Lessons Learned in Silicon Valley

Lessons Learned in Silicon Valley Ong Teng Siong (siong1987)

Who Am I?

Who Am I? •cofounder of GrafﬁtiGeo

Who Am I? •cofounder of GrafﬁtiGeo -funded by YCombinator (S09)

Who Am I? •cofounder of GrafﬁtiGeo -funded by YCombinator (S09) -location based service

Who Am I? •cofounder of GrafﬁtiGeo -funded by YCombinator (S09) -location based service -acquired by Loopt (S05)

Bill Gates

Bill Gates •programmed when young

Bill Gates •programmed when young •took a leave from school

Bill Gates •programmed when young •took a leave from school •started a company

But, all these are bullshit!!!

But, all these are bullshit!!! •not richest man(not even malaysia)

But, all these are bullshit!!! •not richest man(not even malaysia) •some good money

But, all these are bullshit!!! •not richest man(not even malaysia) •some good money •most importantly, learned a lot

1st Lesson

1st Lesson •starting a company in US is hard as a foreigner

1st Lesson •starting a company in US is hard as a foreigner •immigration issues are stupid

2nd Lesson

2nd Lesson •it’s the people, stupid

2nd Lesson •it’s the people, stupid -not the idea but the people (paypal)

2nd Lesson •it’s the people, stupid -not the idea but the people (paypal) -4 cofounders at ﬁrst, only 3 stays

Founders of successful startups talked less about choosing cofounders and more about how hard they worked to maintain their relationship. - Paul Graham

3rd Lesson

3rd Lesson •design matters

3rd Lesson •design matters -people like pretty things

3rd Lesson •design matters -people like pretty things -especially iPhone apps

3rd Lesson •design matters -people like pretty things -especially iPhone apps -use game mechanisms

Reads Non-Designer’s Design Book Game-based Marketing The Art of Game Design

4th Lesson

4th Lesson •negotiate the hell out of it

4th Lesson •negotiate the hell out of it -negotiate your price

4th Lesson •negotiate the hell out of it -negotiate your price -get more options

Reads Yes!: 50 Scientiﬁcally Proven Ways to Be Persuasive The Art of Proﬁtability

5th Lesson

5th Lesson •understand your business

5th Lesson •understand your business -measure everything(usage, system)

5th Lesson •understand your business -measure everything(usage, system) -understand your users

Reads Complete Web Monitoring

THANK YOU - siong1987.com - facebook.com/siong - twitter.com/siong1987 - siong1987@gmail.com

Lessons Learned in Silicon Valley

by siong1987 on Jun 02, 2010

Accessibility

Categories

Upload Details

Usage Rights

1 Embed 1

Statistics

Lessons Learned in Silicon Valley Presentation Transcript