Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 2, 2014

” This sentiment is probably familiar to many entrepreneurs and it must certainly resonates with anybody who suspects he or she has ADD. It was called “ Delivered from Distraction ” and it outlines many successful executives with ADD and in particular some famous entrepreneurs. Often doing many things at once.

Startup 416

Startup Entrepreneur Writing Help 416

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 9, 2023

Even in this age of videos and text messages, the quickest way to kill your startup dream with investors, business partners, or even customers, is embarrassingly poor writing. You have to be able to communicate effectively in all the common forms, including business writing, as well as talking, presenting, and producing videos.

Tips 123

Tips Writing Startup Summary 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 24, 2016

Even in this age of videos and text messages, the quickest way to kill your startup dream with investors, business partners, or even customers, is embarrassingly poor writing. You have to be able to communicate effectively in all the common forms, including business writing, as well as talking, presenting, and producing videos.

Writing 62

Writing Summary Email Ideas 62

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 1, 2020

As a mentor to entrepreneurs and business owners, and seeing their workload and challenges, it would be easy for me to conclude that starting a business is a big hit to health and happiness. If you are sick of the corporate grind, take your favorite idea or hobby, and join other happy entrepreneurs. Stay rooted in the present.

Entrepreneur 137

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Mentor Writing 137

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 19, 2010

I’m writing this post as part of my series with Advice on Raising Venture Capital but will file it under Sales Tips as well since it applies equally to both scenarios. Information Asymmetry - The biggest problem that presenters face in large (5+ people) is information asymmetry. Congratulations. Does that sound ok?&#.

Venture Capital 318

Venture Capital Startup Sales Writing 318

SoCal Tech Calendar

SEPTEMBER 30, 2011

Thursday, October 6, 2011 -- EFactor presents: 7 Steps to a Successful Startup. Are you an entrepreneur? Entrepreneurs don't like to write business plans, but how do you know if there is real potential for you idea? Do you have a great idea? Do you want to transform it into a successful startup? See [link] (more)

TechEmpower 100

TechEmpower Startup Tips Writing 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 13, 2011

I talked about this in the TWiVC video but I didn’t do a good enough job of writing it up in the summary notes in the post. The “Triple Play&# of VC Presentations. Be ready to map your presentation to their preferred method. I’m usually itching to just see what you’ve built. Call an audible.

Venture Capital 299

Venture Capital Slides Technical Advisors Startup 299

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 2009

This is part of my new series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I wanted to also post the series here to have it as a resource on my blog for future entrepreneurs who stop by. If you haven’t spent time over there you should.

Entrepreneur 338

Entrepreneur Startup Venture Capital Google 338

InfoChachkie

JUNE 16, 2016

Entrepreneurs create their own jobs, why shouldn’t they also create their own degrees? As described in Should Millennial Entrepreneurs Skip College? most young entrepreneurs benefit greatly from the college experience. This list is intended to cover non-obvious courses relevant to entrepreneurs. Communication.

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Class Course Writing 100

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 19, 2017

If you want people to invest in your idea, then my best advice is first write a business plan, and keep it simple. This means writing at the level of an average newspaper story (about eighth-grade level). On the other end of this spectrum are entrepreneurs who present long product specifications with a few financials at the end.

Writing 56

Writing Tips Content Summary 56

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 13, 2019

If you want people to invest in your idea, then my best advice is first write a business plan, and keep it simple. This means writing at the level of an average newspaper story (about eighth-grade level). On the other end of this spectrum are entrepreneurs who present long product specifications with a few financials at the end.

Tips 96

Tips Entrepreneur Writing Content 96

socalTECH

MARCH 28, 2019

Earlier this month, the annual Montgomery Summit conference was held in Santa Monica, including a special portion of the conference dedicated to the Rise of the Female Entrepreneur. I see you were involved in the Rise of the Female Entrepreneur effort at the Montgomery Summit this year, tell me a little about what that is all about?

Capital 162

Capital Entrepreneur Invest Artificial Inteligence 162

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2016

Some people even believe that entrepreneurs must be born with the right genes, and no element of education is relevant. In my view, the most effective entrepreneurs are those with a background of an array of real-life experiences, both positive and negative, as well as good academic and coaching activities.

Entrepreneur 98

Entrepreneur Tips Writing Coach 98

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2010

Back in November I agreed with Nivi over at VentureHacks to do a series on the ten most important attributes of a successful entrepreneur. Unfortunately, I don’t believe it is perfectly correlated with what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. If we’ve seen a company present where we feel that the CEO is shady.

Technical Review 284

Technical Review Entrepreneur Startup Funding 284

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 18, 2014

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. For aspiring entrepreneurs, or if your last startup failed, it’s all about standing out above the crowd of others like you. Written business plan.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Startup Writing Slides 108

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 8, 2014

” It’s the most common refrain I hear from investors and even entrepreneurs these days. When you begin to peel back the onion some surprising data presents itself. If you want the full SlideShare deck with many slides not in either post it’s in this link –> The LA Tech Market. LA By The Numbers.

Entrepreneur 376

Entrepreneur Snapchat Startup Google 376

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 19, 2010

As a member of the local angel group Selection Committee, I’ve seen a lot of startup presentations to investors, and I’ve never seen one that was too short - maybe short on content, but not short on pages! Every startup needs both a business plan and an investor presentation, completed before you formally approach any investors.

Slides 94

Slides Competition Sample Sales 94

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2010

I originally conceived it as the Top 11 things that I believe “all entrepreneurs need to succeed.&# If it stuck to this theme then I would stand by my top 11. There’s one attribute (coming soon) that I need to have in order to write a check but I don’t believe is vital for success. That’s OK.

Entrepreneur 267

Entrepreneur Startup SaaS San Diego 267

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 17, 2017

I want to invest in entrepreneurs that have the capacity to be number one at whatever they are doing, and do it within our skill base, which is direct-to-consumer. So, now, as a VC, I swore I'd never treat entrepreneurs like those VCs treated me. I love entrepreneurs. What's the theme of your investments? I know all of that.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Technical Review Software Review 100

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 19, 2021

If you want people to invest in your idea, then my best advice is first write a business plan, and keep it simple. This means writing at the level of an average newspaper story (about eighth-grade level). On the other end of this spectrum are entrepreneurs who present long product specifications with a few financials at the end.

Invest 135

Invest Tips Writing Content 135

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 22, 2010

On why you should be an entrepreneur, “A lot of people do what they have to do. As a teenager he experimented with writing & producing his own rap music and received a lot of feedback from elders that he had a talent with words. The most potent entrepreneur is the one that doesn’t NEED your money.

Entrepreneur 356

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Startup Email 356

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2012

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. On the top line, angel investors look to invest in entrepreneurs that have an almost unwavering passion and sense of urgency. Here are some key ones they look for: Talks and writes well.

Entrepreneur 117

Entrepreneur Technical Review Course Patents 117

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2012

I use George Bush vs. Al Gore as allegory and I’ve been using it with entrepreneurs for years to sink in a simple point about how to communicate with the market. This does not mean you shouldn’t solve big, complex problems or write complex code. Most Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs I know are more like Al Gore.

Entrepreneur 370

Entrepreneur Startup Press Venture Capital 370

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 27, 2022

In my role as an angel investor to startups, I’m struck by the broad variety of advisor strategies I see in investor presentations and business plans that cross my desk. Some entrepreneurs are “lone rangers,” never mentioning any outside guidance, while others tout dozens of advisors. Keep the advisory board to a manageable size.

Startup 123

Startup Entrepreneur Ideas Writing 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 1, 2023

As a mentor to entrepreneurs and business owners, and seeing their workload and challenges, it would be easy for me to conclude that starting a business is a big hit to health and happiness. If you are sick of the corporate grind, take your favorite idea or hobby, and join other happy entrepreneurs. Stay rooted in the present.

Satisfaction 119

Satisfaction Entrepreneur Mentor Writing 119

Tech.Co

DECEMBER 29, 2023

While the market isn't short of spritely, innovative entrepreneurs, harsh economic headwinds combined with a pullback in investor spending have made it harder than ever for budding businesses to break through. Writesonic Writesonic is an AI writing tool designed to help writers overcome writers block and level up their skills.

Startup 196

Startup Generative AI Newsletter Tool 196

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 2009

This is part of my new series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. And when they walk in my office and present you can tell that they know what they’re talking about. If you haven’t spent time over there you should.

Entrepreneur 306

Entrepreneur Startup Outsource Development Customer 306

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. The short answer is that you should have multiple versions of your “pitch deck” (a short, visual presentation in Keynote, PPT or similar and shared as a PDF) and each occasion has a specific goal. This is part of a series on how to improve your fund raising game.

Venture Capital 261

Venture Capital Slides Email Startup 261

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 15, 2010

Jason started the Open Angel Forum in response to his frustration that entrepreneurs were being charged by some angel organizations to present at their events. As a former entrepreneur, I’m a big supporter of Jason’s goals. Also present were NorCal angels including Ron Conway , Chris Sacca and Shervin Pishevar.

Angel 254

Angel Startup Tech Coast Angels MyShape 254

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Each has a process in place to accept applications or recommendations for investment into new companies, and to review these and make decisions based upon their exploration, previous experience in the field, knowledge of the company or industry, or about individual entrepreneurs. Some can supply more when syndicating with other such groups.

Equity 156

Equity Technical Review Class Organization 156

Berkonomics

MAY 22, 2014

In most cases, those entrepreneurs choosing to raise capital using PPMs retain specialists (many of whom are lawyers) to write their PPMs – a rather expensive undertaking. Then, only after convincing these “unsophisticated” investors to sign up and write their checks, the entrepreneur may approach an angel or group of angels.

Writing 199

Writing Invest Entrepreneur Equity 199

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 7, 2022

The challenge is when and how to make the switch to the entrepreneur lifestyle. As a mentor to young aspiring entrepreneurs , I often get asked for tips on a strategy to get started. Remember that investors tend to fund entrepreneurs, not ideas. Write a business plan for your desired new business.

Startup 114

Startup Tips Coach Satisfaction 114

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2023

The reigning theory in business has long been that “alpha” leaders make the best entrepreneurs. I agree with Dr. Ardi’s writing, that most successful workplaces of the future need to adopt the following beta characteristics, and align themselves more with the beta leadership model: Do away with archaic command-and-control models.

Organization 113

Organization Competition Entrepreneur Writing 113

SoCal Tech Calendar

DECEMBER 3, 2012

What do entrepreneurs, mathematicians, software engineers, physicists, physicians, biologists, anatomists, angels, venture capitalists and bankers have in common? Entrepreneurs dream and bring the dreams to reality. Software engineers write the programs for computers to process the data. Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum.

Enterprise Forum 113

Enterprise Forum CalTech Software Engineering Writing 113

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 9, 2013

Executives in an enterprise usually don’t write their own memos, contracts, and certainly don’t schedule their own meetings. The result is a startup with an exorbitant burn rate, and a very unhappy entrepreneur. So if you really want to be an entrepreneur, there is no time like the present. There is a difference.

Entrepreneur 95

Entrepreneur Startup Training Course 95

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2010

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. On the top line, angel investors look to invest in entrepreneurs that have an almost unwavering passion and sense of urgency. Here are some key ones they look for: Talks and writes well.

Entrepreneur 96

Entrepreneur Angel Technical Review Course 96

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 28, 2018

Some people even believe that entrepreneurs must be born with the right genes, and no element of education is relevant. In my view, the most effective entrepreneurs are those with a background of an array of real-life experiences, both positive and negative, as well as good academic and coaching activities.

Startup 97

Startup Writing Coach Incubator 97