Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

The core of the investing job of course is investing dollars into startup companies and helping as a mentor, advisor and board member on the companies in which you’ve invested. Kara will now be really involved with what goes on to successfully create and run a firm but while still handling her core duties of funding great entrepreneurs.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 25, 2020

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of those demanding angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. Way back in 2015, the Kickstarter Pebble smartwatch raised $20.3 These groups are now largely run by volunteers at no cost to entrepreneurs.

Equity 164

Equity Statistics Platform Entrepreneur 164

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2015

The visibility of Google, Facebook and a few others continues to propagate the myth that the ultimate objective of every entrepreneur should be to take their startups public via an initial public offering at the earliest opportunity. For every entrepreneur, I recommend first a personal assessment of your goals and strengths.

Entrepreneur 98

Entrepreneur Startup Report Statistics 98

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2015

Most entrepreneurs I know want to do the right thing for their businesses, as well as themselves, but they are not always sure what that means. By demand, entrepreneurs are crisis managers, and can be busy reacting 24 hours a day to urgent short-term issues. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 9/30/2015.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Training Demand Customer 102

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 6, 2023

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. Way back in 2015, the Kickstarter Pebble smartwatch raised $20.3 These groups are now largely run by volunteers at no cost to entrepreneurs.

Equity 80

Equity Platform Entrepreneur Statistics 80

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2015

If you are like most entrepreneurs I know, there just aren’t enough hours in a day to get all your own work done, as well as run the many one-hour meetings each team member seems to demand for decisions and mentoring. For one-on-one coaching from the startup founder, I call this approach five-minute mentoring.

Product 99

Product Mentor Startup Technical Review 99

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2015

Based on my experience as an investor and mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and elsewhere, one of the quickest ways to kill your credibility and your startup is to offer a poorly written business plan, or none at all. An entrepreneur who can’t manage a plan, probably won’t be able to manage the new business.

Startup 109

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 109

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2015

The successful entrepreneurs I have met and worked with over the years all seem to share that passion for learning, and they see rapid market change not as a problem, but as an opportunity for them to move ahead of the crowd in changing the world. Successful entrepreneurs love to share, but they respond better to pull rather than push.

Startup 103

Startup Case Study Entrepreneur Class 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2015

Too many entrepreneurs tackle starting a business as a random walk into a business minefield, and they count on their street smarts, thick skin and pure determination to get them to their destinations alive. Some entrepreneurs run with passion into the minefield, only to find it’s harder to recover than to plan ahead.

Startup 101

Startup Metrics Resource Mentor 101

InfoChachkie

JUNE 9, 2015

Good news: a quick review of TechCrunch’s March 2015 List of Top 20 U.S. My Forbes co-contributor Geri Stengel concurs that something is happening in the Volunteer State, writing last month about that state’s emerging women entrepreneurs. Savvy entrepreneurs - seek out programs which incorporate these post-graduation activities.

Startup 100

Startup Class LAMP Santa Barbara 100

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 21, 2015

Hundreds of founders, speakers, mentors, and students flocked to the University of Southern California on March 28 th , 2015 to be inspired by female entrepreneurs. We did have over 500 registered for the event, and more than 60 speakers, mentors and judges. So she started a conference for girls. She didn’t stop there.

Entrepreneur 40

Entrepreneur Southern California Conference Startup 40

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 3, 2015

Scott Belsky (@scottbelsky) April 29, 2015. It spoke to me because it so resonates with my nearly daily advice to entrepreneurs and VCs alike. I went as far as to call it the best Tweet of 2015 so far because it encapsulated my advice so succinctly. I saw this Tweet recently by Scott Belsky, co-founder and CEO of Behance.

Startup 150

Startup Venture Capital Invest Framework 150

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2015

Every entrepreneur I know is dismayed by the number of friends who approach them with a line such as “I have an even better idea that will change the world, and one of these days I’m going to get around to starting my own business.” Focus” is the key to success as an entrepreneur. Irrational fear of failure or embarrassment.

Startup 114

Startup Entrepreneur Ideas Knowledge Base 114

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2015

If you find problem-solving to be energizing, you could be the next great entrepreneur. The first challenge for many aspiring entrepreneurs is to put aside their passionate advocacy long enough to acknowledge an existing problem. Don’t hesitate to call in an experienced advisor or mentor to help. It never ends.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Satisfaction Metrics 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 10, 2015

If you're an aspiring entrepreneur, you need to take a hard look at yourself before leaving that regular paycheck. The good and the bad news is that as an entrepreneur, you won’t have a manager charged with directing your efforts or peers helping you implement, and your new team will be quick to tell you only what you want to hear.

Startup 108

Startup Entrepreneur Mentor News 108

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 20, 2014

Want to be an entrepreneur? In addition, Entrepreneur Magazine recently included UCSB in its Top 50 Schools For VC Backed Entrepreneurs at number 37. In addition to an Undergraduate Certificate, the Program is launching a Master of Technology Management degree in 2015. Don''t go to Wharton or Harvard. Techpreneurs.

Santa Barbara 258

Santa Barbara Technical Review Startup Venture Capital 258

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2015

Yet, as an advisor to startups, I see some common disasters, and recommend some anticipation and recovery moves that can save every entrepreneur some painful time and money. While every entrepreneur needs to remain upbeat and optimistic on all of these, it is also smart to anticipate the worst case scenarios that are possible with each.

Startup 105

Startup Entrepreneur Marketing Satisfaction 105

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 21, 2015

Even if you ignore all the hype around crowdfunding, there can be no doubt that it is a real alternative for entrepreneurs to achieve visibility and funding today. are actually matchmaking sites between entrepreneurs and professional investors or banks. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 2/13/2015.

Venture Capital 108

Venture Capital Angel Satisfaction Equity 108

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2015

Many entrepreneurs forget that their success is more about helping other people than about personally becoming famous, or overcoming the odds and getting rich. These are lessons that every entrepreneur should take to heart: Hold the vision. Don’t forget to be a mentor as well as a leader. Stand for something.

Entrepreneur 106

Entrepreneur Customer Custom Mentor 106

Tech Zulu Event

OCTOBER 7, 2015

One weekend, teams of newly formed entrepreneurs and who knows what products or big ideas can happen? This is a unique opportunity for software engineers, designers, and business-minded entrepreneurs to team up and build several startups in just 54 hours! Participants arrive the evening of Friday, Nov. 13 – Nov.

Santa Clarita 40

Santa Clarita Startup Software Engineering Ideas 40

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Many aspiring entrepreneurs are stuck in the idea stage, and only a few have the discipline and the insight to move on to the execution phase. The first and biggest stakeholder is you, the entrepreneur. Do you promote a culture of teamwork, mentoring, and training? What level of stakeholder commitment do you have?

Entrepreneur 107

Entrepreneur Ideas Customer Custom 107

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 22, 2015

Too many entrepreneurs naively believe that candidates with lofty titles from a larger company can easily do the same job for their startups. Provide mentoring and self-learning opportunities. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 6/12/2015. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Startup 99

Startup Mentor Layoffs News 99

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2015

Every entrepreneur realizes that building a great team is critical to the success of his or her startup, but many don’t realize that it takes more than multiple qualified employees to make an effective team. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 7/17/2015.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Coach Mentor 100

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 3, 2015

Lemkin (@jasonlk) January 31, 2015. In 2006 when I was a budding entrepreneur building my second startup I ran into a young (ish) enthusiastic founder of an electronic signature company called EchoSign. I know it will be hard for you to believe in 2015 but in 2006 Palo Alto (where I lived) was kind of dead. Some background.

SaaS 150

SaaS Venture Capital Conference Technical Review 150

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2015

When starting a new business, an entrepreneur has to take a “hands-on” role. In the context of a startup, there are many “hands-on” attributes that every entrepreneur must demonstrate and enjoy if he or she hopes to succeed in building a new business. The founder needs to be a mentor and advisor, as well as a leader.

Startup 102

Startup Technical Review Paramount Entrepreneur 102

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2016

One of the reasons that now is the time to be an entrepreneur is the explosion of startup assistance organizations, usually called incubators or accelerators. Mentoring and technical assistance from volunteer or paid experts. Direct seed funding, for a share of the equity, and introductions to investors.

Incubator 106

Incubator Startup Help Resource 106

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 20, 2016

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of those demanding angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. In 2015, the new Kickstarter Pebble smartwatch raised $20.3 These groups are now largely run by volunteers at no cost to entrepreneurs.

Equity 54

Equity Platform Entrepreneur Demand 54

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2015

It’s a new age for aspiring entrepreneurs, where anyone with a dream or a hobby should be turning it into a business. Too many entrepreneurs still think plans are for investors, and investors are required to build a startup. Many entrepreneurs today build and maintain their own websites, with powerful tools such as Shopify.

Startup 108

Startup Search Engine Optimization Social Media Outsource Development 108

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2015

I challenge any entrepreneur, for example, to define the difference between "seed-stage" and "early-stage" financing. Most investors won’t touch a first-time entrepreneur at this stage. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 9/25/2015. Yet, knowing this distinction is important.

Funding 104

Funding Venture Capital Startup Seed Funding 104

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2015

By default, this role falls on the entrepreneur or a senior team member to establish a culture of openness to innovation and change. Less experienced team members will only really communicate with peers, and maybe their direct manager, while executives may interact more with mentors and outside experts.

Activity 102

Activity Entrepreneur Mentor Startup 102

Tech.Co

JULY 12, 2017

The BB-8 app-enabled Droid had such a global adoption among kids and adults that it was named the number one Star Wars toy of 2015. What you might not realize is that the adorable droid was the brain child of Sphero, a robotics and digital technology company and an alumni to the Disney Accelerator program.

Artificial Inteligence 106

Artificial Inteligence Startup Entertainment Press 106

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2015

Every entrepreneur needs to keep a priority focus on these big-picture business issues, well before he commits his resources and his future to a technology that he loves. Good entrepreneurs know they have to be experts in business as well as technology. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 12/16/2015.

Technical Review 54

Technical Review Product Activity Technology 54

Tech.Co

DECEMBER 12, 2017

In this interview with #StartupsEverywhere , I talk withMichael Iseman, Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Startup Junkie, about the mentorship pool, knowledge transfer, the latest happening in the ecosystem and the energy of this community within the region. I came on full-time with Startup Junkie in 2015, and haven’t looked back!

Entrepreneur 70

Entrepreneur Startup News High Tech 70

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 19, 2015

Entrepreneurs could learn about loneliness of success: nobody talks about. Mark Suster (@msuster) July 19, 2015. The Yo-Yo Life of a Tech Entrepreneur. Advisors / Coaches / Mentors. But needed to be seen. And the immediate reaction was obvious – that failure can be pretty lonely, too. Of course that’s true.

Press 150

Press Venture Capital Startup Entrepreneur 150

Xconomy

OCTOBER 12, 2016

Some entrepreneurs, though, are acting as if Prop 64, known officially as the California Marijuana Legalization Initiative, has already passed. Co-founder and CEO Eric Gomez said Canopy San Diego won’t enroll startups or entrepreneurs who are directly engaged in the cultivation or sale of marijuana or its derivatives.

San Diego 40

San Diego Startup Southern California Invest 40

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 27, 2015

Here are the key principles she espouses, extended to leadership teams, based on my own background and mentoring new entrepreneurs: Learn to trust yourself and your team. Marty Zwilling First published on IvyExec.com on 9/25/2015. ” by Erica Peitler, a well-known leadership performance coach. What gets measured gets done.

Develop 103

Develop Development Coach Metrics 103

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 2014

and I thought if we brought the community together for common purpose we could create more of a sense of community to help new entrepreneurs get funded, assemble teams, raise profiles and help with biz dev, product, etc. We have some announcements set for 2015. By 2011 the market had started to change dramatically. So we went for it.

Venture Capital 290

Venture Capital Startup Idealab Funding 290