Ready, Fire, Aim
by Michael Masterson · first published 2007
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
Practical startup advice on selling early and moving fast, with a focus on getting customers and revenue before perfecting the product; recommended for founders and early-stage business builders.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Whether you're thinking about starting a new business or growing an existing one, Ready, Fire, Aim has what you need to succeed in your entrepreneurial endeavors. In it, self-made multimillionaire and bestselling author Masterson shares the knowledge he has gained from creating and expanding numerous businesses and outlines a focused strategy for guiding a small business through the four stages of entrepreneurial growth. Along the way, Masterson teaches you the different skills needed in order to excel in this dynamic environment.
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…similar improvements to the core products and services as quickly as you are. As well as being my belief, it's one of the core tenets of Michael Masterson's tackily-named (but a great read nonetheless) "Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat." With your reference to the App Store, I suspect you might agree with this, but have a different idea of what a "trend" is. I consider the App Store and developing…
on “Ask HN: How to become a millionaire in 3 years?” ↗Others have already suggested the best overall books I'd recommend in terms of philosophy, but in terms of the nitty gritty details of actually doing it, I'd recommend Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat by Michael Masterson. Not everything will be applicable to your situation but it's a pretty detailed guide to taking an idea, launching it, and building the company…
on “Ask HN: Books on getting rich?” ↗I look forward to giving some of these a crack! One I wanted to recommend though, which isn't on the list, is Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson. It had a big impact on me in the early days and had me thinking about minimal viable products (and businesses) before that was a thing of its own.
on “A Startup Reading List” ↗…kind of relationship with the customer. As such, the first book I would recommend would be the classic "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. Once you've got a handle on that, "Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson talks about the value of moving quickly, selling quickly, and figuring out the finer details as you're moving along. This was invaluable for me, since I used to want to have everything…
on “Ask HN: What's the best first business book for a programmer?” ↗…sold itself, but that's not a good strategy unless you have a mass market product. If you have a niche product, you need to be selling it yourself from day one. I would highly recommend a book called "Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson ( http://www.amazon.com/Ready-Fire-Aim-Million-Agora/dp/047018... ). It outlines the whole process of successfully generating a high revenue business from start to finish, and is…
on “Ask HN: Subscription web sites: How did you get your first customer?” ↗If any book results in me becoming a multi-millionaire, I'm thinking it'll be Ready, Fire Aim by Michael Masterson. Written by someone with waist-deep experience in multi million dollar revenue businesses and full of crazy amounts of advice. The focus of the book is marketing, although it most…
on “Ask YC: What books on marketing do you recomend?” ↗…rock): - Dirty Little Secrets of Buzz by David Seaman (this is like dynamite) - Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite by Paul Arden - Any of the "Guerrilla Marketing" books by Jay Conrad Levinson - Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson.
on “Ask YC: What are the best ways to market bootstrapped apps?” ↗Read _Ready, Fire, Aim_, one of THE best business books ever. http://www.amazon.com/Ready-Fire-Aim-Million-Agora/dp/047018... YOU are the only one properly motivated to sell. You have to do it, until (at least) you have…
on “How to generate sales?” ↗Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat by Michael Masterson is pretty good.
on “Ask HN: Sales book recommendation?” ↗Sounds simple and... it sorta is. If you spend some time learning about sales, you'll recognize the "rejection is good - it's one step closer to the next yes!" theme. In this vein, I want to recommend "Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson. It focuses on the same topic (selling subscriptions to information products) but the ideas can be applied to most product businesses. The focus is on getting those first sales,…
on “How to Build a Million-Dollar Business” ↗The lessons learned in this article remind me of the book "Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson. It's a great book. Masterson notes that when you're starting off, you just need to make money ASAP. Worry about being original later when you have a budget. So you need to find…
on “How making money changed my perspective on startup ideas” ↗I can't speak for Paul B but there's a great book called Ready Fire Aim by Michael Masterson that focuses on this technique that I'd recommend.
on “YC without being in YC” ↗Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson is a good read. I got this and read through it. Teaches how to prioritise sales over everything else. If You want to listen to his talk; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvVSVe57gV0…
on “Ask HN: Books giving practical advice on starting a solo SaaS business?” ↗“Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat” This book helped me a lot, to know what need to prioritize for my business
on “Ask HN: What book have you re-read 3x or more?” ↗"Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson. It's a bit cheesy, but it has a publishing industry slant which suited me and enough things resonated that filtered into decisions I made that I'm thankful for it. I never went…
on “Ask HN: What books helped you in your entrepreneurship journey?” ↗