[mmaunder]

The source and type of funding you get often determines what kind of creature your company is.

If you get valley funding from super angels who know the IPO market is dead and their most likely exit is strategic acquisition, then creating product, growth and becoming a credible threat or opportunity is key.

If you are self funded or raise money from your biz school professor or an angel who built a profitable business, then your focus is going to be on building what the author calls a "company".

The nature of funding in the NE vs the Valley has a huge impact on the kinds of businesses that are built there.

Outside the States the difference in approach is startling - in most countries funding is never an option. Most business is designed to provide a living wage and "failing fast" is not a mantra because it means starving quickly.