I’ve worked with a lot of startups over the past few years, and, by a wide margin, the most common mistake founders make is not having a vesting schedule for their equity. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. It’s not a mistake to have everyone 100% vested if…
One of the things that always made me laugh was my bimonthly check signing ritual with Tina, our Controller. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. We would review the financials, and she would tell me the story behind the various checks I was signing. Once a month, I…
“Here’s what we can afford to pay you,” I said to Greg, one of the best Analog IC design engineers in our industry. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] Greg was making $400,000 per year working part time at Maxim Integrated Products. I had known and worked with…
“You just go visit customers. They’ll tell you what to do,” the job candidate said to me. Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. Read any trade publication, listen to an earnings call, or listen to any podcast. You’ll hear the same advice: “Listen to your customers. They’ll tell…
The days of expecting employees to work only for equity are long, long gone. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] Early stage employees have a gotten a lot smarter and a lot savvier than twenty years ago. Your employees have options including working for large established companies. That means your…
Imagine this scenario. You’re in a meeting with a major potential customer. And this one customer can make or break your business. You have to win this deal or your business is going to fail. Or imagine this scenario. You’re raising money. Do you want to nail your investor pitch? Then download the free, Startup…
Every time I raised money, there was drama with one of my co-founders. It’s a nightmare because you’re worried the drama could cost you your funding. Since at least 50% of all co-founder relationships end up in failure, you have a pretty good chance of having co-founder issues happen when you’re raising money..That’s what today’s…
“I don’t care who it is, but you need to fire one of the people reporting to you.” Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here. This was the advice I received from a CEO, “Ed”, I knew when I became General Manager of a division of a company. I…
-“Here’s what I think is fair for your role,” I said to “Ken,” one of my co-founders. Ken smiled, and said, “I was thinking the same number.” [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] We shook hands, and that was that. I had agreed to the equity for my…
How transparency can help get your startup funding Every startup has problems. And somehow or other, these problems, such as you missing your numbers, or a co-founder, always happen at the worst possible time which is when you’re raising money. Now, what do you do? Do you hide the problem from your potential investors or…