After the no
Last month I wrote a post that tried to share the venture perspective of turning down a deal (see “Saying ‘no’ can be hear to do”). In that case I was referring to a specific deal that was particularly hard for me to turn down, although in the post I was trying to generalize to the many potential investments that we take a serious look at but don’t end up closing. While there’s typically less anguish around it, saying “no” to deals is something that occurs with frequency inside any venture firm. The comments to this post got me thinking about the other side of the equation – specifically what should entrepreneurs who have built up a relationship with a VC over the course of a due diligence process do when that process ends in a “no”. …
June 19, 2008· 3 min read
My new Netflix Roku rocks
Pardon me for believing that Netflix introduced their new movie streaming box just for me, but with my DVD player recently dying and my Netflix account basically wasting away how could I think otherwise when Netflix rolled out the ability to stream movies directly to my living room. The fact that it had an HDMI output (which happens to be the only spare cable I have running from my TV at the moment) was just gravy. …
June 18, 2008· 2 min read
Don’t be afraid of maps
I’ve spent a bunch of time with a handful of the TechStars teams in the last few weeks. The first week of TechStars was a complete whirlwind (lots of new people to meet, presentations from a bunch of big tech vendors, learning the lay of the land in Boulder, etc). Now the teams have caught their collective breath and are starting to realize just how quickly the summer rolls by when you’re creating and building a business. …
June 17, 2008· 2 min read
Me on w3w3
I was recently interviewed by Larry Nelson from w2w3.com. That piece is now up on the w3w3 site, and is (in my humble opinion) worth a few minutes to check out. I talk about what it’s like to work at Foundry Group with Brad, Ryan, Jason and Chris as well as about the role of company advisors (inspired by recent posts from this blog on that topic – here and here). Enjoy!
June 16, 2008· 1 min read
Plugging my partners – Soul Patch in Boulder on June 21st
While I’ve always dreamed of being a rock star (who hasn’t?!?), my partners Ryan and Jason actually are (at least when they are done with their day jobs). I wrote about their recent Soul Patch album here. The guys are playing a gig on June 21st at Redfish Brewhouse in Boulder. They start at 930pm – sharp. It’s a onetime event, as the band resides in Boulder, San Francisco and Los Angeles. …
June 11, 2008· 1 min read
Life without email?
For most technology professionals (really most professionals of any kind) email is so integrated into our work that we can hardly imagine life without it. Sure, it can be a distraction at times and – especially if you carry a wireless device – hard to escape from. But it also greatly enhances productivity, allows us to communicate quickly and effectively and to have asynchronous interactions with a great number of people. I know in my own work life I send and receive between 200 and 300 emails a day. And since I’m already tied up on the phone or in meetings for at least 5 or 6 hours in any given day, email allows me to be significantly more productive (and to process more information and communication with a far greater number of people) than without it. …
June 10, 2008· 2 min read
The role of company advisors (Part II)
Part II of a series of guest posts by Gerald Joseph on the role of company advisors. If you missed it, see Part I here. There are various types of advisors with differing skill sets and motivations. The key is to work with Advisors that have skill sets that help solve your company’s current and near-term problems. Here is a fractional categorization of the various types of Advisors Startups usually encounter in the Venture community. …
June 6, 2008· 3 min read
7th Annual Bard Center Business Plan Competition
I’ve been on the board of the Bard Center at CU Denver for several years now. One of the things I enjoy the most about my work with the organization is our annual business plan competition (in fact it was through judging this competition that I first connected with the Bard Center). Each year six finalists are selected to present to a panel of judges and $25k is awarded among the 6 finalists (in addition to prizes for 1st-6th place there are also cash awards for the top plans in specific categories (bio-science, non-profit, etc.). The event will take place on June 11th at the Hyatt in downtown Denver (finalist presentations from 8:30 – 12:00 and the awards lunch from 12:00 – 1:30). …
May 31, 2008· 1 min read
Jason Mendelson Blogs!
I know what you’ve been saying to your self: “Self – I’ve been looking to read a blog written by a reformed drummer, software guy and lawyer who is now a venture capitalist. Where can I find one of those?!?” All joking aside, I’d encourage you to check out the blog that my partner Jason Mendelson (who is all of those things and many more) has just started. Jason is actually a long time blogger – writing regularly on Brad’s blog and as one of the founders of and main contributors to AskTheVC. Mendelson’s Musings will have a more personal flair (although will continue to cover investing and venture capital topics as well). Along those lines be sure to check out his music page for great new music suggestions. There are many things I admire about Jason – he’s an extremely interesting and creative guy (especially for a former lawyer!). He’s also an excellent writer. I think you’ll enjoy what he has to say.
May 27, 2008· 1 min read
Grandpa
My grandfather passed away 5 years ago today (I can’t believe it’s bee that long…). I think about him a lot, but especially today on his Yahrzeit. I wrote a post a few years ago on one of my favorite sayings of his here. Today I’ve been thinking about the approach he took to his career. I recently wrote a post offering some suggestions about getting a job in venture capital. While I think its great to have career goals and an eye toward the future, my grandfather is a great reminder that sometimes the right path involves following the path that lays out in front of you. He left school to help raise money for his family during the great depression (he was one of 11 children and a first generation American) and never returned to finish high school. Eventually he enlisted in the air force and served for years overseas in WWII. Grandpa had an eclectic career – one that included selling vending machines, owning a mens clothing store, working for an auto dealer, selling check-writing machines and repping children’s toys. Not exactly a straight line path (although most of his jobs were related to sales in one way or another) and certainly not something he sat down to think about when he was in his 20’s to figure out what he wanted to do with his career. He didn’t have the luxury and in any event I don’t think for him laying out a 10 year career path was in his DNA. It’s so easy to get caught up today in where your career is headed and whether you’re “on plan” or not. Sometimes the right thing is to just go where life leads you.
May 27, 2008· 2 min read