One of the biggest benefits employees are looking for when they join a company is not stock in the company—it’s flexibility for parents to be parents. Maternity and paternity leave policies are crucial to retaining top talent these days, but there’s one thing you can do that will set you apart from all the other […]
Family
What First-Time Parents Need to Know About Building a Startup
Having recently crossed the one-year mark with my daughter, my first and—my wife assures me—only child, I started thinking about the commonalities between raising a human in that first year, and building something in the business world. After starting Rented.com, I thought I would share some learnings that might be useful to other founders and […]
Where is the Best Source of Early Stage Investment?
If you have been following our recent insights, you’ll be up to speed knowing that professional investors negotiate tough terms, from provisions of control over asset acquisition, eventual sale of the company, future investments, forced co-sale when others attempt to sell their shares and more. And yet, in an earlier post, we spoke of the […]
Inside the Life of a Working Mom: How Women Can Have It All
For some reason, the 2012 Atlantic article, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” has always fueled me. At the time that was written, I had a 3-year-old daughter, was pregnant with my second child, and wanted nothing more than to prove that article wrong. I wanted the career and the family. And not just the token […]
Does Your Business Need Money? Read This!
The subject of raising money is critical to many businesses and a passing option to others, depending upon the capital efficiency of the enterprise. Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). For you […]
4 Great Business Ideas for Stay-at-Home Moms
During the first few years of being a new mum, all of your time is taken up looking after your little one. As they grow up, though, and especially after they start going to school, you might find yourself at something of a loose end. This can be a difficult period, perhaps the first in […]
How to Handle 5 Common Sales Scenarios
The most successful entrepreneurs are great salespeople. Have you ever seen Steve Jobs, Elon Musk or Mark Benioff presenting in front of thousands of people, all eagerly listening and buying into their vision? If Jobs, Musk or Benioff weren’t true masters of sales and fantastic storytellers, there would be no Apple, Tesla or Salesforce. Here’s […]
Family-Run Franchises: Are They Right for You?
If you’re close to your family, it might seem a natural extension of your personal relationship to move into a business one. Many families choose to go into the franchise business together, to varying degrees of success. Here’s what you should consider before mixing business with pleasure in your family. Are You Able to Separate […]
The Right Way to Get Funding from Family and Friends
Most entrepreneurs I know are so passionate about their new idea that they are surprised when family and friends don’t line up to invest in their new venture. Yet they tend to ignore this problem, and move on quickly to professional investors. They don’t realize that most Angel investors and venture capitalists will also decline […]
The Key to Running a Business as a New Parent
Whenever a person transitions to running their own business, they have to adjust their concept of work/life balance. In return for equity and the possibility of financial freedom, you’ve got more responsibility and much longer hours. This means that work/life balance as an entrepreneur is challenging, if not impossible, to achieve. Now imagine adding an […]
