May 2013
1 post
9 tags
10 Topics To Know Cold for Your Perfect VC...
You’ve been slaving away, creating your product and company while bearing the weight of the world on your shoulders. Now it’s time to take your company to the next level. You’ve reached out to your network for investor contacts, and now the all-important meeting with investors is booked. You have three weeks to prep. What do you do?
Investors can be tough, and you want to make sure you can...
April 2013
10 posts
3 tags
“Ask not what you can do for your Board – Ask what your Board of Directors can...”
“It sure seems like everyone in finance I know all of a sudden wants to do a...”
2 tags
“Being a startup founder ruins you. You can’t have a real job ever again.”
– Dave McClure
3 tags
“Focusing on your core strength applies to both fitness and startups.”
March 2013
1 post
“Utilize data, user feedback, and experts as tools to sharpen your gut...”
July 2012
2 posts
3 tags
“Doing a startup is like running a marathon…a marathon with an unknown...”
4 tags
“The more you have experienced, the more you can experience.”
– Dan Goodwin, Entrepreneur in Residence at IDEO
June 2012
3 posts
“Ideas are worthless. The art is in the execution. If you are worried about...”
2 tags
“There is a fine line between catastrophic failure and catastrophic success.”
4 tags
“You can be so bad at so many things… and as long as you stay focused on how...”
– Mark Zuckerberg
May 2012
8 posts
4 tags
What a VC is Really Thinking when Turning Down...
Yesterday, my post went live on VentureBeat discussing the top 25 ways your startup will be turned down during fundraising.
Most times, however, what an investor says is just scratching the surface of how he/she truly feels when declining to move forward with your company. Many more factors are inputs into their decision process (that have absolutely nothing to do with you or your company)...
9 tags
Business Attire Hack: Use Cotton Swabs as Shirt...
Okay, I don’t think that I’m alone here. I was just on a business trip to DC where I had to do an important pitch presentation about ShopWell at a big nutrition conference. I landed, got to my hotel, laid out my clothes (to iron in the morning), and went to bed.
When I got up, I brushed my teeth, took my shower, and began ironing. When I finished, I realized that I had no shirt...
“Credit can only be given, not taken.”
– Jack Witlin
6 tags
25 Ways Your Startup Will Get Turned Down By...
If You Aren’t Getting Rejected on a Daily Basis, Your Ideas Aren’t Ambitious Enough.
After speaking with a number of fellow “Hustlers” (fellow fundraising CEOs), I was able to amass an awesome list of classic messages people have received from investors after initial contact or initial pitch. As the title implies, below are 25 ways people get rejected from investors.
...
6 tags
So...When is the Best Time to Pitch an Investor...
I saw this question on Quora, and had to answer it. But before I begin, how about a classic shot from the oh-so-realistic show Shark Tank on ABC (since this is EXACTLY how venture pitches go).
About Timing
I have found that my best pitches were less of a “pitch” and more of a “conversation”. These more conversational pitches have tended to be during lunch or at the...
4 tags
Turn an Old Brick Phone into a Bluetooth Headset...
Over the years, I have done a number of fun projects as a designer. This one, in particular, I think is a lot of fun and it is fairly doable with a little patience. I posted this several years ago on my old Grooveking.com blog (RIP). I thought I would bring it back for good times with some minor updates. “The Classic Brick Phone”
Okay, I think I got your attention! Remember...
“The best startups are like cockroaches. They adapt, evolve, survive, and...”
6 tags
February 2012
2 posts
Zuckerberg's 5 core "Hacker Way" values
Focus on impact: “If we want to have the biggest impact, the best way to do this is to make sure we always focus on solving the most important problems. It sounds simple, but we think most companies do this poorly and waste a lot of time. We expect everyone at Facebook to be good at finding the biggest problems to work on.”
Move fast: ”Moving fast enables us to build more...
January 2012
1 post
3 tags
WatchBrian Witlin’s ShopWell Demo at Health 2.0 in San Diego.
November 2011
1 post
October 2011
1 post
3 tags
“Don’t mistake a clear view for a short distance”
– Kevin Kelley, Blogger
August 2011
9 posts
5 tags
6 tags
Obsessed with Lytro
I love disruptive innovation. I also love when Stanford Grads come up with something that truly changes how we think about things. Google took the leap to effectively crawl the internet to create the best search engine out there. The Lytro folks have re-thought the idea of a camera.
Many people, including myself, take great pride in our pictures. I continue to enjoy shots with my digital...
1 tag
“Never, never, never, never give up.”
– Winston Churchill
4 tags
Interview With Craig Diamond, Founder of Diamond...
AS mentioned in my previous posts, I enjoy building entrepreneurs as much as I enjoy building startups. Below is a great interview with Craig Diamond of Diamond MMA. I have been working with him for the last two years getting his business off the ground.
Craig talks about his company and being featured during UFC 133 when Joe Rogan mentioned his company during multiple time-outs.
...
5 tags
1 tag
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
– Theadore Roosevelt, 26th president of US (1858 - 1919)
July 2011
3 posts
“Some people like building startups. I think that is fun too. I also enjoy...”
New Fine Art Experimentation
I have been playing around with some new techniques to improve my painting/design skills. In the three images, note the use of lower intensity colors. I still love achieving a mood while limiting the necessary detail. These are all still works in progress. I will post updates as I finalize the designs.
“Optimists make lemonade out of lemons. Entrepreneurs make lemonade out of lemon...”
June 2011
3 posts
5 tags
WatchThis video illustrates two start-up guys throwing around random web marketing buzz words. Super hilarious…but makes me feel a little bad for the guys who have to listen to pitches like this all day long.
3 tags
Will Price: Learning How to Sell - Premature... →
Some great excerpts from Will Price on selling from a startup perspective from Sandler’s Rules: 49 Timeless Selling Principles and How to Apply Them:
Rule 2: Don’t Spill Your Candy in the Lobby
This rule is classic - “have you ever shared too much information, too soon?” In my rush to prove my credibility and the value of my product, I often jump right into an overview...
Cirrata Lamp by Markus Johansson | Hypebeast →
An absolutely stunning display of originality from both a form and material perspective. The Cirrata Lamp by Markus Johannson truly challenges what is possible to be made from Corian while challenging the form factor of the lamp.
May 2011
3 posts
Factual Blog » Blog Archive » If It Walks Like an... →
2 tags
“You know your an entrepreneur when you steal office supplies from home and bring...”
3 tags
April 2011
10 posts
2 tags
“Whoever said that being an entrepreneur was glamorous must not have been an...”
3 tags
“You’ve either started a company or you haven’t. ”Started” doesn’t mean joining...”
– Chris Dixon - Founder @ Hunch, Founder Collective, SiteAdvisor 