August, 2010

article thumbnail

Should every startup get funded?

This is going to be BIG.

First off, let me be clear that the opinions expressed here are solely my own and not that of my employer, or anyone else. The other day, Ron Conway said at an event that “ he hopes that any entrepreneur that has “the guts” to start a company gets funded.” Fred Wilson seconded that opinion , citing that “We need more entrepreneurship, not less.

startup 253
article thumbnail

Do you Suffer from the Urgency Addiction? It’s More Common Than you Think

Both Sides of the Table

I suffer from the “urgency addiction.&# I know it sounds like one of the falsely humble things like telling somebody in a job interview that your weakness is that you’re too much of a perfectionist. But the urgency addiction is a bad thing that I’m fortunate enough to get away with. When I first discovered the concept I found it enlightening.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Good tax planning is both legal and smart.

Berkonomics

When do you cross the line between honesty and dishonesty in tax planning? Is it ethical to allocate income between periods to take advantage of tax breaks? Can expenses be put off until the next period to increase income, or accelerated into this period by prepayment to decrease net income? Where do you draw the line, assuming no intent to defraud?

article thumbnail

Bring Me Solutions, Not Problems (I know you think you know this, but …)

Both Sides of the Table

I recently wrote a post on how to ask for help or favors from people. This is a related post that will not only help you get the results you want more effectively but will also help earn the respect of your senior people (whether management or your board). I know you think you know this already. Everybody says that. It surprising how few people actually follow through this this advice.

advice 342
article thumbnail

The Big Payoff of Application Analytics

Outdated or absent analytics won’t cut it in today’s data-driven applications – not for your end users, your development team, or your business. That’s what drove the five companies in this e-book to change their approach to analytics. Download this e-book to learn about the unique problems each company faced and how they achieved huge returns beyond expectation by embedding analytics into applications.

article thumbnail

How to Ask for Help, Favors and Intros

Both Sides of the Table

An entrepreneur recently sent me an @ reply message on Twitter asking for some help with a decision coming up in his business. I get these frequently via Twitter, Facebook or email. I don’t mind. I can’t always get to them. Basically a request like this is stacking on top of my already large to-do list. But I do like to try and make time for some and I’ll admit I’m a bit random about it.

advice 332

More Trending

article thumbnail

Is Convertible Debt Preferable to Equity?

Both Sides of the Table

Seth Levine of Foundry Group addresses this important topic this morning on his blog with a post, “ Has Convertible Debt Won ?&# Seth was basing this on a Tweet by Paul Graham that said&#. “Convertible notes have won. Every investment so far in this YC batch (and there have been a lot) has been done on a convertible note.&#. I have to say that I didn’t take the question to mean that convertible debt had won for the entire market, but either way it’s clear that convertible

financing 319
article thumbnail

Startups are Personal

This is going to be BIG.

At the AOL/SeedStart event last week at the Bowery Hotel, I got in a conversation about hugging. I’m more apt to hug female friends of mine from the startup world than I am in any other industry. That also goes for NoNeck. I don’t usually hug other dudes (except for my high school buddies… but all boys Jesuit prep schools are kind of like that), but NoNeck is well worth a squeeze.

startup 218
article thumbnail

The Power of Quora & Why Benchmark was Right to Pay Up

Both Sides of the Table

I was an early user of Quora and like all new technologies they take a bit of playing with them for a while, discussing them with others and reflecting on them to let them sink in. I’m no wall flower so when something doesn’t resonate I’m usually pretty vocal about it. With Quora , it was the opposite – something has always felt right but it took me a while to. really understand it.

board 301
article thumbnail

Quick Hack to Make Your Boss (and you) More Productive

Both Sides of the Table

Yesterday I wrote a post about the " Urgency Addiction ” and how many people start important tasks late and then motivate with a huge wave of productivity and inspiration driven by deadlines and commitments to others. In the comments section Bill DAllesandro offered some insight that he had seen from Microsoft on "interruptions”. “A study by Microsoft showed just how lethal interruptions are to productivity.

advice 301
article thumbnail

PE Mastery: CAPTARGET's Playbook for Quality Lead Flow

CAPTARGET presents a masterclass in M&A deal sourcing. Learn to cast a wide net, embracing seller self-identification. Consistency is the linchpin: keep the origination process steady for a reliable flow of opportunities. Diversify your tactics, employing various tools and vendors. Tech matters! Understand DNS settings, domain authority, and brand presence for optimal outreach.

article thumbnail

Understanding a VC’s Seed Funding Policy is Critical

Both Sides of the Table

There has been much discussion about VCs doing seed funding in the past year. I’ve written about it myself (Is VC Seed Funding Dead?) and (Is There Really a Signaling Problem with VC Seed Funding?). Short summary of my posts: 1. There is a structural reason that VCs are investing at early stages, 2. Many (Union Square Ventures, Foundry Group, True Ventures, GRP Partners, Mike Hirshland at Polaris Ventures) do it the right way – we treat it as a normal investment and we don’t h

VC 298
article thumbnail

Announcing First Round’s Investment in GroupMe

This is going to be BIG.

“Private Twitter for small groups” “BBM for every platform” “Reply-all for SMS” I could describe GroupMe in a lot of ways, but “really exciting” would have to be the most accurate one, and we’re very excited to announce it as one of our newest investments at First Round ( See the Techcrunch article here ).

investing 273
article thumbnail

Overused Startup Term of the Day: Smart Team

This is going to be BIG.

A lot of times, people tell me they like a particular founding team because they’re really smart. I’m not 100% sure what that even means, nor am I ever in a position to counter that. I fact, I don’t think I’ve ever taken a meeting where I didn’t feel like I was sitting across the table from someone intelligent. So, if everyone is smart, why even bother mentioning it as a differentiating factor?

startup 247
article thumbnail

My Chat with Dan Primack of PEHub

Both Sides of the Table

In the technology world there are a few websites that most startups track to keep up with the latest financings, acquisitions, product announcements and gossip: BusinessInsider, TechCrunch, Mashable, GigaOm, etc. In the VC & Private Equity world there’s a small number, too, with one of the most respected being PEHub. That’s thanks to Dan Primack , founding editor.

VC 232
article thumbnail

How to Stay Competitive in the Evolving State of Martech

Marketing technology is essential for B2B marketers to stay competitive in a rapidly changing digital landscape — and with 53% of marketers experiencing legacy technology issues and limitations, they’re researching innovations to expand and refine their technology stacks. To help practitioners keep up with the rapidly evolving martech landscape, this special report will discuss: How practitioners are integrating technologies and systems to encourage information-sharing between departments and pr

article thumbnail

Fight When it’s Time to Fight. Be Gracious When It’s Time to Give In.

Both Sides of the Table

There are times to fight. I must admit it’s part of my DNA to enjoy a good fight (not as much as does Jason Calacanis, mind you ahem: Facebook. Er: Comscore , Cough: Angel funding payola ). But there are times to given in and compromise. Don’t confuse the two. When you give in, do so graciously. Take the high road. Act and feel zen.

article thumbnail

I Buy Dead Magazines (the art of the intro …)

Both Sides of the Table

The life of an entrepreneur is filled with 20 second opportunities. Some get converted into 5 minute opportunities or into a lifetime. Most are squandered. It starts in a crowded room at a conference or networking event. You bump into the person you’ve always wanted to chat with or your perfect business development partner who can “make” you. What are you going to say in the moment?

pitching 315
article thumbnail

Please Help My Friend Colin Recover His Kidnapped Children #noorramsay

Both Sides of the Table

I’ve never made a public appeal before. Then again, I’ve never had a friend in need like my dear friend Colin Bower who is trying to recover his two kidnapped boys Noor (8) and Ramway (6). The short story: Colin & I have been close friends for 13 years when we started our MBA program together. We then both lived in London and our children played together.

support 302
article thumbnail

The 1/9/90 Rule of UGC & Why It’s OK to Have Lurkers

Both Sides of the Table

Two days ago I wrote about Quora. I’ve been loving the product even if it sucks up some of my time. I prefer my time go into a very focused Q&A website than into a more generic Facebook. What Quora has done is wrap social networking around Q&A with the more clever next-gen UX I’ve seen. But my post today is not about Quora, it’s about an answer that I wrote on Quora.

advice 294
article thumbnail

Statement of Cash Flows vs. Cash Flow Statement

Speaker: Wayne Spivak - President and Chief Financial Officer of SBA * Consulting LTD, Industry Writer, and Public Speaker

The old adages that "cash is king" and "you can’t spend profits" still hold true today. But however well-known these sayings might be, it requires a change in mindset to properly implement a cash flow management system that predicts your business's runaway as accurately as possible. Key to this new mindset is understanding the difference between the Statement of Cash Flows, a historical look at the source and uses of cash, and the Cash Flow Statement, which uses transaction history and forward-l

article thumbnail

Twitter’s “Who to Follow” – Bad English, Great Functionality

Both Sides of the Table

Around a month ago I heard people talking about Twitter’s bucket test ( definition ) of their new personalized suggested user list and this past week I actually got to experience it myself. The results for me have been excellent and in this post I’ll explain why this is critical to Twitter’s continued adoption. Twitter has implemented its recommended users on your Twitter.com home page as the “who to follow&# (see graphic above) and you have a list of two recommended peo

strategy 287
article thumbnail

Beware of Premature Merge Elation

Both Sides of the Table

There is a telltale sign of an inexperienced startup entrepreneur. They get premature merge elation. You know, they get so excited about doing deals all the time instead of doing the hard work of figuring out their businesses. I understand this. I was a premature merge elater once. Here’s what I learned: 1. As a startup you shouldn’t focus on buying other companies until you’ve figured out your own business.

board 276
article thumbnail

The value of legal advice isn’t measured by a law degree.

Berkonomics

Over the years in business and as a member of over forty boards, I have received good advice from corporate attorneys and on occasion bad advice as well. There is a line that should be drawn in a relationship between corporate attorney and CEO or board. Attorneys are paid to protect the corporation, not to give business advice. Some are experienced enough to provide great business advice.

advice 48
article thumbnail

Changing the Wrong Ratio

This is going to be BIG.

These opinions are solely my own, for the record—not that of my employer, my family, or bald white guys in general. The other day, I unlocked the "I'm no racist" badge in the VC game. All I had to do was to name 5 black tech startup entrepreneurs in New York City when asked by a reporter to do so. Kidding aside, I did feel a totally misplaced sense of pride.

article thumbnail

How to Avoid the Pain and Cost of PCI Compliance While Optimizing Payments

Speaker: P. Andrew Sjogren, Sr. Product Marketing Manager at Very Good Security, Matt Doka, Co-Founder and CTO of Fivestars, and Steve Andrews, President & CEO of the Western Bankers Association 

PCI compliance can feel challenging and sometimes the result feels like you are optimizing more for security and compliance than you are for business outcomes. The key is to take the right strategy to PCI compliance that gets you both. In this webinar, we have a great set of panelists who will take you through how Zero Data strategies can be used as part of a well-rounded compliance and security approach, and get you to market much sooner by also allowing for payment optimization.

article thumbnail

Product Friday: Monetizing Content is a Product Problem

This is going to be BIG.

They say people won't pay for content. They say that paywalls are stupid and that its just not monetizable. Remember when they said that people wouldn't pay for music? What Apple proved, and what I suspect is the issue with web content, is that monetization was a product problem. I never would have paid for music back in 1999 or 2000 when I was sporting my 64mb Creative Nomad, powered completely ilegally by Napster.

article thumbnail

Maximum Impact

This is going to be BIG.

Sounds like a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie doesn't it? Despite the fact that I'm a blackbelt in Tae Kwan Do (haven't practiced in a few years though), what I'm referring to has nothing to do with kicks or punches. I'm talking about innovation in New York City and a very basic thought exercise. As you may know, when I joined First Round, I was given the EIR title to kind of figure out what I wanted to do--while helping First Round get a better foothold in NYC.

article thumbnail

Consultants are only as good as the advice you take.

Berkonomics

At one time or another, most all businesses use consultants to fill the gaps in knowledge or to provide guidance for management. Consultants are good in that you can sample their work with short projects, change to other consultants quickly, and stop using them when a project is completed. I have a partner in a consulting practice that specializes in the travel industry.

article thumbnail

Accountants “plan-alyze”. Bookkeepers count beans.

Berkonomics

This is a distinction we need to repeat on occasion, especially for new CEO’s looking to pay a low wage for advanced financial analysis, whether with an independent contractor or an employee. Accountants are trained, certified and usually quite experienced in financial analysis, both creating and reviewing data. Bookkeepers are often trained on the job although sometimes more formally, and handle the physical work of accounting for the transactions.

health 54
article thumbnail

Building Healthy Innovation Ecosystems for Your Projects

Speaker: Nick Noreña, Innovation Coach and Advisor, Kromatic

Every startup and innovation project exists within an ecosystem that either helps or hurts that project. As innovation managers, we need to keep a pulse of that ecosystem and make sure we're helping those innovation projects we're managing every step of the way. In this webinar, Nick Noreña will walk through an Innovation Ecosystem Model that he and his team at Kromatic have developed to help investors, heads of product, teachers, and executives understand how they can best support innovation in