Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 6, 2020

Most entrepreneurs are so convinced that they are the disruptive element, they fail to anticipate that unknown facts or events can and will occur to disrupt their own well-laid plans. Every entrepreneur needs a succession plan early on the top three people, with a reshuffle and replacement strategy.

Startup 133

Startup Entrepreneur Competition Mentor 133

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 26, 2021

As an entrepreneur mentor, my mission is to foster the attributes in you as a startup founder that I believe will lead to success. For example, I worked with an entrepreneur a while back who was clearly intelligent, had a great idea, and communicated well. Start today. Business success requires buy-in from all.

Entrepreneur 136

Entrepreneur Ideas Examples Mentor 136

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

APRIL 27, 2020

If you want to make a great first impression on a startup investor or an advisor like me, don’t try to convince me or show me how busy you are. For some reason, too many aspiring entrepreneurs I know seem to focus on “actions” rather than “results.” As an entrepreneur starting a new business, you have a lot to learn.

Product 123

Product Startup Tips Entrepreneur 123

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

DECEMBER 31, 2022

Most entrepreneurs are so convinced that they are the disruptive element, they fail to anticipate that unknown facts or events can and will occur to disrupt their own well-laid plans. Every entrepreneur needs a succession plan early on the top three people, with a reshuffle and replacement strategy.

Startup 98

Startup Entrepreneur Competition Mentor 98

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 7, 2020

Every business wants and needs top performers, but most entrepreneurs and executives assume that if they hire and train the smartest and most experienced people, they will get exceptional performance. New team members in a new startup, coming from different backgrounds, may have quite different benchmarks of excellent performance.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Coach Satisfaction Resource 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2021

Based on my experience advising new entrepreneurs as well as more mature businesses, I recommend the following strategies for building business momentum, while still optimizing the limited resources of every small business: Find more customers that like what you do best. Utilize outside expertise and mentoring.

Technical Review 160

Technical Review Technical Advisors Startup Mentor 160

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. Use brainstorming for a range of solutions.

Startup 140

Startup Entrepreneur Ideas Coach 140

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2023

These haven’t changed much over the years, but still seem to be often overlooked by business professionals and leaders in their haste to keep up with peers, competitors, and customers in today’s volatile environment. The reality is that starting a business, as well is working an existing business, has always required perseverance.

Startup 121

Startup Satisfaction Technical Review Ideas 121

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2021

If you sold your last startup for $800 million, you probably already know how to build a business, and even conservative investors won’t worry about the quality of your next business plan. In fact, the process of organizing and documenting these elements is the best way to make sure you understand the answers yourself. I hope not.

Sample 137

Sample Writing Mentor Content 137

InfoChachkie

MARCH 5, 2012

Expansion League Teams In The Startup World. In the past year, the number of startup accelerators and incubators across the US has grown faster than expansion league baseball. If you use the mentor-driven model that we pioneered at TechStars, you get entrepreneurs who are deeply connected with the broader entrepreneurial landscape.

Startup 270

Startup Incubator Doc Mentor 270

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. Once you learn how to make things happen in your own life, starting a business is easy. Follow up and finish something every day.

Writing 92

Writing Ideas Startup Entrepreneur 92

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 18, 2014

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. For aspiring entrepreneurs, or if your last startup failed, it’s all about standing out above the crowd of others like you.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Slides 108

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

NOVEMBER 21, 2014

Most entrepreneurs are so convinced that they are the disruptive element, they fail to anticipate that unknown facts or events can and will occur to disrupt their own well-laid plans. Every entrepreneur needs a succession plan early on the top three people, with a reshuffle and replacement strategy.

Entrepreneur 103

Entrepreneur Startup Competition Mentor 103

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2015

If you sold your last startup for $800 million, you probably already know how to build a business, and even conservative investors won’t worry about the quality of your next business plan. In fact, the process of organizing and documenting these elements is the best way to make sure you understand the answers yourself. I hope not.

Startup 109

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 109

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 5, 2023

Many of you business professionals I meet in my business consulting and mentoring roles seem very determined to advance their career, or even start their own business. Most people find that the act of committing something to paper forces them to face the reality of getting started and measuring progress.

Startup 100

Startup Mentor Education Summary 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2015

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. There is no crowd of successful entrepreneurs. Successful startups are all about the right people with the right stuff.

Startup 104

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Slides 104

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 23, 2020

Everyone who starts or owns a business expects to be the best of breed, but only a few achieve that status. As a startup mentor and advisor, I often contemplate what makes the difference between winners and losers. Stop dreaming about your passion and start acting on it. I believe the best make their own luck.

Startup 121

Startup Mentor Coach SpaceX 121

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 13, 2015

According to most definitions, an entrepreneur is one who envisions a new and different business, meaning one that is not a copy of an existing business model. Many entrepreneurs have a passion and an idea, or even invent a new product, but are never able to execute to the point of creating a startup. Funding and rollout stage.

Entrepreneur 109

Entrepreneur Ideas Satisfaction Summary 109

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 10, 2020

According to most definitions, an entrepreneur is one who envisions a new and different business, meaning one that is not a copy of an existing business model. Many entrepreneurs have a passion and an idea, or even invent a new product, but are never able to execute to the point of creating a startup. Funding and rollout stage.

Ideas 127

Ideas Entrepreneur Satisfaction Summary 127

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 13, 2020

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. Once you learn how to make things happen in your own life, starting a business is easy. Follow up and finish something every day.

Ideas 121

Ideas Writing Startup Entrepreneur 121

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 16, 2023

Every business wants and needs top performers, but most entrepreneurs and executives assume that if they hire and train the smartest and most experienced people, they will get exceptional performance. New team members in a new startup, coming from different backgrounds, may have quite different benchmarks of excellent performance.

Coach 93

Coach Satisfaction Resource Entrepreneur 93

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2021

As a startup mentor and investor, I am approached regularly by aspiring entrepreneurs who assert that business plans take too much time, are inaccurate, and rarely add value. The size of the document should be based on your style, but 10-20 pages or slides are usually more than adequate to outline even a complex business.

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Writing Entrepreneur Slides 126

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 9, 2022

One of the attributes that I often recommend to the business professionals and entrepreneurs I mentor is to always be totally accountable for your actions and ideas. In any business, accountability ideally starts at the top. Document plans and progress, with checkpoints. Be available for mentoring and coaching to others.

Activity 109

Activity Organization Mentor Training 109

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 16, 2013

Once you are able to achieve some real “traction” with your business (paying customers, revenue stream), it may seem the time to relax a bit, but in fact this is the point where many founders start to flounder. All the skills and instincts you needed to get to this level can actually start working against you, and you can fail to scale.

Startup 94

Startup Entrepreneur Coach Mentor 94

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2013

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 87

Startup Invest Incubator Ideas 87

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 11, 2023

Successful entrepreneurs are the ones who think the most creatively, not only in their initial product or service, but more importantly all through the stages of growth from startup to maturity. Entrepreneurs have to be careful not to look too hard for evidence that confirms their passion and positive perspective.

Marketing 119

Marketing Metrics Demand Statistics 119

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2015

Every entrepreneur should do the same due diligence on a potential investor that smart investors do on their startups. Let’s just say that every investor is different, without trying to define what is good or bad for you and your startup. Be wary if the term sheet is a document longer than your business plan.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Coach Invest Sample 108

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 28, 2016

The job of chief financial officer (CFO) may sound like a nightmare assignment to technical entrepreneurs, but the tasks and skills required are key to every new venture. In the case of GrubHub’s Adam DeWitt, he ended up with a salary exceeding that of the CEO. Every startup role requires managing to financial realities.

Entrepreneur 59

Entrepreneur Activity Training Outsource Development 59

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 22, 2014

Successful entrepreneurs are the ones who think the most creatively, not only in their initial product or service, but more importantly all through the stages of growth from startup to maturity. Entrepreneurs have to be careful not to look too hard for evidence that confirms their passion and positive perspective.

Entrepreneur 113

Entrepreneur Metrics Demand Statistics 113

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2021

They are quick to claim the credit for things in their domain that work, but also quick to disclaim responsibility for problems that keep popping up. I often think of the scope of this example in my role as mentor to a struggling entrepreneur who is quick to blame his problems on employee mistakes, or even changing customer expectations.

Training 173

Training Examples Startup Social Media 173

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 13, 2015

Most entrepreneurs are so convinced that they are the disruptive element, they fail to anticipate that unknown facts or events can and will occur to disrupt their own well-laid plans. Every entrepreneur needs a succession plan early on the top three people, with a reshuffle and replacement strategy.

Startup 58

Startup Demand Entrepreneur Competition 58

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 31, 2021

Many entrepreneurs are not prepared for conflict, or actively avoid it. But the reality is that startups are composed of smart people, with emotions as well as intellects, working in close proximity under much pressure, so conflicts will occur. Try a good business mentor to get you on the right track. Not all conflicts are bad.

Activity 129

Activity Research Mentor Entrepreneur 129

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2012

A few angel investors have slipped or fallen from their lofty perch, so entrepreneurs must take great care to validate the character and reputation of every prospective investor. The entrepreneur’s tendency to be in a huge hurry to obtain the funding can end up being disastrous, and play into the hands of these less scrupulous investors.

Angel 112

Angel Entrepreneur Writing Invest 112