We cover all kinds of topics focused around product development in a wandering conversation.
Early Stage Startup Advice – Interviewed by Eric Weiss
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You’re Probably Not Ready to Raise Money
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I know, I don’t even know you. Here’s the thing. Let’s say Melanie is an early stage investor. If she placed a bet blindly for every startup that thinks they’re ready to raise, her chips would fall on the “not ready to raise” words written in fancy script on the soft green felt of the betting table. And she’d win. A lot. My goal here isn’t to...
Co-Founders, it’s Time to Split that Equity
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Every so often while talking to startups, I start to notice trends in questions that come up. Recently, one of those frequently-asked questions has been: How do we split equity between us co-founders? It’s a very fair question to ask. Bryan and I asked the same question of ourselves when we started Embarke 3 years ago. Bryan and I had only known each other for a couple months, yet it was...
San Diego’s Start-Up Scene is Out of Control
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It’s the middle of 2013, and I’m incredibly excited at where San Diego is from a start-up ecosystem perspective. When I first dove into the start-up scene in San Diego 3 years ago…there wasn’t a whole lot going on. There were a handful of events, and most of them were attended by the usual suspects. About 2 years ago, things started to change. More...
Demo Booth – 12 Tips to Make Your Table a Success
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I get asked pretty frequently how I manage a successful “demo booth” at an event. Through my company, Embarke, I’ve had tables at two Founder Showcases, one Launch Conference, two San Diego Venture Summit (Cool Company) events, a March Mingle, and many others… I’ve met with people that eventually became customers, investors, mentors, and advisors…sometimes...
3 Crazy Months in the TechStars Accelerator
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Everyone keeps asking me what it’s like to go through an accelerator program. I got asked after we graduated from The Founder Institute, and I’ve gotten asked repeatedly as we’ve been going through TechStars. The long answer is below (as best I can put to words)…but the short answer is: You can’t describe it with words. That should make this an interesting post...
Cutting the Cord, Pulling the Plug – I Cancelled my Cable!
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January 25, 2012. That was the day (so I’ve had 3 months under my belt). After years of building home-brew DVR’s, and spending countless monthly dollars on a service I rarely used anymore…I made the move. Shut it down, turned it off, sent the equipment back! Now I just have an internet connection. How do I feel? Well, like I’ve got a few more dollars in my pocket for...
Microsoft BizSpark Plus and My Company Embarke
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So, a lot has happened this year with Embarke…and one of the most substantial things is Embarke being accepted into the Microsoft BizSpark Plus program. If you don’t feel like clicking that link, here’s the Cliff’s Notes: We get $60k of free Azure Cloud services. Nice! We’re so excited, we shot a video for it. Bryan and I chatted for about 15 minutes, then I...
The JOBS Act and Crowdfunding, Will This Work?
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Mark April 5, 2012 on your calendars people. It’s a monumental day. Today is the day that President Obama will sign the JOBS Act. For entrepreneurs and startups, the most exciting piece of this is crowdfunding. As Howard Lindzon says, crowdfunding has been around for years. So what’s the big deal with this legislation? Today, if you’re to invest your hard-earned dollars in a company (for equity...
Bootcamp for Your Brain – What I got from The Founder Institute
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I’ve been an entrepreneur and involved in startups most of my 15-year career. I started my own ecommerce company, helped grow a network management and SaaS organization which was eventually sold, and I’ve built communities to a million page views per month. Because of this you’d think I might have a clue what I’ve been doing all these years. I’m confident enough in...