Q&A with Derek Lidow, author of Startup Leadership
Who should read Startup Leadership?Startup Leadership is for everyone who wants to start a business or non-profit, and for all those people who want to make the businesses they have already started more successful. Anyone reading the book will get hands-on help for improving the performance of every team they work with, at any company they run or want to start.
Fewer than one in four startups survive beyond four years. Why do so many startups and new businesses struggle?Since entrepreneurs are naturally excited by their ideas, most startups and new businesses focus on delivering a product or finding a customer. All too often, entrepreneurs overlook the fact that they cannot succeed without a team of people willing to dedicate their lives to making the entrepreneur's vision a self-sustaining reality. Entrepreneurs need leadership skills to create these highly productive teams and ensure success.
What do you mean by the opposing selfish and selfless natures of the entrepreneur?
Entrepreneurs must have selfish motivations in order to change the world to conform to their vision, yet leaders need selfless motivations in order for the people around them to believe the leader is dedicated to making them personally successful. Understanding how to be selfishly selfless requires the skills of an entrepreneurial leader.
Why did you write Startup Leadership?I teach a class at Princeton on how to grow ideas into self-sustaining enterprises, and I could not find good materials to use for my class. Much of the material in the book is not widely discussed, yet it is so basic to leadership and successful startups.