Page 20 - The 7 Day Startup: You Don’t Learn Until You Launch - PDFDrive.com

What is a Startup?

“A startup is a human institution designed to deliver a new product or service
under conditions of extreme uncertainty.” Eric Ries

There is a lot of bullshit in startup land. Every second person is starting an
incubator, raising money, pivoting, exiting, scaling, starting, failing, and telling
the world as they do it.

That said, I do prefer the word “Startup” to the word “Business,” which is why
I’ve used it in this book.

A business is anything that derives a wage for its founder. By that definition,
buying a lawn mowing franchise or opening a corner store is a business. But
neither is a startup.

A startup is a bit more exciting. It has:

1. High impact potential.
2. High levels of innovation.
3. High levels of uncertainty.

A local business can’t be a startup without ambitions to take it to the world. A
franchise restricted by franchise rules can’t be a startup. Neither has the potential
for a big impact.

Eric Ries defines a startup as “a human institution designed to deliver a new
product or service under conditions of extreme uncertainty.” That doesn’t mean
you have to risk everything to create a startup. This book is primarily about
reducing risk. But with a startup you do lose some of the predictability and
certainty that comes with less innovative businesses.