3 Reasons to Work for a Startup

Tech giants like Facebook and Microsoft continue to offer endless perks (like free dry cleaning and an organic spa, respectively) in an attempt to attract top talent. But, I believe new startups’ innate “perks” — like culture, ownership, and visibility — provide the biggest benefits to prospective hires. Instead of competing with giants on material perks (actual companies have emerged to capitalize on this trend — we were solicited by three of them after announcing our Series A), young startups hungry for talent should emphasize their unique benefits instead.

I believe the newest, smallest startups really do offer the best benefits of all. Here are three reasons why:

1. Culture

Though Yahoo is most definitely not a startup, Marissa Mayer’s now-infamous decision to end telecommuting was, in my opinion, implemented in an effort to bring back some of that much-loved startup culture and weed out any apathetic employees. While my organization wholeheartedly embraces the idea of “working from anywhere” (our entire company is built around Google Apps) there is something to be said for what employees can accomplish when they’re physically in the same room.

Enforcing a ban on telecommuting doesn’t make Mayer a tyrant. Instead, it shows a desire to rebuild Yahoo’s corporate culture and highlights Mayer’s startup roots. After all, one of the main benefits of working at a startup is the tight-knit workforce and the sheer amount of collaboration that occurs on a regular basis (sharing a 300-square-foot room with five other people also helps).

While Yahoo will never again feel like a true startup, we should give Mayer credit for trying to rebuild a culture that thrives on working together and supports collaboration.

2. Ownership

People are drawn to startups because of their lack of bureaucracy. At most big companies, you deal with endless approvals, red tape and PR departments looking over your shoulder. Ultimately, new ideas are held up for months and even years.

While every company has some sort of hierarchy, startups have a relatively flat organizational structure, which allows members of the team to accomplish much more in a shorter timeframe.

3. Visibility

Visibility is a crucial element to building a great working environment — and it helps an organization establish trust with its customers, investors and most importantly, employees. While some of the biggest names in tech make transparency a priority, true startups are able to provide visibility in every area of the business. And it’s the lack of bureaucracy and strong culture that make visibility possible.

I even know one new company whose CEO tells his employees how much money is in the company bank account on a monthly basis. This kind of transparency inspires employees to do their very best because they know that they’re truly affecting the overall success of the company. It also makes it impossible for anyone to piggyback on someone else’s hard work. In a small organization, everyone is accountable — which means the team as a whole works harder.

* * *

In the end, trying to compete in the endless perks game is simply unsustainable for young companies. It also hurts our ecosystem by placing an emphasis on the materialistic benefits while detracting from the true values that make the tech startup world so great. So don’t worry about keeping up with the big guys. Instead, focus on making the most of your company culture and promoting visibility and ownership throughout the recruiting process and once employees join your organization.

Let talented people share in your dream, offer to help them grow, and they will come and join you.

David Politis is the founder and CEO of BetterCloud, the maker of FlashPanel, the number one cloud management tool for Google Apps, and the Google Apps resource site, AsktheGooru.com. Follow BetterCloud on Google+ at bettercloud.com/plus.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, the YEC recently launched #StartupLab, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses via live video chats, an expert content library and email lessons.

15 Ways to End a Business Partnership Gracefully

Question: What’s one tip for ending a business partnership gracefully (or at least, without lawsuits!)?

Go Back to the Contract

“If you had the foresight to create one, consult the partnership agreement or other business documents that detail the structure of the business and how disagreements or severance is handled. While these contracts typically do not cover ever conceivable scenario they can serve as an impartial reference for negotiations.”

– Kelly Azevedo | Founder, She’s Got Systems

Be Kind and Generous

“Recognize that if a business partnership does not end amicably, it can cause tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills and years of your time and energy to resolve through litigation. Therefore, when in doubt, error on the side of being generous and kind rather than risk litigation by being greedy or spiteful when ending a business relationship.”

– Doug Bend | Founder/Small Business & Startup Attorney, Bend Law Group, PC

Be as Reasonable as Possible

“Be reasonable, and don’t let pride get in the way. Don’t let the past cloud the way you handle the situation. Think about the best way to end it to benefit your company in the future.”

– John Hall | CEO, Influence & Co.

Get a Prenup!

“Though nobody likes to think about, much less plan for, a dissolution, agreeing on an exit plan should be part of the earliest partnership discussions. That way, no matter how heated things get, both you and your partner are protected and forced to abide by terms upon which you agreed when cooler heads prevailed.”

– Michael Tolkin | CEO, Merchant Exchange

Define Mutual Desired Outcomes

“Generally, when a business partnership is coming to an end, both parties have their reasons. If you can define a set of mutual desired outcomes and then operate from a place of mutual fairness, you can generally find an amicable resolution to any business partnership that has come to an end.”

– Warren Jolly | Co-founder, Affiliate Marketing

Factor in an Exit Clause

“Start every partnership with a solid contract outlining exit plans in advance. Write up a simple understanding with an exit clause built in for each partner. That way, the procedures and expectations are in place if one partner wants to leave to pursue other opportunities. If you are high and dry without one, go back to the contract.”

– Nick Reese | CEO, Elite Health Blends

Split the Last Check

“It costs money to dissolve a company. The legal fees should be divided by the same ownership percentage. Although an exit strategy should have been in writing upon starting the business, some entrepreneurs might not have it. By splitting the costs of dissolving a company, you at least have documentation to show that both parties agreed to end the partnership.”

– Nancy T. Nguyen | Founder/Sweet Sylist, Sweet T Salon

Make Sure to Prepare

“Having the right contract in place at the start of the relationship is key. That guards terms of termination (i.e., days notice) and makes clear what happens to the business, the work etc. Those are the things that cause problems in the first place.”

– Susan Strayer LaMotte | Founder, exaqueo

Always Be Honest

“Breaking up is always hard, but it’s infinitely more difficult when there’s money on the line. Sit your partner down and be transparent. Talk about what’s wrong and why you can’t move forward. Offer a plan to make the split work for both of you.”

– Brent Beshore | Owner/CEO, adventur.es

Think Before You Act

“You never want to end a partnership in the heat of the moment. Rather, think things through carefully and plan your approach/case. Saying too little or too much can have negative consequences in the future. ”

– Nicolas Gremion | CEO, Free-eBooks.net

Hire an Attorney

“Dissolving a partnership can be an emotional roller coaster, so my advice is to remove all emotions from the process. If you have the resources, both parties should hire an attorney the minute it’s decided that it’s needed to dissolve a partnership. This allows both parties to negotiate at arms length, without being slowed down by partner emotions.”

– Derek Johnson | CEO/Founder, Tatango

Find Mutual Advisers to Help

“Anytime a relationship is ending, there is a natural tension caused by a lack of trust. As much as possible, bring together mutual advisers to help you work through differences. Friends or mentors whom both parties trust will create a safer environment for discourse, which will help lead to a graceful resolution.”

– Aaron Schwartz | Founder and CEO, Modify Watches

Communicate Everything

“Communicate a lot. It’s important to clearly communicate your goals and rationale with your partner throughout your entire partnership, much like a marriage. When you have a lot of transparency, you and your partner will know where the other stands, and the end will likely not be a surprise.”

– Bhavin Parikh | CEO, Magoosh Test Prep

Set Legally Binding Expectations

“Set expectations and make them legally binding upfront. As a startup founder, your equity should vest. Your equity should be based on milestones you’ve reached. This way, if someone doesn’t live up to expectations, there’s no legal or personal claim that can be made. ”

– Patrick Ambron | CEO, BrandYourself.com

Have an Exit Strategy

“Know what consequences ending the partnership will have on the other parties and be prepared with proposed solutions for those affected. Have strategies and alternatives to share with your business partner, so both sides can handle the transition as seamlessly as possible. For example, how you will handle your existing customers? Be prepared with concrete answers.”

– Christian Springub | CEO and co-founder, Jimdo

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, the YEC recently launched #StartupLab, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses via live video chats, an expert content library and email lessons.

3 Ways Women Can and Should Have It All

A generation after many prominent feminists encouraged women to “have it all,” we continue to decry the absence of women in politics, business, and other positions of power. At the same time, even though there is more opportunity for women now than ever before in history, some professional women argue that we can’t or shouldn’t want to have it all.

But is it really too much to have a prominent career and a family? Must we make just one choice to tip the balance of power?

I don’t think so — women can have it all, and here is how:

1. Define what “having it all” means to you. Like many women, I didn’t want to work so hard for someone else that I wouldn’t have time for a family. Not only did I want to have a successful career and a family, I wanted the freedom to do the kind of work I pleased.

Yet working for a branding firm in Manhattan, I found myself staying late and coming in on weekends to represent products and companies I didn’t believe in. I was frustrated. I realized that what I wanted most was more control over my hours and over the people, companies and products I worked with.

2. Strike out on your own — gradually, if needed. If you want to avoid what Anne-Marie Slaughter calls the “time macho” of male-dominated corporate culture, why not start a business or a freelance career?

Like any major transition, owning your own business can be a gradual process. After several years of working for a company, I had enough confidence in my work as a graphic designer to strike out on my own and start freelancing. While freelancing, I developed relationships with businesses, potential clients, and other entrepreneurs who wanted to partner with me.

I developed an interest in branding and eventually in how alternative forms of cause marketing could alter the marketplace (and people’s lives). Slowly but surely, I found my way and gradually built a life of freelancing into a business.

3. Make your own rules. Maybe you can accomplish the same amount of work in 50 hours that others can in 90 hours. Maybe you work better from home; maybe you work better at night. Maybe you are more creative if you get enough sleep and spend time with your family. Maybe you want to measure success by results rather than how much time you have logged. Or maybe you think your employees will do better work if you treat them well.

In a world where you set the rules and the measure of success, it is possible to create an alternative culture. It is possible to stop asking to be part of the game (or trying to fit into the game) and start your own game instead.

Over time, I was able to choose clients and associates who shared my vision of a business in which success would be measured by more than revenue, a business that would help make the world a more humane place.

I still work hard, but I choose my own hours, and all my work fuels a vision I have for my new company Maiden Nation — a community devoted to the idea that women can live the lives they imagine for themselves.

You can live the life you imagine, too. The first step is knowing what that looks like.

With degrees in Anthropology from Columbia University and Design from Parsons, Elizabeth Schaeffer Brown represents a brand development vanguard uniting global, technological, and social concerns. She has introduced leading international brands, like Sony Ericsson, into the North American market. Additionally, Elizabeth has founded many sustainable branding initiatives including Choose Haiti and launched this Fall, Maiden Nation. She is the co-founder of Maiden Nation and studioe9.com.

Ready, Set, Launch! Getting a Startup Site Off the Ground

For years, you’ve been selling your incredibly delicious baked goods to a group of devoted family, friends and co-workers. Now, you’ve decided to take the plunge and create a website that will allow you to ship your scrumptious scones, marvelous muffins, and tantalizing teacakes to a hopefully appreciative worldwide audience.

In order to have a successful online business, budding entrepreneurs need an effective and terrific-looking website. As any online business owner knows quite well, fantastic websites don’t just happen — they require a fair amount of advanced preparation and homework. While it may seem a bit overwhelming at times, the following nuggets of advice can help take the idea of a website and turn it into reality.

Determine if your home computer can handle a business website

The first order of business when launching a new website is to make sure your computer can handle it. WebHostingBlueBook.com notes that in many cases, home computers need some serious tweaks before a business website can even be built. For example, check with your ISP provider to see if you can run the site from your PC. In some cases, you may have to upgrade your Internet account and plan in order for the site to work. Since a slow-to-load site will send shoppers running to the next online merchant quicker than you can say “cupcake,” be sure you can afford to pay for an upgraded connection. Paying a low monthly fee (as low as under $2 a month) to a web host can alleviate slow connection pain points you may encounter by hosting at home.

Select your domain name

Next, choose your domain name AKA the proud title your website will carry. This typically means getting an account with a domain name company that will give you permission to use that name, as The Site Wizard points out. Take your time in choosing a domain name, and make sure when it’s written out, it will look and read well, and isn’t too long or cumbersome. If your name is Ida, and your specialty is cupcakes, then IdasCupcakes.com may be the perfect domain name for you and your website.

Learn what your customers want — from your site

Beyond your mouthwatering baked goods, it’s good to do some research and find out what a typical online cookie buyer wants from a website. For example, does this type of customer want complete ingredient lists to be posted, so they can make sure allergies are not an issue? Do they desire gorgeous photos of the baked goods? Are they looking for a brief history of the company and your commitment to using only the best ingredients possible? Probably all of the above! Ask around, see what people like, and spend time researching other online bakeries to see what you feel looks and works the best.

Figure out how you will get paid

Since you will be selling your goods over the Internet, you will need a way to receive and process your customers’ credit card information. Read up on how to accept credit cards, set up shopping carts, and add order forms to your site. Make sure you have all of these tasks in place before you even begin to design your site. Once you are ready to open, you will easily be able to make sales to your customers.

About the author Albert Lester
Al teaches economics and business at his local high school. He blogs about business, finance, teaching and the economy in his spare

time.

5 Ways to Use Your Competition to Your Advantage

When envisioning and establishing my business, I focused on both short- and long-term goals. My short-term goal was to outgrow a local competitor’s annual gross sales. I knew I wanted to eventually compete with multimillion-dollar giants, but first, I needed to examine my strengths and their weaknesses.

Market competition can create a battleground. My goal was to win the war. This mindset might be controversial, but many businesses have failed because they did not capitalize on their competitors’ faults. I built my business from modest beginnings to achieve multimillion-dollar revenues by distinguishing my venture from others like it. Here’s how:

Analyze the industry. Studying the competition allows you to find weaknesses in their organizations. Begin by subscribing to their newsletters. Approach a competitor as an interested customer so you can see what its sales and customer service processes are like. I was able to gain invaluable information by simply buying a product and noting the logistics of the sales process. You can take it further and visiting the business’ location, which allows you to speak to managers or even the owner. To your benefit, many of these leaders will brag about how they started their businesses — or their own accomplishments. Take note and begin to brainstorm ideas for setting your business apart.
Outshine the competition. Now that you’ve gained knowledge about your competitors, put it to use. Create a more professional, user-friendly website. If applicable, outbid your competitors and secure exclusive contracts with your clients. Work to take your competitors out of the picture. By limiting their market appeal, you can increase your own. Your goal is to provide the most effective and efficient service or product from the start so customers recognize the quality of your company as well as its integrity.
Focus on customer service. Do this by assembling the best team possible. After all, your business is only as good as your employees — they’re the face of your company. Positive and resourceful customer service helps set your venture apart at the outset, since larger companies are simply not as hungry for new customers. Aim to create the best shopping experience for your customers and do not compromise on the quality of your employees. Seek out intelligent and independent individuals who share your passion and vision. Regular communication about business priorities and strategies is crucial to professional and monetary growth.
Create quiet opportunities. This can be difficult. As you’re putting together the best team, best product, and best marketing, you want to keep a low profile. If you’re overexposed, your competitors will notice quickly and begin fighting back for market share. Try to keep your company under the radar as long as possible, while also gaining valuable and dedicated customers. Once those customers understand the quality and reliability of your business, they will remain loyal — despite increased attention or competitors who might offer lower prices or more blatant promotions.
Maintain your lead. You should know your business better than anyone. Be proactive and deliver a quality product or service consistently. The most successful entrepreneurs anticipate future advances in technology, customer service, and production, and incorporate them into their game plans. You need to constantly push yourself and your team to new heights through active research and by attending professional conferences to avoid losing your edge to the competition. Team-building and potential contacts enrich the overall experience.

While a magic formula to benefit from the competition’s weaknesses — and boost your business — doesn’t exist, conducting extensive research is the key to see how your business can better connect with customers. Once you find your niche, you can begin building and maintaining your momentum by delivering quality service and a unique experience. The way to the top can be a war. Make sure you are motivated and diligent enough to be the victor.

Yosef Martin is founder and President of Merchandize Liquidators, a closeout and liquidation wholesale company specializing in selling overstock and customer-returned merchandise from major stores back to the market for a fraction of the original wholesale cost. A thought leader and entrepreneurial expert, Yosef welcomes anyone to reach out to him on Facebook, Twitter or Google+.

7 Fun Ways to Harness Social Media in Your Startup

If your company hasn’t learned to harness the power of the social media world yet, here’s one reason you should: according to Google, nearly 60 percent of people talk more online than they do in real life.

So where do you begin? There are plenty of avenues to take. Here are some ideas for putting your business into the spotlight, gleaned from a recent Ragan Conference in Orlando, Florida.

Host a Google+ Hangout On Air. What do Maroon 5, the Dalai Lama and President Obama all have in common? They’ve all hosted Google+ Hangout On Air sessions. It’s a new spin on having conversations with your audience by allowing them to engage with your product and meet the people behind the brand. Disney, for example, premiered its “Lincoln” film trailer through the Hangout On Air feature. Here’s how it works: log into your Google+ account, click Start Hangout and conduct an online video chat that streams the conversation live. Every Hangout on Air is automatically saved to your YouTube account. The most important thing to remember: practice beforehand, so you can nail things like lighting and sound.
Start an ambassador program. Your employees can be your best advocates or your worst enemies. Chances are, you’d like to go with the former. Many of them already use social media, so why not harness the energy of engaged employees into something useful? Start by creating a social media customer engagement policy and conduct training. Sprint does this in an entertaining and wildly successful way through its Social Media Ninjas program. They even have “black-belt” ninjas who tout the latest devices. Consider taking that a step further and recruit fans outside of your company as additional ambassadors.
Hold a contest on Pinterest. Pinterest offers a creative and meaningful way to connect with a huge audience –especially female customers ages 25 to 34 — many of whom spend loads of time on the site. By holding a contest, you can connect with a niche audience that was likely not paying attention to your company before, and it can give you insight as to the audience’s needs and wants. TIP: Use curalate.com to measure your Pinterest presence. It finds images about your brand to help you measure your reach.
Tweet with gusto. For starters, let your personality shine through when tweeting. Start the conversation by asking your fans questions so they can generate colorful commentary. For example, Marvel asks its fans for thoughts on movie releases and games. And across the company’s Twitter accounts, hashtags are sprinkled in. The handy little # symbol categorizes tweets by topic and can make a huge difference. Case in point: When the NBA held its slam-dunk contest this year, viewers were asked to vote for favorite dunks using #spriteslam as the hashtag. Likewise, #spriteslam was tweeted 50,000 times in the first two minutes it appeared on-screen. But be sure to check your hashtags ahead of time. The pithy phrase may already be in use, and it may not be in line with your branding. Likewise, have a fresh pair of eyes look over the hashtag. Susan Boyle’s #Susanalbumparty was a PR disaster.
Listen to your fans. When Tasti D-Lite’s technology and digital marketing exec noticed a fan tweeting about potentially buying from the dessert company later in the day, he offered her a Tasti D-Lite coupon and she continued to tweet about how pleased she was with this interaction. This took less than a few minutes to do, but think of how effective it was. Along the same lines, when a Phoenix Suns fan sent out a tweet and photo complaining about a bad seat at a Suns game, the Suns social media team offered the unhappy fan a special seat in a suite. His resulting tweets were positive and influenced his huge audience.
Publish killer content. What makes content good? It has to be engaging enough that people want to share it. Ask yourself is this relevant to my audience? Does it answer a question? Does it provide entertainment? Do you have share buttons next to your content to make it easy for your readers to share it with their friends? And remember, you don’t have to generate all the content. Ask your audience members to guest blog, which will enable you to reach their audiences, too.
Develop a social media strategy. Of course, none of this makes sense if you don’t have goals and long-term thinking in mind. Just like anything else, you don’t want to throw your brand out into the social mediasphere all willy-nilly. Having a strategy will help you plan ahead for contests and such, and it helps you to shape your message. Keep in mind: any good social media strategy should address the good (contests and coupons) and the bad and the ugly (customer complaints).

Tom Cannon is the CEO and cofounder of BungoBox, an Orlando-based company that rents moving containers made of recycled plastic as an alternative to cardboard boxes. Founded in 2009, BungoBox now has 20-plus locations in the U.S. and Canada and plans to open 150 more franchise locations in the next five years as part of a steady and strategic growth strategy.

12 Personal Budgeting Tips Now That You’re Running A Startup

Question: What’s ONE practical way to adjust your personal budget when preparing to start a business, and why?

Sorry, Starbucks

“I love my Starbucks (maybe too much), but it’s significantly cheaper to purchase coffee in bulk, buy a simple machine and make it yourself, rather than spending more than two dollars every morning for the same thing. Plus, if you really get into the routine, it can become the perfect morning meditation and start every day right.”

– Derek Flanzraich | CEO and Founder, Greatist

Don’t Resort to Walmart

“Instead, start buying from other small businesses! Whatever you need, I guarantee you that another small business owner like the future-you is trying to make money doing what they love. Give them a shot. Not only will you save big, but helping small businesses grow will mean more revenue for your business, which in turn translates into less budget cuts for you. Scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.”

– Carissa Reiniger | Founder and CEO, Silver Lining Ltd.

Cancel Your Cable

“Cancel your Cable TV subscription to save an easy $600 per year. You won’t have time to watch TV anyway, and if you do need downtime, pick up a business magazine or a book instead. The Innovator’s Dilemma, Great By Choice, and The Personal MBA are all great reads.”

– Matt Mickiewicz | Co-Founder, Flippa and 99designs

Do Your Own Nails

“…or other beauty treatments. It’s important to look nice as a founder of a company, but when I looked at what I was spending on manicures and other beauty treatments every month, I realized that this was money my company would need. As a bonus, I can read business blogs while my nails dry!”

– Caitlin McCabe | Founder & CEO, Real Bullets Branding

Cook for Yourself!

“Whether it’s lunch or dinner out, you’re spending massive amounts of money every day to have someone else prepare your meals. If you’re in a city like NYC, SF or Boston, lunch can easily cost you $10 a day and dinner is $15-$20. Packing a lunch for a week can easily be done for $10, if you don’t mind sandwiches, and you can make a great dinner for $5 a day. The savings add up fast.”

– Jason Evanish | co-founder, Greenhorn Connect

Nix the Subscriptions

“Examined your budget and cut out needless subscriptions. If you are serious about reducing your spending, look at cutting out common subscriptions like Netflix, unused gym memberships, online memberships, cable TV, cleaning service, magazines and more. Subscriptions surprisingly sneak up on you, so cutting out the unused ones can save you a pretty penny.”

– Nick Reese | CEO, Elite Health Blends

Downsize Your Home

“If you don’t have a family and can live with roommates, it’s worth considering to save a huge amount of money every month. If you can live with your parents an extra year out of school to start a business, that’s awesome too. Housing is the biggest monthly expense for most people, so any way you can cut that down to as little as possible will help you tremendously cut your expenses.”

– Natalie MacNeil | Emmy Award Winning Media Entrepreneur, She Takes on the World

Hire an Accountant

“Many first-time entrepreneurs think that accountants are only for their business, and they’re only half right. An accountant can be an extremely valuable asset when it comes time to file your personal taxes. With so many different deductions, credits, etc., having an experienced accountant on your side can mean the difference between eating Ramen or steak with your refund.”

– Derek Johnson | CEO/Founder, Tatango

Ditch the Office Space

“When you start your business, company and personal expenses tend to be malleable. As much as possible, integrate your personal life with your business. Block off part of your apartment or home for a formal office space to save rent and claim the tax deduction! Similarly, eat at home often, but make sure to have business meetings over coffee or lunch.”

– Aaron Schwartz | Founder and CEO, Modify Watches

Get Rid of Your Car

“Depending on where you live, you might rely on your car to get around. Alleviate yourself from that hefty car payment and walk more, ride a bicycle to save the environment, or carpool with your friends and families. The truth is, you shouldn’t be leaving the house/office that much anyway while you’re launching your business.”

– Logan Lenz | Founder / President, Endagon

Eliminate That Debt

“Not having personal debt will reduce your financial pressure as you’re building your business. Try to pay it off as much as possible so it’s not weighing you down or stressing you out.”

– Elizabeth Saunders | Founder & CEO, Real Life E®

Get Real About Your Spending

“Before you can begin to adjust your personal budget, you need to get real with yourself. Most people overspend or spend in areas that could easily be cut back, especially in times of need. I recommend that people go to Mint http://www.mint.com and configure their accounts so they can see where their money is going. Getting a good look at what’s happening will allow you to then make good decisions.”

– Erin Blaskie | CEO, Erin Blaskie, Digital Strategist

How I Turned My Personal Challenges Into Startup Success

You are not stuck in life. No matter what barriers you face, if you can see your future, you can take action to get there. I know…because I may be the world’s least likely businessman.

I can’t read. That might seem like a pretty big barrier. I’m not saying it wasn’t. I had a lot of challenges in school. I felt dumb. I knew I wasn’t picking up things as easily as other students. Lucky for me, an art class changed the way I saw myself and the way I saw my future.

Finding a Different Way

The summer I was 10 years old, I broke my arm, right at the beginning of a summer school art class. I was disappointed: I was looking forward to the intensive class, where we made art for hours a day. I went to my teacher and showed her my cast, which covered my right hand and gave me no way to pick up a pencil or paintbrush. I told her I’d like to sit in on the class, even if I couldn’t participate.

“What do you mean?” she said. “Don’t you think people with disabilities make art?”

“No, probably not,” I said, “Not if they can’t use their hands.”

So she told me about artists with disabilities — how they created art with paintbrushes held in their mouths or strapped to their wheelchairs. I spent the rest of the summer making art, drawing with a magic marker held in my mouth and painting with my feet. I learned a key lesson: if a broken arm wasn’t going to stop me, then dyslexia shouldn’t stop me, either. I just had to find a different way to do what I wanted to do.

It wasn’t easy. I didn’t really recognize that I was smart, truly smart, until the end of high school. And it was even later that I realized that even though my dyslexia could be a barrier, the ways I dealt with it became part of the reason for my success.

Barriers or Benefits?

I embraced technology at an early age, since I used technology to “read” and to play. My dad had one of the earliest computers. It had one simple video game, which I loved. He wrote down the DOS commands so that I could play it, and I became one of youngest DOS users around. Since I became tech savvy early on, I’m extremely comfortable with new technology and quick to adopt it.

I also listen well. Not only am I an avid reader of audio books, but I really listen to people. After a meeting, I often remember key points much better than my colleagues. I don’t have to go back and look at my notes, because I don’t have any. I have to listen and remember.

Dyslexia also helped me become a salesman. In school, I had to sell the teachers on how clever I was, so that they understood I was trying and would cut me some slack if I needed to write something.

I learned to ask for help, too. Since I couldn’t write, I needed to dictate. I had to learn to get what I needed from other people. I think that gave me a big advantage, since that‘s where a lot of other entrepreneurs fall down. They try to do everything themselves. Me? I ask for help when I need it.

The Art of Starting Up: 3 Tips

I think I gravitated toward art in part because of my dyslexia. As an artist, I wouldn’t be judged by my reading skills. After receiving my MFA in sculpture, I became a working artist, and learned some of my first lessons in business, like:

Push yourself to be creative. Different is good in a crowded marketplace.
Brand yourself. Don’t just be different. let the world know that you are unique and valuable.
Manage your own budget. An obvious but important lesson, especially for artist.

Being an artist also taught me to value my independence. I liked relying on myself, rather than depending on an employer, which eventually gave me the confidence to start my own business. I didn’t have to leave a 9-5 job. I didn’t have to give up my art. I just needed to shift around time and priorities.

I went on to start a Web-based company, and then built on its success with another one. Now, I’m the CEO of Globe Runner SEO, a Dallas-based firm offering comprehensive search engine optimization, search marketing, and social media campaigns. I’m proud to say that, in spite of the economic turndown, Globe Runner grew exponentially during the last few years, and was recently recognized as one of the Top 100 SEO Companies (#36) by SERP.com.

An unlikely success story, right? Maybe not. The one big challenge in my life, my dyslexia, has helped me acquire every skill that has made me successful.

So take another look at the barriers in your life. How can you address them? How can you do things differently? Paint with your feet, in a manner of speaking. Do what it takes to reach your vision of the future. You may find that the skills you learn along the way will lead you to success.

Eric McGehearty is the CEO of Globe Runner SEO, a top-performing, SEO and digital marketing firm. Eric, who received his master’s degree from UNT, is also the founder of BabySafeTravel.com, a advisor to non-profits, an advocate for people with learning disabilities, and an award-winning sculptor. Though Eric has achieved success in many fields, the role he cherishes most is that of husband and father to his wife and four children.

This WSJ Startup Of The Year Plays Jeopardy For Team Building: Who Is Speek?

DC’s Speek is the number 4 ranked WSJ Startup Of The Year. This program, put on by the digital arm of the Wall Street Journal, takes 24 startups through a program of mentorship from business, tech, and entertainment titans. While “accelerators” are nothing new, a video series designed around them is a new and exciting concept and as you can imagine WSJ has an amazing mentor pool to tap from.

We’ve followed the path of Speek since we first heard about it over 18 months ago at a pitch event in Washington, DC. E-vite co-founder John Bracken and Danny Boice are making conference calls suck less.

Now what we like even more than simple conference calls (just go to http://speek.com/kyle) is the fact that Bracken and Boice are true believers in remembering their roots and supporting where they came from. While they are themselves part of a “program” of sorts, both Bracken and Boice are passionate about mentoring other entrepreneurs, speaking at events and sharing their experiences.

They’re leaders in the Washington DC startup community, a fact that showed when nearly 500 people showed up for a Speek celebration party earlier this summer.

Speek’s videos talk about the things they know best, simplicity, functionality, team, and branding.

One of the videos they do “speeks” to many startups across the globe. Like other startups Speek has a distributed work force. According to Boice 60% of their work force is local to DC, but the other 40% is distributed across the globe.

As a team-building exercise the guys at Speek played Jeopardy. Each employee completed a questionnaire and put the game together. Check out the WSJ video below.

25 Tips From The Ultimate Cheat Sheet For Starting And Running A Business

Author, entrepreneur, and startup founder James Altucher is known for his crass, tell-it-like-it-is style of writing. 90% of the time he shoots right from the hip, and he’s always right.

Altucher has written nine books and one comic book. He’s created a web series for HBO and is currently working on one for PBS. He’s proudly built 20 companies and failed at 17 of them. So when it comes to starting up he knows what he’s talking about.

The other day on Facebook Paul Singh reposted “The Ultimate Cheat Sheet For Starting And Running A Business” by Altucher. When I read through the list, I cracked up. I also knew he was absolutely right on the money. Some of these tips are great!

Altucher published the list with his answer to a question or a tip with no explanation, telling the audience to “listen to me.” If you’re an entrepreneur, you should.

Here are the first 25 tips. Continue on to Altucher’s blog for 75 more that are just as important.

1) C Corp or S Corp or LLC? C-Corp.

2) According to Sun Doc Filings, California and Delaware are excellent states to incorporate in. From your perspective, what state should you incorporate in? Delaware.

3) Should founders vest? Yes, over a period of four years. On any change of control the vesting speeds up.

4) Should you go for venture capital money? First build a product, then get a customer, then get friends and family money (or money from revenues which is cheapest of all) and then think about raising money, But only then. Don’t be an amateur.

5) Should you patent your idea? Get customers first. Patent later. Don’t talk to lawyers until the last possible moment.

6) Should you require venture capitalists to sign NDAs? No. Nobody is going to steal your idea.

7) How much equity should you give a partner? Divide things up into these categories: manage the company, raise the money, had the idea, brings in the revenues, built the product (or performs the services). Divide up in equal portions.

8) Should you have a technical co-founder if you are not technical? No. If you don’t already have a technical cofounder you can always outsource technology and not give up equity.

9) Should you barter equity for services? No. You get what you pay for.

10) How do you market your app? Friends and then word of mouth.

11) Should you build a product? Maybe. But first see if manually your product works. Then think about providing it as a service. Then productize the commonly used services. Too many people do this in reverse and then fail.

12) How much dilution is too much dilution? If someone wants to give you money, then take it. The old saying, 100% of nothing is worth less than 1% of something.

13) Do you listen to venture capitalist? Yes, of course They gave you money. But then don’t do anything they ask you to do.

14) What if nobody seems to be buying your product? Then change to a service and do whatever anyone is willing to pay for.

15) If a client wants you to hire their friend or they won’t give you the business (e.g. like a bribe) what should you do? Always do the ethical thing – hire the friend and get the client’s business.

16) What do you do when a customer rejects you in a B2B business? Stay in touch once a month. Never be angry.

17) In a B2C business: release fast. Add new features every week.

18) How do you get new clients? The best new clients are old clients. Always offer new services.

19) What’s the best thing do for a new client? Overdeliver for the first 100 days. Then you will never lose them.

20) What if your client asks you to do something not in your business plan? Do it, or find someone who can do it, even if it’s a competitor.

21) Should I ever focus on SEO? No.

22) Should I do social media marketing? No.

23) Should I ever talk badly about a partner of an employee even though they are awful? Never gossip. Always be straight with the culprit.

24) I have lots of ideas. How do I pick the right one? Do as many ideas possible. The right idea will pick you.

25) What is the sign of an amateur? Any of these things:

asking for an NDA
trying to raise VC money before product or customers
having fights with partners in the first year. Fire them or split before anything gets out of control
Worrying about dilution
Trying to get Mark Cuban to invest because “this would be great for the Dallas Mavericks”
Asking people you barely know to introduce you to Mark Cuban
Asking people for five minutes of their time. It’s never five minutes so you are establishing yourself as a liar.
Having a powerpoint that doesn’t show me arbitrage. I need to know that there is a small chance there is a 100x return on money.
Catch 22: showing people there’s a small chance there’s 100x return on their money. The secret of salesmanship is getting through the Catch 22.
rejecting a cash offer for your company when you have almost no revenues. Hello Friendster and Foursquare.

Check out the rest of Altucher’s list here!

James Altucher image: thoughtcatalog.com

12 Sources For Practical Business Advice For Your Startup

Question: As a young entrepreneur, what’s your #1 source of practical business advice and why?

Ask Experienced Businesspeople

“Although there are countless pieces of valuable advice that can be found both online and in books, nothing beats getting insight from people in your network. Consulting individuals that have long and diverse careers in the businesses world enables you to get personalized and customized advice from a demographic that has both talked the talk and walked the walk.”

– John Berkowitz | Co-Founder & Vice President of National Sales, Yodle

Read the Best Books

“Blogs and social media are awesome, but there’s something really special that happens when you read a book that essentially condenses twenty years of experience from an author. You get to learn from their mistakes, and it also teaches you to apply their ideas in our modern world so you can hone your creative thinking skills too.”

– Nathalie Lussier | Creator, The Website Checkup Tool

Ask Your Customers

“Business advice is a dime a dozen. The easiest way to know what the right thing to do is to listen to what your customers want and help them achieve their goals.”

– Wade Foster | Co-founder, Zapier

Pool From Fellow Entrepreneurs

“Reading a ton of books can only get you so far when you’re trying to build a business from scratch. The great thing about entrepreneurship is that most are willing to share their tips with you. Listen to them, because they have been in your shoes and don’t want you to make the same mistake. Take your ego and pride out of it and listen to them. They may point out something you never thought about.”

– Ashley Bodi | co-founder, Business Beware

Learn From Trial and Error

“The business I’ve built isn’t exactly like anyone else’s. That means that one of the best options I have is to actually try everything I can. I’ll try out something I read on a blog, a tip from an older entrepreneur — anything that comes along.”

– Thursday Bram | Consultant, Hyper Modern Consulting

Go for Google

“Practically anything and everything you would ever want to find today, you can find on Google. It never ceases to amaze me when I have questions on anything and type it into Google, I always find an answer. And many times, there will be a video that will come up and explain something to me or I can listen in to a guru talk about something.”

– Louis Lautman | Founder, Supreme Outsourcing

Take to Twitter

“I’ve found the ability to follow some of the absolute best minds in business, technology, and leadership on Twitter unlocks a wealth of advice and knowledge — though, now the only problem is giving the best tweets the attention they deserve. We’re lucky to live in a time when we can connect directly with people we’ve never been able to access before.”

– Derek Flanzraich | CEO and Founder, Greatist

Make Use of Mentors

“I always try to find a mentor in a specific, key area in which I am trying to gain advice for. My father always taught me from an early age: “Life is a minefield — why walk through it yourself when you can seek out and follow the footsteps from someone who has already navigated the minefield successfully?” I’ve used this technique many times.”

– Warren Jolly | Co-founder, Affiliate Marketing

Don’t Fear Failure

“Almost every piece of practical advice I’ve learned have come from various failures. When you know what you did wrong, it shows you how to improve and succeed the next time.”

– Ben Lang | Founder, Mapped In Israel

Consult Mixergy for Advice

“The interviews by Andrew Warner of Mixergy are some of the most inspiring and informative videos on the web. Andrew has a knack of getting to the core of a founder’s thought process and extracting valuable nuggets of wisdom from them. I definitely recommend that everyone subscribe to Mixergy or watch the videos for free in the week that they are released.”

– Lawrence Watkins | Founder & CEO, Great Black Speakers

This Week In Startups

“Twice a week, I tune into This Week In Startups, hosted by Jason Calacanis. His show is full of direct, honest and real entrepreneurial business advice from not only himself, but his amazing co-hosts and guests. ”

– Derek Johnson | CEO/Founder, Tatango

Read Peter Drucker for Leadership

“Being a leader is tough, and every entrepreneur has to find her or his own path. But there’s is no excuse for not working on being a great manager. Learn how to set goals with your team; stay on top of tasks; and execute on a daily basis. Read Peter Drucker and learn from the best.”

– Aaron Schwartz | Founder and CEO, Modify Watches

How A Movie Can Change The Way You Run Your Startup

The best advice you’ll ever get as an entrepreneur can come from anywhere. It may have come from your parents or a mentor, a book or a billboard — even a movie. You’re not always sure why, but something in what you hear changes the way you think.

For me, this happened while watching the movie “Jerry Maguire” (yes, that Jerry Maguire!). If you’ve seen the movie, you’ll remember Jerry’s mentor, the late, great Dicky Fox. Although Dicky Fox had limited screen time, his scenes have stuck with me. Before ShadesDaddy.com was founded, my friends and family always thought it was funny (but still admirable) how many businesses I had tried to start but failed. Failure ultimately has been my best teacher and continues to be.

Maybe that’s why, in both my personal and professional life, I find myself thinking back to “Jerry Maguire.” Admittedly, it’s a little embarrassing that some of my guiding principles come from the movie with the immortalized “You complete me” scene, but what can I say? Dicky Fox taught me a thing or two.

“The key to this business is personal relationships.” You’ve heard the saying, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” I heard that a lot in my years, and it really resonated when I started seeing the value of one’s network in working with vendors. Building personal relationships has been an integral part of growing my business to date.
“Roll with the punches. Tomorrow is another day.” Anyone who ever started a business or runs one knows there are days when when it rains, and then there are days when it pours. There will always be dilemmas — but thankfully, there is always tomorrow to find the solution for them. I’ve had to overcome problems that could have easily taken me out of business time and time again, but I always knew I had another day to fight.
“If [the heart] is empty, [the head] doesn’t matter.” We all have personal problems, and those problems can easily interfere with our work. Some of my better, most thriving moments professionally came when I was very happy personally with my relationships and my family life. However, there were also periods when my personal life wasn’t going so well, and I was fueled to work harder professionally as a result. All in all, I’ve learned that when I’ve been happiest personally, I’ve been able to better focus on my business.

I’d like to end with one last piece of Dicky Fox advice: “I love getting up in the mornings, I clap my hands and say, ‘This is going to be a great day!’” Seriously, do this. CLAP your hands in the morning, and say that quote out loud. In the last few years, starting off my day with positivity is a routine I’ve diligently applied. Love what you do from the beginning of your day to the end. If you put good energy and hard work out there in the universe, it will happen.

As Dicky says at the film’s end, “I don’t have all the answers. In life, to be honest, I have failed as much as I have succeeded. But I love my wife. I love my life. And I wish you my kind of success.”

Pablo Palatnik is the founder and CEO of ShadesDaddy.com, one of the largest online retailers of sunglasses in the world.

This is the must attend startup conference of 2013.

3 Important Lessons From Our First Major Pivot

A few months ago, one of my mentors told me, “Change is easy, but pivots are painful.”

I understood all too well what he meant, since my company, Zealyst, was in the middle of our first true pivot. We’d just signed a major enterprise client, one year after launching as a consumer-focused business, and we were scrambling to figure out the new business model.

Change is constant in a startup: every day there are new ideas, new opportunities, and new hurdles, which is part of the thrill. Pivots, however, are deep, long-term changes that fundamentally alter your course and shift your company’s identity.

The pain of that pivot has decreased and we’ve come out the other side wiser and stronger, but my mentor’s words have stayed with me. I reflected on the stages of our pivot and distilled the challenges we encountered along the way into three main lessons.

Listen to opportunity.
I joked with a colleague recently that our pivot began when opportunity knocked, but it had to knock again…and again…before we really listened. Shortly after launching Zealyst to a small pilot group of consumers, a business approached us about providing the service to their clients. We agreed to work with them out of curiosity, but considered it an experiment rather than a direction change. We had a few contracts come our way through referrals, which we continued to handle in a similar manner. It wasn’t until a Fortune 100 company asked us to host an employee engagement event that we finally realized we needed to change our focus and pursue enterprise opportunities instead of expanding to new consumer markets.
Maintain a connection to your core.
My co-founder and I initially resisted the enterprise direction because we thought it strayed too far from our original vision. We started Zealyst to help people build meaningful new connections and ultimately create stronger social networks. We were concerned that taking our model into the corporate world would dilute the impact and lessen the satisfaction we derived from our work. However, after a series of client engagements, we found that the work we did to heighten employee engagement, improve retention and foster innovation was just as gratifying as the work we did for consumers. People spend a major portion of their lives at work, so helping people feel more connected to their workplace has proven to be a very rewarding challenge. Additionally, we discovered that working on specific client objectives, such as connecting people across regional boundaries or across management levels, actually improved our design process.
Communicate clearly with stakeholders.
One of the things that kept me up at night during our pivot was how we were going to tell our loyal group of early adopters about the change. Initially, we were not sure if we would have to scrap the consumer arm of Zealyst entirely, which felt like a betrayal of the people who supported us from the beginning. I consulted all of our key advisors about the best way to move forward, and we eventually came up with a strategy to maintain a small consumer division for research and marketing. After we integrated the consumer activities into the new business model, we worked closely as a team to craft a clear message about the change to all our key stakeholders: investors, advisors and our existing customers. I was nervous about how the announcement would be received, and pleasantly surprised to be met with resounding support across the board. It was a humbling reminder of the importance of transparency — and further reinforcement that we’d made the right decision.

The pain in our pivot came from having to re-calibrate our vision and change the expectations we had in the early days for what the company would become. It was challenging to let go of the plan and wrap our minds around a new course, but opening up and altering directions has allowed us to become a more resilient company than we could have imagined at the beginning of this adventure.

Martina Welke is the CEO and Co-founder of Zealyst, a curated networking service based in Seattle, Washington. Zealyst utilizes smart technology and creative design to build unique events. Zealyst software uses registration data to match attendees according to their interests, and customized social games make it easy to make new professional and personal connections at events.

Wait, is your startup registered for this?

Is It Time To Slowdown? After Three All Nighters Bank Of America Intern Dies

Intern Death, Moritz Erhardt, Startup Tips

(image: gawker.com)

As entrepreneurs and startup founders, we often work just as hard, if not harder, than interns working for the top firms on Wall Street. Or in London as the case was with 21-year-old Moritz Erhardt.

The young man was a college student who was living at Charedale House in London while working through a rigorous internship program for Bank Of America Merill Lynch’s London office.

Gawker.com reports that Erhardt had come home after three all nighters, had a seizure, and passed away in the shower.

“He was popular amongst his peers and was a highly diligent intern at our company with a promising future,” Bank of America said in its statement. “Our first thoughts are with his family and we send our condolences to them at this difficult time.”

Many summer interns from other investment banks are talking about Erhardt’s death on Wall Street Oasis. While some seem to be sympathetic to the passing of the college student, there are actually many who are critical 0f his situation, saying that you have to work hard to advance in the investment bank world.

Startups are often in the same position. Hackathons are a startup staple. Of course, these aren’t “every day,” and most hackathons do encourage a little bit of rest. But as one person on Wall Street Oasis points out, to pull three all nighters had to have involved a lot of caffeine. Caffeine is even more common for startup founders than hackathons, and what work space doesn’t include coffee, Red Bull, and soda.

Back in May the sad story about our good friend and “Bad Ass Startup Chick”, Denver Hutt was a wake up call to some of us.

When is it time to re-charge the batteries? Comment and share below.