socalTECH

OCTOBER 23, 2012

One of the biggest complaints that local entrepreneurs have with Los Angeles has been a dearth of local sources of venture capital. We sat down with TX Zhuo , who is heading up the firm's venture investments, about the fund and his path here after a recent stint at Eric Schmidt's Innovation Endeavors fund in Palo Alto.

Funding 253

Funding Startup Invest Commerce 253

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 12, 2011

As I look back over more than fifty years as an entrepreneur, I can think of the financial focus of my three entrepreneurial businesses as a prime driver in my life during the early stage of each. And yet, as I recall the greatest thrills, the memorable events, the best of memories, almost none are about the money.

Coach 216

Coach Organization Invest Sales 216

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2011

If your startup is looking for an angel investor, does it makes sense to present your plan to flocks of angels, and assume that at least one will swoop down and scoop you up? In reality, hitting large numbers of angels in multiple locations with a generic pitch is one of the least productive approaches.

Angel 97

Angel Entrepreneur Startup Journal 97

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 2, 2023

I guarantee that there comes a time when growing businesses outgrow the original span of control of the entrepreneur. It is a critical period and is a test of the entrepreneur’s desire and ability to delegate. Email readers, continue here…] My story of “that rock” in one paragraph. Comfort, or risk-it-all?

.Net 156

.Net Los Angeles Content Entrepreneur 156

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

I am taking the lead from GRP and we also invested alongside a number of friends including Dave McClure, Dave Tisch, Ben Smith (Merchant Circle), Brian Lee (ShoeDazzle, LegalZoom), Jason Calacanis, Evan Rifkin, Jennifer Lum, Jay Weintraub and a whole host of other angels. When Ethan was considering leaving Google we talked about it.

CTO Coach 359

CTO Coach Google CTO Hire Yammer 359

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 10, 2011

In my ongoing quest to get you good transcripts of the wonderful interviews we’ve done in the past, I present you with one amazing interview here with Tom McInerney – a friend, co-investor, former entrepreneur turned angel investor and “wizard of Oz&# behind the scenes at the uber hot startup Klout.

Angel 302

Angel Startup Ideas .Net 302

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 22, 2010

On why you should be an entrepreneur, “A lot of people do what they have to do. Last night I co-hosted a dinner at Soho House in Los Angeles with some of the most senior people in the media industry with executives from Disney, Fox, Warner, media agencies and many promising tech & media startup CEO’s.

Entrepreneur 356

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Startup Email 356

Berkonomics

JANUARY 25, 2024

Everyone, even seasoned CEO’s can use a good coach who knows how to bring out the best in a person, is knowledgeable about the business process, and who has an extended list of relationships to call upon to fill needs that become obvious in the coaching process. Business coaches come in all sizes and shapes. It is worth asking.

Coach 156

Coach Organization Resource Equity 156

Berkonomics

APRIL 20, 2023

But… I read several years ago that the average startup restaurant lasts only about a year. We have years of real data to call upon: data that impacts both investors and entrepreneurs. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 50% of all businesses survive five years or more, and about one-third survive ten years or more.

Statistics 156

Statistics Startup Study Invest 156

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

There is a lot to say about retaining control. Friends, family and fools: [Email readers, continue here…] This term, although pejorative, describes the typical mix of early investors in a small, young growing business. Professional angels: This is the arena where I work and play.

Venture Capital 295

Venture Capital Startup Class Invest 295

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 19, 2009

This is part of my new series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. Much is also about luck and timing.

Entrepreneur 288

Entrepreneur Startup Slides Seed Funding 288

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

If you follow the Twittersphere you may have noticed several people weighing in on this recent piece by Mike Isaac of the NY Times, asking “ How Many Angels is Too Many? I myself coined the term ENIFA (everyone now is a f **g angel) in 2011 but it didn’t stick as well as the term Unicorn did. Morrill said.

Angel 150

Angel Startup Seed Funding Invest 150

InfoChachkie

MARCH 18, 2013

In order to extract value beyond your Angel investors' cash, you must first assess three important parameters: (i) the relative strength of their personal brand, (ii) their ability to add operational value, and (iii) the amount of care and feeding they will demand from you. Four Common Angel Archetypes.

Angel 217

Angel Technical Review RSS Entrepreneur 217

Berkonomics

APRIL 7, 2022

An entrepreneur makes a claim that stretches comfort. The entrepreneur–founder explained this problem away by stating that the designers and manufacturers would ship direct after we’d grown to a large enough size. How about you and your gut feelings? But something had bothered me from the very start – unsalable inventory.

Design 156

Design Blogging Course Email 156

Berkonomics

SEPTEMBER 24, 2020

My immediate family members were entrepreneurs from as far back as I can trace. So, it seemed perfectly natural that my brother and I find our separate callings as entrepreneurs from the very start. First, our family DNA made us comfortable talking about risk and self-discovery in running a business, even without formal training.

Press 156

Press Entrepreneur Training Equity 156

TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 5, 2022

From Los Angeles to Silicon Valley , a trend emerged among social media influencers and startup founders alike: move into a mansion with 10 or so collaborators, work day and night together to build fame and wealth, and hope that your new roommates do their dishes. A post shared by Collab Studios (@collabstudiosatl).

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Platform Social Media Netflix Content 210

Berkonomics

AUGUST 13, 2020

In fact, many angel investors or venture capitalists look for and respect the lessons learned by entrepreneurs that have survived a failed business. The key question is: Why did an entrepreneur fail? A successful entrepreneur who has seen the movie before is even more valued. How about you?

Startup 156

Startup Entrepreneur Venture Capital Course 156

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2023

Most entrepreneurs I meet are reluctant to disclose anything about their idea to investors before getting a signed confidential disclosure agreement (CDA). Yet I can assure you that people who are paranoid, or want to avoid all risks, won’t be happy as entrepreneurs, so it’s all about balancing the risk-reward scale.

Technical Review 101

Technical Review Patents Ideas Sample 101

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2011

And it was a great lesson to talk about with my son afterward. For the same reason I loved the much more flawed story of Anvil , who interestingly came from Toronto, about 100 miles away from where Justin Bieber grew up. With my son we were able to talk afterward about how hard Justin worked to achieve his dream.

Entrepreneur 398

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Blogging 398

SoCal Tech Calendar

NOVEMBER 4, 2009

Thursday, November 5, 2009 -- Tech Coast Angels Happy Hour. The Tech Coast Angels is having its first ever "entrepreneur happy hour", and I would like to invite you to attend - something new for Orange County. Email sid@venturefarm.com.

Tech Coast Angels 100

Tech Coast Angels Orange County Angel Email 100

InfoChachkie

JULY 21, 2016

The reality television show Shark Tank makes for entertaining content but many of its underlying messages are potentially detrimental to tech entrepreneurs. Thus, emerging entrepreneurs should parse fact from fantasy by watching the show with an experienced business pro. It is also an inspirational alter call to entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Entertainment Technical Review Ideas 100

Technology Council

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

The Tech Coast Angels talk about improving your chances for long-term success in the lead article of the November SCribe Newsletter. Here are quick links to the feature articles in this issue: Lessons For Entrepreneurs From Tech Coast Angels. 10 Invisible Threats To Every Business.

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Tech Coast Angels Newsletter Angel Entrepreneur 100

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 9, 2014

The trends are well understood: more angels, more seed funds, more crowdsourcing and so forth. I have blogged about some of the downside consequences of the changes and the private information I have says the consequences are much worse than is reported in the press since few people publicly talk about.

Venture Capital 352

Venture Capital Seed Funding Email Blogging 352

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 17, 2020

We’ve worried together about the moral obligation implicit in taking such investments from people so close, even with their promise never to expect a return. And we’ve spoken openly about your fear that you must succeed and perhaps even cover any losses – even without a formal promise or requirement to do so.

Equity 156

Equity Technical Review Class Organization 156

TechCrunch LA

APRIL 7, 2020

Thousands of companies have indicated interest in the last several days,” a spokesperson wrote in an email. Many companies and their investors are confused about whether they are even eligible for stimulus money — and if they are eligible whether they should apply. Meanwhile startup entrepreneurs are left holding the bag.

Startup 167

Startup Email Los Angeles Entrepreneur 167

Berkonomics

JANUARY 28, 2021

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked away from deals where the entrepreneur insists on a start-up pre-money valuation that is so high, no angel could expect to make a return upon the investment, even with a reasonable sales price for the company down the road. And here’s the “why.”.

Outsource Development 156

Outsource Development Startup Outsource Venture Capital 156

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 2, 2011

It’s apropos because there is so much noise these days with email, Twitter, Facebook, blogs, web shows, etc. But aside from choosing the time of day to focus on signal vs. noise, Brad’s post got me thinking about another question – what is signal and what is noise? They could chat about it with their peers or mentors.

Email 287

Email Blogging Venture Capital Writing 287

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

Business success is still more about the people than the technology or idea involved. As an angel investor and a mentor to entrepreneurs I still see this every day. Every entrepreneur needs to start by setting a major purpose for embarking down a specific business path. Personal initiative. Imagination. Enthusiasm.

Technical Review 119

Technical Review Ideas Entrepreneur Custom 119

Berkonomics

MARCH 29, 2018

As one illustration among many I can recall, let me tell you the story of the first investment made by a newly organized formal group of angel investors. The young, eager entrepreneur immediately agreed, and the business was launched, well- funded and anticipating great profits. Some of you can guess that name of the group.

Startup 243

Startup Entrepreneur Invest Angel 243

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 25, 2015

Business success is still more about the people than the technology or idea involved. As an angel investor and a mentor to entrepreneurs I still see this every day. Every entrepreneur needs to start by setting a major purpose for embarking down a specific business path. Personal initiative. Imagination. Enthusiasm.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Ideas Custom Customer 108

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 16, 2010

Mike Wolf is a mentor of mine, and a role model for many technology entrepreneurs and investors in the Phoenix, Arizona, area. More recently, he has invested in numerous local startups, while mentoring and advising hundreds of young entrepreneurs. Marty: When did you know that you were first destined to be an entrepreneur?

Entrepreneur 84

Entrepreneur Angel Startup Mentor 84

Berkonomics

MARCH 9, 2017

I read several years ago, that the average startup restaurant lasts only about a year. We have years of real data to call upon: data that impacts both investors and entrepreneurs. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 50% of all businesses survive five years or more, and about one-third survive ten years or more. And, the U.S.

Startup 266

Startup Statistics Tech Coast Angels Study 266

TechCrunch LA

MARCH 19, 2020

A new initiative from a Los Angeles investor is taking stock of venture firms and their ability to commit capital in an effort to match firms that are still open for business and cutting checks to startups that are fundraising in the age of COVID-19. — Laurent Grill (@laurentgrill) March 18, 2020.

Venture Capital 135

Venture Capital Capital Technical Review Los Angeles 135

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2021

Most entrepreneurs I meet are reluctant to disclose anything about their idea to investors before getting a signed confidential disclosure agreement (CDA). Yet I can assure you that people who are paranoid, or want to avoid all risks, won’t be happy as entrepreneurs, so it’s all about balancing the risk-reward scale.

Ideas 159

Ideas Tips Technical Review Patents 159

Berkonomics

JANUARY 21, 2021

And if you are making a one-to-one presentation, don’t start without a conversation about the other person’s knowledge of your space. Email readers, continue here…] If your audience is composed of PhD’s in organic chemistry, would you want to explain the most elementary teachings in the field? How I ask the question.

Slides 156

Slides Startup Venture Capital Email 156

Berkonomics

JUNE 5, 2014

One entrepreneur has a company which appears to be scalable to a $30 million exit value in five to eight years, and a second entrepreneur’s venture seems to be scalable to $200 million in exit value in the same time frame. Yet, at the pre-revenue stage of development, angel investors price both companies at a pre-money valuation of $1.5

Startup 232

Startup Pricing Invest Email 232

Berkonomics

APRIL 24, 2014

Often I see executive summaries from entrepreneurs who have never managed any form of business, or even managed employees in their past life, and who don’t know the first thing about business formation and managing for growth. I used to tell them to find a partner with knowledge in business creation and management.

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Coach Seed Funding Summary Incubator 250