Leadership and Management
What Is It Really Like To Be A Startup CEO?
My heart is beating too fast, and it won’t slow down. It’s 3AM, and I can’t sleep. Again. I get out of bed, and I walk to my office. I am shivering even though the temperature in the house is 72 degrees – nerves. I turn on the computer, and I check my email. [Do…
Read MoreWhy You Need Fanatical Cofounders
I’m in the middle of reading Phil Knight’s (the founder of Nike) great autobiography “Shoe Dog.” Actually I’m listening to the book on Audible, and I’m transfixed. [Do you want to grow your? business Maybe I can help. Click here.] I just can’t stop reading/listening. In fact, I’m going to go for a run once I’m done…
Read MoreWhy Your Startup Culture Is The Key To Your Success
A good friend of mine just a joined a hot startup here in the Silicon Valley. The company is on fire. Plus, the startup culture is awesome. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] The executive team has previously been uber-successful. Revenue is getting near what I call escape…
Read MoreWhat Are The 11 Painful Things You Need To Do As CEO?
I was talking to a Venture Capitalist early on about our company. Out of the blue the VC looked at me and said, “Well you’re the CEO, so you get to deal with investors like me. “And that’s why you get more stock than the others.” Do you want to become a better startup CEO?…
Read MoreWhere Do You Learn The Most About Being A CEO?
‘If I knew you weren’t going home for Thanksgiving, I would have asked you to have Thanksgiving with my family,” One of my college roommates, Paul, said to me. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. “Thanks Paul,” I said. “I need to study. That’s why I didn’t go…
Read MoreWhat’s The One Trait All Successful Entrepreneurs Have?
We were literally down to our last dollar. In fact, truth be told, we didn’t even have a dollar. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. Times were so tough that every week I had to get down on my hands and knees and beg our investors for enough…
Read MoreWhen Should You Stop Giving Equity To Your Team?
I was in a board of directors meeting for a company I am advising. The discussion moved to stock options. One of the investors, “Michael” said, “We should set the strike price as high as possible so employees that quit will not exercise their options.” [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe i can…
Read MoreWhat Are The Early Signs Your Startup Is In Trouble?
“There is no negotiation on this term sheet,” “Raul”, the Venture Capitalist, said to me. I was stunned. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. There’s always negotiation, isn’t there? Everyone negotiates, right? Not this VC. The terms we were given were horrible. I tried everything I could to…
Read MoreHow Do You Dethrone A Competitor With A Monopoly?
“Why in the hell are you selling your part for $20,” The VP at Vitesse angrily said to me. “You’re screwing it up for the rest of us. We’re selling our part for $100!” I smiled and said, “$100 is way too high a price. $20 seemed like a fair price for customers.” [Do you…
Read MoreWhat Do You Need Besides Talent To Start A Company?
One of the most technically talented people I ever worked with was “Doogie.” Doogie was, and probably still is, a brilliant engineer. He was creative, and he was always coming up with novel ideas for how things should get done. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. And energy?…
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