Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 29, 2014

This week I wrote about obsessive and competitive founders and how this forms the basis of what I look for when I invest. Why will people invest 5x the money to get book smart and struggle so much to take a big salary cut to get real life experience? I normally finish with my soap box speech. “Look. It’s gonna suck, I know.

Startup 409

Startup Invest Venture Capital Writing 409

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

So I thought I’d write about out with what I would look for in a VC knowing what I know now and why. Most VCs are book smart. It’s insanely competitive to get into our industry so most have degrees from institutions like Stanford, Harvard, Wharton and University of Chicago (blatant plug ;-). It’s not you.

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

InfoChachkie

MARCH 10, 2014

Jackson Brown sat at his kitchen table, pulled out a pad of paper and began writing advice to his son, who had just entered college. Mr. Brown''s aphorisms eventually evolve into twenty one books, including four New York Times bestsellers. Brown''s musing are anachronisms (e.g., "Don''t Grind it out. Take care of your reputation.

Competition 274

Competition Mentor Entrepreneur Startup 274

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

If you haven’t read Adam Lashinsky’s awesome new book about Apple , you should. The idea that the course asks students to write public blog posts is a testament to its more modern teaching style. My list of excuses includes: product, pricing, competition and lack of sales support.

Startup 319

Startup Sales Course Competition 319

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 9, 2012

I told him only 2 weeks ago when we were in London together that I wanted to write a blog post that has been in my head for 2 years. He is profiled in my favorite book about ADHD, Delivered From Distraction , where the author talks about high-performance ADHD professionals. I’ve been told so. How can anybody do 500 startups?”.

Startup 309

Startup Venture Capital Email Writing 309

TechCrunch LA

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

Capitalism is fundamentally about timing, since market competition is about finding opportunities before others. Start writing down predictions about people, companies, and markets. Pro tip: take on the mantle of book editor for a major tech publication, and the publishers will mail you books for free. What a boring mess.

Venture Capital 202

Venture Capital Startup Technical Review Invest 202

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!” Fast early growth in a market is often eroded when competition gets fierce and prices are forced down due to competition.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

InfoChachkie

JULY 23, 2012

The video was produced as a means of marketing Brad and Jason’s book, Venture Deals , yet the wide coverage it received resulted in significant promotion of the firm, its partners, and the book. “We We write blogs, we do music videos, we show up, we engage with people…we love our product. Write Your Own Playbook.

Marketing 233

Marketing Blogging Startup Venture Capital 233

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 22, 2010

. - Journalists don’t know enough about your company before the show, don’t have time for proper research, and you will be competing for their time afterward with 49+ other companies that want them to write about you. - Given a choice of your marketing person or talking to you (the founder) there’s no competition.

Tips 307

Tips Startup Press Blogging 307

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2021

There really is no excuse these days, with samples on the Internet, business-plan books in every bookstore, and dozens of apps to automate the process. A great business plan doesn’t have to be a book in length, with extensive financial statements. Don’t try to impress constituents with technical terms, jargon, and acronyms.

Sample 137

Sample Writing Mentor Content 137

TechCrunch LA

MAY 17, 2019

Ficto is bringing to market adaptations of bestselling books and original productions which will be released with theatrical films and has plans in the pipeline for other forms of scripted and unscripted entertainment. Jemisin’s book is another feature in the Ficto slate. Feist novels have sold over 20 million copies.

Services 167

Services Report Netflix Content 167

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

When to get a lawyer - If you plan to be a venture or angel backed technology company (what I mostly write about) the best time to start meeting and getting to know lawyers is long before you ever start your company. I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes. But make it competitive.

Startup 318

Startup IP Southern California Entrepreneur 318

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2010

I recently wrote a post about avoiding the “ Deferred Life Plan &# and some related thoughts about personal productivity that came from Tim Ferriss’s book, The Four Hour Workweek. Tim Ferriss gave this extra emphasis in his book. I would love to say that I’m the productivity guru. Unfortunately I was wrong.

Product 280

Product Startup Email Technical Review 280

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 17, 2020

I believe the old adage that you don’t know what you don’t know until you try to write it down. The discipline of writing down your plan is the best way to make sure you understand how to transform your idea into a business, and how to communicate it. A business plan is for you first, not investors.

Startup 174

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Ideas 174

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2023

There really is no excuse these days, with samples on the Internet, business-plan books in every bookstore, and dozens of apps to automate the process. A great business plan doesn’t have to be a book in length, with extensive financial statements. Don’t try to impress constituents with technical terms, jargon, and acronyms.

Startup 102

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 102

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 18, 2013

The future of TV will follow the rule of Deflationary Economics as I outline influenced by the book The Innovator’s Dilemma. For those who still don’t know the origins, the Harlem Shake started as a small skit from a YouTuber named Filthy Frank (10 million views as of this writing) on January 30, 2013. Harlem Shake.

Startup 380

Startup Media Content Platform 380

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 2, 2020

Then, he'll need to patent it and create a plan to show opportunity, competition, and financial projections. I have found that the process of writing down your idea, with a plan for implementation, and reviewing that plan with a business advisor, will force you to learn and acknowledge the real requirements for implementation.

Ideas 126

Ideas Writing Examples Outsource 126

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 18, 2020

A few years ago I was impressed with the classic book “ When Turtles Fly ” by Nikki Stone, an Olympic champion, which explains this well. Entrepreneurs, like Olympians, tend to put a competitive spin on anything they find a passion for, and once they are snagged, they have to win. Nothing good comes without hard work.

Entrepreneur 174

Entrepreneur Writing Competition Examples 174

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2015

There really is no excuse these days, with samples on the Internet, business-plan books in every bookstore, and dozens of apps to automate the process. A great business plan doesn’t have to be a book in length, with extensive financial statements. Don’t try to impress constituents with technical terms, jargon, and acronyms.

Startup 109

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 109

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 19, 2020

Other business culture experts, like Dr. Dana Ardi, in her classic book “ The Fall of the Alphas ,” argues that the rise of the betas is really part of a broader culture change driven by the Internet, towards communities, instant communication, and collaboration. These would never happen. Put a premium on collaboration and teamwork.

Organization 149

Organization Competition Entrepreneur Startup 149

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 16, 2020

As a business advisor and advocate for entrepreneurs, I find myself almost always talking and writing about change. I was reminded of a number of these by a classic book, “ The Thing About Work: Showing Up and Other Important Matters ,” by Richard A. Anything less makes you non-competitive.

Startup 153

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Screening 153

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2022

I was happy to see this strategy expertly illustrated in a new book, “ The Innovation Mindset ,” by Lorraine H. Write down your business model and five-year plan. I believe that writing down your business plan has tremendous value for you, even if you don’t need investors. Plan for change before the crisis.

Ideas 145

Ideas Startup Case Study Writing 145

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

I’ve started writing up some of those sales & marketing lessons and I plan to continue to build that section out over time. Sure, you need to be competitive on price. Sales people will always tell you how far ahead the competition is. You can book them at budget hotels – but don’t go too far.

Sales 316

Sales Startup Pricing Custom 316

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

We had to write a CRM to keep track of them all. Alarming IT data points - deal architect , August 25, 2010 I am grateful for plenty of positive coverage my book has received. The coverage, though, has focused mostly on all the innovators I profile in the book. There is no competition. Example: Netflix).

Startup 191

Startup Venture Capital Blogging CTO Hire 191

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 27, 2010

I wasn’t going to write about it since he had just covered the topic and echoed my point of view. To anyone who believes his data proves anything please do me a favor and go read The Black Swan – my favorite book of the past 5 years. Fred Wilson said as much on his blog also. Or at least 73.6%

Startup 289

Startup Statistics Entrepreneur Study 289

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 13, 2020

For an inspiring story full of specifics on how to achieve goals, I recommend the classic book, “ Three Points of Contact ,” by Gregory Q. I was most impressed with the steps he outlined for turning ideas into goals into results, which I paraphrase here for aspiring entrepreneurs: Write down your goals or your dreams.

Ideas 121

Ideas Writing Startup Entrepreneur 121

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 29, 2009

I then remember when Amazon started selling books on the web. As John Battelle chronicles in his brilliant (and must read) book, The Search , Google thought this idea stunk. If there were no advertising on Google we would have no Gmail, no Google Maps, no Android, no Google Books. That was a kerfuffle too. So did the media.

Ideas 286

Ideas Advertising Google Technical Review 286

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 9, 2012

You may have already found several articles, web pages, or books about writing the perfect executive summary. They all offer a list of requirements that might take 50 pages to address, but of course they ask you to write concisely. Your competitive advantage. Don’t kill your credibility by saying you have no competition.

Summary 97

Summary Writing Competition Sample 97

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

A business plan is the outward facing definition of the business you hope to drive with your hardware solution, with a hardware overview in the intro to highlight customer value and competitiveness. Call out your top competitors, highlighting your sustainable competitive advantage, including patents, trade secrets. and trademarks.

Product 169

Product Summary Startup Examples 169

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2010

I’ll confess up front that I’m a big fan of Guy Kawasaki’s humor and writing style. Back when he was writing to entrepreneurs, he published the book “ Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition.” All it takes is reading this book and practicing for twenty years.

Entrepreneur 92

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Sample 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 21, 2012

This is sad, since “how to write a business plan” is a frequent topic found in every business journal, and a common title in the business section of every book store. Forcing yourself to write down a plan is actually the only way to make sure you actually understand it yourself. What is the definition of a good business plan?

Sample 96

Sample Writing Summary Startup 96

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 6, 2021

This may mean attending industry conferences, taking college courses, or reading some key books. It may be time for you to start your own blog, write a book, or volunteer as a speaker at public events in your domain. The more you know, the more self-confident you will be to make your own leadership decisions.

Entrepreneur 132

Entrepreneur Course Satisfaction Guide 132

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 12, 2023

I believe the old adage that you don’t know what you don’t know until you try to write it down. The discipline of writing down your plan is the best way to make sure you understand how to transform your idea into a business, and how to communicate it. A business plan is for you first, not investors.

Startup 124

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Ideas 124

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 3, 2011

You may have already found several articles, web pages, or books about writing the perfect executive summary. They all offer a list of requirements that might take 50 pages to address, but of course they ask you to write concisely. Your competitive advantage. Don’t kill your credibility by saying you have no competition.

Summary 90

Summary Writing Competition Sample 90

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2013

This is sad, since “how to write a business plan” is a frequent topic found in every business journal, and a common title in the business section of every book store. Forcing yourself to write down a plan is actually the only way to make sure you actually understand it yourself. What is the definition of a good business plan?

Sample 92

Sample Writing Startup Summary 92

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2012

Alain Theriault, better known as StartupCoach , tells entrepreneurs that, on your way to being a great chef, you don't start by writing a cook book (business plan), you work in the kitchen for a while, you learn some tools of the trade, you experiment with a few recipes, you test on willing clients. then you can start writing a recipe.

Startup 96

Startup Writing Metrics Marketing 96

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2010

This is sad, since “how to write a business plan” is a frequent topic found in every business journal, and a common title in the business section of every book store. Forcing yourself to write down a plan is actually the only way to make sure you actually understand it yourself. What is the definition of a good business plan?

Startup 91

Startup Funding Sample Writing 91