There are a number of similarities between the game of squash (softball) and running a startup. Great squash players often make great startup ceo’s because of the kind of issues that face both activities. Squash’s background Squash was invented in Harrow School out of the older game racquets around 1830 before the game spread to other schools, […]
Continue Reading...Category: Startup Mechanics
Series A Crunch, 38 Studios and Investors: When the Going Gets Tough
The Series A crunch and the 38 studios debacle have lots of parallels even though the money raised by 38 was huge. Because it barely got a first product out, it parallels many of the challenges that seed companies currently face. I have had this post in my drafts folder for quite a long time and […]
Continue Reading...5 Learnings from the Shutdown of Hangout Industries
I have had this post ready for months, but never sent it off. I am bummed to have to admit that I am shutting down Hangout – the first 3D experience on Facebook. The original vision of Hangout started in 2006 around the notion of media sharing with your friends and leveraging api’s on Facebook […]
Continue Reading...Venture Seed vs Angel Seed
I really enjoyed the Boston Angel Boot Camp on June 1. A shout out to Jon Pierce for a job well done. Among the many great discussions, the most critical one in my mind centered on the impact that the source of money can have on an early, seed startup. The discussion covered two main […]
Continue Reading...Failure — Its not the entrepreneur who failed, its the business that failed
Much has been written about the value of failure in the entrepreneurial sector. But do VC’s value failure and if they do, on their own watch or on somebody’s elses? Those of us in the trenches understand how likely failure is with every startup we do. The odds are against us from the start. Add […]
Continue Reading...Market the Vision, Build the Product
The recent notice that Metaplace.com is going to shut their doors and refocus the company is an all-too-often refrain where very big visions are not realized in their first or even second incarnation. I expect we will see the same from another big vision play, Trion, in pretty short order. The phrase is a takeoff […]
Continue Reading...Does Waltham Matter?
Scott Kirsner has written a very provocative piece in Innovation Economy which questions the value of the many VC’s in the Waltham 128 beltway especially compared to VC’s in Boston. Here is my response to his post…. Scott, Its great that you are shaking things up, much like taking a baseball bat to hit a […]
Continue Reading...Our Experience at Techcrunch 52 — Hangout Industries
If you are thinking of submitting your company next year at Techcrunch, here are some learnings that you might incorporate. Timing is everything The key challenge is to still be a stealth company until TC next year. Unless your timing is near perfect, it might not make any sense to wait until TC to launch […]
Continue Reading...VC Speak — “We are value add”
I just got back from a digital media summit that was one of the best demonstrations of value add and entrepreneur can hope for As an entrepreneur, you are supposed to be looking for at least two things when you seek venture capital: the capital itself; the added value their experience brings to your company. […]
Continue Reading...What you think is important vs what is important
I am currently reading American Creation by Joseph Ellis on the founding of the US. I am big proponent of the maxim that history constantly repeats itself. Building consumer-based internet companies parallels a key event in our history — the writing and release of the Declaration of Independence. The founders spent gads of time making […]
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