Is It Time for You to Start a New Business?

SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwire - Jun 2, 2011) - Cynthia Kocialski loves start-up companies.

"I love start-ups and all the wonderful gizmos and gadgets they make," said Kocialski, a veteran of three start-ups and author of "Startup from the Ground Up" (www.cynthiakocialski.com). "The problem is that most of these wonderful things never make it because the entrepreneur is in love with the technology, and they lack an understanding of the technology business. It's one thing to develop a new gadget or piece of software that does something cool, but entrepreneurs need to ask themselves if it actually solves a problem."

Kocialski's experiences have led her to create a series of tips for anyone considering launching or financing a start-up company. These tips include:

• It's Not About the Product -- Start-ups are not about the technology or product. The product is the heart of the company, but the product no more makes a company than a heart makes a human being.
• Don't Be Afraid to Discover -- The early stage start-up process is a discovery process, not a step-by-step execution process. Discovery is simply a starting point from which the product and business with evolve, iterate, and be refined as the concept meets the customers, the market, and the investors.
• Retool -- The first product idea is never the final product that makes the company famous. In reality, the worst work you will ever do is the first work you do. Press forward past the first iteration, and make use of the lessons you learn along the way.
• Build Your Team - You need a team, but not just any team. You need the right team for that stage of a company's life. Find the right people for the right job, as well as the right attitude and stage of their careers to make them a match for working with a start-up.

"The spirit of American business is embodied in the start-up," Kocialski added. "Innovation and guts are the foundation of the start-up, and those qualities also happen to be characteristic of the most successful mega-firms ever to hit the market."

About Cynthia Kocialski

Cynthia Kocialski is the founder of three companies -- two fabless semiconductor and one software company. In the past 15 years, she has been involved in dozens of start-ups and has served on various boards.