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The Quiet Questions I Ask Potential Founder-CEOs
I have been reflecting on the many conversations I’ve had with first-time founder-CEOs over the years — those one-on-one encounters where someone is venturing down this path for the first time and looking for honest perspective. Since I write this blog to reach and support more people than I could ever meet with personally, I want to capture the essence…
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Entreprenurial Leadership
Last month, Sonali and I engaged in two great conversations about entrepreneurial leadership with an emphasis on women leaders.
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Are You Ready to Commit to Founding?
Launching a startup is a big commitment in terms of time, resources, and energy. Before you leap, are you ready for that sort of commitment?
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Breadwinner
As an investor, I understand why angels, VCs, and even high-profile early-stage accelerators seek evidence of potential future success when evaluating newer startups. Yet would-be founders and startup fundraisers often find that one of the biggest challenges of building something new is supporting themselves and their families while doing it.
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What’s in a Name?
Naming your high-potential startup is one of the first actions of a co-founding team. The selected name captures the essence of the fledgling company as you go out into the world raising money, connecting with partners, and ultimately selling to customers. It is a more critical and strategic decision than many realize, so let’s examine some lessons learned regarding this…
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Hold Out for the Right Stuff
As a serial entrepreneur, one of the things I have learned about founding startups is the critical importance of holding out for the right idea and the right team. You will invest years of your life trying to realize the potential of your startup vision – and the idea and the team are critical success factors.
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Talking Entrepreneurship on Invisible Ink
Listen in to this wide-ranging discussion on many things startup! Starting, team building, fundraising, financial planning, and more.
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Considering Grants
Securing grants can aid startup funding without dilution, but involves strict restrictions, extensive effort, low success rates, and potential investor concerns.
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Starting Shares
Incorporating a high-potential startup in Delaware, authorize ten million shares to avoid costly amendments, enable effective vesting schedules, and minimize franchise tax.
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Investing in First-time vs. Serial Entrepreneurs
First-time startup founders bring passion and unique insight, but face steep learning curves and skepticism from investors who prefer experienced CEOs for reducing investment risks.
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Making a Difference
What motivates entrepreneurs to pursue building high-potential companies? Making money? Independence? Making a difference? The answer might surprise you.
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What Gets You Up in the Morning?
Founding a startup to solve a problem is a big commitment. Before you launch, you need to carefully examine your heart and motivations to ensure you are ready for the challenge of such a marathon undertaking!
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Section 1202 Tax Matters
Recently, I was reminded of the “downside” of a successful exit, specifically, that capital gains earned on investment in a startup are, generally speaking, subject to taxes. In other words, the IRS wants its piece of that nice big check. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just keep it all instead?
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Side Hustle vs. All-in
At the beginning of forming a startup, there is a phase where there is tension between doing the startup alongside whatever is paying the bills and committing to going all-in. Let's reflect on the factors that play into this decision.
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The Double-Edged Sword of Competition when Fundraising
Sophisticated potential investors always ask about a startup’s competition. A well-developed answer is essential because “no competition” is not a good answer, and “too much competition” is also challenging.
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Drive, Intelligence, and Integrity
One of my favorite investors and mentors said that the essential characteristics he looks for in startup founders -- drive, intelligence, and integrity -- cannot be taught. That got me thinking about why those characteristics are essential to successful startup building and how we might recognize them.
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Keys to Customer Discovery
When you venture forth as an entrepreneur, exploring new innovative territory that you want to build into a business, it is crucial to validate that your product concept resonates with your target customers. That is the essential function of early customer discovery.
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The Preeminence of the Customers’ Problem
Immerse yourself in your customer’s problem. The urgent and important problem IS the opportunity. Don’t build a solution looking for a problem.
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For Me, It’s Not Just Business
Startup CEOs come in different styles. For some, "it's just business." But, for many founder CEOs, it is far more than that as they pour all their passion into their startup and embody it profoundly. That embodied passion is often the activation energy that propels the startup out of the gate and onto a successful trajectory as it persuades others…
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Evaluating Markets Before Founding
Analyzing your potential market and testing concepts with potential customers are critical steps in deciding whether you have the ingredients for a potentially successful startup.
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How to Get a Job as a Founding CEO
Sometimes people ask me how one gets a job as a Founding CEO. They seem to think that you update your resume and send it to someone (who?) and apply for the job.
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Startup Genesis: Choosing a Problem to Solve
Forming a startup means that the founder(s) has an opportunity to choose what problem they will invest themselves in solving. Choose wisely!
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Getting Baked for Fundraising
Building an investable business takes more time and effort than most people realize. Too often, I see people jumping the gun and trying to fundraise too early.
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How Do You Start a Company?
It does not necessarily start with the idea since you can find a worthy idea. So how does a founding CEO actually begin?
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The Importance of Co-Founder Vesting
Because life happens, co-founder vesting of equity is critical for a young high-potential startup.
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The Value of Co-Founders
Most venture-backed companies are founded by two or more co-founders. With good reason.
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Start with a Delaware C-Corp If Raising VC
When building a startup, you will face many surprising curves, so when the best path is the straight, well-traveled road, take it.
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Picking a Lawyer for Your Startup
An expert corporate attorney is a critical asset for a high potential startup. But what factors should you consider to find the right one?
