A Good Mentor is NOT Your Friend (That’s OK)
Friends tell you what you want to hear. Mentors tell you what you need to hear. When the message is the same from both, you don’t need the mentor anymore…
People & Management Posts
The Seven Ingredients of ‘Creativity Primordial Soup’
Within the startup realm, there is a big difference between having an innovative product versus an innovative business. Some startups have a new technology but stick to a tried-and-true business…
Ten Ways to Get the Whole Team Amped
Success in a startup is not possible as a “one-man show.” An entrepreneur has to engage with team members, partners, investors, vendors, and customers. In my experience, the joy of…
Spot Dysfunction at the Top
Founders almost always cite lack of money as the reason for failure, but if you look deeper, I believe the reason is more often about dysfunctional people and leadership. Sometimes…
Hire and Nurture the Right Startup Team
Helpers do what you say, while good help does what you need, without you saying anything. People who can help you the most are actually smarter than you, at least…
Laying the Bedrock of your Startup’s Culture
I’m seeing a renewed appreciation of culture and values in business these days. Maybe it’s just another example of nature abhorring a vacuum, but I prefer to think it’s a…
Assemble Your Army of Entrepreneurs
Every startup lucky enough to get some traction gets to the point where they decide to hire some “regular employees” for sales, marketing, and administrative tasks. Then they are surprised…
Can B2B Dating Work?
People tell me there are over 5,000 online dating sites, but I couldn’t find one that focused on matchmaking business-to-business (B2B) relationships. Yet, every business expert tells me that finding…
Startups Aren’t For Lone Rangers
You can’t win as an entrepreneur working alone. You need to have business relationships with team members, investors, customers, and a myriad of other support people. That doesn’t mean you…
How to Recruit the Right CEO to Run Your Startup
If you are a startup founder or major investor, how do you find that CEO for your “Dream Team” to close on funding and kick-start your company? It makes logical…