Description
Book SynopsisThe real story of what it takes to risk it all and go for broke. Conventional wisdom says most startups need to be in Silicon Valley, started by young engineers around a sexy new idea, and backed by VC funding. But as Mikkel Svane reveals in Startupland, the story of founding Zendesk was anything but conventional.
Trade Review“Mikkel Svane’s Startupland is a refreshingly honest and provocative account of his journey building Zendesk, complete with the hard choices, unexpected turns, and sheer terrors involved in running a startup. Svane blends practical advice with deeply personal reflections on the company, the industry, and Silicon Valley as a whole. A must-read for aspiring entrepreneurs.”
—Aaron Levie, cofounder and CEO, Box
“Mikkel Svane is a great founder who wrote a great book about some of the not-so-great moments throughout his entrepreneurial escapades. With honesty, humor, and humility, Startupland shows what it’s really like.”
—Paddy Cosgrave, founder, the Web Summit and F.ounders
“I read Startupland over one weekend. I laughed, I cried, and mostly I was so happy I was on the other side. Mikkel Svane knows what it’s like and tells it as it is. A must-read.”
—Julia Hartz, cofounder and president, Eventbrite, Inc.
“Startupland is a refreshingly honest and humble inside look from Mikkel Svane, a Silicon Valley outsider. Startup founders will want to keep it as a reference for whenever things aren’t going according to plan (which is all the time).”
—Ben Chestnut, cofounder and CEO, MailChimp
Table of ContentsForeword by Alexia Tsotsis ix
Introduction: The Pursuit of Happiness 1
1 The Honeymoon 7
Believing that what you’re doing is great and knowing nothing of what’s to come
2 The Salad Days 31
Keeping it together when things should be falling apart
3 Going for Broke 57
How to turn down money and keep your company (and your soul)
4 The Bubble Redux 69
Battling circumstances beyond your control
5 The Game is Not Over 81
Getting investors and getting along with your partners
6 Coming to America 97
Chasing the dream—and dealing with the reality
7 Go West 115
Leveraging location and upending our lives
8 Growing Up 133
Going from building a product to building a company—and messing up along the way
9 Innocence Lost 151
From idealist to realist, and the uncomfortable journey in between
10 Going to the Show 167
Becoming a public company and remembering where we came from
Epilogue 179
A Few More Thoughts 185
It’s all about relationships
Notes 189
Acknowledgments 191
About the Authors 193
Index 197
