I’ve heard several disappointing stories recently from first-time entrepreneurs who are out building their mentor and investor networks. The companies’ specific situations differ, but the basic story goes like this: — A credible-seeming business person reaches out to the company offering “help” with their business or fundraising. — This person represents themselves as an active continue…
Eminently quotable comedian Groucho Marx once sent a telegram to the Friar’s Club of Beverly Hills — to which he belonged — stating: “PLEASE ACCEPT MY RESIGNATION. I DON’T WANT TO BELONG TO ANY CLUB THAT WILL ACCEPT PEOPLE LIKE ME AS A MEMBER” This phrase pops into my head at least once a day, usually continue…
WARNING: This is one of those posts I occasionally write to organize my thoughts and test some ideas — it won’t hold together that well and feedback is what I need most, so please comment if you’re interested in the topics below.Q: What do smartphones, robotics, mobile health, quantified self, and the singularity all have in continue…
The #1 problem faced by every brand — from toothpaste and TV shows to pop stars and politicians — is grabbing and holding the attention of their target audience. Billions are spent annually researching the consumer landscape in an effort to understand what messages and media will give each brand an edge in the battle continue…
Tom Friedman’s editorial in today’s New York Times cited “Carlson’s Law”, a framework advanced by Curtis Carlson, the C.E.O. of SRI International: “‘In a world where so many people now have access to education and cheap tools of innovation, innovation that happens from the bottom up tends to be chaotic but smart. Innovation that happens from continue…
Patience is not my middle name. As the youngest of three kids I was always in a hurry to grow up so I could do whatever the big kids were doing. And since there’s always someone older, faster, smarter, richer and better-looking than me (especially that last one), there’s never been a natural brake on continue…
I had a great time last week at the Legal Frontiers in Digital Media conference – an event put on jointly by the Media Law Resource Center and Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society. As one of the few non-lawyers in the room (most attendees were either in-house counsel at large media and continue…
I was on a great panel at TiECon on Friday, flew home just in time for my son’s 6th birthday party, and flew out the next morning for Whitefish, Montana. I usually hate being away from my kids on the weekend but this was a trip I couldn’t miss: a close college friend had just continue…
I just got back from TechStars New York’s inaugural Demo Day. This was my third Demo Day (my first was Boulder 2009, followed by our own Seattle version last November) and all I can say is… “Holy sh*t, TechStars has become an absolute startup juggernaut!” David Cohen and his merry band of local Pied Pipers continue…
Last week I described how my initial skepticism about Windows Phone 7 was softening, based on glimmerings of interest in the mobile developer and CIO communities. Today, Microsoft poured some gasoline on that little flame by announcing with Nokia that WP7 would become the default OS for Nokia’s smartphone line. As Vic Gundotra (Google’s VP continue…