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A Smart Bear

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Articles from A Smart Bear

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A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Double your productivity without more work or stress

Double your productivity without more work or stress
Double your productivity without more work or stress

People love to say that getting "1% better per day" makes you 37x better after a year, but this obviously makes no sense. But 2x better is possible.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

"Authentic" is dead. And so is "is dead."

"Authentic" is dead. And so is "is dead."
"Authentic" is dead. And so is "is dead."

It's lazy writing. It's boring and undifferentiated. Say something meaningful, specific, evocative, so your website wins, and you can be proud of it.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

How much of success is luck?

How much of success is luck?
How much of success is luck?

"You're so lucky." That's true. There's also decades of sacrifice, emotional turmoil, long hours, perseverance. So… is it lucky?

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

How annual pre-pay creates an infinite marketing budget

How annual pre-pay creates an infinite marketing budget
How annual pre-pay creates an infinite marketing budget

Dozens of founders have used this technique to transform the cash-flow of their businesses. Now it's your turn.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Procrastinate for Success!

Procrastinate for Success!
Procrastinate for Success!

Procrastination can be a useful tool. You can't do everything. So don't.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Not disruptive, and proud of it

Not disruptive, and proud of it
Not disruptive, and proud of it

I remember "disruptive" when it was called a "paradigm shift." You should be worrying more about making something people want to buy, and less about disrupting everything.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

"It's a Balance" isn't always the answer

"It's a Balance" isn't always the answer
"It's a Balance" isn't always the answer

Resolve decision-making conflicts by selecting the right approach: Make a bold choice, synthesize a new solution, or find the balance.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Being who you are, while becoming better

Being who you are, while becoming better
Being who you are, while becoming better

We're told "be yourself" to seek happiness and success. But what if "being yourself" also means striving to become better? What is "yourself?"

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

The Lindy Effect on startup potential

The Lindy Effect on startup potential
The Lindy Effect on startup potential

On average, you're halfway to your final destination. How, then, do we not only double from here, but 10x?

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

When being "first" is not a competitive advantage

When being "first" is not a competitive advantage
When being "first" is not a competitive advantage

Is it good to be "first?" It seems so -- what's the point of being a copycat? While "first" sounds impressive, in reality it's often not an advantage.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Disentangling the three languages: Customers, Product, Business

Disentangling the three languages: Customers, Product, Business
Disentangling the three languages: Customers, Product, Business

Stop talking past each other. Translate between the three "languages" of customer desires, product features, and business goals.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Rare things become common at scale

Rare things become common at scale
Rare things become common at scale

Software doesn't scale through architecture and automation alone. New, more difficult problems appear that didn't exist before, causing new downstream consequences.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Hello, I'm 1074018628

Hello, I'm 1074018628
Hello, I'm 1074018628

Is "customer service" a genuine service? Or is it a shield so that most people at your company never have to speak to one of those pesky customers?

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Adjacency Matrix: How to expand after PMF

Adjacency Matrix: How to expand after PMF
Adjacency Matrix: How to expand after PMF

A simple workshop that evaluates new business ideas relative to your existing strengths -- the key to expanding without overreaching.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Capturing luck with "or" instead of "and"

Capturing luck with "or" instead of "and"
Capturing luck with "or" instead of "and"

Luck always plays a role in startups, but there are ways to better capture upside and mitigate downside.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

It's a torturous chaos until it isn't

It's a torturous chaos until it isn't
It's a torturous chaos until it isn't

Even at wildly successful startups, the first few years are gut-wrenching, uncertain, on the brink of collapse, where pessimism is realism, and yet optimism is required.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Learn by Copy

Learn by Copy
Learn by Copy

In America we're trained that all copying is bad; of course plagiarism is, but perhaps we're throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

The "Convergent" theory of finding truth in darkness

The "Convergent" theory of finding truth in darkness
The "Convergent" theory of finding truth in darkness

How to tell the difference between a truly great startup idea, and people saying "Sure, sounds good" when they really mean "No, I'm not buying."

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Avoid blundering: 80% of a winning strategy

Avoid blundering: 80% of a winning strategy
Avoid blundering: 80% of a winning strategy

Why do startups typically fail? It turns out that "avoiding those things" is already a plan for success.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Color Wheels are wrong? How color vision actually works

Color Wheels are wrong? How color vision actually works
Color Wheels are wrong? How color vision actually works

Artists say all colors are a mixture of red, yellow, and blue. But physics and TV screens and printers disagree. How does color really work?

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Stubborn Visionaries & Pigheaded Fools

Stubborn Visionaries & Pigheaded Fools
Stubborn Visionaries & Pigheaded Fools

How do you know when to stop, versus when to push through? You don't, not even in hindsight. But these guiding questions can help.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

The Pattern-Seeking Fallacy

The Pattern-Seeking Fallacy
The Pattern-Seeking Fallacy

We humans are terrible at discerning patterns from randomness, and in marketing data we unwittingly find "insights" that are actually noise. Here's how to fix that.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

AI startups require new strategies: This time it's actually different

AI startups require new strategies: This time it's actually different
AI startups require new strategies: This time it's actually different

The typical dynamics between startups and incumbents do not apply in AI as they did in previous technology revolutions like mobile and the internet. Ignore this at your peril.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

How startups beat incumbents

How startups beat incumbents
How startups beat incumbents

A startup can beat a large, successful incumbent, if it does things the incumbent can not or will not do. Here are those things.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Easy statistics for A/B testing and hamsters

Easy statistics for A/B testing and hamsters
Easy statistics for A/B testing and hamsters

A/B testing tools often lie about whether something is "statistically significant." Here's an extremely simple, mathematically sound formula to compute it for yourself.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Easy to criticize, hard to create

Easy to criticize, hard to create
Easy to criticize, hard to create

It's easy to explain why any given business will fail. So what? But neither is it wise to totally ignore the critics.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Deciding whether an investment is worthwhile

Deciding whether an investment is worthwhile
Deciding whether an investment is worthwhile

Why "expected value" doesn't work; here's a better framework for making long-term investments in your career, startup, and life.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

Pick one and own it

Pick one and own it
Pick one and own it

What if your company could have only one single advantage over the competition? This exercise will make your positioning and strategy stronger.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

The "errors" that mean you're doing it right

The "errors" that mean you're doing it right
The "errors" that mean you're doing it right

Some things appear to be mistakes, but in fact should be celebrated as the expected outcomes of great decisions.

A Smart Bear
• Jason Cohen

How to measure the accuracy of forecasts

How to measure the accuracy of forecasts
How to measure the accuracy of forecasts

How do you assess forecasts, when the forecast is only a probability? It's not just about accuracy. Let's dive into the math.