Be Careful When Choosing a Startup Incubator
A recent trend in the tech-startup scene is to join an incubator or startup accelerator. These incubators promise to mentor, guide, and position early stage startups for success, and in return, they receive 4% – 7% equity in the company.
But a recent article on RWW tells the story of how the majority of incubator …
Lack Experience: 3 Rules to Nail Your Phone Interview
Note: This post is for college freshman and sophomores who are looking to secure their first internship.
Over the past week, I’ve phone-interviewed 7 college students for the position of Social Media Intern at Minted Republic. I’ve been so completely underwhelmed by the candidates that I decided to write a post to teach college undergraduates …
From Idea to Reality: How to Take the First Step
I told my cousin today about my goal of traveling the world.
“I’d love to do that too, but we can’t just leave the job. How would you survive out there, become a bartender?” she said sarcastically.
Although I’m sure bartenders have a ridiculously fun time at their job, I have no plans of needing …
Network slowly – How To Meet People Without Trying
I hate networking events: they’re overly crowded, people always have an agenda (the need to meet a potential client), and it’s difficult to build a relationship with an individual.
Instead of pursuing networking events, I’ve decided to network slowly and utilize my current network to meet new people. Here’s three ways that I do it …
How To Build A Solid Startup Team
I’ve built at least 8 teams throughout my start-up career. The teams have ranged from unpaid college interns, to friends from college, to contractors from elance. I’ve learned something new each step of the way as I’ve hired and fired professionals. These are the top lessons that I’ve learned while building teams.
1. Money cannot…How Andrew Bynum Hurt His Personal Brand During Game-6
The Lakers huddled together, listening to their coach in hopes of making a 20+ point comeback. Kobe was sick with the stomach flu and needed the support of his teammates to help him close out the Nuggets.
And there Bynum was, 8 feet away from the huddle, staring blankly into space while his teammates drew …
How To Get Clients From A Conference Or Trade-show
Over the course of a year, my company spent over $25,000 on conferences and trade-shows. Quite a lot of money for a start-up, but something that we found to be absolutely necessary to generate enterprise-level client leads and expand our pipeline. To see a return on our investment, we would need to generate over $25,000 …
Utilizing Your Non-Existent Network To Get The Interview
Every job posting has a requirements section glaring back at you, telling you that you aren’t good enough. It’s easy for a young professional to get intimidated by a job posting that requires 4-5 years of experience in a specific field and an MBA in a related field.
The question then becomes: “How do I …
The Personal Brand That Will Close Deals
I’m 26 years old – no longer the youngest guy in the room in Silicon Valley. I feel my age is an advantage though; sure, it doesn’t get me the 18-year-old with a start-up press, but investors, potential hires, and my current team take me more seriously because I’m older.
But it’s a whole different …
How to Embrace Your DNA
In High School I was caught in the middle. I was the kid in all of the AP courses who got straight A’s, but I also played basketball for the high school team. I had friends in the “smart” group and in the “baller” group, but I never really hung out with them outside of …