Gust

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If I have a great startup idea why should I ask for funding?

Gust

According to that theory, Apple should cut out its entire multi-billion dollar sales and marketing and retail store divisions, because all of its great products will sell themselves. If you can pay the salaries for that help from the profits you have already made, that’s great too. ” By whom?

Salary 138
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What happens when a company is acquired for less money than it raised in funding?

Gust

Every investment round in a company is made on the basis of extensivepaperwork (often upwards of 100 pages in total) specifying *precisely* what happens when it comes time to pay out the proceeds (if any) from the sale or dissolution of the company. So, here is the typical payout order, from first to last: 1) Salaries owed to employees.

Warrant 157
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Bootstrapping Organic Growth Makes Startup Sense

Gust

Most startup founders already do this, rather than take a salary, to improve their offering. As soon as you bring in investors, they force you to plan for an exit (merger or sale) in three to five years. Don’t justify over-spending initially with “long-run” thinking. Reinvest gross profit. Act big, behave small.

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Entrepreneurs Need Experience More Than An MBA

Gust

It will get you a higher starting salary, and a valuable edge in your credentials at every promotion opportunity. During his ten-year tenure, Apple’s sales increased from $800 million to $8 billion. For business professionals who aspire to an executive position in a large company, most people agree that an MBA is always positive.

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10 Rules of Thumb for Startup Investment Valuation

Gust

The founders now need a $1M Angel investment to do the marketing for a national NewCo rollout, build a team to manage the rollout, and maybe even pay themselves a salary. Assign probabilities to active customer sales efforts, just as sales managers do in quantifying a salesman’s forecast.

Valuation 187
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The Cost Equation for a Startup is Better Than Ever

Gust

Sales and marketing costs. As a rule of thumb, you should double every employee’s salary in estimating employee costs, so less is more. We all know how much costs have come down on computer hardware, computer software, printers, PDAs, high-speed internet access, servers, and security measures.

Cost 139
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Startups are the Place to Find and Use Baby Boomers

Gust

Startups can rarely afford or even attract the young superstar C-level executives they covet – these people want big salaries, big staffs, and big budgets – who are also known to push founders out of the way. High-travel sales and buyer positions. Retail sales to Gen-X and Gen-Y. Interim executive.