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Can You Get Funding With Just An Academic Background?
“Would you mind meeting with me, so I can pick your brain?” That was the LinkedIn message I received from “William,” the CEO of an unfunded semiconductor startup in the Bay Area. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] I had sold my company six months previously, and I…
Read MoreHow Do You Win Deals When You’re Just Starting Out?
“I want us to look big,” I said to Regis McKenna. Regis is a legendary Silicon Valley marketer who has worked with Apple (their first PC launch) and Intel (their first microprocessor launch. He was an advisor to one of my investors (Gill), and he had worked previously with my other investor (Raul). [Do you…
Read MoreHow Do You Divide Equity?
How do you divide equity between co-founders? This is my definitive guide to splitting equity. I’ll cover everything to do with equity splits in this video. There are 8 different topics regarding equity we will talk about. So grab a pen and some paper to take notes. The bottom line is you do two things:…
Read MoreAre You Ready To Hire A Sales VP?
Of all the hires you make as a startup CEO, hiring a VP Sales will likely be the most challenging. That’s what we’ll explore in this video. I’ll walk you through the all the issues you’re going to face hiring your VP Sales, and I’ll give you tips to solve these problems too. Plus, stick…
Read MoreHow You Can Optimize Inside And Outside Sales
When I was an engineer in the prehistoric, pre-internet days, I loved when sales reps would come to visit. They would bring data books with them which had their whole catalog of products. The salesperson would also bring samples and data sheets of their latest products too. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe…
Read MoreHow Do You Go From Peer To CEO?
It’s common. You and a couple of friends start a company. Your friends regarded you as a peer, and now you’re the CEO. But there’s one tiny problem: Your friends/co-founders see you as a peer, not the CEO. In this video, I’ll give you my tips for how to overcome this challenge. Plus, stick around…
Read MoreWhy You Shouldn’t Outsource Your MVP
“Everything hinges on us being able to find a great VP Engineering,” I said to Dave Epstein. Dave was a partner at the VC firm that was thinking of bringing me on as Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR). [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] EIRs are brought in by VC…
Read MoreWhy You Shouldn’t Be A Startup CEO
Don’t kid yourself, being a startup CEO is hard. Every minute of every day, from the time you start your company, to the day you sell your company, you’re going to be thinking about your startup. As a startup CEO, you have roles and responsibilities that go beyond just getting your work done. In this…
Read MoreWhat Are The Five Traits Of Successful Founders?
I’ve worked with engineers that are great CEOs. I worked with non-technical founders that have made great CEOs too. So, it isn’t easy to just say that one is better than the other. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] However, there’s one consistent thing, actually there’s more than…
Read MoreHow You Can Stop Founder Problems Before They Start, Part II
Startup founder problems affect at least fifty percent of all startups. And, sometimes the problems can be fatal; especially if you lose the wrong founder at the wrong time. So what can you do to solve startup founder problems before they start? This short video, part II of a two part series, gives you three…
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