Most Companies Are Busy Making Their Products

I Asked All Of Our Recruiters To Give Me All Resumes Of Prospective Employees With Their Name, Gender, Place Of Origin, And Age Blacked Out. This Simple Change Shocked Me, Because I Found Myself Interviewing Different-looking Candidates - Even Though I Was 100% Convinced That I Was Not Being Biased In My Resume Selection Process.

Here In Silicon Valley, I Have Taken Part In Hundreds Of Conversations Trying To Convince People To Dive In And Become Entrepreneurs. All Too Often, Innovators With Good, Safe, Jobs Are Unwilling To Put Their Family's Access To Health Care At Risk By Walking Away From Company-backed Medical Insurance.

The Grim Reality Is That Most Start-ups Fail. Most New Products Are Not Successful. Yet The Story Of Perseverance, Creative Genius, And Hard Work Persists.

As You Consider Building Your Own Minimum Viable Product, Let This Simple Rule Suffice: Remove Any Feature, Process, Or Effort That Does Not Contribute Directly To The Learning You Seek.

The Way Forward Is To Learn To See Every Startup In Any Industry As A Grand Experiment.