thebarefootvc

MAY 8, 2012

As an entrepreneur at heart, I often innately grasp the potential of entrepreneurs and ideas that I meet with. These days, I am seeing a large number of first time entrepreneurs with great ideas, which is fantastic to see. There is inherent risk taking when you haven’t done it before, which often leads to true innovation.

Venture Capital 78

Venture Capital Syndicate Syndication Bandwidth 78

Up and Running

MARCH 11, 2015

Probably the grand-daddy of VC blogs, Union Square Ventures’ Fred Wilson has been posting every day since 2003. What do you get when a successful entrepreneur becomes a VC and then starts blogging about his experiences? But, he also has great advice on growth strategies for early-stage companies. Bothsides of the Table.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Technical Review Silicon Valley Cofounder 60

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 13, 2013

Myspace, for example, launched in 2003 and boomed for five years without a revenue model. A very common mistake of early stage startups is to request a small investment to get started. business entrepreneur growth profitable startup sustainable' Myspace wasn’t ready for this, and it soon crashed. Marty Zwilling.

Widget 242

Widget Angel Investor Revenue Early Stage 242

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014

At an accelerator … Me: Raising convertible notes as a seed round is one of the biggest disservices our industry has done to entrepreneurs since 2001-2003 when there were “full ratchets” and “multiple liquidation preferences” – the most hostile terms anybody found in term sheets 10 years ago.

Venture Capital 417

Venture Capital Liquidation Preference Valuation Term Sheet 417

The Next Web

MARCH 11, 2013

John Marshall began his enterprise-grade mobile device management company, AirWatch , in 2003 as a wireless hotspot management company before providing device management for old-school mobile devices.

Startup 124

Startup Mobile Restful Finance 124

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2017

MySpace, for example, launched in 2003 and boomed for five years without a revenue model. A very common mistake of early stage startups is to request a small investment to get started. When their deep pockets went empty, Facebook stepped in, but demanded revenue from ads. MySpace wasn’t ready for this, and it soon faded.

Widget 137

Widget Angel Investor Revenue Early Stage 137

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 24, 2015

I’ve seen friends (and family members) lose much of their savings that way over the years because “Black Swans” happen and in 1987, 2001, 2003 & 2008 (just to name a few from my memory) huge market gyrations caused much financial distress to people seeking short-term gains. So plan your start date accordingly.

Stock 150

Stock Finance Marketing Valuation 150

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 23, 2011

I took the opportunity this past week to publish summary notes of some of the VCs and entrepreneurs I had interviewed on This Week in VC. One of my goals in doing the show was not only to educate entrepreneurs but also to put a human face on many of the VCs in our industry as VCs can be hard to get to know. (5:00 5:00 – 5:55).

Vertical 265

Vertical Curation Boston Burn Rate 265

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

My initial reaction to Adeo when we spoke was that while it may have solved some issues (debt versus equity) it didn’t solve the ones that I’ve been warning entrepreneurs about most loudly. A standard entrepreneur retort I heard back then (2008-09) was “I don’t know what my company is worth now.

Ratchet 354

Ratchet Liquidation Preference Equity Stock 354

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

I recently got together with Aaron Shechet and an early stage startup to discuss the direction the company might want to take. I grew up in Los Angeles and went to undergrad at UC Santa Barbara, graduating in 2003 with Honors in Economics. We occasionally get involved with very early stage startups.

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Southern California Startup SEO 150

reidhoffman.org

NOVEMBER 12, 2013

. × At Greylock , my partners and I are driven by one guiding mission: always help entrepreneurs. It doesn’t matter whether an entrepreneur is in our portfolio, whether we’re considering an investment, or whether we’re casually meeting for the first time. Entrepreneurs often ask me for help with their pitch decks.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Revenue Viral Networking 111

Duct Tape Marketing

DECEMBER 28, 2023

Key Takeaways In this insightful episode, Ash Ali and Hasan Kubba, renowned authors and entrepreneurs, introduce the transformative concept of unfair advantages in the entrepreneurial journey. 10:02] How do you respond to the notion of creating your own luck as an entrepreneur? [13:20] They're award-winning authors and entrepreneurs.

Framework 70

Framework Cofounder Early Stage IPO 70

thebarefootvc

JULY 3, 2016

Like any motivated entrepreneur, I started a company (in this case, an investment platform), to fill the gaps – which I also believed FPV was uniquely capable of filling. I am thankful to all of FPV’s early LPs, advisors and entrepreneurs who are an indispensable part of FPV’s mission and success to date. Below is a recap.

North America 40

North America Early Stage New York City Portfolio 40

thebarefootvc

FEBRUARY 3, 2016

Like any motivated entrepreneur, I started a company (in this case, an investment platform), to fill the gaps – which I also believed FPV was uniquely capable of filling. I am thankful to all of FPV’s early LPs, advisors and entrepreneurs who are an indispensable part of FPV’s mission and success to date. Below is a recap.

North America 40

North America Early Stage New York City Portfolio 40

Gust

SEPTEMBER 17, 2014

Me: Raising convertible notes as a seed round is one of the biggest disservices our industry has done to entrepreneurs since 2001-2003 when there were “full ratchets” and “multiple liquidation preferences” – the most hostile terms anybody found in term sheets 10 years ago. It’s like we need a finance 101 course for entrepreneurs.

Liquidation Preference 153

Liquidation Preference Valuation Term Sheet Stock 153

Duct Tape Marketing

JANUARY 19, 2023

They both are award-winning authors and entrepreneurs. 11:41] Some people are purely lucky, but I would say a lot of entrepreneurs have come to the realization that they make their own luck, and that’s something that is earned as opposed to something that’s an unfair advantage. How would you respond to that notion?

Audio 86

Audio Cofounder Framework Early Stage 86

ConversionXL

JULY 29, 2015

even selfish humans are more likely to act fairly when in public.” ( Burnham, 2003 , pp. Those early donors are simply personal connections of the project creator: “Friends and family funding plays a key role in the early stages of fundraising. Yet they incentive people to donate, even in the early stages of a campaign.

Campaign 48

Campaign Reputation Metrics Naming 48

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 29, 2012

We also spent a fair bit of time talking about the changing nature of venture capital and in particular the hand-on practitioner role of early-stage VC led by accelerators such as YC, 500Startups, Betaworks and the like. 12:00 It seems like there’s a shift in the VC world to more ex-entrepreneurs. I agree with him.

Southern California 279

Southern California Detroit Los Angeles California 279

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 29, 2013

The discussion focused on companies that have hit product-market fit and are growing fast—a topic for advanced entrepreneurs. But the information was critical for any early-stage company that hopes to reach that critical point and wants to be prepared when it comes.

Lean 167

Lean Hiring Metrics Conversion 167

Austin Startup

MARCH 7, 2021

It’s like a dam has broken and now there is a flood of new entrepreneurs, investors, and big companies moving to Texas. At the same time, early-stage companies are thinking beyond the high prices of Silicon Valley to put down roots and find financing and growth partners. And the entrepreneurs are moving there too.

Texas 90

Texas San Antonio Houston Dallas 90

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

I raised money as an entrepreneur, like you, in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005 for two different companies. I never suggest that entrepreneurs just randomly pitch VCs. You’ll never make a great entrepreneur. So your journey to fund raising begins by strengthening your relationships with other entrepreneurs.

Developer 366

Developer Silicon Valley PR Las Vegas 366

Steve Blank

JUNE 22, 2009

After failing dismally at making disposable digital cameras in 2003 Pure Digital Technologies reinvented their company in 2007 to make the Flip line of camcorders. Ben Reply Jerry Ji , on June 22, 2009 at 1:39 pm Said: Peter Drucker: Entrepreneurs need to be more managerial. Steven Blank: Managers need to be more entrepreneurial.

Silicon Valley 164

Silicon Valley RSS California Agile 164

www.readwriteweb.com

JUNE 13, 2011

startupcto

Programming 45

Programming Silicon Valley Ireland Startup 45

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2010

TechCrunch Europe ran an article in November of last year that European startups need to work as hard as those in Silicon Valley and I echoed the sentiment in my post about the need for entrepreneurs to be maniacal about their businesses if one wants to work in the hyper competitive tech world. April 29th, 2003 my first son was born.

Entrepreneur 308

Entrepreneur Silicon Valley San Diego Non-Compete 308

www.readwriteweb.com

OCTOBER 7, 2007

The aim of many entrepreneurs is to take a business idea and convert it into a professional and functioning business on a low budget. Bootstrapping is a potentially very exciting prospect to an entrepreneur. But each stage needs to be completed, if you are to reasonably expect a quality product. How much will this cost?

Bootstrapping 41

Bootstrapping Offshore Startup EC2 41

www.readwriteweb.com

OCTOBER 18, 2010

By definition, the capital investment needs to be relatively low such that the investors and the entrepreneurs all make a healthy return on investment. I started doing my free Online Strategy Roundtables for entrepreneurs in the fall of 2008. Sramana Mitra is a technology entrepreneur and strategy consultant in Silicon Valley.

Marketing 52

Marketing Bootstrapping Incubator Angel Investor 52

www.readwriteweb.com

OCTOBER 18, 2010

By definition, the capital investment needs to be relatively low such that the investors and the entrepreneurs all make a healthy return on investment. I started doing my free Online Strategy Roundtables for entrepreneurs in the fall of 2008. Sramana Mitra is a technology entrepreneur and strategy consultant in Silicon Valley.

Marketing 52

Marketing Bootstrapping Incubator Angel Investor 52

The Next Web

MARCH 2, 2014

As European talent in the form of startups and entrepreneurs continue to flock towards the USA, the question remains: why? Many entrepreneurs claim that there’s just not enough money, and that investors in Europe fear failure. But it stifles those with the potential to be great entrepreneurs. Is it attitude or is it money?

Europe 163

Europe South Korea San Francisco Portugal 163

Hearpreneur

JANUARY 22, 2017

10 – Obsessed with Entrepreneurs & Music. I am obsessed with entrepreneurs. I found myself meeting with several entrepreneurs a week to offer ideas and help them define their brands. I would joke that I was a music groupie and then I turned into an “entrepreneur” groupie. Image Credit: Carey Balogh.

Naming 48

Naming Entrepreneur LLC Software Review 48

Reid Hoffman

JANUARY 20, 2013

The new received wisdom is that the best entrepreneurs can stay CEO through the entire growth cycle of the company. I love the early stages of building a company. I co-founded LinkedIn in 2003, and by 2005, after asking myself the key questions about my passion, focus, and commitment, I knew I wanted to bring in a CEO.

Founder 78

Founder Hiring Cofounder Hawaii 78

www.reincubate.com

FEBRUARY 1, 2010

Share this: net c# development django java language php software Were often asked by entrepreneurs which language their startups should adopt when developing their technology. What to avoid Fortunately for entrepreneurs, there are only a few technology language choices that are likely to be fundamentally "wrong". framework was built.

Fractional CTO 40

Fractional CTO CTO Technical Review CTO Hire 40

techcrunch.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

It is the first in a series of posts he’s writing about the decisions a young entrepreneur needs to make when she/he is first starting a business. One of the things I do as a founder of a later stage startup is to meet with early stage entrepreneurs to help them get their companies going.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84

www.readwriteweb.com

OCTOBER 7, 2007

I cant recommend learning XHTML/CSS highly enough for budding web entrepreneurs. Many projects fail because clients dont communicate the specs during the early stages. I myself have worked for a few overseas projects ( as a programmer ) so I can relate to the need for better documentation and communication from the clients side.

Web 40

Web AJAX Software Review Development Team Review 40

VC Cafe

JULY 5, 2010

BizMe2 , a new Israeli startup led by serial entrepreneur Yair Margolin, is looking to do to conferences what WordPress did to blogging. Yair Margolin: I was a member of the core team at Peerapp in 2003, a supplier of caching solutions for ISPs. I spoke with Yair last week to learn more about BizMe2 and plans for the future.

Aggregator 84

Aggregator Caching PHP 84

techcrunch.com

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

She graduated from Columbia University in 2003, where she was. There has been no shortage of controversy and criticism around the convertible note, a popular investing vehicle that’s used by seed stage and angel investors. Ressi estimates that the debt note now accounts for over 50% of all angel and early stage deals.

Equity 87

Equity San Francisco Technical Review Angel Investor 87

www.readwriteweb.com

FEBRUARY 23, 2010

Advice for Startups Entering the Mobile Sector Inside the Mind of an Early Stage Venture Capitalist Need Startup Office Space? Posted by: Heather Plude | February 21, 2010 7:19 AM @John Yeng Kevin Rose is an angel investor, serial entrepreneur and the Founder of Digg and WeFollow. Invest in Advisors. my favorite.

Entrepreneur 69

Entrepreneur Venture Capital San Francisco New Zealand 69

pandodaily.com

NOVEMBER 29, 2012

Essentially, we got here by entrepreneurs having too much of a good thing. And because capital requirements are lower, entrepreneurs are holding onto more ownership, making it a lot easier to flip your company for less than, say, $30 million and become very rich. More cash equals more entrepreneurs who get to start companies.

Technical Review 93

Technical Review Silicon Valley Incubator Syria 93