Contrary Valley

The Innovation Perspective

Jeffrey Phillips has a great essay at his blog Innovate on Purpose. His starting point is ideas from the book Blue Ocean Strategy.

One of the companies talked about is Southwest Airlines, a company often cited as a leader in their industry (and a model for other companies in all kinds of industries.)

Southwest was started by people who simply wanted to improve the ability to get around in Texas - really not much more than that.

A simple idea, that Phillips guesses comes from taking an innovation perspective.

Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant

Are You a Realist or an Idealist?

I have been thinking a lot lately about how to make my business a success (who isn't?) There are so many resources out there and all around us: books, colleagues, coaches, blogs etc. But a person can have all the tools in the world and still not make it. It's a scary thought. I try to be realistic at all times, while a voice in the back of my mind says that a certain amount of naive optimism or idealism is a necessity. I keep thinking about a quote from the objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand, it comes from her book "The Virtue of Selfishness" at page 28:

The irrational is the impossible, it is that which contradicts the facts of reality; facts cannot be altered by a wish, but they can destroy the wisher.

American Ingenuity, One Woman's Idea Takes Off

Read about how a Maine woman, Katherine Freund, turned her personal tragedy into a creative, successful organization to help people who can't or shouldn't drive:

Launched a decade ago, the Portland area's Independent Transportation Network provided 15,200 rides to senior citizens last year with no taxpayer money for operations.

From the Associated Press, in the 12/17/06 issue of The Hartford Courant.

Blogging Site Gets $6 Million in Funding

Gather.com rounds up a whole lot of venture capital for their blogging media enterprise. Read about it in MarketWatch.

Blogs talking about this: Jack Krupansky on Blogging; Rob Hof in BusinessWeek Online's The Tech Beat.

Business Opportunities in Africa

Knowledge@Wharton [free site, registration required] has some intriguing business articles in their Jan. 11 - Jan 24 online edition. Several are about the opportunities for entrepreneurs in Africa.  In the article "In Africa, Opportunity Takes Many Shapes, from Diamonds to IT to Political Reform," panel speakers discussed the changing business culture in several African nations:

...Paa Kwesi Nduom, minister for public sector reform in Ghana, noted that his country had reduced inflation from as high as 45% in recent years to a current level of under 15%. "You are operating in an environment where there is a shortage of everything," said Oyebode, speaking for Africa as a whole. But for companies that succeed, he stated, return on equity can approach 50%.

How Not to Pitch a Venture Capitalist

Good news for entrepreneurs...Guy Kawasaki has a new blog.  Two very funny and biting posts..."Top Ten Lies of Entrepreneurs" and "Top Ten Lies of Venture Capitalists,"; taken from Guy's daily experiences as a venture capitalist.