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"In the entrepreneurial world we have a silent killer. We don't talk about it very much, but it can put an end to a lifetime of hard work and planning. We owners take all of the risks and sometimes withering criticism and we start a business because we believe in what we and the business could accomplish in the world. Then, over time we build a thriving organization. It hums along, makes money, benefits everyone involved, meets customer demand, and helps the community grow and prosper.
All good so far.
But then we decide to make our exit, or the decision is made for us by health or family issues or other business interests. So, now what happens? Well, at least two thirds of the time, the business ceases operations, with all of the collateral damage that does.
It happens because we never transition the company to the next generation of leaders, not because we don't know how, but because we never get around to it. As CEO's and entrepreneurs, perhaps we think it will never happen to us, that maybe we have discovered the fountain of youth. A recent Wall Street Journal/Vistage poll showed that half of all business owners say that they have a succession plan, but only 25 percent have actually put pen to paper and written it down. I would contend that if you haven't written down your succession plan you don't really have one.
It doesn't have to be this way."
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"We preach collaboration, talk and train teamwork, but all the while organizations are optimized to manage, foster and reward individual effort.
I'm not the first person to notice or write about this. Nonetheless, most approaches to team effectiveness aren't designed to directly confront this organizational paradox: Collaboration is second- or third-nature for a large majority of us and this predisposes us to consistently revert to our more selfish ways, especially where we're rewarded and recognized to do so."
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"Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is either possible or it isn't. The chasm that divides the two viewpoints couldn't be wider because it has to do with our core beliefs about the nature of reality, the identity of the self, and the essence of being human. There is no real way to bridge the gap on the question of AGI between those with different views on these questions.
But we can at least understand why the views are so different."
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"Although the business press is filled with exploits of VC-funded ventures, the reality is that 94 percent of billion-dollar entrepreneurs took off without VC, and only about one in 10,000 entrepreneurs truly benefits from VC. Silicon Valley venture capital is like a very successful lottery. Yes, there is flash and dazzle and a few billionaires are created. But it is hit-or-miss, mostly miss. You would not recommend a career of buying lottery tickets to your children or pick it for yourself. Learn skills. Use smart strategies. You may succeed whether you win the VC lottery or don't
For entrepreneurs who want to reduce the role of luck in their success and improve their odds, here are six reasons why you don't need VC to build a billion-dollar business."
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"Working against institutional bias involves more than just increasing simple numbers. It includes the hard and often vulnerable work of making room at the table, on the board, and in the c-suite for those who have not historically been represented. It requires undoing our cultural assumptions about what bias is and how it works, and then giving ourselves over to the introspective and collective work of erasing institutional bias. It's about doing this all in our everyday workspaces."
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