venture capital Archives

How the “Bootstrap Culture” of a Place like Austin Changes Entrepreneurship From an “Equity Culture” of a Place Like Silicon Valley

Tuesday, 27 November 2018 by SEO'Brien

Bootstrap or VC? It’s a question on so many minds as entrepreneurship flourishes beyond Silicon Valley, in cities where venture capital seems inaccessible. It’s a question that not a day goes by in which it doesn’t come up for me, based in Austin, TX, having professional roots along Sand Hill Road. What strikes me as

Published in Insights / Research, Startups

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On the Challenges Facing an Angel Investor

Wednesday, 14 November 2018 by SEO'Brien

Angel investment is a distinct *source* of capital that it’s important to distinguish from “seed money,” funding from angel groups, venture capital, money from an incubator, or even an early investment from someone with later stage expectations. In my time in Silicon Valley, with New York, and in Texas, what is glaringly obvious is that

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Published in Startups

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Getting to Know Your Venture Capitalist

Tuesday, 28 August 2018 by SEO'Brien

There are two types of people in the world. Those who know what they’re doing and those who don’t. Your challenge, as an entrepreneur raising capital, is to discern the difference. Even with the very best of intentions, wealth doesn’t necessarily = experience, good advice, and sound decisions. In venture capital this fact can lead to disastrous

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Published in Startups

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Venture Capital in Texas

Thursday, 26 July 2018 by SEO'Brien

The last time I had an opportunity to do this at such a scale was during Amazon’s Startup Day. What is the state of the Texas venture capital ecosystem? Interestingly, personally, since speaking for Amazon, Austin has been hemming and hawing about HQ2 and while the merit of that happening or not, is fodder for

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Published in Conferences, Insights / Research, Startups

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The VCs I Read

Wednesday, 04 July 2018 by SEO'Brien

Last thought first: How do we follow all of these great mentors and writers? Here’s a Twitter List to Follow <- Subscribe there and you’ll get all of their posts I’ve spent years, week after week, dropping to entrepreneurs some of the names of VC blogs and bloggers I love. In every Incubator and session I

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Published in Insights / Research, Startups

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How to Start Your Startup – Whether You Need Code or Capital, Start Here.

Monday, 05 March 2018 by SEO'Brien

By FAR, the greatest mistake that startup founders make is that they start with the wrong things. They tend to have an assumption or desire about how to solve a problem and they go. You read that “startup” book that tells all you need to know… you went to a meetup or networking event that

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Published in Startups

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Overcoming Obstacles: How Startups Prevent a Hiccup in Due Diligence

Monday, 18 September 2017 by SEO'Brien

Most of the articles you read about venture capital, and getting funded, are focused on the positive outcome – finding, meeting, and pitching the VC. Let’s take a look at a startup from the other perspective – how to avoid a “no.” If an investor takes a shine to you, they’re going to go through

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Published in Startups

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