What Should Startup CEOs Know About Accounting? By Brett Fox I was having dinner with Bill. Bill is someone I worked for years ago. Bill was asking me about how things were going at my company. He asked me, “Are you signing every check?” I told him I was. “That’s good!” Bill is seriously old…
Should You Or A Potential Investor Open Price Negotiation? By Brett Fox There are too many people that think raising money is like an episode of Shark Tank. You say, “I’m raising $XM at a valuation of $YM” just like they do on Shark Tank. Not only does providing a valuation makes you look like…
What Should You Do While Your Team Builds Your First Product? By Brett Fox The first CEO job I ever interviewed for, the recruiter said to me, “As CEO you recruit, recruit, recruit, and you sell, sell, sell.” I didn’t get the job. Then, I started my own company and became CEO. And what did…
Should You Take A Vacation As A Startup CEO? By Brett Fox We closed our funding in early April, and we had a previously scheduled vacation to Hawaii in June. So, what did I do? I took the vacation of course. And I had a really nice time. My wife and daughter had a nice…
I know you’re busy as founding CEO of your company, but make time to read. The reading will likely pay off for you big time. I like using Audible as a way to improve my productivity. I can listen to a book while driving. Or I can listen to a book while going for a…
What Do I Do If I Run Out Of Money For My Startup? By Brett Fox I recently started working with a young entrepreneur named “Chris”. Chris has a really cool idea to disrupt the industry he is in. On a shoestring budget Chris has built up a large customer base, and Chris is generating…
If ever there is a question where the answer is “It depends”, this is the question. I’ve known entrepreneurs that have bootstrapped that have made a fortune, and I’ve known entrepreneurs that raised VC money that made a fortune. I don’t really think the question is whether bootstrapping or VC funding yields you the most…
I remember talking to my Dad years ago when he was running his company. My Dad used to talk about being “knocked around.” I would say to my Dad, “It doesn’t sound like much fun. Why would you want to do this?” [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.]…
How Do You Protect Yourself From VCs Stealing Your Ideas? By Brett Fox “We can stop right there,” the VC said to my cofounder “John”. John, to my surprise, had just asked the VC to sign an NDA. “I’m not signing an NDA,” the VC continued. It was the first sign of paranoia from John…
How Do You Stop Employees From Going To Competitors? By Brett Fox I was recently asked the question, “What should I do to keep an employee that has quit from leaving.” I was happy to answer the question because I have a perfect batting average as CEO of keeping employees from quitting. That’s right. 0.00%.…