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. Investors often say that successfully navigating the early stages of a startup requires lots of street smarts, guts, and luck.

Early Stage 235

Early Stage Startup Founder Entrepreneur 235

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2012

The good news is that he is all about helping early-stage startups. Early-stage startup. Every startup is early-stage to someone. For a startup founder, this stage is when the “big idea” has become a passion for him, but he hasn’t written anything down yet.

Early Stage 253

Early Stage Finance Seed Stage Entrepreneur 253

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2020

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage angel investors. Supportive co-founder and executive positions. Member of the Advisory Board. Manage customer service.

Advisory Board 312

Advisory Board Startup Dividend Angel Investor 312

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. Giving a co-founder a salary won’t get you the “fire in the belly” you want. Each co-founder should get equity for value, based on these key variables: Lived a key role in a previous startup.

Equity 238

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 238

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2011

The good news is that he is all about helping early-stage startups, the hard part for entrepreneurs is figuring out what it takes to play. Early-stage startup. Every startup is early-stage to someone. For VCs, early-stage means customer revenue is less than $10M.

Early Stage 231

Early Stage Seed Stage Angel Investor Silicon Valley 231

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2022

As an advisor to many early-stage entrepreneurs, I caution them to always be prepared for that chance meeting with a famous investor, a potential partner or an industry guru. Relationships are the key to survival and success for entrepreneurs, and first impressions usually turn into lasting impressions.

Due Diligence 321

Due Diligence Founder Angel Investor Affiliate 321

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 15, 2020

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. For startups, the entrepreneur and founder is almost always the face of the company.

Valuation 311

Valuation Technical Review Due Diligence Leadership 311

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 13, 2021

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. Investors often say that successfully navigating the early stages of a startup requires lots of street smarts, guts, and luck.

Entrepreneur 422

Entrepreneur Early Stage Founder Revenue 422

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2023

None normally work for or provide funds for early-stage startups. Then I learned that these banks really negotiate investments and collect fees on the transactions, sort of like commercial banks do with loans to businesses. Many investment banks even call themselves “boutiques.” Commercial banking is also known as business banking.

Early Stage 182

Early Stage Silicon Valley Private Equity Initial Public Offering 182

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2013

Every early-stage startup should explore this new funding alternative. New “up-and-comer” VCs focus on early-stage companies. VCs are finding that they don’t need the “large” funds of $100M to $500M to support a portfolio, if they focus on early-stage startups.

Angel Investor 231

Angel Investor Entrepreneur Early Stage Silicon Valley 231

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2014

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage Angel investors. Supportive co-founder and executive positions. Member of the Advisory Board. Manage customer service.

Entrepreneur 266

Entrepreneur Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor 266

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2014

In reality, very few executives or professional stars from large corporations survive in the early-stage startup environment. This attitude sows division and mistrust at exactly the early stages when the business most needs to build precious esprit de corps. There''s no place for CYA in a small company.

Startup 258

Startup Early Stage Technical Review .Net 258

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2010

Every early-stage startup should explore this new funding alternative. New “up-and-comer” VCs focus on early-stage companies. VCs are finding that they don’t need the “large” funds of $100M to $500M to support a portfolio, if they focus on early-stage startups. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 215

Technical Review Early Stage Venture Capital Startup 215

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2016

I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a co-founder or two. Giving a co-founder a salary won’t get you the “fire in the belly” you want. Each co-founder should get equity for value, based on these key variables: Lived a key role in a previous startup.

Equity 120

Equity Cofounder Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 23, 2013

In reality, very few executives or professional stars from large corporations survive in the early-stage startup environment. This attitude sows division and mistrust at exactly the early stages when the business most needs to build precious esprit de corps. There's no place for CYA in a small company.

Early Stage 264

Early Stage Entrepreneur Technical Review .Net 264

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2014

Founders stock, and stock options, will be worth nothing for the first several years, if not forever. The partner most obsessed with the startup lifestyle tests the water by going to work in an early-stage startup, similar to one they might hope to start someday. Kick your networking up a notch.

Technical Review 250

Technical Review Stock Options Due Diligence Silicon Valley 250

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 10, 2011

In reality, very few executives or professional stars from large corporations thrive in the early-stage startup environment. This attitude sows division and mistrust at exactly the early stages when the business most needs to build precious esprit de corps. There's no place for CYA in a small company.

Startup 263

Startup Early Stage Technical Review .Net 263

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup.

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 26, 2020

None normally work for or provide funds for early-stage startups. Then I learned that these banks really negotiate investments and collect fees on the transactions, sort of like commercial banks do with loans to businesses. Many investment banks even call themselves “boutiques.” Commercial banking is also known as business banking.

Silicon Valley 362

Silicon Valley Private Equity Initial Public Offering Term Sheet 362

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2010

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. Investors often say that successfully navigating the early stages of a startup requires lots of street smarts, guts, and luck.

Founder 228

Founder Early Stage Startup Entrepreneur 228

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2012

Every startup faces a myriad of challenges that are well beyond the scope of any founder, so you need a few guiding lights to illuminate the road ahead. I recommend that every early-stage startup find three Advisory Board members. Make sure they are willing to check their egos at the door. Let’s talk specifics.

Advisory Board 239

Advisory Board Technical Review Startup Software Review 239

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2014

Offering debt is better than offering direct equity, especially in early stages when you have no valuation for setting equity percentages. Some founders are too focused on quick repayment, and they compromise strategic decisions. Loans are a safer option than equity. Pay the money back, with thanks, as quickly as you can.

Founder 254

Founder Cram Down Angel Investor Equity 254

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Early stage burn rates over $50K per month, or a runway of less than six months may indicate an inefficient or desperate startup.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2022

Early-stage entrepreneurs rightly keep their focus on creating an innovative product or service. After celebrating success at that level, they often find themselves ill-prepared to move to the next stage, for scaling their business into a high-performing enterprise.

Mezzanine 368

Mezzanine Private Equity Bandwidth Metrics 368

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 5, 2011

Every startup faces a myriad of challenges that are well beyond the scope of any founder, so you need a few guiding lights to illuminate the road ahead. I recommend that every early-stage startup find three Advisory Board members. Make sure they are willing to check their egos at the door. Let’s talk specifics.

Advisory Board 239

Advisory Board Technical Review Software Review Startup 239

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 23, 2010

In reality, very few executives or professional stars from large corporations thrive in the early-stage startup environment. This attitude sows division and mistrust at exactly the early stages when the business most needs to build precious esprit de corps. There's no place for CYA in a small company.

Startup 238

Startup Early Stage Technical Review .Net 238

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2015

For early-stage startups, the goodwill component can easily exceed the size of all the financial elements together, or can just as easily mark a company with good financials as not investable. For startups, the entrepreneur and founder is almost always the face of the company.

Leadership 120

Leadership Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 18, 2015

Founders stock, and stock options, will be worth nothing for the first several years, if not forever. The partner most obsessed with the startup lifestyle tests the water by going to work in an early-stage startup, similar to one they might hope to start someday. Kick your networking up a notch.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Entrepreneur Stock Options Due Diligence 120

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Getting investors to trust you with their money is always a challenge, and it’s even more difficult in the early stages, where you don’t have a significant revenue stream, a few customers, or maybe even a product yet. At these stages, it’s all about you, and your ability to communicate and execute effectively.

Due Diligence 271

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock 271

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 19, 2023

It’s still popular these days for startup founders to operate in stealth mode, meaning no details about the idea or progress are shared with anyone until the big reveal and rollout. This means your whole startup effort will appear as very early stage for investors, and will likely not be adequately tuned for customers.

Stealth 263

Stealth Marketing Startup Early Stage 263

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 23, 2013

Planning is not just an early-stage activity, but must be an ongoing activity, based on current accurate information as well as educated guesses on future changes. Planning is about preparing for the future, not predicting it. Planning should keep you focused on what’s important, and prepare you for what lies ahead.

Intellectual Property 265

Intellectual Property Founder Startup Leadership 265

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2012

Yet, I find that startup founders often fixate on one or two sources, often to the detriment of their business. After bootstrapping, friends and family are the most common funding sources for early-stage startups. Just don’t quit your day job before your new company is producing revenue. Friends and family.

Technical Review 257

Technical Review Bootstrapping Venture Capital Incubator 257

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2020

It’s still popular these days for startup founders to operate in stealth mode, meaning no details about the idea or progress are shared with anyone until the big reveal and rollout. This means your whole startup effort will appear as very early stage for investors, and will likely not be adequately tuned for customers.

Stealth 436

Stealth Early Stage Social Media Web 436

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2015

Thus founders seeking funding for a good cause or a new technology often seize on grants from universities, government agencies and philanthropic organizations as free money to solve their problems. In all cases, grants should be seen as primarily an early-stage development assist, and not the last step to commercialization.

SBIR 120

SBIR Equity Technical Review Early Stage 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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. Founders stock and stock options are worth nothing for the first few years. You will realize quickly that this environment either invigorates you or stresses you to the max.

Silicon Valley 315

Silicon Valley Entrepreneur Stock Options Flash 315

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2015

I challenge any entrepreneur, for example, to define the difference between "seed-stage" and "early-stage" financing. Asking for early-stage money before you have customers and revenue will likely kill your credibility with real investors. Yet, knowing this distinction is important.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Finance Early Stage Startup 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2011

Yet, I find that startup founders often fixate on one or two sources, often to the detriment of their business. After bootstrapping, friends and family are the most common funding sources for early-stage startups. Just don’t quit your day job before your new company is producing revenue. Friends and family.

Technical Review 233

Technical Review Bootstrapping Startup Venture Capital 233