This post is in partnership with Entrepreneur. The article below was originally published at Entrepreneur.com.

    Anyone who has started a business has his or her own rules and guidelines, so I thought I would add to the memo with my own. My “rules” below aren’t just for those founding the companies, but for those who are considering going to work for them, as well.

    1. Don’t start a company unless it’s an obsession and something you love.

    2. If you have an exit strategy, it’s not an obsession.

    3. Hire people who you think will love working there.

    4. Sales Cure All. Know how your company will make money and how you will actually make sales.

    5. Know your core competencies and focus on being great at them.Pay up for people in your core competencies. Get the best. Outside the core competencies, hire people that fit your culture but aren’t as expensive to pay.

    6. An espresso machine? Are you kidding me? Coffee is for closers. Sodas are free. Lunch is a chance to get out of the office and talk. There are 24 hours in a day, and if people like their jobs, they will find ways to use as much of it as possible to do their jobs.

    7. No offices. Open offices keep everyone in tune with what is going on and keep the energy up. If an employee is about privacy, show him or her how to use the lock on the bathroom. There is nothing private in a startup. This is also a good way to keep from hiring executives who cannot operate successfully in a startup. My biggest fear was always hiring someone who wanted to build an empire. If the person demands to fly first class or to bring over a personal secretary, run away. If an exec won’t go on sales calls, run away. They are empire builders and will pollute your company.

    8. As far as technology, go with what you know. That is always the most inexpensive way. If you know Apple, use it. If you know Vista, ask yourself why, then use it. It’s a startup so there are just a few employees. Let people use what they know.

    9. Keep the organization flat. If you have managers reporting to managers in a startup, you will fail. Once you get beyond startup, if you have managers reporting to managers, you will create politics.

    10. Never buy swag. A sure sign of failure for a startup is when someone sends me logo-embroidered polo shirts. If your people are at shows and in public, it’s okay to buy for your own employees, but if you really think people are going to wear your branded polo when they’re out and about, you are mistaken and have no idea how to spend your money.

    11. Never hire a PR firm. A public relations firm will call or email people in the publications you already read, on the shows you already watch and at the websites you already surf. Those people publish their emails. Whenever you consume any information related to your field, get the email of the person publishing it and send them a message introducing yourself and the company. Their job is to find new stuff. They will welcome hearing from the founder instead of some PR flack. Once you establish communication with that person, make yourself available to answer their questions about the industry and be a source for them. If you are smart, they will use you.

    12. Make the job fun for employees. Keep a pulse on the stress levels and accomplishments of your people and reward them. My first company, MicroSolutions, when we had a record sales month, or someone did something special, I would walk around handing out $100 bills to salespeople. At Broadcast.com and MicroSolutions, we had a company shot. The Kamikaze. We would take people to a bar every now and then and buy one or ten for everyone. At MicroSolutions, more often than not we had vendors cover the tab. Vendors always love a good party.

    This article is an edited excerpt from How to Win at the Sport of Business: If I Can Do It, You Can Do It (Diversion Books, 2011) by Mark Cuban (Available at Amazon and iTunes).

    本文与《创业者》杂志的合作内容。下文最初发表于Entrepreneur.com网站。

    任何想要创业的人，都应该有自己的原则和指导方针。我愿意把自己的原则和指导方针与大家分享。我下面提到的这些“原则”，不仅适用于创业者，也适用于正在考虑为初创公司工作的人。

    1. 不要轻易创业，除非这是你痴迷并且钟爱的事业。

    2. 如果你给自己想好了退路，那就说明你对创业还不够痴迷。

    3. 聘用那些你认为肯定喜欢在这里工作的人。

    4. 销售能解决一切问题。明确你的公司将如何赚钱，你如何为公司创造销售额。

    5. 确定公司的核心竞争力，并集中精力将其发扬光大。要为直接影响公司核心竞争力的人才，提供最优厚的薪酬待遇。除此之外，聘用符合公司文化并且薪酬相对较低的员工。

    6. 一台浓缩咖啡机？别开玩笑了。咖啡是给亲密的人准备的。提供免费的碳酸饮料吧。午餐时间是走出办公室与人交流的好机会。一天有24个小时，如果员工喜欢他们的工作，他们就会充分利用自己的时间，想方设法地做好本职工作。

    7. 不要设立单独的办公间。开放的办公室可以让所有人与工作进度保持一致，并激发员工的工作激情。有员工想要个人隐私？教会他如何使用洗手间的门锁。在初创公司没有所谓的隐私。这样也可以将那些不会成功管理初创公司的高管拒之门外。我最担心的，就是招聘来某位动辄就想要打造一个帝国的人。如果一个人要求坐头等舱或配私人秘书，还是请他另谋高就吧。如果你的管理人员不屑于打销售电话，果断将他解雇。这些人好高骛远，只会拖累你的公司。

    8. 在技术方面，选择自己擅长的。这通常是最实惠的方法。如果你了解苹果，那就用苹果。如果你知道Vista系统，问问自己为什么，然后就用它好了。一家初创公司没有那么多员工。让人们用自己擅长的技术就可以了。

    9. 保持组织扁平化。在初创公司，如果管理者还要向其他上级管理者汇报 ，你最终肯定会失败。一旦你走出初创阶段，这种结构就会形成办公室政治。

    10. 不要购买无用的装饰品。如果有人送给我印有一家初创公司标识的POLO衫，这家初创公司肯定会失败。如果员工要参加展会或公众活动，给他们买这类物品没问题，但假如你以为员工在户外活动的时候会穿那些带商标的POLO衫，那可就大错特错了。这也说明你并不清楚如何合理利用公司的资金。

    11. 不要找公关公司。公关公司通过电话或邮件联系的业内人士，都在你读过的刊物、看过的电视节目或者浏览过的网站里。这些人都会公布自己的电子邮件。当你在浏览与你所在领域相关的信息时，找到信息发布者的电子邮件，给他们发信，介绍你自己和你的公司。这些人的工作就是找到新鲜的素材。相对于所谓的媒体公关公司，这些人更愿意直接与公司创始人交流。建立联系后，确保自己能够为他们解答一些与行业有关的问题，使自己成为他们的信息来源。如果你够聪明，他们就会用得着你。

    12. 让员工感受到工作的快乐。密切关注员工的压力状态和成就，对员工进行奖励。在我的第一家计算机资讯公司MicroSolutions，如果有一个月的销售额创下纪录，或者有人做了一些特别的事情，我都会向销售人员发放百元美钞作为奖励。在播客网站Broadcast.com和MicroSolutions，我们都有一款公司特定的饮料，名字叫“神风特攻队”。我们有时候会带人去酒吧，给每个人点上一杯或者十杯，作为奖励。在MicroSolutions，通常都有供应商买单。供应商总是喜欢有趣的聚会。

    本文节选自马克•库班的书《如何在体育界取得成功：我能做到，你也能》（Diversion Books出版，2011年），并经过编辑。（财富中文网）

    译者：刘进龙/汪皓