Carpe diem

(Opportunity + Domain Expertise + Circumstance + Market) x Internet = Successful Start-up. This NYT story After Layoff, a Start-Up deals with a common experience about mid-career workers. David Riedel found himself a RIF victim of a recent Wall Street purge and turned his talents to directly satisfying customers rather than seeking another job. And while a common enough experience, it is never trite or trivial.

Each entrepreneurial venture is unique given the attributes of the individual starting the business - in this case the initial capitalization, David’s education and prior working experience overseas and the language skills he developed. Even though, there are many threads found here common among entrepreneurial success stories. Selling something for which there is already an established market; satisfying an underserved need; the ability to assume the risks in the face of daunting uncertainty. Finding cheaper, better, faster ways to do what lots of others, usually more established players, are doing. In addition, as is increasingly the case with many recent start-ups, using the Internet to start, expand businesses processes and as the primary distribution and content management system.

The Internet was crucial to starting his company. A Buenos Aires company, the NetMen Corporation, created his logo, business cards, letterhead and a static Web page for the soon-to-be-announced company in six weeks, for $550. AmbitionWeb in Houston designed his Web site, www.riedelresearch.com, for $1,110. Eire Web Design in Dublin developed Microsoft Word document templates for analysts to use in writing their reports for $350.

Mr. Riedel then turned to Hong Kong-based JobsDB, Asia's largest interactive recruitment network, which covers Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore, to help him find the talent he needed. He knew there was an abundance of smart analysts. Even so, he was taken aback by the response he received.

We should be grateful to all the entrepreneurs who accept the risks of new ventures and overcome the odds through energy, initiative, capital and resolve. New ventures are a significant engine propelling our economy, job creation and individual wealth. And we should continue to encourage and applaud the success of entrepreneurs when we encounter them. So thanks, David, and here is wishing you best of luck in your pursuit of success!