What matters most for a business plan? When somebody asked on Quora what are the critical factors of a business plan, I came up with these three business plan critical factors: Does it achieve its business goal? Form follows function; does it achieve its business goal? Measure a business plan by its results, and nothing else. You […]
Tim Berry
10 Good Reasons Not to Seek Investors for Your Startup
Before you buy into the myths about startup investors, first consider whether you actually want startup investors for your new business at all. No, I’m not bitter … I had VC money in Palo Alto Software for a few years and they were helpful, collaborative, and good people. I’m not a bitter victim. And I’ve […]
Q&A: How to Be an Entrepreneur
Question: How to be an entrepreneur? My Answer: First, if you have the option and haven’t already, get a good education. Focus on whatever interests you, not necessarily business. Entrepreneurs without formal education are at a huge disadvantage. But there’s no clear difference between a good degree in business and a good degree in any other […]
Avoid Meaningless Words
From Seth Godin’s post Meaningless, published January 7… There are words that now have no meaning at all… ‘Well’ and ‘so’ have been doing this work for a long time, but add to that the more syllabic words like ironically, literally, and hopefully. And don’t forget all the adjectives, beginning with ‘very’ and ‘really’ that (ironically) make something […]
You Have to Know When to Quit
I recommend you read Nat Eliason‘s piece No More Struggle Porn. He’s attacking one of the more pervasive startup myths around, the idea that the struggle itself, the overwhelming and overpowering struggle that pushes everything else out of your life, is a good thing. He defines struggle porn as: I call this “struggle porn”: a masochistic obsession […]
6 Common Misconceptions About Angel Investors
The question on Quora was “What do investors ‘get’ that other people don’t?” I answered that question from the point of view of angel investors, specifically … not just investors. 1. Some of the healthiest businesses are not good investments Many people think that a good business makes a good investment. The truth is not […]
Pervasive Startup Myth: Don’t Work for Free
Startup myth: The one about founders having to work for free to impress angel investors. This supposedly shows passion. Don’t believe it. Investors want people committed to working their startups, and that usually takes getting them paid. I’ve been getting a lot of upvotes on my answer to this question in Quora: How do entrepreneurs […]
My Advice to Startups Seeking Angel Investment
Over the weekend I was asked what advice I’d give to founders of a startup seeking angel investment. Here’s my list. First, make sure you really want angel investment. Read 10 good reasons not to seek investors for your startup. Take it to heart. If you don’t need investment, really, you are better off without it. […]
10 Common Mistakes with Startup Financial Projections
I was glad to be asked about common mistakes with financial projections. I read about 100 business plans a year for angel investment and business plan competitions. Most show unrealistic profitability. More people doing business plans should realize that most startups are unprofitable at the beginning; and that high growth correlates with losses, not profits. […]
New Conversational Commerce App Increases Online Sales
Is “conversational commerce” the next big improvement in online shopping? I hope so. I’m closely following the success of the new Octane AI conversational commerce app. It was announced this week along with convincing data on significant sales increases it generated by actual users. It works with Shopify, the shopping cart platform used by half a million […]
