The world is running amok with entrepreneurs pitching every sort of Web 2.0, social networking, user-generated-content startup. It’s the attack of the bull-shiitake startup projections, so I’m losing my hearing; there’s a ringing in my head, and I get dizzy every once in a while. Before the world implodes (again), here is a top-tenish list [...]
Just a reminder: Hope to see you guys at the Garage/SVASE "Art of the Start" event on Wednesday, November 8th. It’s at the Microsoft Conference Center in Mountain View, California. We’re covering the topics of entrepreneurship, venture capital, product introduction, sales, and marketing. The highlight is a fireside chat with Michael Arrington of TechCrunch. The [...]
Over at Escape From Cubicle Nation, Pam Slim has compiled the top ten entrepreneur’s song list, complete with samples. Speaking of music, I was listening to the Greg Kihn show on KFOX this morning, and Gregg Allman called in because his daughter’s band came in second in the station’s “Last Band Standing” contest. In response [...]
SVASE (Silicon Valley Association of Startup Entrepreneurs) is hosting an event called “Launch: Silicon Valley” on November 8 at the Microsoft Campus in Mountain View, California. SVASE is looking for new companies that are ready for launch or have launched recently. If you want to nominate a company, please email a two-page executive summary to: [...]
There were many critics of my posting called “As Good As Steve.” They sought to refute my contention that Majora is as good as Steve. The criticism misses the most important implication of her speech; or, perhaps more accurately, I did not adequately highlight the implication. But first, let’s set the record straight for the [...]
When I posted my entry about the speakers at TED, I did not highlight any of them. Now I’d like to specifically suggest that you watch the video of Majora Carter because there’s a lot we can all learn from this magnificent performance. You can watch it online here or download it here. Again, kudos [...]
This is a collection of presentations at the annual TED conference. To TED’s credit, it is making this available to the “rest of us.” (Many thanks to Thomas Wenzl for bringing this to my attention.) Each year, TED hosts some of the world’s most fascinating people: Trusted voices and convention-breaking mavericks, icons and geniuses. The [...]
The Speaking Channel provides an analysis of well-known speakers alongside video recordings of those speakers in action. The list of speakers includes: Rudy Giuliani Bill Clinton Arnold Schwarzenegger John Edwards This video analysis is helpful to learn about the craft of public speaking, so check it out if you’re interested in the subject. Also, I’m [...]
Harold Keables taught me how to write. He was my English high-school teacher in the early seventies (1970s, not 1870s). I wasn’t that great a student, so he’s probably having a good laugh in heaven watching me write books and blogs. Mr. Keables used Good Writing: An Informal Manual of Style when I was in [...]
An honest speaker will tell you that she has “on” days and “off” days. The result of a truly “on” day is a standing ovation. I had a very “on” day at TiECon on May 13, 2006. This is the annual meeting of The Indus Entrepreneur organization. I’ve provided postings of audio and video of [...]
A few miscellaneous items for today. HTML Editor Perhaps there is a better way. I’ve started to use two pieces of software to do this blog: Nvu and MarsEdit. Nvu. My buddy Will Mayall turned me on to this product. I now draft in Nvu. It’s the closest thing I can find to the Holy Grail [...]
This is an MP3 recording from the venture capital panel at a Garage event called The Art of the Start. In this panel, five prominent venture capitalists from Silicon Valley firms discuss entrepreneurship, fund raising, and market sectors. The panel occurred in 2005 (that is, after the dotcom implosion), so the information is still highly [...]
Nathan MacNeill, the co-founder of a company called Network Streaming (recently renamed Bomgar), documented the lessons that he learned from winning the DEMOgod award at DEMO 2006. I am publishing what he wrote for three reasons: To supplement “How to Be a Demo God.” To help the entrepreneurs preparing for Red Herring Spring 2006 (especially [...]
A few weeks ago I provided a site where you can see my Art of Innovation speech. My buddy, Mike Johnston, just showed me that my Art of the Start speech is online here. The Art of Innovation is a speech for any stage of company that is trying to create and marketing innovative products [...]
Saw this at Presentation Zen: Steve Jobs testifying at the Cupertino City Council. There is much to observe in this short clip: Casual speaking style No slides or multimedia crutches Friendly yet powerful: i.e., he's essentially saying, "We could have gone elsewhere, but we stuck with Cupertino so be nice to us..." What other Fortune [...]
How many times have you watched a panel and thought that it was entertaining and informative? Your answer is probably a small number. Moderating a panel is deceptively hard--harder, in fact, than keynoting because the quality of the panelists is usually beyond your control. Here's how to be a great moderator. Don't over-prepare the panelists. [...]
Here's another MP3 recording. It is my reading of Chapter 7: The Art of Raising Capital from The Art of the Start. It covers some of the same material as my blog entries, but sometimes hearing is believing. Download raising.mp3
I just found out how easy it is to include an MP3 in my blog, so here’s my first shot. This is a recording of me reading Chapter 3 of The Art of the Start: The Art of Pitching. "Pitching," in the context of this reading, is the process of reaching agreement—when seeking an investment, [...]
Because of my recent post about schmoozing, you might think I'm a warm, fuzzy, and kumbaya kind of Guy. Most of the time I am, but I have strong feelings about email etiquette and what it takes to get your email read--and answered. As someone who gets dozens of emails every day and sends a [...]
From February 6th to 8th, executives from seventy companies will do a six-minute demo of their products to an audience of venture capitalists, analysts, and journalists. This event is called, logically, Demo. It's a great event--especially if you understand the dance that's going on: entrepreneurs acting like they don't need capital, and VCs acting like [...]