Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023

The rate of new entrepreneurs increased between 2013 and 2021, from 280 to 360 out of 100,000 of the adult population. Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever.

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TechCrunch LA

JUNE 10, 2020

In response to VCs’ sudden rush to invest in more Black founders , Black venture capitalists and entrepreneurs have penned a bunch of advice on the best way to tap into talent. The program is expanding to Chicago in 2021, the blog post notes. Among the strategies? Team up with Black firms already doing the work.

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Equity Technical Review Venture Capital Blogging 220

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2021

What are you most looking forward to in the technology/startup world in 2021? For the tech/startup ecosystem in SoCal, I am looking forward to continued momentum in addressing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the workforce and support for emerging entrepreneurs.

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Southern California SoCal Technical Review Startup 202

socalTECH

DECEMBER 23, 2020

In a year filled with challenging news, we were fortunate (across Archer Venture Capital and Liquid Stock) to have some high quality exits in our portfolio, but moreover to see how our amazing entrepreneurs successfully managed the disruption caused by COVID-19. What are you most looking forward to in the technology/startup world in 2021?

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Venture Capital Capital Technical Review Brentwood 124

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 15, 2021

I just finished a new book, “ Backable ,” by Suneel Gupta with Carlye Adler, which solidifies my belief than anyone can learn to be perceived as more credible and persuasive, and it’s a skill that every entrepreneur and business professional needs to master. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 03/01/2021. I can easily relate.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2021

Based on my experience as a business advisor, I’m convinced that most startup investors invest in the entrepreneur, as much as a solution or product. The attitude of taking nothing for granted, of disbelieving the conventional wisdom, of challenging the way things are done, is essential for a winning entrepreneur.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 25, 2020

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of those demanding angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. These groups are now largely run by volunteers at no cost to entrepreneurs. Lack of checks and balances on startup valuations.

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SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 17, 2021

Wednesday, June 23, 2021 -- Viterbi Startup Garage: Oceanside Chat: Cleantech 2.0: What Every Entrepreneur Needs To Know. Who: Aaron Fyke (Founder and Managing Partner of Thin Line Capital). The opportunities in this industry are bigger than any other industry, but the challenges of getting new technologies to market have been many.

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SoCal Tech Calendar

JULY 27, 2021

Wednesday, July 28, 2021 -- Viterbi Startup Garage Oceanside Chat. Join Genevieve LeMarchal at the next Oceanside Chat at USC Viterbi Startup Garage to learn the most common areas that entrepreneurs overlook when seeking their first round of equity funding. Crossing the fundability gap + Summer Smasher Student Showcase.

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Startup USC Equity Entrepreneur 100

TechCrunch LA

APRIL 15, 2021

E-commerce is booming, but among the biggest challenges for entrepreneurs of online businesses are finding a place to store the items they are selling and dealing with the logistics of operating. The company plans to end 2021 with eight locations, in particular eyeing the Denver, Seattle and Los Angeles markets.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

In my role as advisor and mentor to many new entrepreneurs, I often find myself suggesting that they think bigger. We all are excited to hear real innovation, and struggle daily to increase every potential entrepreneur’s scope of thinking. For example, smart entrepreneurs look for recognizable patterns in disconnected domains.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2021

Based on my own years of experience in startups and big business, and more recently as an angel investor, I often cringe when I see one of you entrepreneurs missing a cue that I have seen work for many before you. A passionate entrepreneur I met a while back had found that a certain algae could be grown cheaply, and could end world hunger.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 3, 2021

As a long-time mentor to new entrepreneurs and business owners, I have noticed that many no longer associate more fulfillment and satisfaction with more money, power, and success. It seems that fulfillment to these new entrepreneurs is all about changing the world and legacy. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 01/20/2021.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 23, 2021

Most aspiring entrepreneurs I know are just waiting for that unique idea to strike them that will kickstart their new venture, put them in control of their lifestyle, achieve financial independence, and maybe even change the world. Your legacy may be that of a serial entrepreneur, or an industry giant and world-wide leader.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2021

Every entrepreneur and every business I meet in my consulting and mentoring role has great intentions of bringing real innovation to the market, yet I find that most ideas are merely small extensions to existing solutions. On the other end of the spectrum, entrepreneurs are quick to propose one more feature that they can do easily.

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TechCrunch LA

OCTOBER 8, 2019

Stern is a German entrepreneur who the lawsuit also lists as a friend of Stefan Krause. The first cars are slated to appear on the road by 2021. The company was founded in late 2017, after a meeting in Hong Kong with Pak Tam “David” Li and David Stern, who would become investors in Canoo, according to the lawsuit.

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socalTECH

DECEMBER 23, 2020

We made 7 investments in SoCal founders in our first year (out of 8 total), and even the 1 exception has deep SoCal ties and we hope to relocate her here in 2021. We know that California has seen some criticism for a variety of reasons, but we're believers that SoCal's next decade will be an incredible one for innovation and entrepreneurs.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2021

Yet in my experience on both sides of this equation, I find that many aspiring entrepreneurs focus only on the best idea , assuming that it will attract the right investors. Investors love entrepreneurs who come across as constantly on the lookout for new ideas, and able to grasp the larger implications for market change.

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Ideas Entrepreneur Equity Resource 140

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2021

As a logical and data-driven business advisor, I have long focused on facts, technology, and quantifiable pain in guiding entrepreneurs. I still find entrepreneurs who are passionate about doing good and satisfying customers, but forget to focus on a business model that generates a financial return.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2021

In my experience as an angel investor for new startups, I’m always surprised by how many entrepreneurs are looking for funding without outside advisors. For example, I once was approached by an entrepreneur, passionate that his new algae strain would cure world hunger and make him rich. Bandwidth is a constraint we all feel.

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Startup Technical Review Equity Entrepreneur 142

socalTECH

DECEMBER 30, 2020

What are you most looking forward to in the technology/startup world in 2021? We are extremely focused on these regions in our hunt for Unicorns in 2021. We intend to double down on investing in 2021 with 2 investments a week planned. We have had great traction in India, Afrida and the MENA region.

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Southern California Technical Review Santa Monica Invest 113

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Yet as a business advisor I am convinced that making the jump from a startup to a the next unicorn takes a different mindset, and actions most entrepreneurs are reluctant to face. In my experience, less than half of founding entrepreneurs even aspire to stay and scale their company. Switch your focus from product development to sales.

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Startup Course Sales Entrepreneur 151

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2020

As an advisor to many entrepreneurs, I still hear frequently the irrational exuberance that crowdfunding is the quick alternative for startups that are passed over by overly demanding angels or venture capital investors. Thus crowdfunding is clearly not the panacea for funding and success that many entrepreneurs envision.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 24, 2021

That ability to “ see around the next corner ” seems to be limited to a very few entrepreneurs, such as Steve Jobs and Elon Musk. Too many entrepreneurs I know surround themselves with “yes” people, or they are simply convinced that working alone gives them the best answers. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 11/10/2021.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 9, 2022

The next thing that entrepreneurs need to realize is that the process and framework for making social media marketing work are different from traditional marketing, and trial and error certainly doesn’t work. See some recent examples in the 10 of the Top Social Media Campaigns of 2021.

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Social Media Framework Media Metrics 135

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 23, 2020

Constance Curtis: I have been a successful entrepreneur for the past thirteen years. At that time, I didn't know it would cost me $14,000 to hire my own personal matchmaker, and leaving my first meeting when I learned that, and being an entrepreneur, I realized I had identified a huge problem. How did you start the company?

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

As an advisor to many startups today, I still see that most of you entrepreneurs see yourselves as the sole driver of your new solution, and the key driver of your new business. As your business grows from a startup to a sustainable business, you too have to grow from an entrepreneur to a business leader.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2021

As a long-time business advisor, and an investor in startups along the way, I’m always on the lookout for an entrepreneur who is responding first to a problem in the marketplace , rather than bringing a new technology to the market, assuming it will find a problem to solve. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 08/24/2021.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2021

The recent pandemic was a strong signal for change, and I see most of you entrepreneurs and business owners responding to the business changes required and new opportunities presented. I have found that today new entrepreneurs are much more likely to respond to changes in the marketplace, especially weak ones.

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Marketing Social Media Metrics Customer 162

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2022

With the ITRC 2021 End-of-Year Data Breach Report revealing a 68 percent increase in stolen sensitive personal information, there is a growing population out there worried about all the people intent on hurting them. Internet users need to start watching out for themselves, like looking both ways before you cross the street.

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Customer Custom Technical Review Symantec 137

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2021

As a long-time advisor to new entrepreneurs here in the USA, I’ve long been impressed with the number that come here from other countries, and the positive traits that most of these seem to bring with them. Aspiring entrepreneurs need to all understand that starting a business is not for short-term returns.

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Startup Resource Summary Entrepreneur 146

TechCrunch LA

JUNE 3, 2022

After all, Glossier’s founder and CEO Emily Weiss is very, very far from the first entrepreneur to profit off of our desire to look good. Despite the prevalence of the “girlboss” in pop culture, the reality on the ground for women entrepreneurs has played out much differently. And who cares?

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 2, 2021

In the eyes of investors like me, to be an entrepreneur, it’s not enough to create an innovative solution – you need to convince me that you can build a profitable business. Great entrepreneurs like Elon Musk are always talking about their next venture to another planet, underground transportation, or electric vehicles.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 26, 2021

Thus I recommend to every business owner and entrepreneur that you focus constantly on building and maintaining personal trust through the following strategies: Use storytelling to highlight previous trustworthiness. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 05/11/2021. Avoid over-commitment and under-delivery.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 6, 2021

In my experience, many entrepreneurs rely too much on the perspective of a trusted advisor, or try to emulate a competitor who is getting attention. The challenge is how to develop that self-leadership in every aspiring entrepreneur and business professional role. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 09/21/2021.

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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. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 01/15/2021.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

Almost every entrepreneur and new business owner I mentor is certain that his/her idea has a very high probability of success, and all find it hard to believe that ninety percent of startups ultimately fail. I once met with an entrepreneur who had developed a new algae strain to cure world hunger and make him rich.

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