Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 31, 2018

The only “sustainable competitive advantage” in business is self-awareness. Effective advisors and boards are most helpful in these times, when the tough questions are less apparent but critical. Self-awareness helps you achieve balance between these tendencies, and be open to insights from others. It’s a recipe for disaster.

Competition 81

Competition Startup Examples Coach 81

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

Most aspiring entrepreneurs look to their alma mater, or any university, as a source of classes that can help them, but neglect to think outside the box or take advantage of all the other resources to be found there. Get help with grant funding and incubator resources. Access to entrepreneurs-in-residence, business mentors.

Entrepreneur 110

Entrepreneur Class Startup Resource 110

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2023

Based on my experience as an investor and mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and elsewhere, one of the quickest ways to kill your credibility and your startup is to offer a poorly written business plan, or none at all. Don’t try to impress constituents with technical terms, jargon, and acronyms.

Startup 102

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 102

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 10, 2022

In my own experience as a startup advisor and mentor, I find that entrepreneurs who can’t attract and maintain a highly motivated team rarely even get off the ground. Yet many managers unintentionally de-motivate their team by being too busy with business challenges to communicate, understand, or help people. Start today.

Examples 145

Examples Mentor Activity Product 145

TechCrunch LA

JANUARY 26, 2020

As a mentor we drew on his wisdom, passion and drive everyday… In the short term our thoughts and hearts are with him, Gianna and his surviving family.” During his time with the Los Angeles Lakers, the MVP and 18-time All-Star set records and helped architect runs to five national championships.

Venture Capital 359

Venture Capital Los Angeles Legalzoom Calabasas 359

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2020

Take advantage of free startup programs and mentors. Every school recognizes the power of “hands-on” work to help you develop your own ideas into a business. For example, I do business mentoring at nearby Arizona State University and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Write a business plan and pitch deck for learning.

Entrepreneur 157

Entrepreneur Mentor Class Resource 157

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Workship - Mentor. Unlike the mentor, who is a coach and teacher, the advocate inspires you to be the best that you can be. The trailblazer is not overly competitive, but always is a few steps ahead and enjoys setting an example that you are inspired by, or motivated to follow. Workship - Advocate. Workship - Trailblazer.

Mentor 91

Mentor Competition Summary Coach 91

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2016

I believe their competitive advantage is their top on-site leadership, exclusivity, and connections to investors. Mentoring and technical assistance from volunteer or paid experts. An incubator won’t help you if the market opportunity is small, the competitors are large, or your solution doesn’t address a real need.

Incubator 106

Incubator Startup Help Resource 106

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 2, 2017

com) � backed by local investors Rincon Venture Partners and Bonfire Ventures�is helping to solve that problem, with its career pathing software designed for helping employees at large enterprises figure out what's next. It helps you figure out what you can do in a business, what roles are available, what might be my future here.

Help 100

Help Southern California Startup Technical Review 100

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2020

Most aspiring entrepreneurs look to their alma mater, or any university, as a source of classes that can help them, but neglect to think outside the box or take advantage of all the other resources to be found there. Get help with grant funding and incubator resources. Access to entrepreneurs-in-residence, business mentors.

Class 124

Class Startup Resource Mentor 124

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2020

Based on my experience and a business advisor and mentor, this is the ideal time to get back to the basics of business leadership and innovation. Team members can’t help you overcome any challenge if they don’t understand where you are coming from and why. He considers mentoring on of his most critical roles at work.

Mentor 122

Mentor Ideas Competition Examples 122

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2021

As a mentor, I’m regularly frustrated by people who try to cover their lack of confidence with ego and arrogance , rather than working on the base issue. Show that others are an inspiration, not competition. Everyone sees your energy applied more productively, and has the urge to help.

Mentor 174

Mentor Satisfaction Competition Marketing 174

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2021

Based on my own years of experience helping new businesses grow, I’d like to offer my own summary of some key lower-level action items, which I believe every business professional and entrepreneur can learn and practice to their advantage: Show ambition and a sense of urgency in every role. Create innovative change from existing resources.

Coach 162

Coach Startup Resource Competition 162

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2021

Based on my experience as an investor and mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and elsewhere, one of the quickest ways to kill your credibility and your startup is to offer a poorly written business plan, or none at all. Don’t try to impress constituents with technical terms, jargon, and acronyms.

Sample 137

Sample Writing Mentor Content 137

socalTECH

OCTOBER 7, 2010

The University of Southern California and wealthy engineer Fariborz Maseeh , now a hedge fund manager in Newport Beach, is announcing this week a $1M endowment, which will fund an annual, $50,000 prize for a business plan competition for the school's engineering students. affiliated event focused on spreading innovative ideas. READ MORE>>.

USC 214

USC Southern California SoCalTech Competition 214

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 15, 2017

Unless you are a true loner, you need someone like-minded but complementary in skills to help you with the startup plans. Almost anyone can handle this without professional help, and the cost is less than $100 in many states. Offer to help a couple of customers free, just to get your act together and your presence known.

Help 56

Help Startup Social Network Activity 56

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 3, 2022

At least, these professional networking events allow you to get out of the office and meet people who can help. Seek mentoring from established industry leaders. The right mentors can give you timely and unbiased feedback on your business, industry trends, and emerging competitors.

Marketing 119

Marketing Social Media Mentor Conference 119

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 9, 2021

In these days of rapid change, the pandemic, and worldwide competition, you need to make sure your entire team is customer-focused, innovative, and always looking around the corner for the next big thing. Find folks who are customer-centric and sensitive to competition.

Coach 174

Coach Activity Custom Customer 174

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2022

In my role as a business mentor and advisor, I now always look for a culture and recommend team roles that nurture collaboration rather than contention, communities rather than silos , and transparent communication at all levels. Discourage internal team competition and silos. Simplify the feedback sharing process for you and them.

Organization 105

Organization Mentor Startup Training 105

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 21, 2020

Workship - Mentor. Unlike the mentor, who is a coach and teacher, the advocate inspires you to be the best that you can be. The trailblazer is not overly competitive, but always is a few steps ahead and enjoys setting an example that you are inspired by, or motivated to follow. Workship - Advocate. Workship - Trailblazer.

Mentor 135

Mentor Competition Summary Activity 135

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2014

I believe their competitive advantage is their top on-site leadership, exclusivity, and connections to investors. Mentoring and technical assistance from volunteer or paid experts. An incubator won’t help you if the market opportunity is small, the competitors are large, or your solution doesn’t address a real need.

Incubator 98

Incubator Startup Help Resource 98

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 21, 2021

Unless you are a true loner, you need someone like-minded but complementary in skills to help you with the startup plans. Almost anyone can handle this without professional help, and the cost is less than $100 in many states. Offer to help a couple of customers free, just to get your act together and your presence known.

Startup 156

Startup Social Network Activity Ideas 156

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. In addition, you can reduce to soft costs of mentoring, relationship building, and socializing.

Outsource 123

Outsource Startup Technical Review Training 123

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Competitive (Athlete: skier & rowed at Princeton, hates losing at everything she does). Operating experience (Helped run parts of CitySearch & UrbanSpoon, tons of product management experience, Board of Hatch Labs which helped spawn Tinder). She is a coach and mentor to team members.

Venture Capital 408

Venture Capital Startup Outsource Development CitySearch 408

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2021

I’ve always wondered if there was some way that I could quickly deduce a new entrepreneur’s “sweet spot,” and optimize my mentoring to those strengths and weaknesses, maybe similar to the Myers-Briggs type indicator for business professionals. Ultimately, most get the best help from business advisors and mentors. Opportunist.

Entrepreneur 134

Entrepreneur Framework Mentor Web 134

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 29, 2021

As a long-time business advisor and mentor to entrepreneurs, I consistently find that the most thriving businesses are people-centric, and those team members create the best processes, rather than the other way around. People-centric leaders realize that the right motivated and accountable people are their real competitive advantage.

Satisfaction 154

Satisfaction Demand Resource Competition 154

socalTECH

OCTOBER 3, 2011

Department of Energy to help foster student entrepreneurs via a business plan competition run by the group called First Look West. The new effort, led by Caltech's Resnick Institute, is hoping to tap into OnGreen's network to find mentors to guide student groups and clean energy projects.

CalTech 165

CalTech UCLA Southern California Pasadena 165

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2020

In my own experience as a startup advisor and mentor, I find that entrepreneurs who can’t attract and maintain a highly motivated team rarely even get off the ground. Yet many managers unintentionally de-motivate their team by being too busy with business challenges to communicate, understand, or help people. Start today.

Product 129

Product Examples Mentor Activity 129

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 4, 2021

The last thing they can afford is to waste any of these, but in my mentoring and coaching activities, I see it happening all too often. Waste in a startup is any activity that burns resources, but creates no value or competitive advantage in the eyes of customers. Hire real help and learn to delegate. Lack of communication.

Startup 161

Startup Resource Training Entrepreneur 161

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

If your mission is to change the world or help the disadvantaged, another dating site or online gambling may not be for you, no matter how financially lucrative. For example , when Yvon Chouinard founded Patagonia , a successful outdoor products company, his real goal was building safe products to help the environment.

Startup 94

Startup Ideas Metrics Entrepreneur 94

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 16, 2021

Over the years I have spent mentoring entrepreneurs and startups, I often notice the similarities between successful professionals managing their careers and successful entrepreneurs building a business. Reid Hoffman, cofounder of LinkedIn, helped me crystallize these similarities with his classic book “ The Start-up of You.”

Startup 143

Startup Entrepreneur Demand Competition 143

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 10, 2023

Every business organization, large or small, has a variety of individual and team member types that factor into your ability to innovate and change the business to meet evolving customer needs and competition. Your contribution can help a number of other personas overcome doubts and concern, and validate visions with real data.

Coach 96

Coach Ideas Mentor Organization 96

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 24, 2023

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.

Entrepreneur 82

Entrepreneur Competition Press Commerce 82

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 4, 2019

Based on my recent experience as an angel investor, and advisor to new business owners, I now recommend that all entrepreneurs, especially introverts, learn and practice the discipline they need to build and nurture relationships with key constituents through the following activities: Formalize a mentoring relationship with someone you trust.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Mentor Activity Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2022

Many leaders do this today by supporting and promoting a higher-level purpose, beyond profits, such as helping the disadvantaged, sustaining the environment, or Conscious Capitalism. Your role is to provide this enablement, through listening to their needs, and providing personal coaching and mentoring as required.

Product 109

Product Training Customer Custom 109

socalTECH

JUNE 20, 2012

There is a large menu of startup accelerators in the Los Angeles, but one of more established efforts in the area is LaunchpadLA ([link] The effort actually started as an informal mentoring program, but has grown and expanded to follow the accelerator model. It was really just something built for the community to help support entrepreneurs.

Class 261

Class Mentor Startup Santa Monica 261

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2011

Unless you are a true loner, you need someone like-minded but complementary in skills to help you with the startup plans. Almost anyone can handle this without professional help, and the cost is less than $100 in many states. Offer to help a couple of customers free, just to get your act together and your presence known.

Help 92

Help Startup Social Network Ideas 92