From Startup to Sustainable with Jeff Standridge and Jeff Amerine

 

Summary:

 

Jeff Standridge and Jeff Amerine, authors of Creating Startup Junkies, talks about the unique proposition of building sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems in unexpected places. Arkansas, nicknamed the Natural State, a landlocked state in the South Central region of the US, and many other states, are well-positioned to inspire and empower not only entrepreneurs but also innovators through the intentional cultivation of talent, local engagements, and capitalization. 

 

 

Key Takeaways/Main Points:  

 

In this episode we discussed….

 

1. "It's possible to build incredible new companies, not in the places that we all associate with the startup scene." (6:03)

 

2. “If you can build something locally, rather than recruit something in, it's going to stick and there's going to be economic vitality that will follow.” (6:44)

 

3. "There are measurable outputs and outcomes that show economic vitality in terms of new ventures, jobs created, patents created all the kind of stuff you would typically measure, can happen if you use this kind of model." (16:02)

 

4. “Start where you are, get a group of committed change agents together, gain consensus, and then build a plan to start working from there.” (20:49)

 

5. “You have to have somebody that is going to be a key champion or leader to fund your organization.” (20:30)

 

6. “They need to make sure that the company they're going to start has a product or a service that fits the market, that there's a market need. And people are willing to pay for the problem that they're trying to solve.” (22:31)

 

7. "So a good bit of advice we give is always to build a business like you might sell it someday, which means you've got to have good documentation and good process, and you've got a good succession plan." (23:54)

 

8. “Solo entrepreneurs don't create a business; they create a job for themselves” (24:12)

For a copy of their visit Amazon Creating Startup Junkies: Building Sustainable Venture Ecosystems in Unexpected Places