Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 18, 2018

Write it down. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. Pick a reasonable time period and write down the date when you want to achieve it. Then develop a business plan which embodies all of the above. Don’t delay.

Writing 97

Writing Organization Satisfaction Entrepreneur 97

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2020

I refer back to the classic book, “ A Crowdfunder’s Strategy Guide ,” by Jamey Stegmaier, one of the biggest thought leaders on crowdfunding, and who has also run several successful Kickstarter projects, that together have raised many millions of dollars. You need a polished, tested concept, not just an idea.

Startup 151

Startup Equity Funding Demand 151

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

So I thought I’d write about out with what I would look for in a VC knowing what I know now and why. Of course it is super helpful if a VC can drop you in to important people for business development, recruiting, PR, sales and eventually M&A. The best way – of course – is to reference check. Connections?

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

It’s true the some VCs have started writing so many checks that they resemble stock pickers but the majority of us still have less than 10 board seats at any time and tend to go pretty deep so the result is that we care deeply about where we commit our time. And finally it comes down to the good old instinct test.

Technical Review 418

Technical Review Software Review CTO Hire IP 418

TechEmpower

MARCH 27, 2013

The following post is a comprehensive summary of the developer-facing changes coming in Java 8. At the time of this writing, Java 8 development is still very much in progress. Static method reference: String::valueOf. Non-static method reference: Object::toString. Capturing method reference: x::toString.

Java 560

Java Class Software Review Examples 560

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2016

Write it down. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. Pick a reasonable time period and write down the date when you want to achieve it. Then develop a business plan which embodies all of the above. Don’t delay.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Writing Organization Satisfaction 102

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2020

Your gut-feelings are important, but need to be validated by normal background and reference checks. I recommend a thirty to ninety-day trial period, defined in writing, where either party can terminate the relationship without recourse. Candidates with few credentials on paper may be your best growth candidates.

Organization 135

Organization Satisfaction Entrepreneur Screening 135

socalTECH

DECEMBER 11, 2018

San Diego-based Wildfire Systems , led by startup veteran Jordan Glazier , has developed software which product referrals and automatically transform them into trackable links across email, text messaging, chat, and social messaging. Jordan Glazier: Wildfire has developed a platform for monetizing social messaging. How does this work?

San Diego 159

San Diego Social Media Commerce Snapchat 159

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 27, 2011

But should you actually write one if you’re a startup, an industry figure (lawyer, banker) or VC? This is a post to help you figure out why you should write and what you should talk about. So you developed a product for the mommy community? Do you have an application that helps mobile developers build HTML5 apps?

Blogging 373

Blogging Startup Writing Venture Capital 373

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 21, 2014

You join teams that got good write-ups on TechCrunch, have great VCs, have star CEO’s, whatever. When you’re hiring most reference checkers focus on the person’s former bosses. Just literally this week I had breakfast with a guy giving a reference who said, “He’s brilliant. You REALLY know.

CTO Hire 320

CTO Hire Startup CTO Coach Venture Capital 320

Eric Greenspan

AUGUST 6, 2012

As I write this, I’m getting ready for my first full day of work in my new career. Working with a world renowned architect and his team, I’ve been asked to spearhead a human-centric community development project celebrating diversity, providing new sustainable organic principles and creating new economies for living and working.

Writing 122

Writing Startup Conference Organization 122

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 3, 2013

But while universities are developing online content they are not fundamentally disrupting leaning because the method of delivery is not a new business model. In many ways I think general purpose writing & thinking skills are as valuable as math skills. “Online education is truly going to kill us.” Freemium.

Venture Capital 403

Venture Capital Education Offshore Outsource Development 403

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2013

In my first enterprise software company we developed a methodology for sales that we called PUCCKA. These references make for great discussions with customers. If you have enough references in your arsenal you obviously want to pick out ones that you believe will resonate with your prospect due to job function or industry.

Sales 367

Sales Slides Startup Customer 367

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 15, 2014

In their book, The Leadership Challenge , James Kouzes and Barry Posner reference three surveys, each of which lists honesty as the most admired trait among successful leaders. Thus, entrepreneurs have a significant incentive to develop and maintain long-term stakeholder relationships built on honesty and trust.

Entrepreneur 189

Entrepreneur Sales Writing Customer 189

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

To be clear, I define a product specification as the technical definition of your product, to be used for development and testing purposes, with a quick business summary for context. The best way to do this is to reference actual data from a recent similar startup success. You need both to survive.

Product 169

Product Summary Startup Examples 169

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 6, 2010

developing a product you might like to survey prospective customers without biasing their answers. doing a reference call on a prospective employee. THE REFERENCE CALL: Reference calls are hard. We’ve obviously had a great experience interviewing him or we wouldn’t be doing reference calls.

Startup 311

Startup Invest Course Research 311

TechEmpower

FEBRUARY 14, 2017

If you write a lot of Java code, then you should read that book and follow its advice. If you don't want to use Guava, then wrap the modifiable Enum{Set,Map} instances in Collections.unmodifiableSet(set) or Collections.unmodifiableMap(map) and throw away the direct references to the modifiable collections. forEachRemaining(.).

Java 330

Java Class Ideas Writing 330

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2013

Write it down. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. Pick a reasonable time period and write down the date when you want to achieve it. Then develop a business plan which embodies all of the above. Don’t delay.

Writing 103

Writing Organization Satisfaction Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 28, 2018

Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). The first step toward a business with any idea is to write it down, and build a business plan around it. Don’t waste your resources on the wrong ones.

Funding 94

Funding Startup Organization Incubator 94

socalTECH

MARCH 16, 2017

We are going to write checks of between $100,000 and $500,000, and we are going to invest in what we are calling first institutional capital. We help companies do the same kind of thing, except with corporate development. Our investment thesis we refer to as the connected consumer. Where are you planning making investments?

Invest 145

Invest Funding Capital Startup 145

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 9, 2012

I told him only 2 weeks ago when we were in London together that I wanted to write a blog post that has been in my head for 2 years. These engagements went well and he came highly referred by my friend Gary Swart who runs oDesk. The Dave I know is very insightful about marketing, channel management and building developer ecosystems.

Startup 309

Startup Venture Capital Email Writing 309

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

Of course in-person is best for true relationship development but that’s not always practical. Write your set of bullet points on paper before the call. If you’re having a negotiation you can refer back to individual points later. You CANNOT do this on email. Or Twitter. Text is often tone deaf. Take notes.

Startup 150

Startup Email Writing Course 150

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 7, 2018

A critical stage for most first-time entrepreneurs is getting their idea developed into at least a prototype to validate their technology. This phase is intended to allow you to complete the research and development on your innovative product. Another alternative is to find an inexpensive class on grant writing.

Funding 90

Funding Technical Review Startup Research 90

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 20, 2013

In my first enterprise software company we developed a methodology for sales that we called PUCCKA , which I wrote about previously. The other worthwhile exercise is to write down what your competitors uses as its USPs – even ones that you don’t think are really valuable to customers. The first post covered the topic of “P” or pain.

Sales 336

Sales Startup Competition Customer 336

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2015

This term refers to the penchant to add just one more feature to the product or service before first delivery, just because you can. Remember that in new product development, as in writing, addition by subtraction is the Golden Rule.

Technical Review 104

Technical Review Product Software Review High Tech 104

Tech Zulu Event

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

The key to networking in the tech world is you do not need to be the best in the world, you just need to be passionate, willing to learn and in a lot of cases be the best designer or developer that people know. A couple of these people have offered me freelance work, or referred me to others for job leads. Apply for jobs you want.

Design 91

Design Networking Social Media Google 91

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 16, 2011

Write it down. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. On the other hand, most people don’t hesitate to write down excuses. Pick a reasonable time period and write down the date when you want to achieve it. Then develop a business plan which embodies all of the above. Don’t delay.

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Writing Organization Satisfaction 100

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 22, 2012

After all, if your VCs won’t help you get access to potential buyers or business development partners – what will they do? This might be somebody I know well (thus the email will come very highly referred) or somebody I just met for which the company will get the “I just met this person. Helping with a Sales Lead.

Email 359

Email Venture Capital Startup Technical Review 359

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 23, 2013

I’ve been writing a series on a simple methodology that we used at my first enterprise software company. In an early-stage business where your product is less developed the business case might be higher level. Preferably you’d have a customer testimonial where the customer reference will be able to talk through their economic benefits.

Sales 328

Sales Customer Custom Examples 328

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 20, 2013

Brad Feld seems to write books faster than I can read and write about them. He teamed up with his wife, Amy Batchelor , to write about about the impact that entrepreneurship has on relationships and what to do about it. It’s an enjoyable read and one I’ll bet you refer back to rather than read once and file away.

Entrepreneur 370

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Social Network 370

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2013

This term refers to the penchant to add just one more feature to the product or service before first delivery, just because you can. Remember that in new product development, as in writing, addition by subtraction is the Golden Rule.

Technical Review 110

Technical Review Startup Software Review High Tech 110

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). The first step toward a business with any idea is to write it down, and build a business plan around it. Don’t waste your resources on the wrong ones.

Organization 93

Organization Startup Incubator Ideas 93

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 31, 2015

I have attention deficit disorder, it is a real condition , I have been diagnosed including having radioactive isotopes through my brain to map my development and yet I’m a leader, I have accomplished much, I did well in school and went on to earn a master’s degree and I can actually concentrate when I want to. Email twice.

Startup 150

Startup Writing Class Orange County 150

TechEmpower

FEBRUARY 10, 2016

We’ve heard this from startup founders, product managers, development team leads, CTOs, and others who see their product gaining traction, but simultaneously see performance falling off a cliff. Here, when we speak of performance, we are specifically referring to the speed of the application in providing responses to requests.

Web 200

Web Technical Advisors Framework Technical Review 200

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

If you don’t follow the image reference above or the tag line, “ You don’t need double talk; you need Bob Loblaw “ (try saying it out loud) , and if you care! I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes. Shame about not getting it in legal writing that you owned the original IP.

Startup 318

Startup IP Southern California Entrepreneur 318

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

I’ve started writing up some of those sales & marketing lessons and I plan to continue to build that section out over time. They like a solid product, well defined pricing, good references to sell against, a clear quota and well defined competitors. We have 12 developers and they have 3. Please call our references.

Sales 316

Sales Startup Pricing Customer 316

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 15, 2013

Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). The first step toward a business with any idea is to write it down, and build a business plan around it. Don’t waste your resources on the wrong ones.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Funding Incubator Startup 102