The slide show featured here is from, Ben Casnocha, and his co-author Reid Hoffman, the founder of LinkedIn. If you haven’t already guessed, it summarizes their popular book, The Start Up of You.
Under the original posting of this slide show, Reid writes:
In commemoration of a year in print, we present the Start Up of You in visual summary. The last year has continued to demonstrate how work and careers need a new entrepreneurial mindset for everyone, not just entrepreneurs.
While not all of these ideas will be viewed as novel to a seasoned I picked this book up and couldn't put it down. It's a very short read and this visual executive summary captures its essence. The book explains how the minute people leave college, they stop reading and start keeping up with the Joneses, which is not conducive to developing their own competitive advantage.
There's
research indicating that "Keeping up with the Joneses" is worsened by
social networking. “The results suggest that greater social network use
is associated with a
higher body-mass index, increased binge eating, a lower credit score,
and higher levels of credit-card debt for individuals with strong ties
to their social network,” the researchers wrote. Read more about how Social Networks May Inflate Self-Esteem, Reduce Self-Control.
To be a powerful entrepreneur you must interact face-to-face with people; it's old school, but also the best way to communicate. Entrepreneurship is not only about solid ideas, but also presentation and the ability to stand out. Closed mouths do not receive funding and shy people tend to have a harder time in business.
I also need to network with other aspiring entrepreneurs. Like attract like. You're the sum of the five people that you hang around the most, so choose your friends carefully. Employees at the water cooler tend to hang out with other employees at the water cooler. There's a crab in the barrel mentality in most organizations and this stifles progress and innovation.