Classic Startup Mistakes

After my time in Rye at The Putter I spent an afternoon in Oxford. By pure coincidence I walked into Said Business School and saw that Stewart Niblock, former EasyGroup entrepreneurer, was giving a talk entitled Classic Start-Up Mistakes. It was very informational. I've posted some notes in a word document.

Write and Read E-mails Better

Recently I read an article from entrepreneur.com regarding reading and writing emails better. I thought I'd pass on a few of the recommendations. Most are obvious but that doesn't mean they are easy to follow. Enjoy. How to Write Better:

• Use a subject line to summarize, not describe.
• When you copy lots of people (a heinous practice that should be used sparingly), mark out why each person should care.
• Use separate messages rather than bcc (blind carbon copy)
• Make action requests clear.
• Make your e-mail one page or less.
• Understand how people prefer to be reached and how quickly they respond.

How to Read Better:

• Check e-mail at defined times each day.
• Use a paper "response list" to triage messages before you do any follow-up.
• Charge people for sending you messages. [I like this one]
• Answer briefly.
• Ignore it.

For the entire article please go to http://entrepreneur.com/technology/howtoguide/article76952.html About the author:

Stever Robbins is an authority on overwhelm in the workplace. A veteran of nine startups (can you say: overwhelm to the max?) over 25 years, Stever co-designed the "Foundations" segment of Harvard's MBA program. He is the author of It Takes a Lot More than Attitude to Lead a Stellar Organization, and has appeared on CNN-fn and in the Wall Street Journal, Investors Business Daily and Harvard Business Review. Stever and his monthly newsletter can be found at http://SteverRobbins.com/.