First, I'd suggest the book "Principles" by Ray Dalio. In my opinion he is a great team builder and in this book he (not only) shares his according tools/methods. Second, in my personal experience when building great teams you need to - make sure each member contributes to the team in a very specific and individual way with her/his personality, work style, skills, energy... - assign clear roles & responsibilities to team members that fit the above (personality etc.) and align the interests between them - cultivate an environment of professional, goal- and solution-oriented straight-forwardness - apply tough love: fairly but rapidly & definitely cut people out who harm the team/goal - implicitly ask for sacrifices/struggle and make those worthwhile* *at times less resources are better than more! think: a situation so dynamic you have to be present 100% because otherwise you "miss the train", getting creative because logic alone doesn't make the cut anymore, having "no time to lose" so you do the most efficient thing etc. Good luck!

What did you learn today

I think it wildly depends on a combination of - the entrepreneur(s) way with words and people - the idea's general "sexiness" & timing - the country/ecosystem/networks entrepreneur + idea are in - the idea's special connection/appeal to eventual money-givers & General rule: People attract people & Money attracts money- You see one restaurant full of people vs. the other restaurant which is empty- where do you choose to eat? There is a person with USD 90'000.- who needs another USD 10'000.- to execute a customer delivery vs. there is a guy with an idea who needs USD 10'000.- to build a customer base- who do you support? Sounds obvious, but core human functioning & reasoning like that explain the seeming "easiness" of how some people get money. Once they're in the right loop, have the right credentials out: support just calls more support (you may read about the "Pareto distribution" principle). Sure, that is unfair, but you can try to use it to your advantage also if you do not have much. For example: If you start a crowdfunding campaign you need at least all of your friends + family members to support your project publicly (on the platform, but also elsewhere), then once you have some initial dynamics, it makes sense to advertise the campaign on several, relevant* channels to strangers. The ones of them who get interested click on your campaign and can already see something going on there. Not just a blank space, stuff like "USD 0 of USD 10'000 funded"- huge turn off. *you want to have your dog food project funded, then you need to communicate about the campaign where dog owners read/listen/learn. Just "Facebook" is too general. Good luck!

- Knowledge (= adds to before- and after-buying experience! giving me insight on right aftercare of product, where it comes from, other interesting facts/stories about it) - Know-How (= adds to value! showing me for example how to better wear that particular garment by rolling up the sleeves or quickly shortening the leg length in the store etc.) - Genuine hosting (= adds to positive perception of brand! me not being part of a transaction, but me being welcomed as a guest aka they are just happy I am there independently of whether I will buy or not) - Right product (to make the decision I need some time, do not want to be pressured by sales person, but being able to "be alone" with the product and think about it a bit)

Human beings live in groups for survival, pleasure etc. and that is just fine. But in order to truly be you, you have to have the courage and freedom to step out of groups every once in a while and be very much alone with yourself, your thoughts. Only then you have a clear shot at exiting group think and connecting to your core as well as applying your own mind thoroughly. Then ask yourself: what do you think to be true that very few people agree with you on? What topic do you really care about? And how does your view of that topic differ from mainstream? Elon Musk said in an interview that where you disagree with society/general belief lays your opportunity for creating differentiated value. To do create that value you need to go back to the very first principles of your topic ("reasoning from first principles and not by analogy") and work your way up from there until you reach an idea that is based on facts, but different from what's already out there. To come up with original ideas and the "original you" I'd also suggest to combine topics, interests, traits that do not usually co-exist/meet. For example: In martial arts training I've overcome a "stubborn" plateau by going to some ballet classes. I did not need more muscles or technique to get stronger kicks, just more balance! Last but not least it's about mental toughness and consistency. Fundamental change and discovery do not come easy. Peer groups as well as society as a whole are used to putting people into boxes because categorization leads to order- which we all crave in this chaotic world. So if you start differentiating yourself you will encounter adversity of some kind. Face that openly and with humility, but at the same time with much confidence. You should learn from others and appreciate them, always, everyone knows something you do not- but at the same time their limits are not yours. All the best!