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The Crazy Ones at Virginia Tech
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Alex Obenauer
October 21, 2011
Business
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440
The Crazy Ones at Virginia Tech
Embrace your inner visionary and make things happen.
Alex Obenauer
October 21, 2011
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Transcript
The Crazy Ones Embrace your inner visionary to launch a
project, start a business, change the world. Alex Obenauer //
[email protected]
Inspiration & Vision How do we carry on such a
legacy?
VT Bus Tracker
Ideate, Simplify, Execute All three are necessary.
Every idea is worth pursuing. Some of the world’s biggest
successes grew out of entirely different ideas.
Solve real problems. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t be afraid of
failure.
“Because the people who are crazy enough to think they
can change the world, are the ones who do.” Apple’s “Think Different” campaign
Talk. Talk to people. Talk to a lot of different
people. Listen to people’s problems, bounce ideas off of them.
It’s a game of luck Striking critical success is 100%
luck.
You can increase your luck Luck = Creating things x
Networking (talking)
Take a stand. Do you know the enemy?
Stick to your guns. Your project should have a vision
or goal, and you should stick to it.
Innovate. You have a great idea. You really love it.
Then you find out someone else already made it. Don’t give it up! Very few ideas are completely new. Find a way to innovate. Maximize on the idea. Give in to your original passion for the idea.
Apple’s Calendar App
Apple’s Calendar App TouchBase Calendar
Discover your M.V.P. Then build it. Focusing on an M.V.P.
allows you to launch earlier, get real feedback sooner, and build momentum.
“The hard part is to figure out the fewest possible
features that could possibly accomplish your company’s goals.” Eric Ries, creator of the Lean Startup methodology
Play to your strengths. Know and use your strengths. Trying
to work to your weaknesses will cause you to waste tons of time and effort with a bad result.
Inject personality in to what you do. What you create
needs personality in it for people to connect with it on an emotional level.
None
None
None
Convertbot $1.99 Convert It! $0.99
None
Don’t forget the Lagniappe Always include something extra. Never settle
for sufficient. Aim for the “wow.”
Launch early Update frequently
Invest in yourself. Bootstrap. You probably don’t need external funding.
What problems do you face day to day? Idea generation
tip #1: Scratch your own itch.
What would you do with these tools? Idea generation tip
#2: Introduce new technologies.
None
Solve real problems. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t be afraid of
failure.
What would you do with these constraints? Idea generation tip
#3: Introduce new constraints.
None
Find your vision and make it happen.
Find your vision and make it happen. Alex Obenauer //
[email protected]