Tag Archives: startups

Mentor Manifesto 18/18 – Have Empathy. Remember that startups are hard

This is the final post (18) of the Techstars Mentor Manifesto. As with item 17, Brad Feld let me complete the list with my own submission for this final item. During one of the Techstars Boston cohorts where I’ve been Mentor-in-Residence, I worked with a 20-something CEO founder (code named Mary) who, shortly after raising aContinue reading “Mentor Manifesto 18/18 – Have Empathy. Remember that startups are hard”

Founders: How are you making money & generating cash?

Tech startups often do not think deeply enough about how they are going to make money. More focus on this would be greatly helpful. During most of my weeks I’ll meet with anywhere from 5-10 founders of tech companies to talk about their business. Many are looking for investment, and though I’ve invested in a fairContinue reading “Founders: How are you making money & generating cash?”

Mentor Manifesto 17/18 – Be Challenging/Robust but Never Destructive

Brad Feld wrote 16 posts detailing each item of the Techstars Mentor Manifesto. However, there are 18 items in the manifesto and he never got around to writing the final two. I prodded him several times; but after a year without the posts appearing from him, I volunteered to write them; and he has graciously accepted themContinue reading “Mentor Manifesto 17/18 – Be Challenging/Robust but Never Destructive”

Acquia’s 10 year anniversary

Starting small, building huge This week marks ten years since I incorporated Acquia, the company that I count as the highest positive-impact business I’ve built. Yet, it wasn’t some incredible strategic, execution, or product skill on my part that made it happen; it is – of course – due to the people involved. I oftenContinue reading “Acquia’s 10 year anniversary”

Angel Invest Boston podcast, with me and Saleh Daher

I was recently invited by Sal Daher to be interviewed for his Angel Invest Boston podcast series. Sal’s series invites various tech angel investors from around the city and asks them a variety of questions about their own background, how their background influences their investment, and about things they commonly see in, and suggest to startupContinue reading “Angel Invest Boston podcast, with me and Saleh Daher”