Entrepreneurs: Get the Edge Before You Go Over It
As an entrepreneur, it’s possible to get overwhelmed, frustrated or downright upset when you have a dream that you dreamed for your business and it’s just not happening.
The costs of being an entrepreneur come in many forms and you’ve got to learn to balance them all.
How an Entrepreneur Hunts for the Right Mentor(s)
Entrepreneurs are a lonely breed and it’s because of this loneliness that we constantly yearn for help and improvement. One effective way of getting help is to find a good mentor. Good entrepreneur mentors can be found everywhere but it’s not easy finding one that’s perfect for you.
In this post, I hope to share some of the key things to look at when finding a mentor for you and your business. A good mentor can go a long way for the entrepreneur both personally and professionally. If you don’t have one or have had trouble finding a good one, then keep reading. Keep Reading…>>
Why Entrepreneurs are Unique
Over the last few weeks, I have attended numerous networking events, pitch parties and conferences in a wide variety of industries including music, film, technology, government and entrepreneurship. In going from event to event, you start to notice how different events are run, how the participants, sponsors and organizers interact with each other and the participants of the events. As I look back at my run of these events, I want to highlight what I think is a unique and great trait that entrepreneurs have – the willingness to help every other entrepreneur.
The Entrepreneur and the Community Lender
As a second follow-up to my original piece two weeks back on “Funding for the Rest of Us Entrepreneurs”, I would like to discuss a second area of alternative funding, that being the Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). CDFIs provide financial product and services to people and communities underserved by traditional financial institutions. They normally work in low wealth areas and can take many forms (ex. banks, credit unions, micro-lenders, etc.).
UX, Entrepreneurs and Startups – Why Should I Care!?!?!
Ever since having the opportunity to work with a startup back in the early fall, I’ve jumped on any chance I’ve had to do so again. I loved the atmosphere and the people, but most of all I loved the freedom with which to try and adapt the User Experience practices that I’ve been learning for so long.
Many of the people in my field migrate towards full-time work with established companies, because they desire the security that that type of work brings them. That is all well and good until the complaints about not being respected and not having the opportunity to be innovative and to learn begin. Very slowly, but surely, a change is beginning in the user experience world, and it is one that you as an entrepreneur or small business owner should not only be aware of, but should take advantage of.
User experience professionals are starting to talk about the joys of working with smaller companies and startups… and a very, very early migration has started towards that direction.
Dear Entrepreneurs: Express Yourself!
In today’s fast-paced of being an entrepreneur, we have more than enough opportunities to express ourselves.
But are we really doing it in the best ways? Are we doing it in the true spirit of the entrepreneur?
The Entrepreneur and Peer-to-Peer Funding
I received a comment to last week’s blog, “Funding for the Rest of Us Entrepreneurs”, asking for specific alternative lending sources that start-ups could access. I had mentioned peer-to-peer financing as a potential funding growth area. Peer-to-peer financing or crowd financing are financial transactions between individuals without the intermediation or participation of a traditional financial institution. Peer-to-peer financing can take the form of debt, equity or grants.
Peer-to-peer lending sites registered with the SEC, such as Prosper and Lending Club, have become viable funding sources for debt capital, with $196 million and $113 million funded loans to date. This past week’s announcement that Diaspora.com, a proposed Facebook alternative, had raised more than $100K in pledges in less than 12 days on Kickstarter.com increased awareness and greater hope for peer-to-peer pledged capital.
Founder of NYEW Elected to AOL Small Business Board of Directors
As you may have seen recently on twitter or facebook, I have been elected to the AOL Small Business Board of Directors. This is a prestigious achievement for both The Relentless Foundation and its cornerstone event – New York Entrepreneur Week (NYEW).
With a driven and relentless global vision for entrepreneurship globally, I am humbled to be surrounded by a group of board members who are visionary thought-leaders, business mavericks and influential innovators, including:
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