Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2011

One of the most common questions that entrepreneurs who meet me for the first time like to ask is, “Do you miss being an entrepreneur? I thought I’d talk a bit about the differences I’ve experienced between being an entrepreneur & a VC – you know, from “both sides of the table.&#. On Being an Entrepreneur.

entrepreneurs 384

entrepreneurs startup VC real estate 384

TechCrunch

MARCH 7, 2023

Plus, they were gracious enough to share some of the advice they’re giving to their portfolio companies. However, many entrepreneurs have opted to remain heads down and build more efficiently instead of testing this new valuation environment. What advice are you giving to your portfolio companies?

advice 110

advice ventures sustainability investing 110

Entrepreneurs' Organization

SEPTEMBER 18, 2017

It’s also good advice to treat your marriage like a business partnership, in that both require commitment, communication and a shared view of values and goals. Kelvin serves on the Georgia Restaurant Association’s board of directors. Mandy: You definitely have to own your strengths and weaknesses to make a partnership work.

peer-to-peer 130

peer-to-peer leadership advice hospitality 130

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 8, 2011

Any success as an entrepreneur? He hasn't founded or built either a successful, let alone innovative company, and he hasn't raised $ to invest in those entrepreneurs. So how can a relatively junior VC hope to add any value to an investment and on a board--and is it enough value that you should have one on your board?

VC 275

VC peer-to-peer board advice 275

Smart Hustle Magazine

MAY 16, 2021

Arlene Dickinson is an investor, entrepreneur, and dragon on Candian’s TV’s “Dragons’ Den” She joined Dave Kerpen, fellow entrepreneur, best-selling author and co-founder of Listening and Beyond with Randi Zuckerberg. There are definitely challenges with raising a family and raising a business.

capital 105

capital energy advice board 105

TechCrunch

JANUARY 19, 2022

Sophie Alcorn is the founder of Alcorn Immigration Law in Silicon Valley and 2019 Global Law Experts Awards’ “Law Firm of the Year in California for Entrepreneur Immigration Services.” Here’s another edition of “Dear Sophie,” the advice column that answers immigration-related questions about working at technology companies.

startup ecosystem 87

startup ecosystem consulting advice entrepreneurs 87

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2013

bang on the windows of a board meeting recently and stick his tongue out at all of us. She was everything I was looking for in an entrepreneur to back. In the most perfect sense of the definition. So, Mark, enough entrepreneur love. Startup Advice' Aka Punky Brewster. Heck, I even had Robert Downey, Jr.

startup 398

startup creativity advice entrepreneurs 398

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2011

One of the most common questions that entrepreneurs who meet me for the first time like to ask is, “Do you miss being an entrepreneur? I thought I’d talk a bit about the differences I’ve experienced between being an entrepreneur & a VC – you know, from “both sides of the table.&#. On Being an Entrepreneur.

entrepreneurs 176

entrepreneurs startup VC real estate 176

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2011

about their marathon 4-hour sessions to get to zero inbox or somebody else claiming email bankruptcy ( definition if you don’t know it already ). I will even take to emailing people I don’t know offering small bits of advice. I do what I wish all entrepreneurs would do. I had a 3-hour board meeting with another.

advice 314

advice culture board VC 314

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 8, 2010

That view from me isn’t surprising since on the topic of Nature vs. Nurture in entrepreneurs I’ve clearly come down on the side of nature more than nurture (again, that doesn’t mean nurture has NO influence, just less than nature). Almost by definition. But in the end they know how to put the big wins on the board.

startup 350

startup frameworks advice entrepreneurs 350

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 3, 2012

Age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, etc are all topics that are deeply emotional for people--and, by definition, personal. I think Fred was trying to offer some friendly advice to young investors that you're going to "take lumps" and that it's worth learning from those who are more experienced.

VC 257

VC board venture capital ventures 257

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 4, 2014

There were cultural challenges across the board. If you give up after this you’re not an entrepreneur. In many cases it’s easier if this person isn’t a board member or VC unless you have an extremely close or trusting relationship with them. Startup Advice' Nurture it. Challenge it.

founder 340

founder board culture advice 340

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2010

Otherwise you’re not serious and you’ll never get the right job so don’t bother.&# Definitely gets shock value. Why do I give this blunt advice? The best jobs are the ones that have not already been put on a job board. Tags: Entrepreneur Advice Start-up Advice Startup Advice.

advice 326

advice entrepreneurs networking sustainability 326

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

The advantage is that in many of our best deals we now have $50+ million invested so we can really support entrepreneurs as their businesses scale. At Upfront when we know we have a winning hand we prefer to put more capital to work, which both helps the entrepreneurs succeed and drives more aggregate financial returns for our LPs.

VC 223

VC venture capital capital investing 223

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

Of course these are great places to network with other investors, meet great entrepreneurs and keep your connections strong with senior execs at larger companies like Yahoo!, But if you’re a concentrated investor who takes board seats then you know the hard bit starts the day after. And there’s conferences. Web Summit.

VC 374

VC investing investment entrepreneurs 374

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

This is the second article in a series on what it takes to be a great angel investor (and why this should matter to entrepreneurs). And we all know that Ron Conway is considered the savviest of angel investors and yet by definition not all of his investments succeed. Tags: Startup Advice Tech Market Analysis VC Industry.

angel investing 288

angel investing investing investment advice 288

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

I recently read a post over on VentureHacks titled, “ Top Ten Reasons Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers &# written by Scott Walker (who blogs on legal issues for entrepreneurs ). Because many great entrepreneurs work with lawyers in registering their companies they have their ear to the pavement on the earliest of company formations.

startup 318

startup advice entrepreneurs VC 318

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2010

In 1999 I was in Japan doing a strategy project for the board of directors of Sony. Being the number one investment bank in a greatly reduced data set shouldn’t stop you from wanting to broaden the definition of “number 1″ next year. I’d rather make decisions with uncertain numbers than no numbers.

consulting 415

consulting data analysis advice construction 415

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 13, 2013

My mom was an entrepreneur – she was kind of my inspiration for entrepreneurship. And no one could see me as anything but a startup guy, so I started a second company and called myself a serial entrepreneur. I guess if you do more than one, I guess by definition, that’s serial. I came from a board meeting to here.

startup 337

startup entrepreneurs consulting board 337

StartupNation

JANUARY 5, 2022

Building a brand is definitely a process and requires a strategy. Ask any established entrepreneur and they’ll agree 100%. Here is a useful piece of advice. Brainstorming, creating a mood board and checking out the competition are some ways to spark creativity. Your brand should represent what your business is all about.

strategy 109

strategy creativity media advice 109

Startup Blogpost

OCTOBER 27, 2023

It was definitely eye-opening and an expensive lesson. I learned this the hard way when starting Hunter Super Techs, and while the company is thriving as of now, I definitely had my share of failed marketing ideas when first growing the company. You may be surprised at the caliber of entrepreneurs who are willing to help.

development 111

development consulting strategy communities 111

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 25, 2010

Any SoCal entrepreneur raising early-stage money should put Rincon on their short list. If you haven’t read it you should definitely buy it – other people just like you did. In the video I linked to above Farb talks about how he got Rob Lord on board at Grockit. It is how angel rounds come together.&#.

strategy 293

strategy venture capital SaaS investing 293

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 1, 2016

Dave’s comment: This week we welcome our perennial favorite contributor, Kim Shepherd, CEO of Decision Toolbox, to offer us her sage advice on a subject where she is expert. Charity events are also great because the organization’s board of directors will be well represented. What are their hobbies? Do they have children?

networking 97

networking mix-use creativity advice 97

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 18, 2010

Here’s how I break down the four quadrants (and I’ve put my definitions in here – not Covey’s). As the CEO you have a team that is counting on you and a board that is measuring your performance. Get some seasoned entrepreneurs to come. Tags: Startup Advice. It’s hard to hide. How about you?

mentorship 374

mentorship creativity energy entrepreneurs 374

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 1, 2016

If you have a team of 10 people then by definition 90% of the time spent on activities is not put in by you and on a team of 100 it’s 99%. Great leaders communicate early and often with boards and investors. They are clear about what is working and what is not and how the board and investors can help them.

leadership 280

leadership peer-to-peer culture board 280

TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 1, 2021

I definitely had a full-time job, I had a newborn baby,” Walton said. For the first time, I met entrepreneurs and saw an actual concept that you can pursue a career you like, be successful and make a difference in the world,” she said. I think it caught her off guard,” Krassner said, who is still a board member at the company.

peer-to-peer 85

peer-to-peer health networking financing 85

Smart Hustle Magazine

JULY 13, 2021

What’s the upside, what’s your advice Shriya, for those looking for a partner, wish they had someone to work with in business. Good, bad, tips, advice. Danielle Salinas: My advice, I have two things. We’ve definitely not been an overnight success. This is definitely not a hobby. Compromise.

entrepreneurs 68

entrepreneurs sustainability startup education 68

NZ Entrepreneur

OCTOBER 30, 2018

The bedroom might seem like a good idea if there are no spare rooms in the house, but you definitely need to consider if this would be a practical solution, and not blur the lines between work and life. An iPad that can fix to the wall is perfect for jotting notes, or a cute little peg board to clip post-its. NZ Entrepreneur.

creativity 61

creativity support entrepreneurs board 61

TechCrunch

JANUARY 21, 2022

“If you believe VR and immersive computing is the future — whether for consumer or business use cases — Activision helps Microsoft build a flywheel of content and technology that gets more users on board to this future.”. Dear Sophie, I’m an entrepreneur in Guatemala and would like to come to the United States to expand my tech company.

VC 80

VC incubation angel investing investing 80

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 22, 2011

I hold true to form and follow my own advice. Nobody has family duties, board meetings, full schedules. Phillip Stevenson who is currently a Wharton MBA (and whom I was trying to talk him into being an entrepreneur). As you may know I outlined my rules for maximum impact at events / conferences before SXSW began. But at SXSW?

mix-use 294

mix-use accelerator opportunity startup accelerator 294

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 12, 2010

I have often found entrepreneurs want to present the positive progress of the company to impress the board rather than engage in debate about how to make things better. I think one of the greatest weaknesses of boards is that they are tourists by definition and sometimes confuse their observations and advice for actionable insights.

peer-to-peer 288

peer-to-peer consulting startup board 288

Entrepreneur's Handbook

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

(Any views expressed in the below are the personal views of the author and should not form the basis for making investment decisions, nor be construed as a recommendation or advice to engage in investment transactions.) There are many activities we modern humans engage in so that we can be more present. Its intended destination?

hospitality 104

hospitality investing investment advice 104

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 13, 2011

It’s honest advice so please judge once you’re read the post. Here’s my advice: A got an email from a young, super bright entrepreneur today. I like board meetings at your place so we can pull in other team members and hear from them. That’s not the point. I’ll keep it short.

peer-to-peer 397

peer-to-peer advice VC networking 397

Smart Hustle Magazine

AUGUST 16, 2021

Additional board members or executives may also be hired by the business owners to ensure that there is a well-rounded group of decision-makers while scaling up. For scaleups entering a phase filled with significant decisions and risks, proper communication of your business strategy from the board through to the employees is crucial.

strategy 114

strategy board consulting financing 114

Gust

APRIL 11, 2014

Apologies to my Chicago friends: This metaphor ignores the depth of the dish.) A growth company, by definition, is not a zero-sum enterprise. Most entrepreneurs have more than a passing interest both in the economic value created from scratch by all their hard work and in the path that valuable enterprise takes in the years to come.

real estate 162

real estate startup board advice 162

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 3, 2010

There is a telltale sign of an inexperienced startup entrepreneur. I’m doing due diligence on a company of another entrepreneur in LA whose company was apparently doing very well. I think we had slightly different definitions of this saying but since he coined the term I have to credit him. I understand this.

board 276

board culture advice consulting 276

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

And I’d add to the world of “lists of three&# the old adage that many VCs quote about boards having only three roles: Raising money. Almost by definition to be a great leader you need to be an effective psychologist. Some entrepreneurs make the mistake of never devolving power. Tags: Startup Advice.

VC 319

VC peer-to-peer culture advice 319