Wisdom comes from experience, they say. We agree. At BizSpark, we try to deliver bits of wisdom now and again to the community so that the founders, developers, engineers, and business folks out there in startup land can use it. We saw four founding teams succeed at DEMO Mobile 2013 last week, and we feel that part of that success came from looping them into the startup crowd.
Here's another delivery of startup wisdom from our Microsoft BizSpark startup community. This comes from Chad Eaves, one of the founders in our community.
1. What are bitcoins truly worth and what will happen to them in next two months?
Nothing. They are the today’s digital equivalent of beanie babies. They are riding a wave of hype. If they were to become valuable, they would be subject to taxes and other regulations (they probably are already) which would negate their attractiveness. Plus, there is too much volatility in its value for an effective currency.
2. Are salespeople the most important part of your startup organization?
In a healthy organization many people create a good product. Engineers, designers, PMs, support staff, marketers, executives and others. Without these people, sales people would have no product to sell. Are salespeople important? Yes, but not the most important person. If there had to be one person, it’s the one that signs the checks.
3. What is more important in startup marketing, character or charisma?
And how do you tell the difference? Character. It is what drives a person to persevere and learn in all conditions. Often “charismatic” people characters. It is better to have character than to be one.
4. Where are the biggest startup cities, not including Silicon Valley?
Chicago! But I am biased.
5. Who was your first hire, what role did they play in the growth of the startup?
Admin support. This person helped on routine office/business support tasks.