Sales, Marketing, and Strategy
When Should You Hire Your First VP Sales?
The first person I thought of when I started my company was “Ken.” Ken and I had known each other for years. We’d worked together for years too. Ken was, by a long shot, the best sales executive I’d ever worked with. Ken ran Asia sales for Maxim, and I loved working with him. I…
Read MoreHow Do You Instantly Get Your Audience’s Attention?
You’re about to present to your audience, and there’s a lot riding on the success of your presentation. Maybe you’re trying to raise money, or maybe you’re trying to present to a potential new customer. Whatever the situation may be, the challenge is the same. You have an incredibly short time, maybe seven seconds, to…
Read MoreThe Easiest Presentation Hack You Can Learn From Steve Jobs
Watch any Steve Jobs presentation, and you’ll likely come away impressed. You’ll wonder, “Can I make my presentations half as good as Jobs’?” In this short video, I’m going to teach a simple Steve Jobs presentation hack that anybody can implement. The good news is this hack will significantly improve your presentations too. I hope…
Read MoreHow Do You Make Sure The Best Idea Is Always Chosen?
One of the challenges CEOs face is,, when choosing from multiple ideas, that the best idea is selected. What makes this especially difficult is our natural tendency to shoot arrows at all new ideas. In this short video, I’m going to teach you a methodology that eliminates the negativity, AND, at the same time, strengthens…
Read MoreHow Should You Start Your Investor Pitch?
“You never know what’s going to come through the door,” Dave, a partner at the VC fund I worked at as an Entrepreneur in Residence, said to me. Then he continued by saying, “That’s one of the things I love about this work.” [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click…
Read MoreThe Six Mistakes You’re Making To Not Get Customers
“How do you know your product is going to sell?” I asked “Joe,” the entrepreneur I was speaking with. “I just know it’s going to sell,” was Joe’s response. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.] “Have you spoken with any customers yet?” “No, I don’t need to,” Joe…
Read MoreWhat Do You Think Will Change Because Of COVID-19?
COVID-19 has been around long enough to see some trends emerging. Depending upon the business you’re in, you could be crushing it right now due to COVID-19, or your business could be deep trouble due to COVID-19. In this short video, I’ll explain what the trends are that are leading to these results. And, I’ll…
Read MoreWhy You Want Investors To Say No To You
The odds are decidedly against you, like 300:1 against you, when you try and raise money from VCs. So, you’d think hearing an investor tell you, “No, I’m not interested,” is the last thing you’d want to hear. Well, that’s exactly true. In fact, hearing “No” from an investor can be great. I’ll explain why,…
Read MoreWhy You Shouldn’t Fear Having A Strong Competitor
One of the most brilliant technologists, if not the most brilliant technologist, ever in the analog semiconductor industry is Bob Dobkin. Dobkin, known as “Dobby,” was the co-founder of Linear Technology, one of the most successful startups ever in the analog semiconductor business. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click…
Read MoreHow Do You Validate Your Great Business Idea?
My mind started racing. I was having a hard time trying to hide my excitement. Mike, the managing partner of a San Francisco based VC, had just asked me to help them start an Analog semiconductor company. In other words, Mike’s fund was going to provide the financial backing for my new company. [Do you…
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