Tag Archives: startups

Ten rules for better founding teams

Posted on March 22, 2010 by

Previously, I highlighted the legal aspects of structuring founder agreements. These are indeed very important but it is even more important to underscore that any agreement can be modified if the parties involved agree to do so. Therefore, a non-confrontational, … Continue reading →

Posted in startups | Tagged , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Startup Founder Agreements

Posted on February 22, 2010 by

I have been thinking a lot recently about how to apply agile development principles to investing and key aspects of startup development such as team building. That’s also the thread connecting my two recent posts on VentureHacks. Both stem from … Continue reading →

Posted in startups, VC, Venture Capital | Tagged , , , , , , , | 76 Comments

What it takes to make the Web more personal

Posted on February 5, 2010 by

Tom Pinckney has written a great post on GigaOm about the new kinds of processing companies have to do to create a highly personalized experience for users. My comment is still in moderation, so in the spirit of the real-time … Continue reading →

Posted in Facebook, startups, Web 2.0 | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The best vesting schedule

Posted on February 2, 2010 by

There is no such thing as the best or optimal vesting schedule in a startup. That doesn’t mean current vesting schedules are really good but it does mean that many of the so-called best alternatives are not much better. No … Continue reading →

Posted in startups, VC, Venture Capital | Tagged , , , , | 28 Comments

The entrepreneur’s dilemma

Posted on January 22, 2010 by

“The entrepreneurs dilemma” is a term that @azeem came up with in reference to a post on how to raise money without lying to investors on VentureHacks. The point I wanted to make was that entrepreneurs often have to chose … Continue reading →

Posted in startups, VC, Venture Capital | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Three rules for buying your friend’s company

Posted on January 21, 2010 by

Better Advertising bought Ghostery, an awesome Firefox add-on that David Cancel built. Read the Better Advertising take and David’s take. Other than the fact that Ghostery is awesome and a perfect fit for the mission at @betterads, the reason I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in startups | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

What constitutes a startup mistake?

Posted on January 5, 2010 by

Through a tweet from David Skok, I was reminded of a Paul Graham essay on the 18 mistakes that kill startups. Here they are: 1. Single Founder 2. Bad Location 3. Marginal Niche 4. Derivative Idea 5. Obstinacy 6. Hiring … Continue reading →

Posted in startups | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

Better Advertising backs self-regulation

Posted on December 7, 2009 by

Better Advertising has a new web site. Check it out. Also, our corporate blog is up. The current post outlines the three pillars of behavioral targeting self-regulation: Education, to empower consumers Transparency, to make clear who is doing what to … Continue reading →

Posted in Advertising, FastIgnite, startups | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Competing for competition’s sake

Posted on November 28, 2009 by

I don’t agree with Vivek Wadhwa that losing a business plan competition is better than winning it. However, I do think that business plan competitions force many teams to aim for the wrong target. Here is the comment I left … Continue reading →

Posted in startups | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments

Personality test for entrepreneurs

Posted on November 16, 2009 by

I’ve had several interesting conversation following the article on negotiating a better series A deal. Entrepreneurs write and ask for advice on a specific situation. Unfortunately, it’s really hard to give specific advice in these cases without a fair amount … Continue reading →

Posted in startups, VC, Venture Capital | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment