As college graduation weekends and summer business incubator announcements loom, I thought I would take a few minutes to consider the connection between the entrepreneurship and academia.
Entrepreneurs, by definition, take an idea or a concept and strive to make that idea into a operating business. To do this, we spend a great deal of time laying the groundwork: researching, modeling, testing, and (finally) executing to turn all of that work into a revenue-generating enterprise.
scientists, and pedagogues of all stripes – also explore ideas but in a theoretical structure. They use a rigorous and clearly articulated process of scholarly examination to explore concepts through investigation, experimentation, analysis, and interpretation to (finally) arrive at a conclusion or support a theory. Although the scholarly process itself is not necessarily about the actual creation of a concrete “something,“ it doesn’t mean that entrepreneurs can not learn from their erudite cousins in academia. Here is a list of 10 things that academics do that can provide valuable lessons for entrepreneurs:
1. Academics research throughly.
Academics leverage scholasticism to answer questions and to resolve conflicting theories and ideas; the scholarly process is the formal methodology used by academics around the world for validating ideas and theories. Through the use of a similarly rational, meticulous and methodical approach to their businesses, entrepreneurs can also solve problems, find answers, and support theories in their own industries, markets, or companies.
2. Academics believe in empirical data.
Through research and experimentation, academics collect data to produce or support a theory or to investigate causal relationships between actions and outcomes. Entrepreneurs should also collect and interpret accurate and appropriate data to support their business ideas and also to measure the actual outcomes of their strategies and tactics. We often hear the term “data-driven” used in the context of business decisions and the credible and careful collection of that data can lead to better decision making and a clearer understanding of the observed effects.
3. Academics are rational.
The research and experimentation that is conducted as part of the scholastic process is strictly logical, reasoned, and sensible; subjectivity should always play a negligible role in the approach researchers, scientists, and other academics take to their work. Entrepreneurs should also strive for the rational; the best decisions and the most successful strategies should be built on a foundation of data, historical fact, and cogent, well-reasoned theory.
4. Academics respect history.
By using the historical method and leveraging primary sources, scholars reconstruct facts, context, and derive meaning through past events. Entrepreneurs should always conduct their own historical research to better understand the context of their idea, the likelihood of the venture’s success, and to determine the value of a market or a business model. For instance, the use of comparable company data to make projections or imply valuation is one way entrepreneurs can leverage historical fact to help arrive at conclusions.
5. Academics review one another’s work.
The formal process of peer review allows for the credible evaluation of a scholar’s work. Peer review is most commonly associated with the publication of scholarly articles or papers, but extends to experiment design, grant proposals, and even software development. In business the concept of peer review is under-utilized; entrepreneurs can and should engage in this in an informal manner. Ross and I both speak often on the need to question your assumptions and to actively seek out disconfirming information; these ideas are analogous to the concept of peer research – bringing in other qualified individuals to harshly question your ideas, criticize your assumptions, or review your data is a powerful way to strengthen your approach.
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
The image above shows the amount of caffeine in various types of coffee and tea. More interesting facts about the health benefits (and risks) of tea and coffee in the Other section below.
Attribution on the web is a controversial topic; ideas, stories, videos, graphics are copied and pasted over and over again, propagating their way across the virtual universe. As an entrepreneur and blogger, I am always pleased when I see my articles shared on other sites, or linked to in the social media. While I would prefer for all of those readers to come over to our blog to read the piece, I certainly understand the value of additional reach that can be gained when my posts are re-published elsewhere or when others discuss ideas I may have written about first. The negative comes when those posts or ideas are used without any attribution whatsoever. The formula for plagiarism on the web is sometimes as simple as copy+paste=post.
Last week Maria Popova, the founder of brainpickings.org was interviewed by Brooke Gladstone of NPR’s On the Media about her latest creation, The Curator’s Code. The code, created in collaboration with Tina Roth Eisenberg of swissmiss.com is their attempt at a structure to govern online usage and attribution.
The code is a straightforward way for an author (or curator in some cases) can give honest and proper attribution not just for a source, but also for “inspiration.” It works by sorting all attribution into to basic categories, the “via,” which is the original content that the author is reposting, quoting, or paraphrasing, and the “hat tip,” which is the secondary source where the author may have first learned of the primary material, idea, or article.
Popova and Eisenberg have created two uncomplicated unicode graphics meant to be inserted into text, graphics or video which simply and cleanly indicate to the reader that the content was discovered or created elsewhere. For instance, I would use the following ‘hat tip’ attribution when referring to the On the Media story where I first learned of the Curator’s Code, I would attribute in a footnote or parenthetical, using a ‘hat tip’ like this: ↬Brooke Gladstone, onthemedia.org. But, I would credit Popova and Eisenstein who originated the idea and are the primary source, using a ‘via’ like this: ᔥcuratorscode.org. I could also display as a twofer like this ᔥcuratorscode.org | ↬Brooke Gladstone, onthemedia.org. The unicode character always links back to the Curator’s Code site allowing a reader to better understand the usage of the symbols as well as the philosophy behind the code itself
Simple and elegant, Popova and Eisenstein have created an uncomplicated method for visually and ethically providing attribution where attribution is due. You can listen to the entire interview here or read the transcript here.
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
The video above is the world premiere, of Woflgang Amadeus Mozart’s old piano, of a new composition found in a notebook in an attic, believed to have been composed by 10-year-old Mozart. The composition is called “Allegro Molto in C Major”. The composition is performed by Austrian musician Florian Birsak.
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
The photo to the left shows one of the strangest houses that one can find around the world. I hope they have an elevator! More strange houses in the Other section below.
In our 12 Questions blog series, we feature interviews with someone from the crowdSPRING community. For these interviews, we pick people who add value to our community – in the blog, in the forums, in the projects. Plainly – activities that make crowdSPRING a better community. Be professional, treat others with respect, help us build something very special, and we’ll take notice.
We’re very proud to feature Catherine Faletanoai (crowdSPRING username: Catalyst) today. Catherine lives and works in Auckland, New Zealand
1. Please tell us about yourself.
Ok, sure, or should I say ‘surrrrre’… I grew up in Wyndham, Southland, New Zealand – and we Southlanders are know to roll our ‘rrrs’ I live at the other end of the country now, Auckland, New Zealand and often get asked with questioning looks… “where ARE you from??!” So apart from rolling rrrs Southland is a beautiful piece of New Zealand, perhaps the most beautiful….yes. I was raised on a sheep farm with my 3 sisters, Mum and Dad. Great times, great childhood. I completed high school at Menzies College with Dux in my final year and went on to study at Otago University. I completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Design with my main focus being on Design and Communication. Fast forward a few years of working for Woodworx Design Agency, Chipmunks NZ Ltd, Kiwi Mortgage Market…. and we arrive in Auckland. I moved to the other end of the country to be with my Prince (Dwaine) and we now live here with 2 young children, (Mia, 4 and Mason, 1). Oh yea – I nearly forgot – work now?…I don’t have a lot of time for a whole lot of designing – kids have that affect on us stay at home mums! But I wouldn’t have it any other way, love being home with the kids every day and fit my work around that – when they’re sleeping, glued to the TV (I mean books) and in the evenings with a tall glass of Coke to keep me awake!
2. How did you become interested in design?
I remember knowing logos – from a very young age I could remember a whole street of shop signage, logos, colours, fonts – I’m a very observant person by nature, and I see it in my daughter too. I’m also a visual person, and have always been interested in art and anything design. That’s why I love my job as I don’t really see it as a ‘job’, it’s more an outlet, a relaxing thing, entertainment for me. I look forward to evenings where I can sit down and just design, no pressing deadlines, just let the creativity happen. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t, and I think that’s the key to a good designer is knowing when to stop and when to go for it when you’re on a roll!
I’ve learnt to trust my instincts – if something moves me, it must have value…so I strive to design with that in mind.
3. Which of your designs are your favorites and why?
It’s not a graphic piece – but it’s something I did in design school that I’m very proud of. A scale replica or Alvar Aalto’s 406 Armchair, made completely from paper (see picture). It’s about the size of a matchbox, and took me many painstaking hours to weave the paper and get it just right. It’s perfect and still sits by my computer and reminds me that anything can be done with a bit of persistence!
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
The video above shows a mechanical device for opening and pouring a bottle of wine. It’s complicated, huge, loud and I love it!
How anyone can create a successful online business for next to nothing (Part III) – http://bit.ly/yyTI6X
I spend a fair amount of time on social media websites: I check into Facebook several times on any given day, I follow over 700 people on my Twitter account and average anywhere from 3-10 posts to it per day. I also regularly visit LinkedIn as well as Google+ and have been known to browse Pinterest, Quora, and some of the various other players. The point is that I usually have a pretty good feel when a topic is trending or a movement is growing on the Internet. At dinner this past Tuesday, my 16 year old son asked me if anyone at work was talking about that “Coney video.” I had no idea what he was talking about and asked him what he meant; “There’s this guy in Africa and he’s been kidnapping kids and forcing them to fight. Don’t worry – you’ll hear about it soon” Ah, That Kony. I was aware of the Lord’s Resistance Army through various news accounts over the past 5 years, but wasn’t aware of a web video. My son went on to tell me that lots of kids at his high school had been talking about the video and the group that was promoting it and they were horrified by what they learned.
The video that my son and his friends had seen was the culmination of a sophisticated and strategic effort to build awareness and raise money for a very specific cause. The web has seen other videos go viral, but never with the speed accomplished by three young filmmakers who traveled to Africa in 2003 to help stop the rebel Joseph Kony’s ferocious campaign and his strategy of using children as soldiers and sex slaves. It took them 8 years of work to shoot, edit and distribute the film, but in the past week, it has turned Kony into a familiar name to tens of millions of people around the world. The filmmaker’s organization, Invisible Children, launched the Kony 2012 video on Monday and, as of this writing, the video had received over 72 million views on YouTube. It has been mentioned on Facebook over 400,00 times, more than 2.8 million users have Liked the page and by the end of last week the Twitter hashtag #StopKony had been used over 10 million times.
Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account, I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design, web design, startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!
The image to the left is a photo taken from inside a musical instrument. More interesting photos taken inside musical instruments in the Other section below.
When we come across successful products, services or startups, we often wonder – where did the idea come from? Why didn’t WE think of Pinterest, Facebook, or Google?
In the following video, Steven johnson discusses ideas, innovation and how entrepreneurs and companies can groom environments to help incubate and promote good ideas.
How do you help your team to come up with good ideas?
crowdSPRING is the world's #1 marketplace for entrepreneurs, small businesses, nonprofits and agencies who need custom logo design, web design, a new company name or other writing and design services. Over 115,000 designers and writers work on crowdSPRING. We are trusted by more than 29,000 happy clients around the world.
Attribution on the web is a controversial topic; ideas, stories, videos, graphics are copied and pasted over and over again, propagating their way across the virtual universe. As an entrepreneur and blogger, I am always pleased when I see my articles shared on other sites, or linked to in the social media. While I would prefer for all of those readers to come over to our blog to read the piece, I certainly understand the value of additional reach that can be gained when my posts are re-published elsewhere or when others discuss ideas I may have written about first. The negative comes when those posts or ideas are used without any attribution whatsoever. The formula for plagiarism on the web is sometimes as simple as copy+paste=post.
