(Excerpt from Zero to One by Peter Thiel)
seven questions that every business must answer:
- The Engineering Question
Can you create breakthrough technology instead of incremental improvements? - The Timing Question
Is now the right time to start your particular business? - The Monopoly Question
Are you starting with a big share of a small market? - The People Question
Do you have the right team? - The Distribution Question
Do you have a way to not just create but deliver your product? - The Durability Question
Will your market position be defensible 10 and 20 years into the future? - The Secret Question
Have you identified a unique opportunity that others don’t see?
We’ve discussed these elements before. Whatever your industry, any great business plan must address every one of them. If you don’t have good answers to these questions, you’ll run into lots of “bad luck” and your business will fail. If you nail all seven, you’ll master fortune and succeed. Even getting five or six correct might work.