Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2019

Image via Flickr by World Economic Forum 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. Face-to-face mentoring generates more inspiration.

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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. Building relationships, and finding ways for a win-win, is what mentoring is about.

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Mentor Entrepreneur Satisfaction Summary 73

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 28, 2021

In other words, the entrepreneur quality is more important than the idea -- in investor jargon, people invest in the jockey, and not the horse. High leaders continually challenged their own ideas and were quicker to adapt them to encompass new information, experiences, and meaning. Find and enjoy the company of one or more mentors.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2023

But, for the rest of us, don’t believe the Silicon Valley myth that all you have to do is sketch your million-dollar idea on the back of a napkin, and investors will line up to give you money. A great business plan doesn’t have to be a book in length, with extensive financial statements.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 29, 2015

As a business mentor, I sometimes feel besieged by people begging for my view and support of their latest idea. In reality, I like most ideas, but I have to tell them that the real challenge is taking the inspiration from a dream to a business. Now you see why no one should judge business success potential by the idea alone.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2023

Over my many years of mentoring aspiring entrepreneurs and business professionals, I often hear a desire to start a new business, with a big hesitation while waiting for that perfect idea and perfect alignment of the stars. So don’t wait for that “idea of the century” that no one has ever thought of before.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 27, 2022

A few years ago I read a classic book “ The Rudolph Factor ,” by Cyndi Laurin and Craig Morningstar, which is all about finding the bright lights that can drive innovation in your business. To others, it may appear as if their ideas come out of the blue or that there is no rhyme or reason behind their thinking. Connect the dots.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2021

Kevin Cope, in his classic book “ Seeing the Big Picture ”, does a great job of outlining the basics of business acumen for executives, and helped me assimilate some practical ideas on building the essential elements for entrepreneurs: Reserve time daily to research the market, as well as technology.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2012

I’m a big fan of mentoring in business, and have been at different times on both the contributing and receiving end of the process. These days, I seem to often hear from entrepreneurs who are struggling to find a mentor, or complaining about their lack of effectiveness. When you meet with a mentor, you should lead the discussion.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 22, 2014

As a business mentor, I sometimes feel besieged by people begging for my view and support of their latest idea. In reality, I like most ideas, but I have to tell them that the real challenge is taking the inspiration from a dream to a business. Now you see why no one should judge business success potential by the idea alone.

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Ideas Mentor Entrepreneur Resource 107

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 12, 2021

In his classic book “ Invent, Reinvent, Thrive ,” Lloyd E. Here are the key recommendations from both of us, based on my own business mentoring insights: Re-launch using your enhanced core competency. Listen and act on the ideas of others around you. Find mentors who have the skills you lack.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2017

Most business mentors tell me that the single biggest problem they have to deal with in small companies is the lack of open, honest, and effective communication, both from the top down and from the bottom up. Founders have to communicate their ideas and products to investors, business partners, and the rest of the team.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2017

Entrepreneurs are people who dream up new ideas, and then commercialize them into new businesses. Most people believe that the hard part is coming up with the idea, and the easy part is turning it into a business. This has been particularly surprising to me, since building a business is not rocket science.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 18, 2016

These entrepreneurs know instinctively what needs to be done, but they may have no idea how to get it done through others. Some will argue that people leadership is a skill you have to be born with, but I’m convinced that it can be learned from experience, mentoring, and failures. Set personal leadership goals and solicit feedback.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2021

But, for the rest of us, don’t believe the Silicon Valley myth that all you have to do is sketch your million-dollar idea on the back of a napkin, and investors will line up to give you money. A great business plan doesn’t have to be a book in length, with extensive financial statements.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2022

As a mentor to many business professionals and owners, and aspiring entrepreneurs, I find a wealth of innovative ideas, but often less insight on what it really takes to transform ideas into an income stream that can excite new customers into long-term business success. A great innovation starts with at least three ideas.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 10, 2023

Thus I was happy to see both addressed very well in a new book, “ Decision Sprint ,” by Atif Rafiq. As standalone innovators, these may have trouble recognizing where the mother ship skills and expertise can be applied to develop innovation ideas properly. Coach: force for stability and mentoring.

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InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 8, 2011

I recently reviewed Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson’s book Venture Deals , in THIS ENTRY. I have subsequently recommended the book to number of students as well as emerging entrepreneurs, all of whom expressed positive feedback. . Writing a book is very different from writing a blog. There were a couple motivations.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

In her classic book on this subject, “ Who’s That Sitting at My Desk? ” Here are the key ones I have experienced, as paraphrased from her book: Acquaintanceship. Workship - Mentor. Unlike the mentor, who is a coach and teacher, the advocate inspires you to be the best that you can be. Workship - Advocate.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 10, 2022

Thus, in my mentoring of potential technical entrepreneurs who have a real passion for their technology, I often recommend that they find a co-founder who can manage the marketing and execution elements of the new venture. Many smart people I know fall into the category of “idea” people.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2020

As a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I often feel the frustration of someone trying to build a startup in the wrong place and time, and wrongly attributing their struggle to personal limitations. I saw these addressed well in a new book, “ The Startup Community Way ,” by Brad Feld and Ian Hathaway.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2023

Many aspiring entrepreneurs I mentor can talk at length about their innovative ideas and passions, and ask lots of good questions, but never make much progress in building a real business. In my experience, building a business is much more about getting things done than having great ideas. It’s time to get the help you need.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 1, 2022

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. In my view, business leaders are not “idea people,” but people who drive a given idea to business results. You can’t lead a business to success, if you can’t lead yourself.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 7, 2023

As an angel investor, I quickly look behind the idea or solution, to gauge the mindset and the leadership capabilities of the entrepreneur. That’s why the classic book, “ The Leader’s Mindset: How to Win In The Age Of Disruption ,” resonated strongly with me. For them, adapting and stretching their limits is the norm.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 7, 2022

As a mentor to young aspiring entrepreneurs , I often get asked for tips on a strategy to get started. Don’t be shy about networking for advisors with business experience for coaching and mentoring. Raising money is difficult, even with the best idea, so don’t assume any entitlement to loans, grants, or seed funding.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2023

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. If you are looking for specifics, as well as the science behind it, you should take a look at the classic book, “ Trust Factor – The Science of Creating High-Performance Companies ,” by Paul J.

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Claremont Mentor Study Startup 101

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2021

Perhaps luckily, they have no idea that scaling the business and maintaining vitality as a mature business is even harder. The importance and reality of this need has been detailed well in the classic book, “ State of Readiness ,” by Joseph F. Your task is follow-up in support, mentoring, and setting goals.

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Tips Startup Mentor Press 170

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 15, 2023

Almost every entrepreneur starts their journey by developing a solution, based on their idea of a new technology or required service. These idea and developer skills are necessary, but not sufficient, to build a business. Create and use new networks to tap new ideas. But we can all learn and step up if we get the right guidance.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2022

As a mentor for aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs, I talk to a fair number who may have a great vision and a strong engineering background, but have a negative interest in the role of public speaking in business. In her book, Jan devotes a whole chapter to speaking to the media, as a key aspect of public speaking.

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Marketing Entrepreneur Customer Custom 113

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 21, 2020

In her classic book on this subject, “ Who’s That Sitting at My Desk? ” Here are the key ones I have experienced, as paraphrased from her book: Acquaintanceship. Workship - Mentor. Unlike the mentor, who is a coach and teacher, the advocate inspires you to be the best that you can be. Workship - Advocate.

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Mentor Competition Summary Coach 135

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2022

These challenges, with recommendations for addressing them, were detailed nicely for me in the classic book, “ The Boomerang Principle ,” by Lee Caraher, who has built several companies, and has helped many others manage Millennials, reduce turnover, and improve satisfaction and the return hire rate.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 18, 2023

On the other hand, I remember a classic book, “ The 10% Entrepreneur: Live Your Startup Dream Without Quitting Your Day Job ,” by Patrick J. He makes some good points in the book for the overlapped entrepreneur approach that I espouse: One job is not enough these days. Make sure you have the right idea before risking all.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2021

I n my experience mentoring new entrepreneurs and aspiring business leaders, I see far too many who seem to be driven by all the wrong reasons. When Bill Gates acted on his dream of putting a computer in every home and on every desk, he had no idea of the fortune it would bring to him, since he wanted only to make a difference.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2021

What these people need is more relationships, not more experts, more blogs, or more books. This is a concise, well-practiced description of your idea or your startup, delivered with conviction to start a relationship in the time it takes to ride up an elevator. Nominate someone as your mentor. Work on your elevator pitch.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2020

Take a deeper dive into your idea before you declare. High-level ideas rarely make good business solutions. From the work and feedback, you will learn much on how your solution will fare with customers, before building the product Tap expert sources in other domains for ideas. He is quoted as saying, “I have not failed.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2021

I found the classic book, “ Master Your Time, Master Your Life ,” by noted speaker and productivity expert Brian Tracy, who highlights decision making and problem solving as one of the most critical determinants of your success in everything you do. Having a great idea is necessary, but not sufficient, to create a great business.

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Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 5, 2012

Huddlewoo a live video platform set to launch early 2013 to give people the ability to access extraordinary people for one-on-one conversations and mentoring. This challenge grew into the idea that became Huddlewoo. I am constantly reading articles, stories and books about and written by fascinating people. They are all right!

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