Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 3, 2017

As a mentor to many aspiring entrepreneurs, I often get asked for next sure-fire idea. Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, and other famous entrepreneurs are examples of dedicated people who looked for inspiration, rather than ideas for their next business. Be inspired by customer value rather than solution features.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 17, 2017

They flocked to businesses like Apple, when influencer Steve Jobs was at the helm, and anxiously await the next moves from visible entrepreneurs, including Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk. Customers need to believe that you are one of them. Going out of your way to help a customer or help a good cause pays big dividends these days.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 28, 2017

As an active business advisor and angel investor, I’m convinced that we are rapidly entering a new age of the entrepreneur, and those who are best prepared will be the first to reap some big rewards. I continue to see stories of really young entrepreneurs, and I just met a really impressive one, Neva Lee Recla, at a recent Fast Inc.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2017

A good entrepreneur is not necessarily born a good salesman. Julie is known as the entrepreneur’s selling mentor, for both men and women. In my view, every entrepreneur has to be a great salesman to succeed (among the many other required skills), so you should take a hard look at these points: Dust off your moxie.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 11, 2017

In my experience as an advisor and mentor to entrepreneurs in business, one of the biggest failures I see is a lack of self-leadership. For example, I often hear from aspiring entrepreneurs that “I had that idea first, and he stole it, and is now making money on my idea.” Values are your most valuable assets.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Unless you are a serial entrepreneur with a string of successes behind you, you need a business plan to convince investors that you can build a business out of the dream that has been driving your passion to change the world. Marketing, sales, and customer experience. Skip the acronyms and jargon.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2017

As an advisor to early-stage entrepreneurs, I see a lot of dreams, but not so many business results. I’ve always wished I had a magic metaphor to motivate the best dreamers to become the best entrepreneurs. There is no cookie-cutter route to success as an entrepreneur. Ask for help from advisors and mentor your team.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2017

Today I find that some entrepreneurs, are putting all their focus on a social or environmental cause, and perhaps naively expect that purpose alone will lead to a sustainable business. If team members and customers can’t relate to your purpose, or don’t agree with it, your business will not thrive.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 17, 2017

Based on my years of experience mentoring and advising entrepreneurs, you need to attack problems and challenges with a mindset of success, or it is unlikely that you or your business will survive. Every good entrepreneur I know has pivoted at least once. Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 12/16/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2017

Every entrepreneur I know has a few bad habits they intended to overcome a long time ago, such as micromanaging, or failure to get enough rest and relaxation. In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs, I often recommend attacking bad habits and efforts to improve using the six basic strategies outlined by the authors.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 28, 2017

We all face pressure in our lives, but there’s nothing like that of an entrepreneur facing customer crises and the competitive challenges of a new business. Thus, here is my own reframing of the authors generalized rules into some specifics for an entrepreneur or business leader: Reframe competitive threats to opportunities.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 26, 2017

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. Customers buy from people they trust, respect, and admire.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 10, 2017

Even after many years mentoring entrepreneurs and advising businesses, I continue to be surprised by the primary focus on products and processes, and the often incidental attention to hiring and nurturing the right people. It’s the same for customers and products, where analytics have long proven their value.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 1, 2017

I was mentoring some graduate students at a local university recently, and I sensed again that profit seems to be a dirty word these days to many aspiring entrepreneurs. I’m certainly not a fan of customer rip-offs, but even non-profits have to be cash-flow positive, or have deep pockets, to help anyone for long.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2017

In this age of interactive social media, your culture image quickly spreads to customers, and determines their loyalty. Everyone knows and admires the leaders , including Google and Zappos, but most entrepreneurs have only a fuzzy idea of what to do to get there. Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 01/21/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2017

Business leaders must convince the team that the decision makers today are customers, the marketplace, competition, feedback, innovation, and breakthroughs. Develop accountability through coaching and mentoring. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 10/13/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2017

With real-time online reviews and feedback via the Internet, and instant relationships via social media, a voice from the top that is inconsistent with what is heard from the firing line defines a dysfunctional and noncompetitive company for today’s customer. Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 02/12/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 6, 2017

Lewis offers eight steps to reclaiming your creativity that I believe every entrepreneur should adopt: Quiet – creativity speaks quietly and needs concentration. Take the time to listen fully to the voices that really count, including your team leaders and customers. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 10/23/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2017

In fact, I’m a strong proponent of coaching and mentoring in the workplace, but I recognize that these efforts can only go so far in eliminating your human resources problems, and increasing team morale and performance. Trevor is a veteran coach who has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs, organizations, and business families across the country.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 26, 2017

Most entrepreneurs believe they are leaders, even though the feedback I get from their team and partners may indicate otherwise. Trust is the key to productive relationships, and relationships with peers, constituents and customers are key to great businesses. Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 05/24/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 16, 2017

Many business executives and entrepreneurs I know are convinced that business success is all about having the right solution for the right price. They see customer support as positive lessons to improve quality and processes. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 08/02/2017.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2017

In my years of mentoring and advising business leaders, I find that real planning for the future always gets the short shrift. The command and control leadership of the past is proving to be too inflexible, devoid of values, and not empathic to people issues – customers, employees, and partners.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 29, 2017

It also means setting up a personalized coaching and mentoring system, and accelerated rotations for top talent. Inspirational leaders are the ones with the greatest connection to customers and mission, a large set of relevant strengths, and active engagement with team members. Build a culture guided by principles, not rules.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2017

That means that you need to overtly market yourself, rather than wait and hope that the right people or customers will find you. In my long-time role as a mentor and business advisor, I still see too many people who are waiting to be found as a candidate for their dream role, or waiting for investors to find their startup.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 24, 2017

Businesses can only succeed if they can make customers see a win-win situation by working together. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 04/11/2017. Favor people with a perpetually optimistic bias. Coaches can only help if they have the power to make people see a tomorrow that is better than today.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 24, 2017

As a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, the most common question I get is, “I want to be an entrepreneur -- how do I start?” Many people with great ideas never make it as entrepreneurs, and true entrepreneurs can make a business out of anything. How strong is your passion for people and business?

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2017

In my view, the gig economy is a key driver to the current boom in entrepreneurship – every professional and consultant is actually a solo entrepreneur. The bad news is we have to think like a business, with all the implications of branding, finding customers, and competitors. Know your competitive value.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2017

I have found that the most successful entrepreneurs and business executives have an impressive work ethic, and they surround themselves with a team of comparable commitment. These will provide the competitive edge you need with customers and less-focused team members. You need positives to radiate to the team, partners, and customers.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 3, 2017

As a long-time mentor and advisor to new business owners, I can attest to both the need for mentoring, and the satisfaction that comes from watching an aspiring but tentative entrepreneur grow into someone capable of changing the world. It’s a win-win situation for everyone in this new age of the entrepreneur.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 17, 2017

Based on my own experience mentoring entrepreneurs, I see the same things, and recommend the following principles for every aspiring business leader today: Communication must address content and relationship. Either can get you valued and followed, or rejected by your team and your customers. It’s your choice.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 23, 2017

After the hire comes mentoring and continuous training as the key to engagement. Your company’s success is dependent on your customer’s happiness, which is set primarily by engaged employees. Today, every company needs a value-driven culture that is shared by employees, customers, and shareholders.

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