matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Good Things Happen to Good People
I would re-phrase it a bit: good things happen to generous people who are willing to give before taking.
matryoshka's comments
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: How can I talk to people about death without freaking them out?
I agree. Japan would be perfect for what my company offers.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: How can I talk to people about death without freaking them out?
Thank you for all the suggestions - all good ones. I have been reaching out to those who are comfortable talking about death (e.g. The Order of the Good Death). It has been empowering to be in the forefront of bringing the topic of death into life and making people embrace it. It is easier to talk about death with like-minded people.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: [NSFW] Clitter – Twitter porn
Nice! That would make a great screen saver :).
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: I'm a Jill of all trades and damn proud of it
That's the way to own it! I identify with this life philosophy and own it without feeling guilty that I haven't mastered one specific domain. I do work on learning more and stay current in my areas of interest.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: What Is Your Startup's "One Sentence"?
'One sentence' is way better than an elevator pitch with today's short attention span. My one sentence at the moment is: my company, artisurn.com, helps people embrace what is inevitable with grace and lets them pick a memorial urn or keepsake that 'talks' to them.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: The Day We Pretended to Care About Ukraine
Understand what triggered the events happening in Ukraine. Being born and raised in Russia and having lots of friend from Ukraine, I want to stress that what is happening in Kiev is unprecedented for Ukraine. They reached a breaking point and all that's unfolding will set the course for Ukraine for years and generations to come. I hope it will have a happy ending.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: How do you do accounting for your startup?
I agree that having a human who specializes in your kind of business accounting will make your life much easier down the road. That was one of first things I did when I started my business. Better be safe than sorry. You so don't want to mess with IRS.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Girl Scout Does Brisk Business Selling Cookies Outside San Francisco Pot Club
This girl scout is brilliant! I see bright future in front of her.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Beat big businesses by owning your small size
As a small business owner, I've been getting to know my customers really well. My business is focused on handcrafted cremation urns and urn like pieces, which can be dreary (black humor definitely helps). I hand hold people through their purchases and know what questions they might ask. Being small works in my favor.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Be clear first and clever second
Clever is indeed overrated. It is so tempting to be everything to everyone as you dread a thought that you might cut off some potential clients. Just suck it up and narrow your focus and get committed to it. Yes, you can pivot if needed but keep your focus narrow.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: Good math books / activities for children?
Our 5yo and 8yo have been playing DragonBox a lot to learn algebra: http://www.dragonboxapp.com/ and it has been a great way to teach complex concepts to younger kids. We always try to find some fun apps and online games that has a dual purpose plus we always have a whiteboard at the ready to explain what they find perplexing.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: Do you have a dropshipping ecommerce?
My business artisurn.com uses a drop shipping model and it's been working out well. I use Shopify for my website and e-commerce and Ordoro inventory and shipping app that integrates with Shopify. I deal with individuals (artisans) not companies so I had to tweak my setup to accommodate that by setting up virtual warehouses and assigning shipments to those warehouses.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: What Wedding Guests and Startups Have in Common
You can extend it even further. You can ask people what gifts they want for their birthdays or Christmas or any other occasion. Ask if they want cash instead of a gift. You will be their favorite person at the party and your gifts won't get returned.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Misconceptions On Building Startups
This: "The right idea at the right time. Targeting the right market with the right product, together with the right positioning and the right strategy is the key to successful companies. The rest will follow." is applicable to any startup, not only the ones that are software driven.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Potty training for tech entrepreneurs
It is very tempting to keep working away on improvements but it can be fatal to your newly started business. Go out and start selling. It can be a sobering reality check.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: What sort of startups make money the fastest?
You can clone an idea just add your own twist to it. Don't just copy someone else's idea blindly. I believe in niches. Find a niche that you can stick with and start working at it.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Why I hate you because of your resume
LinkedIn is a great professional platform for sales and marketing people. Not so much for developers.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: What exactly is an entrepreneur?
This is so true: Countries with a lot of small companies are often stagnant. You don't want your company to stay small. You want it to dominate the market by getting big and overthrowing all the competitors. Yes, the strongest survive.
matryoshka | 12 years ago | on: Ask HN: How do SEO consultants get backlinks?
These are brilliant suggestions. All of them are worth investing your time in as they will pay back in high quality backlinks - the ones that do make a difference in Google rankings.