Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2021

In my role as mentor to business professionals, I often get the question about your potential of going out on your own as an entrepreneur, versus your current role of working for a boss at an established company. There are no startup expert roles. Entrepreneurs must react and recover quickly.

Entrepreneur 158

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Ideas Social Media 158

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 2, 2019

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. Are you confident and disciplined in facing tough challenges?

Entrepreneur 135

Entrepreneur Mentor Ideas Writing 135

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2020

Even though I’m a big proponent of becoming an entrepreneur, it is definitely not for everyone. Here are a few of my favorites sampling techniques that I have seen work out well over the years: Take a job for a while with an early-stage startup. Adopt the Silicon Valley entrepreneur family model.

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Sample Entrepreneur Ideas Startup 126

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2021

One of the most important skills for every entrepreneur is timely and effective decision making. In a startup, any decision is better than no decision. The best entrepreneurs relish this role, while others struggle mightily and ultimately lose their health and their company. Expand your definition of the problem.

Startup 140

Startup Entrepreneur Ideas Coach 140

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 29, 2021

An underutilized, but valuable resource, every startup should investigate is a formal or informal connection to your alma mater, including any local university. Here is a short list of the areas where you should be able to find help, whether you are a student or an independent entrepreneur: Exploring hot ideas. Connections to a mentor.

Incubator 172

Incubator Mentor Class Resource 172

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 6, 2022

Investing in entrepreneurs and startups is a fun but different world from investing in conventional stocks, bonds, and commodities. First of all, it’s more of an investment in people than in a business, since the startup is usually an idea barely half-baked when they need your money. Start in a business domain you know well.

Startup 120

Startup Invest Equity Incubator 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2019

In my years of mentoring entrepreneurs, a problem I have seen too often is low self-esteem, and over-compensating through arrogance and ego. These entrepreneurs find it hard to respect customers or team members, and their ventures usually fail. Fortunately, both can be fixed. Make you the base, not others.

Entrepreneur 98

Entrepreneur Startup Satisfaction Competition 98

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 6, 2019

Investing in entrepreneurs and startups is a fun but different world from investing in conventional stocks, bonds, and commodities. First of all, it’s more of an investment in people than in a business, since the startup is usually an idea barely half-baked when they need your money. Start in a business domain you know well.

Invest 89

Invest Entrepreneur Startup Equity 89

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2012

The dictionary definition of a mentor is “an experienced and trusted advisor,” or “leader, tutor or coach.” The definition of a critic sounds similar, “a person who offers reasoned judgment or analysis.” We can all learn from both of these approaches, but in my view the mentor is far more valuable than a critic.

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Mentor Entrepreneur Tips Coach 96

socalTECH

JANUARY 22, 2019

This morning's interview is with Kevin O'Connor , a longtime investor and serial entrepreneur, who is now running venture capital investment firm ScOp Venture Capital. I ended up doing that for eight years, when it was bought by Amazon for use in Alexa, which is really cool. Kevin O'Connor: Definitely.

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Venture Capital Startup Invest Capital 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 3, 2023

One of the reasons that now is the time to be an entrepreneur is the explosion of startup assistance organizations, usually called incubators or accelerators. Most of these are non-profits, set up by a university to commercialize new technologies, or a municipality to foster business development for the local economy.

Organization 92

Organization Incubator Startup Resource 92

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2022

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. Are you confident and disciplined in facing tough challenges?

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Mentor Ideas Writing 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 15, 2022

In my years of mentoring entrepreneurs, a problem I have seen too often is low self-esteem, and over-compensating through arrogance and ego. These entrepreneurs find it hard to respect customers or team members, and their ventures usually fail. Fortunately, both can be fixed. Make you the base, not others.

Startup 101

Startup Satisfaction Entrepreneur Competition 101

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 3, 2014

I believe you can be much more productive, as well as a more effective leader, if you approach most meetings as mentoring opportunities, and limit them to five minutes. It works, but in all cases, to be a successful mentor, there are some key things you have to do: Be available always. Start by open listening.

Mentor 101

Mentor High Tech Coach Guide 101

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.

Ideas 145

Ideas Startup Case Study Writing 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2021

By definition, all of you entrepreneurs are leaders, by taking the initiative to start a new company. Yet I have learned over the years as a startup advisor that all business leaders are not the same. You generally don’t fix things by throwing them away and starting over.

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Coach Startup Resource Competition 162

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2021

More and more entrepreneurs are hearing about the successful graduates and investors queued behind a few well-known startup incubators, including Y Combinator, TechStars, and the Founder Institute. His tests focus on personality traits alone (ignoring your startup idea), looking for fluid intelligence, openness, and agreeableness.

Incubator 146

Incubator Technical Review Entrepreneur Mentor 146

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2020

In my own business career, many years as a business advisor, and mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I have validated the following strategies to practice and guide you. A better definition of a problem always leads to a better solution. If this doesn’t come naturally for you today, I assure you that it can be learned.

Satisfaction 152

Satisfaction Mentor Study Startup 152

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 13, 2010

For the first 5 years of my career I was a “bottom up&# thinker and worker. It was difficult to make the transition to a “top down&# thinker but as a senior executive – and as an entrepreneur – you’re far less effective without this skill in your arsenal. I started by doing billing systems.

Entrepreneur 372

Entrepreneur Startup Design Framework 372

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2022

Almost every entrepreneur needs to improve their skills in this area, so I did some research on the basics. It always starts with trust. Set a definite task completion date and a follow-up system. In this way you can check up on progress before the final deadline, without fuzzy questions like “How are you doing?”

Startup 121

Startup SEO Social Media Satisfaction 121

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

As an angel investor and a mentor to entrepreneurs I still see this every day. Since language and implication have changed a bit since then, I’ll restate Carnegie and Hill’s original principles here, with my own current-day commentary and recommendations added: Definiteness of purpose. Personal initiative. Enthusiasm.

Technical Review 119

Technical Review Ideas Entrepreneur Customer 119

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 6, 2015

Investing in entrepreneurs and startups is a fun but different world from investing in conventional stocks, bonds, and commodities. First of all, it’s more of an investment in people than in a business, since the startup is usually an idea barely half-baked when they need your money. Start in a business domain you know well.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Startup Invest Incubator 102

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2016

One of the reasons that now is the time to be an entrepreneur is the explosion of startup assistance organizations, usually called incubators or accelerators. Most of these are non-profits, set up by a university to commercialize new technologies, or a municipality to foster business development for the local economy.

Incubator 106

Incubator Startup Help Resource 106

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2015

In my years of mentoring entrepreneurs, a problem I have seen too often is low self-esteem, and over-compensating through arrogance and ego. These entrepreneurs find it hard to respect customers or team members, and their ventures usually fail. Fortunately, both can be fixed. Make you the base, not others.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Startup Satisfaction Competition 102

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 7, 2013

The good news for entrepreneurs is that there have never been more office space options for early stage companies. The bad news is that it is often difficult to determine which of these alternatives is ideal, since the definition of "ideal" changes as your venture matures. Many Sizes, Many Fits.

Incubator 238

Incubator Startup News Entrepreneur 238

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 16, 2012

I believe you can be much more productive, as well as a more effective leader, if you approach most meetings as mentoring opportunities, and limit them to five minutes. It works, but in all cases, to be a successful mentor, there are some key things you have to do: Be available always. Start by open listening.

Mentor 91

Mentor Product High Tech Coach 91

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 28, 2014

Perhaps sparked by the recent recession, I’m seeing a new era of the entrepreneur, with startups springing up all around. Based on my own mentoring and investing experience, the best entrepreneurs are pragmatic problem solvers. Don’t let it make your startup dysfunctional in resolving future challenges.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Mentor Technical Review Satisfaction 102

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2015

By definition, every startup is predictably unpredictable, since new solutions have no proven track record, startups are usually building a new market, and the world around them is changing faster than ever. Bring in expert advisors and mentors to set initial goals, and build recovery plans.

Startup 105

Startup Entrepreneur Marketing Satisfaction 105

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 8, 2012

TechStars has several excellent mentors on staff, led by founder and CEO David Cohen. By way of a definition, a business or startup incubator is a company, university, or other organization which provides resources to nurture young companies, helping them to survive and grow during the startup period when they are most vulnerable.

Entrepreneur 86

Entrepreneur Incubator Startup Seed Funding 86

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 2, 2022

Most of the entrepreneurs and business owners I work with recognize that they must occupy and practice a primary leadership position , but many will admit that they are not thriving in this role. This is a tough challenge for every coach and mentor. This is a tough challenge for every coach and mentor.

Entrepreneur 90

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Coach Mentor 90

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2015

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. Are you confident and disciplined in facing tough challenges?

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Mentor Ideas Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2014

If you are one of the many people still searching for that job lost during or after the recent depression, or about to dump the loser of a job you have now, you should be working on starting your own business, in parallel with looking for that ideal job. Also, for most of us, not having done it before, we have no idea where or how to start.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Startup Social Network Ideas 102

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 6, 2023

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. According to more recent statistics , fewer than a third of all crowdfunding operations end up being successful, and the rest have to return anything they do collect.

Equity 80

Equity Platform Entrepreneur Statistics 80

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2015

Almost every entrepreneur needs to improve their skills in this area, so I did some research on the basics. It always starts with trust. Set a definite task completion date and a follow-up system. In this way you can check up on progress before the final deadline, without fuzzy questions like “How are you doing?”

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Startup SEO Social Media 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2022

As a startup mentor, I’m always amazed that some entrepreneurs seem to be an immediate hit with investors, while others struggle to get any attention at all. Some entrepreneurs love to talk and produce videos, but hate to write anything down. There is no room in this realm for negativism, excuses, or lack of confidence.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 111

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. Have you ever wondered what professional startup investors think about all this? Lack of checks and balances on startup valuations.

Equity 164

Equity Statistics Platform Entrepreneur 164

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2016

There seems to be a big debate these days about the best approach to starting a new business. Some argue the only way to start is to drop everything and jump in with both feet, while others recommend an overlapped approach to the lifestyle, including not quitting your day job until you have revenue and a proven business model.

Entrepreneur 63

Entrepreneur Startup Satisfaction News 63