Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 31, 2019

The reality today is that capital is more available than ever and entrepreneurs have become more sophisticated, so founders are looking for more than just cash from their venture backers. You've seen how venture capital works from both sides--as an entrepreneur and a venture capitalist.

Lean 108

Lean Venture Capital Conversion IPO 108

Steve Blank

APRIL 8, 2010

He and his co-founder were both PhD’s in applied math who believe they can make some serious inroads on next generation search. We thought we’d take our plan and go raise seed money. We can’t raise money knowing our plan is wrong.”. Entrepreneurs treat a business plan, once written as a final collection of facts.

Business Model 333

Business Model Business Plan Customer Cap Table 333

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2010

One of the most difficult things to do as a first time entrepreneur is to get to know the investors you might be working with if you accept money. He got into the industry through the same traits required for entrepreneurs – persistence & resiliency. Founded 2007 in Boulder, CO. So how did Mike get into VC?

San Francisco 230

San Francisco Los Angeles Cofounder SMS 230

Up and Running

MAY 12, 2015

If you’re an entrepreneur looking for funding, you know how important—and involved—the pitching process can be. Drawing on advice from our own Tim Berry, founder of Palo Alto Software and Josh Cochrane, our VP of Product Development, I’ve broken down a few of the different options for entrepreneurs looking for feedback on their pitch.

Angel Investor 60

Angel Investor Software Review Technical Cofounder Due Diligence 60

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 13, 2014

By Paul Jackson, founder of Worthworm. For new or young entrepreneurs, understanding the realities of the startup world often comes as a shock. Some entrepreneurs will choose to bootstrap their venture the best they can, while others will turn to trendier options such as crowd funding or a startup accelerator to get off the ground.

Angel Investor 217

Angel Investor Seed Money LLC Bootstrapping 217

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 17, 2021

The world of startups is a bit like a gold rush right now: there’s lots of money to be made, almost no rules regarding who will make or lose it, and only a few will actually see a sustained profit at the end of the day. The world is so saturated with seed money right now that it’s easy to lose sight of what running a business is all about.

Startup 130

Startup Revenue Cofounder Angel Investor 130

Gust

OCTOBER 2, 2014

It’s what life was like as an entrepreneur. But this is nothing like the stress of being an entrepreneur. What’s it really like being an entrepreneur? You’d imagine that every founder was getting rich. Actually, positive outcomes for founders are quite rare. I’m reminded of this feeling. It’s all too familiar.

Monaco 122

Monaco Cofounder Chicago Mexico 122

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 18, 2014

Instead of launching another startup, however, he’s launching entrepreneurs. Founder.org founder Michael Baum. Today Baum heads up a non-profit called Founder.org , where he’s applying the lessons he learned from his own startups to help student entrepreneurs launch their companies. Were you insane?

Founder 60

Founder Entrepreneur North America Startup 60

Feld Thoughts

JULY 14, 2015

A company raises $1m of seed money from angels in a convertible note with a $6m cap. Assuming equity is raised at or above that cap, the total dilution, before the new money, is 16.6% (equivalent to an equity financing of $1m at a $6m post money valuation. But in this cycle, I hadn’t seen it in a seed round.

Recapitalization 70

Recapitalization Pre-Money Valuation Post-Money Valuation Angel Investor 70

Scott Edward Walker

OCTOBER 28, 2014

To Our Clients & Friends: Welcome to our weekly series “ Helping Entrepreneurs Succeed.” Each week, we share our favorite video of successful entrepreneurs, investors or business leaders on a variety of topics. So you raise seed money to peel away the first two or three risks.” Helping Entrepreneurs Succeed'

Cap Table 67

Cap Table Cofounder Silicon Valley Venture Capital 67

crowdSPRING Blog

APRIL 23, 2018

Staying real, and separating fact from fiction can help entrepreneurs navigate the challenges of starting a new business while staying grounded. A challenge that some entrepreneurs don’t consider is that innovative, never-before-seen products and services often stand alone. It’s already difficult to get a new business off the ground.

Entrepreneur 69

Entrepreneur Startup Seattle Social Media 69

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 17, 2021

The world of startups is a bit like a gold rush right now: there’s lots of money to be made, almost no rules regarding who will make or lose it, and only a few will actually see a sustained profit at the end of the day. The world is so saturated with seed money right now that it’s easy to lose sight of what running a business is all about.

Startup 78

Startup Revenue Cofounder Angel Investor 78

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

If a company has reached a level of success, has been around for a few years and you believe the company has potential to break out into a much bigger company then you should let the founders take money off of the table. Not FU money, but “feed the family&# money. I raised $500k in seed money to start the company.

Founder 329

Founder Liquidation Preference Term Sheet Participating Preferred 329

crowdSPRING Blog

FEBRUARY 16, 2016

That is why it is imperative for entrepreneurs to critically examine all advice and “truths” about startups. Fortunately, many startup myths revolve around three common topics (business plans, money, and unnatural hustle). Entrepreneurs must be nimble, and will be more apt to stick with a flawed concept they spent months drafting.

Washington 48

Washington Incubator Cofounder Angel Investor 48

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2009

A few years ago it became fashionable for large VC’s to do seed funding. With open source software (LAMP stack) and cloud computing infrastructure it just wasn’t that expensive to get your company going and founders just wanted to raise less money. I told entrepreneurs that it was a bit of a Faustian bargain.

Software Review 283

Software Review Term Sheet Due Diligence Southern California 283

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 25, 2016

In our industry we applaud the efforts for entrepreneurs to have tried and we know that today’s failure can bring the experience for tomorrow’s success. Most of this advice boils down to an argument in favor of basic planning before starting a company or raising money. How much ad revenue does TripAdvisor make?

Startup 150

Startup Seed Money DC Software Review 150

pandodaily.com

NOVEMBER 29, 2012

Essentially, we got here by entrepreneurs having too much of a good thing. The number of seed and angel investors has exploded in recent years, buoyed up by a number of factors. At each turn, these market changes were heralded as wonderful developments for entrepreneurs. A name like 500 Startups says it all.

Technical Review 93

Technical Review Silicon Valley Incubator Syria 93

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2010

I know many super experienced entrepreneurs who don’t understand the basics of how fund size and age can affect them so I thought it was worth establishing a baseline. In a world of The Funded, VentureHacks and entrepreneur blogs this kind of informations spreads like wildfire. Why are VC’s really doing seed deals?

Venture Capital 265

Venture Capital Term Sheet Early Stage Silicon Valley 265

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. and Google.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84