Risks to be avoided

The first rule for survival is to avoid all the risks that have nothing to do with the new technology you are developing, and defy the rules of common business sense. Examples that will be discussed in this section include ignoring or violating commonly accepted accounting principles, legal standards, and confidentiality disclosure norms. The pros and cons of several other important issues for investors, such as intellectual property, are also covered.

Learn the laws of the jungle for technical startups

Some technical entrepreneurs think that creating the product is the hard part and building a business around it should be easy. In fact, many experts will tell you that it's the other way around. It's a jungle out there in business, and you need to learn the rules for survival in the jungle.

In 2012, total entrepreneurial activity in the United States hit its highest level since their survey started in 1999, according to Babson College (http://www.babson.edu/Academics/centers...