Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
It’s really hard to zig when the whole world seems to be zagging. One of my favorite quotes I learned in high school was: “Nonconformity is the Highest Form of Social Attainment&#. It was written as the yearbook quote of the smartest seniors as I was finishing my freshman year. It has always stood with me. I have had a low bullshit meter.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
By Joseph A. Bockerstette, Main Street Venture Fund As I outlined last week, trophy angel investors are always looking for trophy entrepreneurs. In many areas, not enough entrepreneurs meet the criteria, so it’s still a buyer’s market. The result is that the Main Street Venture Fund consistently has more money available than good opportunities for investment.
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ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
During this week's roundtable I addressed a commonly held critique of the 1M/1M program: that we're focusing on the basics and stating the obvious. I have seen this criticism at various places where this recap is syndicated on a weekly basis, as well as in certain random forums on the internet. Well, I have coached early stage entrepreneurs for a couple of years now - diligently, patiently - and have learned a few things.
Up and Running
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
I’m hoping you saw my post here yesterday, and that you took the test I gave you, and passed it. I failed the first time through. If you haven’t done that already, then maybe you should click here to go back and do that before you read the rest of this. The point of it is what’s called “ inattention blindness.&# I got it from Susan Weinschenk, Ph.D. in Psychology, who put it as number one in her fascinating list of 100 things you should know about people on her very int
Speaker: Nick Noreña, Innovation Coach and Advisor, Kromatic
Every startup and innovation project exists within an ecosystem that either helps or hurts that project. As innovation managers, we need to keep a pulse of that ecosystem and make sure we're helping those innovation projects we're managing every step of the way. In this webinar, Nick Noreña will walk through an Innovation Ecosystem Model that he and his team at Kromatic have developed to help investors, heads of product, teachers, and executives understand how they can best support innovation in
Ben's Blog
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Meet the new boss. same as the old boss. —The Who, Won’t Get Fooled Again. Cause hustlers hit the block when police change shifts. New York, California different toilet, same s#@t. —The Game, Let Us Live. Every day I hear from entrepreneurs, angel investors and venture capitalists about an exciting new movement called “the consumerization of the enterprise.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Most people think that the Peter Principle (employee rises to his level of incompetence) only applies to large organizations. Let me assure you that it is also alive and well within startups. There I see founders and managers who are stalled transplants from large organizations, and technologists trying to run the business. Forty years ago, in a satiric book named “ The Peter Principle ”, Dr.
Start Up Roar brings together the best content for start up professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Sophia Perl of Wisdom
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Last week, (seems that all of my postings start this way) I attended the Second Annual West Coast Businesswomen’s Sustainability Leadership Summit , a Women’s Network for Sustainable Future event , at IBM Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California. There were about 150-200 women in attendance (my guestimate). I am by no means an expert on “green&# businesses and sustainability, but I definitely have an interest in learning more about what this area is all about.
Growthink Blog
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
At a current U.S. box office of over $84 million “ The Social Network ,” – the movie about Mark Zuckerberg and the founding of Facebook – is just another example of the public’s fascination with social networking and young billionaires, not necessarily in that order. Not mentioned in the movie is the unbelievable story of a Peter Thiel one of the founders of PayPal investing $500,000 in 2004 in exchange for approximately 5% of Facebook.
Austin Startup
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Exactly three months after its $48 Million funding announcement, Smooth-Stone today detailed its company momentum, including significant new executive hires, new office space and renaming the company. The new name, Calxeda , pronounced “Cal-zeh-dah,” is a derivative of the Latin for “Smooth-Stone.” Calxeda is on track with its business and ARM-based product development plans, moving toward providing first samples of its industry-changing technologies in 2011.
Entrepreneurs-Journey.com by Yaro Starak
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
I was given review access to a brand new premium wordpress theme called Authority Pro , so I asked Ilana Wechsler if she’d like to take a look at it, test it and then write a review for readers of Entrepreneurs-Journey. Ilana has quite a bit of experience playing with WordPress so she was eager to test out this theme. Here’s what she had to say about Authority Pro – a premium theme designed specifically for internet marketers… Like most things in life, you get what you pa
Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
I’m a high-volume person. That doesn’t make me important. It doesn’t mean I’m not accessible. It means simply what I’m stating – high volume. What that means is that in a typical week I might see 10-15 new company pitches. Sometimes more. I speak at conferences where I might meet 75-100 people and have conversations.
Sophia Perl of Wisdom
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Last week, (seems that all of my postings start this way) I attended the Second Annual West Coast Businesswomen’s Sustainability Leadership Summit , a Women’s Network for Sustainable Future event , at IBM Almaden Research Center in San Jose, California. There were about 150-200 women in attendance (my guestimate). I am by no means an expert on “green&# businesses and sustainability, but I definitely have an interest in learning more about what this area is all about.
Steve Blank
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
In previous posts I’ve talked about what the combination of Business Model Design, Customer Development and Agile Methodologies mean to startups and intrapreneurs in large companies; it’s the beginning of entrepreneurship as a science with its own rules and methodologies. Alexander Osterwalder, who authored the Business Model Generation book, put together a slidedeck on his thoughts of what happens when you combine the business model concept to shape and structure your business ideas with the C
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
As an entrepreneur, you always need to be on the lookout for ways to expand your current business, and always on the lookout for your next big thing. The competition never stands still, and new opportunities are evolving, based on culture changes in your customers, new technologies, and new problems in the world which need to be solved. Steven Schussler, in his new book “ It’s a Jungle In There ” characterized this well in relation to his own success by recommending to all entrepreneurs that you
www.scottporad.com
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Scott Porad About Scott Contact Schedule Setting Up Shop: The Book Subscribe Mailbag: How do I find a developer to help me with my idea? with 3 comments Tweet I regularly receive questions from readers about my experience working on the web, at Cheezburger, and so forth. I enjoy it when people reach out to me, which is why I make all of my contact information—including my phone number—available on my contact page.
Seeing Both Sides
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
While Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to drop out of Harvard and move to Silicon Valley was a plot point in in the movie “The Social Network,” it looked like a watershed event to many in the local technology community. It was a call to arms for all who want Massachusetts to remain a competitive environment for entrepreneurs to build ventures that change the world.
Steve Blank
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Albert Einstein. For decades startups were managed by pretending the company would follow a predictable path (revenue plan, scale, etc.) and being continually surprised when it didn’t. That’s the definition of insanity. Luckily most startups now realize there is a better way.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
Go-to people get things done. As an entrepreneur, you need these people, and you need to be one, if you expect your startup to be successful. That may be easier said than done, since resumes do not tell the story, and without real nurturing, they won’t stay around long. To highlight how rare this breed is, a new CEO of a large company once said, "I have more than 1000 people in my head office organization, 900 can tell me something’s gone wrong, 90 can tell me what’s gone wrong, nine can te
Feld Thoughts
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
There have been a number of thoughtful "early warning sign" posts in the past few days including one from Fred Wilson ( Storm Clouds ), one from Mark Suster ( What Angel Investing & Florida Condos Have in Common ), and Roger Ehrenberg ( Investing in a frenzied market ). The seed investing phenomenon of 2010 has been awesome to watch and participate in.
ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Are entrepreneurship and education opposed? Can companies be profitable while revolutionizing education? How can startups, with their emphasis on rapid change, co-exist with education, something that is traditionally risk-adverse? Is there an innovation that will be the tipping point for the transformation that is much needed in today's education system?
Rembrandt Communications
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
Once you start pitching the media, you may find yourself sucked into the fast world of deadlines and being connected to your “Blackberry leash” almost 24/7. And even though you are working like a dog, you still may have to deal with… “Why are we not seeing more sales?” “Why did that reporter misquote me? [.].
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 13, 2010
A lot of executives have noticed that the workplace is being flooded by a new generation of workers, and they are questioning who will be the winners, and who will be the losers. In reality, Gen-Y is here, and they are already inheriting our businesses, so let’s figure out how to make them winners, or we will all be losers. By definition, Gen-Y is the generation born between 1977 and 1995 (synonymous with Millennials).
Feld Thoughts
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
I've spent a lot of time this year talking about the importance of entrepreneurship to our economy and society. Hopefully the work and energy that I've put into understanding and helping develop entrepreneurial communities - first in Boulder - and now throughout the US via TechStars , energy around my book Do More Faster , and our investments around the country from Foundry Group reflect this belief.
ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
We have written before about the lessons that entrepreneurs can learn from the band OKGo. It's not a hard argument to make as the band continues to make incredibly innovative and popular music videos. Today at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, Adam Sadowsky from Syyn Labs gave an Ignite talk on how his company helped the band build the Rube Goldberg machine that was featured in the second version of the " This Too Shall Pass " video.
Growthink Blog
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
One of my favorite movie lines, which I think about often, comes from the 1993 movie Rudy. In his pre-game inspirational talk in the film, Notre Dame football coach Dan Devine says, "No one, and I mean no one, comes into our house and pushes us around." Yet, this happens all the time in our businesses. We let competitors push us around. We let them steal our customers.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Too many entrepreneurs develop a new product without regard to market demand, then build an entire strategy based on creating a need, rather than acting on an existing market need. Investors characterize this approach as a “solution looking for a problem.” These don’t get funded. The best startups find a way to drive the market with their technology, rather than push their new technology-driven ‘solution’ on the marketplace.
Feld Thoughts
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Yesterday, Gist released their new Gist for Gmail Firefox plugin (the Chrome plugin will be out in two weeks). As a long time Gist user and investor, I've been anxiously awaiting this as it makes Gist available to anyone using Gmail (vs. previously just Google Apps users.). Since I just finally completed my move over to Google Apps, I decided to start over with Gist (by resetting my account) and document the experience of getting it set up.
ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
I started my career in enterprise software in the 1980s and after some years working in other areas (outsourcing and online media) I am back in the enterprise software game. This post is my reflection on what is different and what remains the same. I have focused this as advice to entrepreneurs building enterprise software ventures today. 1. Decide whether you want to be: a sailboat or power boat.
VC Cafe
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
A ttempting to create a comprehensive list of free and open source tools will probably always remain ‘work in progress’ just for the sheer depth and breadth of the Internet. It’s hard to keep it up to date as there is a constant flow of new technology. We tried to get started in VC Cafe’s Startup Resources page, sites like SourceForge and the Open Source Software Directory do a good job listing many of them, but this curated list from JISC is definitely a good addition.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
One of the toughest things about starting a business is the feeling of loneliness and isolation. You are on your own and nobody supports you because it’s hard for them to see what you see and feel the excitement that you feel in the early stages. This is especially true if you start your business from home. The leadership position alone can cause loneliness and disconnectedness, and that sometimes results in self-defeating behaviors.
Feld Thoughts
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Our friend Howard Lindzon ( StockTwits CEO, TechStars Mentor and Investor) did an interview series with a number of the contributors to our book Do More Faster. I'll post one each day or so over the next week. They are all short (10 minutes or so). Howard starts the series with an interview with me and David Cohen ( TechStars CEO and co-author with me of Do More Faster.).
ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
Last night 500 Startups co-hosted an event called Inbox Love on the Google campus that brought together a number of entrepreneurs and companies who are working in the email space. The night featured several ignite talks, starting with Google's Stephanie Hannon who gave a post-mortem on Google Wave's attempts to revolutionize email and ending with Facebook developer Joel Seligstein who spoke about Monday's launch of its new messaging system.
This is going to be BIG.
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
I take a lot of meetings to just try to be helpful, especially with people's careers. Other times, I'll take a very early meeting with an entrepreneur throwing around a few ideas or someone who comes to me when things just aren't working. I feel like I give pretty decent advice--and that's just purely based on the excitement of the person when they walk out of the meeting.
VC Cafe
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
A ttempting to create a comprehensive list of free and open source tools will probably always remain ‘work in progress’ just for the sheer depth and breadth of the Internet. It’s hard to keep it up to date as there is a constant flow of new technology. We tried to get started in VC Cafe’s Startup Resources page, sites like SourceForge and the Open Source Software Directory do a good job listing many of them, but this curated list from JISC is definitely a good addition.
Feld Thoughts
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
I've been having a blast with Brad Feld's Amazing Deals which was created by Deal Co-op , a recent graduate of the TechStars Seattle program. Last week's deal - the Agloves - ended up getting picked up on Lifehacker and the limit of 500 gloves were sold (at 50% off) overnight! As part of the experience, I'm learning a lot about the Daily Deal business, how it works, what the actual economics are, and what the friction points are.
ReadWriteStart
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
The law firm Goodwin Procter has launched a new resource for entrepreneurs that will help them navigate some of the legal and organizational challenges that startups face. Called Founder's Workbench , the site includes a variety of free, self-service tools for generating basic legal documents. Documents that can be created include a Certificate of Incorporation, Bylaws, Consent of Board of Directors, and Common Stock Certificates.
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