friends discovering how things work. Good luck. If he's smart and your friend I'…