Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 5, 2010

This is part of my series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. Entrepreneurs are inherently risk takers.

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Entrepreneur CTO Hire South America Salary 293

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

I find it amusing when a journalist writes an article about a prominent startup (either privately held or preparing for an IPO) and decries that, “They’re not even profitable!” Exec Summary: Most companies (98+%) in the world (even tech startups) should be very profit focused. If you don’t, somebody else WILL!”

Startup 418

Startup Revenue Technical Review Flash 418

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 4, 2016

I need to admit to a personal bias right up front: I am not the biggest fan of borrowing seed money. In fact, when I founded Fit Body Boot Camp , I never took a single of cent of seed money, mainly because I wanted to maintain total control of my vision. DO Raise Seed Money Through Sales.

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Seed Money Partner Audience Founder 100

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 19, 2014

In the US, many entrepreneurs see grants as “free money,” since they are not loans and don’t have to be repaid. A grant is not an equity investment, so the entrepreneur doesn’t have to give up a stake in the company either. That is time and resource that you must add to the million other high-priority startup tasks.

Seed Money 242

Seed Money SBIR Dilution Government 242

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 31, 2019

He’ll be speaking at this year’s Lean Startup Conference , and also has a new book (for which I very happily wrote a short foreword) coming out next month: Secrets of Sand Hill Road: Venture Capital and How to Get It. 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

Gust

MAY 11, 2014

In the US, many entrepreneurs see grants as “free money,” since they are not loans and don’t have to be repaid. A grant is not an equity investment, so the entrepreneur doesn’t have to give up a stake in the company either. That is time and resource that you must add to the million other high-priority startup tasks.

Seed Money 164

Seed Money SBIR Dilution Government 164

Steve Blank

JANUARY 28, 2013

We realized this mechanism had been occurring for years at University’s startup competitions, such as the MIT 100K Accelerate Contest. We dubbed the program Qualcomm’s Venture Fest and the process, “ Collective Entrepreneurship ”, a three-phase program combining crowdsourcing with entrepreneurial techniques for startup creation.

Programming 301

Programming Design Lean Seed Money 301

Steve Blank

JANUARY 28, 2013

We realized this mechanism had been occurring for years at University’s startup competitions, such as the MIT 100K Accelerate Contest. We dubbed the program Qualcomm’s Venture Fest and the process, “ Collective Entrepreneurship ”, a three-phase program combining crowdsourcing with entrepreneurial techniques for startup creation.

Programming 293

Programming Design Lean Seed Money 293

Berkonomics

JANUARY 20, 2022

Dave’s note: This is a reprint of a 2015 insight that seems to have struck a chord with investors and entrepreneurs. None of this advice has changed… Let me tell you a few short hair–raising stories of entrepreneurs who have raised money and regretted it later. The problem, of course, comes if the business fails.

Valuation 127

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 28, 2010

Most entrepreneurs have learned that it’s almost always quicker and easier to get cash from someone you know, rather than angel investors or professional investors (VCs). Here is a summary of some key items to think about as an entrepreneur before approaching friends, family, or even fools: Don’t be afraid to ask, carefully.

Technical Review 233

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Due Diligence Angel Investor 233

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 5, 2020

It is, in fact, the best time to jump right into entrepreneurship. Many will sit on the fence pondering if they can manage the added pressure of a college startup with exams looming. Below are three financial perks of launching a college startup during university. These include: Young Entrepreneur Council. Student Discount.

Seed Money 91

Seed Money Startup eCommerce .Net 91

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 21, 2013

Many believe that entrepreneurs are born, not made. While I agree that successful company builders usually have a natural inclination to be entrepreneurs, a good education helps polish that apple. We can all point to examples of successful entrepreneurs who dropped out of college, but still went on to make a big impact.

Entrepreneur 264

Entrepreneur Seed Money Social Network Business Plan 264

Version One Ventures

JULY 22, 2014

And, we should expect angel activity to drop as new angels discover that returns from their seed investments aren’t so easy to come by. Any entrepreneur trying to navigate the financing landscape should be aware of the over-abundance of angel money compared with subsequent rounds.

Finance 167

Finance Seed Money Bootstrapping Angel Investor 167

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 28, 2015

This past summer, the Lightspeed Summer Fellowships program invited selected guests to provide aspiring entrepreneurs a perspective into all aspects of starting a new company. The program provides entrepreneurs the resources and mentoring they need to build their companies and develop their skills. ” The Cost of Financing.

Convertible Security 100

Convertible Security IP Technical Review Software Review 100

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 23, 2018

CRI is different from other incubators because it allows innovators/entrepreneurs to immerse inside a national laboratory, working alongside world-renowned scientists and engineers with whom they can share their ideas. The post Innovation at Argonne National Laboratory Incubator appeared first on The Startup Magazine.

Incubator 91

Incubator SBIR Engineer Technical Support 91

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. That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with startups that can’t initially generate cash. More Choice.

Startup 130

Startup Revenue Cofounder Angel Investor 130

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2011

Many believe that entrepreneurs are born, not made. While I agree that successful company builders usually have a natural inclination to be entrepreneurs, a good education helps polish that apple. We can all point to examples of successful entrepreneurs who dropped out of college, but still went on to make a big impact.

Entrepreneur 264

Entrepreneur Seed Money Social Network Business Plan 264

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 7, 2017

Startups caught the attention of venture capitalists as far back as three decades ago. At the time, most startups were from the internet’s dot com side of businesses, as the outlook was bullish then. Things You Need to Know About Starting a Startup Business. Rationale for Startup Investments. Angel Networks.

Private Equity 159

Private Equity Startup Incubator Social Network 159

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2013

The number of startups getting seed funding in 2012 jumped by 65% over the previous year to a total of 1749, according to a recent report by CB Insights. Seed investments” are early stage financings (typically less than $1.5 This is great evidence that the recession drag on funding new startups is behind us. Stay alert.

Massachusetts 249

Massachusetts Silicon Valley Venture Capital California 249

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 25, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series Startup Advice. I like to say to first-time entrepreneurs, picking a VC is more permanent than marriage. Trust your instincts – they will serve you well as an entrepreneur. And many of these people are money managers rather than people like Gus who inspire entrepreneurs.

Pakistan 297

Pakistan India Technical Review Software Review 297

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

There are certain topics that even some of the smartest people I talk with who aren’t startup oriented can’t fully grok. It’s common cocktail party chatter to hear people confidently pronounce that some well known startup is sure to blow up because, “How could they succeed when they’re not even profitable!” What did they actually do?

Stock Options 227

Stock Options Startup Dilution Venture Capital 227

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 23, 2018

This is why it is especially important for startup founders to seek help to guide them through the tedious and often perilous process of starting and growing a company. In recent years, startup accelerators and startup incubators have become the place of choice for any budding entrepreneurs to be the next unicorn.

Incubator 127

Incubator South America San Francisco Chile 127

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 14, 2014

If you knew entrepreneur Marquis Hayes 10 years ago, you would barely recognize him today. But he chose to move forward with a positive attitude, raise seed money for his company, and network his way to a profitable future. Here are six things you can do to make your startup look attractive to potential investors: 1.

Bootstrapping 249

Bootstrapping Startup Seed Money New York 249

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

How would they know unless they surveyed a critical mass of startups all at the same stage now and then three years ago or so to compare? David's firm most recently participated in the $77 million second round financing of SoFi, a one year old startup focusing on student loans. Needless to say, he's having some trouble raising.

Venture Capital 130

Venture Capital Marketing Term Sheet Software Review 130

cdixon.org

SEPTEMBER 17, 2011

Why you shouldn’t keep your startup idea secret. A frequent question entrepreneurs have when they are just starting their company is: how secretive should I be about my idea? This includes investors, entrepreneurs, people who work in similar areas, friends, people on the street, the bartender, etc. (I Eric Stromberg.

Stealth 68

Stealth Startup NDA Cofounder 68

Gust

JANUARY 13, 2013

Many believe that entrepreneurs are born, not made. While I agree that successful company builders usually have a natural inclination to be entrepreneurs, a good education helps polish that apple. We can all point to examples of successful entrepreneurs who dropped out of college, but still went on to make a big impact.

Entrepreneur 180

Entrepreneur Seed Money Social Network Business Plan 180

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. That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with startups that can’t initially generate cash. More Choice.

Startup 78

Startup Revenue Cofounder Angel Investor 78

Steve Blank

JUNE 11, 2009

Posted on June 11, 2009 by steveblank When my students ask me about whether they should be a founder or cofounder of a startup I ask them to take a walk around the block and ask themselves: Are you comfortable with: Chaos – startups are disorganized Uncertainty – startups never go per plan Are you: Resilient – at times you will fail – badly.

Cofounder 230

Cofounder Founder Silicon Valley Technical Cofounder 230

crowdSPRING Blog

APRIL 23, 2018

You don’t have to look far to find evidence that we’re in another prolonged startup boom. This trend continued in 2017 , and all signs suggest that 2018 will have similar startup growth. But the more new businesses there are, the more old, often untrue ideas about startups propagate. This is good news. That’s a lie.

Entrepreneur 69

Entrepreneur Startup Seattle Social Media 69

The Equity Kicker

AUGUST 20, 2014

Matt was a second time entrepreneur who had a wealth of experience in the holiday lettings industry. With no team and no technical expertise Matt was planning to find a team and build out some product before starting to raise some seed money. Our unique model allowed him to get started straight away.

Cofounder 95

Cofounder Founder Technical Cofounder Technical Review 95

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

A friend of mine is a serial entrepreneur and is running a high-profile, early stage company in NorCal. We exchanged ideas when I was an entrepreneur along side him in NorCal in 05-07 and my point-of-view on founder / VC relationships hasn’t shifted even 1% since I went to the dark side. I believe this is wrong.

Founder 329

Founder Liquidation Preference Term Sheet Participating Preferred 329

Version One Ventures

DECEMBER 14, 2016

At the same time, seed money is still abundant due to the proliferation of micro VC over the past few years. Mattermark (a portfolio company) looked at the matriculation rates for a class of startups. Mattermark found that, on average, around 31 of the initial startups raised a Series A. Quantum Computing.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Early Stage Portfolio Valuation 60

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 18, 2014

Most people never get to launch a successful startup, much less six. Despite earning Oprah money and minting more than 150 millionaires with six successful exits, including Splunk, currently valued at more than $5 billion, Baum has yet to retire. Instead of launching another startup, however, he’s launching entrepreneurs.

Founder 60

Founder Entrepreneur North America Startup 60

Feld Thoughts

OCTOBER 15, 2013

Some are major contributors to their startup communities. As with everything new that grows quickly, it’s a chaotic system with lots of innovation, creative destruction, and rapid change and learning that – if done well – is a great example of the power of the Lean Startup approach to entrepreneurship.

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Global Networking United States Seed Money 179

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2011

By John Williams Fast Company magazine recently reported that PayPal founder Paul Thiel is giving away $100,000 to twenty-four young men and women to finance startup businesses. The caveat is that these young entrepreneurs have to drop out of college to do it. Your mortgage and grocery bill depend on it. You can keep overhead low.

Sweat Equity 231

Sweat Equity Startup Angel Investor Seed Money 231

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 21, 2012

Startup accelerators continue to grow in popularity. Would you invest in a startup from its program? Some accelerators are run by experienced entrepreneurs who have deep ties to funding sources and have sold companies before. They run 12-week programs to get startups quickly from concept to product. Niche Focus.

Startup 167

Startup Houston Equity Seed Money 167

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 12, 2020

While you won’t be beholden to an employer as an entrepreneur when it comes to time management, you will be beholden to your clients who can be even less forgiving. You Have Access to Seed Money. 8 Signs That Now Is the Time to Launch Your Trucking Business appeared first on The Startup Magazine.

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Seed Money United States Revenue Hiring 92