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The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

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Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

if you judge people for being self deprecating, you wind up self selecting people who overpromote themselves

The thing is, I don't think he was really being self-deprecating at all. If he were being self-deprecating, then after admitting to being mediocre, he wouldn't have spent the rest of the opening paragraph name-dropping extremely successful people who he claims read all his articles. There were some reasonable ideas in there, but I didn't notice anything that hasn't been said before by many other people, and they prob…

(FWIW, that "photogenic young lady" is Lucy Southworth, Larry's wife.)

Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing is, I don't think he was really being self-deprecating at all. If he were being self-deprecating, then after admitting to being mediocre, he wouldn't have spent the rest of the opening paragraph name-dropping extremely successful people who he claims read all his articles. There were some reasonable ideas in there, but I didn't notice anything that hasn't been said before by many other people, and they prob…

You are not getting it. James Altucher fills his stories with jokes. He's laughing at himself, at his readers including you and me, at Larry Page and his wife and so on.

He's not joking, he's a master at personal branding. As much as you might want to think he's a narcissist -- it's really hard not to, at times -- he's simply found a superb way to make you remember who he is.

Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#36
I don't get this one:

- Do anything to get a “yes” - Here’s a negotiation I did. I was starting stockpickr.com and meeting with the CEO of thestreet.com. He wanted his company to have a percentage of stockpickr.com and in exchange he would fill up all of our ad inventory. I was excited to do the deal. I said, “Ok, I was thinking you would get 10% of the company.” He laughed and said, “No. 50%”. He didn’t even say “We would like 50%”. He just said, “50%”. I then used all my negotiating skills and came up with a reply. “Okay. Deal.”

I’m a salesman. I like people to say yes to me.

How's this a good deal?

And also, a good salesman doesn't just want people to say yes, they want people to say yes on his terms, not on their terms...

Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#38
post #16

I loved this article! He did learn the wrong lesson regarding the failed demo where he couldn't launch his CD because he only knew Macs and Unix. It is important to know how to use Windows, that's true. But even more important is: be absolutely certain you control every variable you can in a demo or presentation. Count on as little as possible from the audience/venue. Every salesman knows this, right? You bring your…

I've been using the Mac Air exclusively for work for about a year now. Coincidence? Maybe.

Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#39

If this guy is as completely incompetent as he claims (and claims, and claims, and claims again) then why should we listen to anything he says (though it's terribly embarrassing for him, but apparently he's going to say it in public anyway)? Linkbait oxmoronic title is linkbait and an oxymoron. Endless false modesty is nauseating. Articles like this have little value. Links to articles like this belong on another for…

Because if you don"t learn from other people's mistakes, you are the other people.

Re: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Mediocre Entrepreneurs

#40
post #36

I don't get this one: - Do anything to get a “yes” - Here’s a negotiation I did. I was starting stockpickr.com and meeting with the CEO of thestreet.com. He wanted his company to have a percentage of stockpickr.com and in exchange he would fill up all of our ad inventory. I was excited to do the deal. I said, “Ok, I was thinking you would get 10% of the company.” He laughed and said, “No. 50%”. He didn’t even say “We…

It's a joke.
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