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. Good problem solving requires making informed decisions, relying on logic.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Mentor Technical Review Satisfaction 102

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

When you raise money from investors you produce information that you are told they want and care about: A fund-raising deck that articulates your company strategy, plans, team, market, competitors and so forth. Most entrepreneurs (and VCs raising from LPs) think this means progress. I have to back up and give you more context.

Funding 336

Funding Venture Capital Startup Email 336

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 29, 2016

Aspiring entrepreneurs who rely only on traditional learning vehicles (teachers, classrooms, and risk-free practice) are doomed to failure in anticipating change today. Either they are never really ready to commit, study an opportunity until it has passed, or fail with tools and techniques from a bygone business era.

Entrepreneur 61

Entrepreneur Social Media Startup Education 61

InfoChachkie

FEBRUARY 4, 2019

When I saw World Series Poker Champion Annie Duke speak in 2017, I was inspired to write an article describing some of her recruiting techniques. Annie’s approach is a highly-readable balance between memorable, real-world analogies and hardcore behavioral science studies. Resources must be committed before information is fully known.

Help 100

Help Startup Santa Barbara Study 100

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

I speak a lot on college campuses and entrepreneur events and amongst the most common things I’m asked to talk about are: What do VCs fund? Hard Problems I encourage entrepreneurs to try and tackle harder problems even if it makes fund raising more difficult and is less likely to succeed. We need leaders who can rigorously prioritize.

Design 150

Design Ideas Startup Writing 150

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 4, 2016

In modern society we’re all over-worked and over-loaded with information and tasks and to-dos and obligations. These people are like the friend in college who always tempted you by telling you about the latest party when you were at the library studying. That’s why focus is critical. It starts seemingly innocent enough.

Innocal 255

Innocal Conference Help Study 255

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2014

As a startup mentor and investor, I am approached regularly by aspiring entrepreneurs who assert that business plans are a waste of time. They cite sources like the BusinessWeek story, “ Real Entrepreneurs Don’t Write Business Plans ” and this Forbes article. You need funding, and plan to get it from friends and family.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Writing Entrepreneur Slides 109

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2012

Publish a regular blog, contribute to relevant social networks, and write a “white paper” on your technology. Be consistent is their application, and provide contact information for both phone and email access. They will exit quickly. Show evidence of your expertise. Highlight personal presence and testimonials.

Search Engine Optimization 96

Search Engine Optimization Entrepreneur Sites Advertising 96

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Unless you are a serial entrepreneur with a string of successes behind you, you need a business plan to convince investors that you can build a business out of the dream that has been driving your passion to change the world. Current and past titles don’t convey this information. Marketing, sales, and customer experience.

Startup 65

Startup Writing Patents Competition 65

InfoChachkie

APRIL 25, 2011

Although many are entertaining, most fail to provide entrepreneurs with a sufficient return on their time investment. Unfortunately, most business books do not offer entrepreneurs an adequate payoff. At the beginning of the index, Guy writes, “I hope Robert Cialdini checks this index.” No doubt, he did. Ask For Mentoring.

Technical Review 279

Technical Review Blogging Class Entrepreneur 279

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

As a result founders often meet the wrong investors, waste time on those who ask for more information. Keeping it to 8–10 helps you manage the public information flow that will be broader if you see 20 firms and also help you prioritize resources. Remember, I was an entrepreneur for 10 years before a VC).

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Funding Startup Sales 332

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 6, 2015

Perhaps sparked by the recession recovery, 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. Good problem solving requires making informed decisions, relying on logic.

Mentor 105

Mentor Entrepreneur Technical Review Satisfaction 105

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 22, 2017

Perhaps sparked by the now forgotten 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. Good problem solving requires making informed decisions, relying on logic.

Satisfaction 53

Satisfaction Marketing Mentor Entrepreneur 53

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 20, 2013

Publish a regular blog, contribute to relevant social networks, and write a “white paper” on your technology. Be consistent is their application, and provide contact information for both phone and email access. entrepreneur startup website business' They will exit quickly. Show evidence of your expertise. Marty Zwilling.

Search Engine Optimization 105

Search Engine Optimization Startup Advertising SEO 105

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 16, 2018

I was happy to see a real focus on preparing for tomorrow highlighted in a new book, “ Start a Successful Business ,” by Colleen DeBaise, who has made a career of studying and writing about entrepreneur challenges. I often hear entrepreneurs who seem to rely wholly on their own passion, and the view of a few friends.

Customer 57

Customer Custom Technical Review Software Review 57

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. But my contact told me that many viral videos start through close networks on Reddit where a degree of formal and informal collaboration of individuals takes place. Simply write a great book?

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 4, 2012

After you have successfully attracted angels or venture capital with your business case, your million dollar product idea, and you have a signed term sheet, there is still one more hurdle to overcome before investors write the check. This is the dreaded “due diligence” process. For small teams, every team member will likely be interviewed.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Startup Writing Competition 94

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2010

After you have successfully attracted angels or venture capital with your business case, your million dollar product idea, and you have a signed term sheet, there is still one more hurdle to overcome before investors write the check. Tags: entrepreneur investor due diligence founder business. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 90

Technical Review Writing Competition Tips 90

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 14, 2009

In most cases if you can’t get a prototype done you’re probably not an entrepreneur. If you can’t get product released and validated then do user studies. Professional angels / former entrepreneurs / seed funds – In Silicon Valley there are people like Ron Conway, Jeff Clavier, Mike Maples and many more.

Angel 291

Angel Funding Venture Capital Startup 291

socalTECH

JULY 20, 2011

The firm's CEO and co-founder, Jennifer Sargent , has an interesting background, most recently serving as an executive at Variety/Reed Business Information. As a result, consumers would go away after they hit that information. How did you decide to launch HitFix? Jennifer Sargent: Our timing was interesting. Everyone knows this.

News 173

News Entertainment Startup Bertelsmann 173

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

He writes with a great perspective and is well worth reading. I also know many people who never studied business as an undergrad who appreciated the knowledge that they gained as an MBA. If you had a non-business undergrad and want to study for a master’s in business – go for it!

Startup 337

Startup Venture Capital Study Course 337

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 21, 2010

In writing anything positive about any of the companies I’m not suggesting that it means that I prefer them to any of their competitors. Also, some of the deals I write about I have actually seen as part of their fund raising process. entrepreneur Wil Schroter (I am an angel investor in Affordit). Really!).

Venture Capital 265

Venture Capital Capital Email Blogging 265

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2010

Studying other people’s blogs will help you identify what you like and don’t like, and how you want yours to look and feel. An informal writing style is generally recommended. Finally, if you don’t have the time, energy, or skills to write a blog, it may be a good investment to hire a ghost writer. Conversational style.

Blogging 48

Blogging Search Engine Optimization Startup Writing 48

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 10, 2010

If you’re not familiar with the term it’s basically trying to help all of us who are deluged with technology to find ways to cope with the masses of information without having it ruin our lives. Want to take a year pursuing your dream to write a screenplay, travel through Asia, run a triathlon or start your own fashion line?

Startup 295

Startup Email Technical Review Course 295

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2010

Publish a daily blog, contribute to relevant social networks, and write a “white paper” on your technology. Be consistent is their application, and provide contact information for both phone and email access. They will exit quickly. Show evidence of your expertise. Highlight personal and product testimonials.

Tips 92

Tips Search Engine Optimization Startup Advertising 92

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

We typically do not ask entrepreneurs to visit our offices in Santa Barbara, but Jeff wanted to meet with Kevin, an investor in our Fund who helped us vet opportunities and occasionally invested alongside of us. Rather, we value entrepreneurs' time and thus our diligence generally includes introducing them to potential customers and partners.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Southern California 100

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 8, 2011

I concluded that it is an effective tool for leveling the playing field between sophisticated investors and emerging entrepreneurs. 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.

Venture Capital 224

Venture Capital Writing Entrepreneur Blogging 224

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

As an advisor to new hardware entrepreneurs, I often hear the myth that a business plan is no longer required to find an investor, if your idea is good enough. What you don’t realize is these famous investors only deal with entrepreneurs who sold their last company for a $100M dollars or more.

Product 169

Product Summary Startup Examples 169

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 4, 2013

An entrepreneur, weightlifter and travel photographer, James offers his readers advice and insights that help them become better leaders, with an emphasis on improving one''s health in the process. One of the biggest challenges of being an entrepreneur is deciding what not to do. Focusing On Everything = Focusing On Nothing.

Entrepreneur 222

Entrepreneur Startup Research Social Media 222

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

When an entrepreneur takes on investors who take equity (i.e. A Good Mentor Being a founder of startup is a lonely experience because you’re constantly faced with hard decisions that need to be made with incomplete information and many of the decisions can be very consequential and you have limited people from whom you can get input.

Startup 187

Startup Writing Venture Capital Oracle 187

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 22, 2014

We spent a morning talking about the transition from being an engineer to being an entrepreneur, having the distinction of being the first digital health startup to emerge from USC Viterbi’s Startup Garage , and drilling down to what really matters in all of our entrepreneurial efforts – listening to consumers. This was run out of USC?

USC 104

USC Southern California Activity Study 104

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 31, 2015

I believe many entrepreneurs have ADD. My reading on ADD says that it’s just the way that your brain processes information. I have checked Twitter at least 10 times during the writing of this post so far and Facebook 3 times. I can’t write a blog post and then wait 3 days to publish. Embrace it. Email twice.

Startup 150

Startup Writing Class Orange County 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

I have been writing a series on how startup boards get selected, who sits on them and what to avoid. I started this series in part to help entrepreneurs but also to help newer investors because I’ve know with so many new companies you have so many new board members and many people are trying to figure out there respective roles.

Startup 251

Startup Help Technical Review Writing 251

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 28, 2011

They often are very good at getting information out of people, helping create a framework for making decisions and pushing for support amongst the organization from those that back the decision and those that do not. I’ll write that post one day – it is a very interesting story. Leaders are intelligent, for sure.

CTO Hire 363

CTO Hire Technical Review Startup Demand 363

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 says that men are largely information gatherers and problem solvers. From Startup Life.

Entrepreneur 370

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Social Network 370

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 5, 2011

Grade A Entrepreneurs , September 5, 2010 Why Krispy Kreme failed in Australia - Start Up Blog , November 3, 2010 Mellow Johnny’s: Retail Stores as Community Hubs - IDDICTIVE.COM , July 14, 2010 Is crowdfunding an option for my business?

Startup 378

Startup Venture Capital Blogging CTO Coach 378

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. 0:28:00) & (0:31:27).

Angel 302

Angel Startup Ideas .Net 302