Today's Entrepreneur: Herry Lian

Kristin Karaoglu · September 19, 2012 · Short URL: https://vator.tv/n/2a3f

No. 1 mistake: Giving up too early

Today's Entrepreneur is Herry Lian, co-founder of Contur. According to his VEQ, Herry is good at product management, networking and finance management.

Vator’s community is the home to entrepreneurs who embrace their passion and follow their dreams. Our profiles allow members to express themselves by sharing their interests, lessons learned, as well as bits and pieces of their roller-coaster journey.

These profiles give entrepreneurs an opportunity to showcase themselves and tell their story. So if you are an entrepreneur, a serial entrepreneur, or even an aspiring entrepreneur, we'd like to hear from you.

I am a(n):
Entrepreneur

Companies I've founded or co-founded:
Marksmen Academy, Contur

Startups I worked for:
Marksmen Academy, Contur

If you are an entrepreneur, why?
I want to change the world.

My favorite startups:
SpaceX

What's most frustrating and rewarding about entrepreneurship/innovation?
The most frustrating thing is often tackling a problem that no one has before. If you’re truly creating an innovative product, you’ll be facing challenges that previous teams couldn’t solve, whether it’s limitation in knowledge or technology. The hard times are often when you hit dead ends, and no one can really help you overcome that hurdle.

That moment then also becomes one of the most rewarding moments. When you are able to dig down deep, continue pushing, and surmount that challenge, you get this euphoria that’s almost better than any other feeling.

What's the No. 1 mistake entrepreneurs make?
Ideas are a dime a dozen. Many entrepreneurs get this idea that will “revolutionize X”, but they often fail because great companies are created through execution, not ideas.

What are the top three lessons you've learned as an entrepreneur?
Don’t be fooled by all the exciting stories featured on Techcrunch. The road to a successful venture is long, lonely, and difficult. The reality is most will fail, and that’s something you have to accept before going on and pursuing your venture.

If you build it, they won’t come. Having a strong product is key, but that is only one part of the puzzle. Acquiring customers can be a daunting challenge, so always check your assumptions. Is this a big problem? If so, are you creating a vitamin or a painkiller? Are you targeting the right audience? If you didn’t spend a significant amount of time on those questions, then you’ll probably be disillusioned when the product is out, and the customers aren’t coming.

Test, test, test all of your assumptions. Treat your startup like an experiment. Your projections and numbers won’t mean much on your go to market strategy or business plan unless you’ve validated in some way.

(Want to be profiled? Just fill out your Vator profile and we'll find you! Or you can email newsroom@vator.tv)

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Kristin Karaoglu

Woman of many skills: Database System Engineer; SplashX event producer; Author of Startup Teams

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Contur

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Contur Main

 

We are creating a virtual assistant for email. Our semantic algorithms scan all incoming emails and determine whether those emails fits into existing labels, task lists, and projects. There’s no need for the user to set up any rules; Contur infers how the user wants the emails organized based on metrics like the title, sender, and content of the email.

The interface also has an integrated to do list, and the user can turn any email into a task with a meaningful title, deadline, and reminder. With a dedicated space to keep track of the user's tasks, projects, follow ups and meeting, the user will be able to stay on top of everything.

Overall, the interface and technology is designed to help the user stay organized, and save him hours every week.

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Herry Lian

Joined Vator on

I believe in progress, and want to be at the forefront of innovation, and shape the way our future generations will live and interact with each other.