How Casual is Too Casual for Entrepreneurs?

I love dressing informally, maybe too much.  My wife frequently reprimands me for dressing down.  I recently met with a US Senator in slacks and a collar shirt (which I thought was being respectfully dressy!) and he wryly cracked that I looked awfully comfortable.  I sometime teach my HBS class in jeans (please don’t tell the dean).

But lately, I have been wondering if entrepreneurs have taken informality too far.  I don’t mean dress code.  I don’t care how they dress.  I mean their thinking and approach.

You probably see it all the time – hipster entrepreneurs with the cool affect walking into meetings carrying nothing but their smart phone.  When asked to present their story, they ramble informally without a cogent direction.  When a substantive discussion ensues, and good ideas and follow-up items are generated, they take no notes.  And when the meeting wraps up, there are no action items that are reviewed, no closure regarding next steps.

– See more at: http://bostonvcblog.typepad.com/vc/2014/02/have-entrepreneurs-become-too-informal.html#sthash.Lilw7HsU.dpuf