Richard Keith Latman 
The Good Fail 
Entrepreneurial Lessons from the Rise and Fall of Microworkz

An inside look at how companies and executives rise and fall,
with important lessons for all aspiring entrepreneurs

The Good Fail is part business story, part guilty
pleasure, exploring Richard Keith Latman’s very public missteps and
the painful lessons he learned as a result, presented to fellow
entrepreneurs, in his own words, for the first time. Written in a
lively, conversational style, the book answers questions many
computer industry veterans have been asking for more than a decade
about what went wrong at Microworkz, the failed former free PC
enterprise.

Chronicling Latman’s long roller-coaster journey back and
offering pointed advice about effective business development,
negotiating, human resource management, and leadership, which
Latman has successfully applied at his latest ventures, i Magic Lab
and Latman Interactive, the book is an important set of insights
for entrepreneurs everywhere.

* Offers 19 practical lessons learned, which can help put other
entrepreneurs on the path to success faster

* Includes invaluable insight into how to overcome even the worst
public business failures

* Provides a behind-the-scenes look from the ultimate insider at
an important time in computer industry history

* Presents a case study of how personal and business lives can
negatively impact each other

Microworkz’s failure can be your success. The Good Fail
provides both important insights into how to start a business that
will reap rewards, and warnings about how to avoid going
astray.

Cuprins

Preface ix

Introduction xiii

Chapter 1 Against All Odds 1

Chapter 2 Out of My League 13

Chapter 3 From Brides to Be OS 27

Chapter 4 Catching the Wave 39

Chapter 5 Too Much Too Soon 55

Chapter 6 The Fall 61

Chapter 7 i Toaster 79

Chapter 8 Moving On 87

Chapter 9 Redemption 101

Epilogue Nineteen Ways to Avoid a Good Fail 119

Appendix Forty-Seven Success Stories 139

About the Author 153

Despre autor

RICHARD KEITH LATMAN Is Chief Executive Officer, cofounder of i Magic Lab and the Founder of Latman Interactive. Latman drives product development, technology, sales, marketing, and architecture decisions across all i Magic Lab/Latman products to ensure the product direction is consistent with the overall strategy of the company and the needs of the marketplace. Over the past nine years, he has trained tens of thousands of salespeople, written over 275 articles, and spoken at major events and seminars nationwide.

Latman has broad experience in the sales, hardware, software, and services sectors, having spent more than 20 years in senior management roles in the IT industry. Prior to founding i Magic Lab, Latman helped start many innovative companies including Retail TRAC (sold to Minow LLC), Micro POS (sold to Micros), and Microworkz.com.