Published Date: November 24, 2006

The most recent Business 2.0 magazine, included a great section detailing “How to Succeed in 2007.” There were certainly some great advice from the likes of Fred Wilson, Richard Branson, Kevin Rose, and Edgar Bronfman Jr. The content isn’t up on the business 2 website yet or I would have linked to the whole articles, but I’m guessing complete text should be up soon. Here are the tips I found most interesting and useful:

  • Fred Wilson– “Build a Blog that Builds Your Business.” He mentions that the most important thing he gets from his blog is “getting to know entrepreneurs of all kinds-in India, Australia, England, China, and Silicon Valley.” Being a VC, networking with entrepreneurs is crucial to his business.
  • Richard Branson– “Learn How to Say No (Even if You’re Known as ‘Dr. Yes’).” Over the past year, I have really realized that saying no is hard. When working with prospective business partners and customers, providing encouragement while saying no is not always an easy task. However, I think I’m improving.
  • Kevin Rose– “Let the Users Run the Show.” Personally, I am fascinated with what sites like Digg, Craigslist, and Facebook have done with user-generated content. While giving users control is scary–I really believe that it is the best way to build a web business in the long run. There is little risk in losing “eyeballs” if users feel they have a say in the direction of the business & are crucial to keeping it running smoothly.
  • Edgar Bronfman Jr.– “Turn Gripe Session Into Brainstorms.” The focus here is getting common junior employees to give confidential input to the CEO in the hopes of improving the business for everyone (in what Bronfman calls “town halls”). Workplace politics do exist–and a confidential meeting to provide feedback to the head honcho is a super way for a CEO get the feedback they would not otherwise hear.