This book provides an orderly approach to starting an entrepreneurial new business that is based on an innovation, idea, or invention. Entrepreneurs wishing to understand the basics from conception to early operations will be able to grasp all the critical elements needed for success within a 90 minute period of time. The book provides essential details for both planning and execution and includes the author's guidance on many issues that often plague early-stage companies. The many lessons-learned by the author over 30 years of experience with creating ideas, building businesses, and running companies are revealed in the book. Importantly, the "HOW" of building a startup from scratch is explained. Exploration and uncertainty are a natural part of entrepreneurship and, to a degree, and entrepreneurs are both challenged and enjoy that experience of learning and overcoming hurdles. The author has discovered, often after the fact, that he had wished he could have more quickly overcome some of his early mistakes; indeed, he wished he had not made them. Avoiding mistakes would have saved a lot of time and equity. This book will help you avoid many mistakes and lost time. You can read this book in 90 minutes and in the process learn much of what you really need to know. For those that want more details, the author's first book, The Smart Entrepreneur: the book investors don't want you to read, is still a most valuable resource. But, this book is for those that truly only have 90 minutes to learn the underpinnings of starting an entrepreneurial business.
About the Author: Rocky Richard Arnold is a hands-on executive with a track record of successful accomplishments in business, technology, and science. He provides strategic corporate and capital acquisition advice to early-stage companies founded by entrepreneurs who wish to successfully commercialize high-value creation opportunities, ideas, and/or technologies. Rocky earned Civil Engineering degrees at Stanford University, a Ph.D. in 1983 and an M.S. 1980. He received an MBA from Notre Dame de Namur University in 1993 specializing in marketing. He secured a B.S.in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Missouri at Rolla in 1970. He learned military leadership principles in the U.S. Army Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) program where he was a distinguished graduate (top 5%). He served in the U.S. Army Reserves for eight years ultimately attaining the grade of Captain. He subsequently went on to MIT where he got an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 1972 specializing in acoustics and nonlinear vibration. Rocky worked at the United Technologies Corporation (UTC) as Head of the Motor Case Structural Analysis Group in 1981. His team worked on the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) program sponsored by NASA and the U.S. Air Force. Working at the Ford Aerospace & Communications Company (FACC), he was the lead structural analysis engineer on the first all-graphite composite supporting structure for a new generation of commercial satellites. Rocky worked at a forensic engineering company as Director of RD&E for 12 years. He was a Principal Investigator on, and proposal writer of, over 20 Phase I/II/III Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs. In 1993, Rocky started a business consulting firm. He worked with a myriad of inventors, entrepreneurs, investment bankers, and venture capitalists involved with technology start-ups. He also taught a graduate-level course in entrepreneurship at the graduate school of the Notre Dame de Namur University. Rocky co-founded a technology company in 2000, acquired key patents and a manufacturing facility, and secured funding from his network of friends and angels. He led the company as CEO for over five years and secured funding from U.S. and international private equity sources. He and his investor-supporters accomplished a reverse merger and took the entity public in the UK on AIM in 2004. He served as the CEO of the public entity and later took the role of CTO and Executive VP, as well as continuing as a Board member.