More Words of Wisdom from Marc Andreessen

by Scott Edward Walker on July 25th, 2013

To Our Clients & Friends: Welcome to our series “Helping Entrepreneurs Succeed.”  Each week we share a favorite video clip of a successful entrepreneur, investor or business leader on a variety of topics.  This week, we again present Marc Andreessen, one of my favorite investors (as a result of his raw intelligence and extraordinary vision).

In this fascinating interview by Dave McClure, the founding general partner of 500 Startups, Marc shares some solid nuggets for entrepreneurs, including the following:

• “It’s very hard to give general advice to startups because it’s very specific to the circumstance.” (at 11:56)
• “Usually to change the world you need to hit the market with force.” (at 12:12)
• “The ‘lean startup’ philosophy makes a lot of sense at the beginning of the company when you’re trying to get to product-market fit.” (at 13:00)
• “I think that the ‘lean startup’ philosophy is essentially to startups what relativity was to physics.” (at 13:07)
• “The culture of entrepreneurship is spreading, and that’s happening all around the world – and I think that’s a really, really big deal.” (at 15:35)
• “I think objectively there are too many seed-stage companies…The good news is, I don’t think it’s a systemic problem.” (at 16:52)
•  “I am…very bullish on Silicon Valley. I view Silicon Valley as a network effect…; it’s a sink for talent….” (at 18:44)
• “Basic contract law is still a challenge in China.  IP integrity is still a challenge.” (at 21:18)
• “We have a long-term viewpoint because we have no choice.  We have to have a long-term viewpoint [because] it takes time to build these companies.” (at 27:28)
• “Crowdfunding is going to become a major part of the landscape for new companies.  I think it’s incredibly powerful and exciting.” (at 30:17)
• “Risk-averse entrepreneurs should not start companies.  This is the problem at the heart of the incubator model.” (at 40:47)

I hope you enjoy it.  Cheers, Scott

Tags: 500 Startups, Dave McClure, Entrepreneurship, helping entrepreneurs, lean startup, Marc Andreessen, silicon valley