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In a Strong Wind Even Turkeys Can Fly

Both Sides of the Table

By 1999 we had grown into the largest independent consulting firm in the world. By 1999 it seemed like everybody was growing, though. I left Andersen Consulting in 1999 at the height of the market. In other words, in a strong market even turkeys can fly. Ameet was right.

Turkey 302
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Why Has Seed Investing Declined? And What Does this Mean for the Future?

Both Sides of the Table

Between 1999–2005 the costs went down by 90% and between 2005–2010 they went down a further 90%. I launched my first startup in 1999 so I know the economics of launching from first-hand experience. The “A Round” of my startup in 1999 was $16.5 million and my A Round in 2005 was only $500,000 (and that’s all I ever raised).

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Start-ups are all Naked in the Mirror

Both Sides of the Table

I started my first company in 1999 in London at the height of the dot com craze. As the economy soured and people grew wary of buying Internet software (we were SaaS as early as 1999 – our buyers were certainly “early adopters&# ) and life grew more difficult. This is part of my ongoing series Startup Lessons. We were hot.

PR 331
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Time is the Enemy of All Deals

Both Sides of the Table

When I was raising money for my first company we had closed a seed round in 1999 and were working on our A round. We had many term sheets (it was 1999 and we had a pulse) and we were deciding which one to take. It was December 1999. It was December 1999. Let me start with a story. They accepted my argument.

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Don’t Roll out the Red Carpet on the Way out the Door

Both Sides of the Table

Before I started my first company in 1999 I worked for Andersen Consulting (now Accenture). This is part of my Startup Advice series. One of the things I noticed was that when really talented people – The “A players&# – wanted to quit, the firm would quickly scramble to try and keep that person from resigning.

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Praying to the God of Valuation

Both Sides of the Table

I started my first company in 1999 and was admittedly swept up in all of this: Magazine covers, fancy conferences, artificial valuations and easy money. And then in the late 90’s money crept in, swept in to town by public markets, instant wealth and an absurd sky-rocketing of valuations based on no reasonable metrics.

Valuation 466
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Startup Founders Should Flip Burgers

Both Sides of the Table

M y company had raised a seed round of capital in late 1999 even before either of us were full time in the company (ominous side note: on the way to pitch our seed investor, Delta Partners, a man walking right in front of me died of a massive heart attack making me late to the meeting.

Founder 299