Founders: Learning should be your top 2013 New Year’s resolution

As we get closer to the New Year, the ritual of making resolutions begins and we all flock to the usual patterns: we want to to eat healthier, work out more, get promoted, or spend more time with our kids and family.

These are with no doubt worthwhile goals, but I’d like to pose an important challenge for founders: Make learning and development your key resolution in 2013.

If you’re a startup, you are by definition competing with the smartest people in the world – either large companies with more resources than yours or fellow entrepreneurs who are hoping to disrupt large companies.

Your knowledge can make the difference between failure and success. Learning a new skill can also increase the chance of serendipity, the “magic” moment when seemingly unrelated concepts form an orignal thought in your head.

Considering picking up new skills? I’ve gathered a comprehensive list of resources for startup learning. Let’s get started!

Udacity

Udacity offers a range of free online courses from top University professors. A few of the top courses include:

• Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (CS271): Includes machine learning, probabilistic reasoning, robotics, and natural language processing.
• How to Build a Startup (EP245) by Steve Blank: You’ll learn the key steps of the Customer Development process. How to identify and engage the first customers for your product, and how to gather, evaluate and use their feedback to make your product, marketing and business model far stronger.
• Also worth subscribing to is Venture Lab – a series of startup courses online from Stanford University, for free.

Udemy

Startup courses from Udemy, a crowdsourced platform for learning:

• Learn how to raise money for your startup: The most popular course on Udemy, gathering advice from 7 founder CEOs including Naval (founder of AngelList), Dave McLure (founder of 500 Startups) and others. Learn how to raise capital from angel investors and venture capitalists (and how to decide who you should target).
• Social media marketing for startups: How to use social to launch, position your messaging and get distribution.
• Startup Hiring: How to attract, hire and retain the best people.
• How to Bootstrap Your Startup: Everything you need to start your business – how to take an idea on paper and bring it to life.
• Strategy Mapping Selling: Business-to-business sales and marketing – advanced selling and marketing strategies for major and key account sales.

Technical courses from Udemy:

• Learn how to make iPhone and iPad apps in 1 hour without any programming knowledge.
• Learn Ruby on Rails, an incredibly powerful and highly scalable object-oriented language, with this ten step tutorial.
• Learn to Develop an iPhone or iPad App in 4 Weeks. A step-by-step guide for aspiring developers with no coding or Objective-C experience.
• Become a Web Developer from Scratch! Learn all the programming languages needed to become a web developer from scratch.
• Advanced Google Analytics: Learn all about RegEx, advanced segmentation, intelligence alerts, custom reporting, event tracking, virtual page views, Ecommerce tracking, and custom variables with practical exercises.

Coursera

Coursera also offers free online courses given by professors in top universities:

• Programming Languages by Dan Grossman of University of Washington: Investigate the basic concepts behind programming languages, with a strong emphasis on the techniques and benefits of functional programming.
• Cryptography II by Dan Boneh, Stanford University Professor: Learn about the inner workings of cryptographic primitives and protocols and how to apply this knowledge in real-world applications.

Coursera is a social entrepreneurship company that partners with the top universities in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free.

edX

Harvard and MIT created edX, an online learning platform with great content. edX currently offers HarvardX, MITx and BerkeleyX classes online for free.

• CS184.1x: Foundations of Computer Graphics
• CS169.1x: Software as a Service

Skillshare

Skillshare lets you learn skills from other people. Really interactive way of learning:

• How to turn ideas into infographics
• Schools for brands: A really cool idea enabling brands to offer courses. For example, check out this GE Skillshare school.

Codecademy

Pick up your programming skills from Codecademy. Interactive way to learn how to code :

• JavaScript
• HTML/CSS
• Python
• Ruby

YouTube

YouTube has its own channel dedicated to educational content at YouTube EDU. It contains a broad set of educational videos that range from academic lectures to inspirational speeches and everything in between.

Lore

Lore (Learn + More), formerly known as CourseKit, has some great courses on deck. It’s also beautifully designed.

• Narrative and Comms Design by Portland State University
• 3D modeling, rendering and animation by Penn University

Khan Academy

 Khan Academy has a huge range of free educational videos. A few selections:

• Hedge Funds, Venture Capital, and Private Equity: Similarities in compensation structure for hedge funds, venture capital firms, and private equity investors.
• Raising money for a startup from an angel investor: Learn pre-money and post-money valuations are.
• Here’s a video on Series A funding from a VC to get you inspired to start:

It is essential that you take steps like these in order to be prepared for the challenges and competition ahead. And there’s no better time to get started than the coming year. As Steve Jobs said, “Stay hungry, stay foolish!”

Image Credit: Frederick Florin/Getty Images

Source: http://thenextweb.com/entrepreneur/2012/12/30/learning-should-be-your-top-2013-new-years-resolution/6/

Come back share with us what you have done, learned, created and what drove you. 

Have a Happy Entrepreneurial New Year 2013.

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

Love in an Elevator (Perfecting Your Elevator Pitch)

Heads up. Describe your business in under a minute. Was it convincing? Now shorten it to 30 seconds. Still effective? How about one sentence that sums up what sets you apart from your competition? Not so easy, is it? Though you may feel that it’s impossible to capture the essence of your complicated business in a sentence, the fact is that great concepts should always be able to be articulated concisely. An elevator pitch may be an old-fashioned concept, but it’s more important than ever.

You Talkin’ To Me?

A great elevator pitch is not a static entity. Though it should always convey the appropriate message, you should have several different versions ready to target different audiences. Have you just met a potential investor in a hotel lobby? Your pitch should address how your new financier will turn a profit quickly. Did you run into a potential customer at the airport? Your pitch should address the consumer’s particular concerns and how you plan to address them. Though your pitch may differ in details, the substance should be the same. It should always contain the underlying unique aspect of your business.

Carnegie Hall

Practice your elevator pitch. Take it seriously. You may feel a little silly rehearsing a short speech in the mirror and chatting with a non-existent person. Get over these feelings and practice, practice, practice. Have you ever met a person with magnetic charisma? People tend to hang on their every word. You want to manifest these same qualities, at least for a minute. Write down your ideas in bullet points. Try to blend them together in terse and snappy form. Say them aloud. Record them and play them back. Perform your elevator speech in front of a trusted friend or colleague. Keep tweaking your pitch as your business grows. Remember, your business is evolving; so should your pitch.

Open, Don’t Close

Don’t be preoccupied with closing a sale or making a deal with your elevator pitch. Of course, you should always have an eye on the close, but think of your pitch as simply an opener. You want to generate interest and engender excitement. You’re just giving them a sample of the solutions you’ll be offering later. Set the table. Serve the ball. And don’t forget to hand off a simple but stylish business card. Identify the problem and pique their curiosity. If you’ve done well, they will be excited to return the ball and continue the conversation. Even if they’re not personally interested, you never know if they will hand your information off to another interested party.

Tell a Story

Your elevator pitch should resonate emotionally with your listener. This is not time to go into detail about the ins and outs of your business. Never try to sway with facts and figures. Try to determine the solutions your listener is seeking and convince him or her you can deliver them. Relate to them personally and communicate an anecdote that tells them of your journey. Brag a little. If you can back it up, you’ll come across as confident, not pompous.

Source: http://www.blogtrepreneur.com/2012/12/27/love-in-an-elevator-perfecting-your-elevator-pitch/

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

This Holiday Season Entrepreneurs Need to Reflect

It’s been a challenging business year, but I hope you are all taking some time off this long holiday weekend, to celebrate with the family. Even those of you who are not Christian and see Christmas and/or new year as just another day should still enjoy the holiday spirit, take a break from work, and enjoy your loved ones.

Yet there will be some entrepreneurs can’t seem to make the decision to take a break. They forget that they probably became entrepreneurs, according to a recent DNA of an Entrepreneurstudy, for just this flexibility. More than nine in ten respondents (91%) found benefits from running or working in a small company, like flexible working hours and being in control of your life.

Related benefits cited include the ability to influence the direction of the business (48%), and greater pride in your work (47%). Other studies show that only about 30% list money as a key benefit of running their own firm. This indicates that lifestyle and satisfaction factors are usually more important than financial ones.

As with everything in life, there are advantages and disadvantages to every choice we make. Choosing entrepreneurship is no exception. Beyond the obvious advantages mentioned above, there are some additional advantages that get mentioned often.

• High level of excitement. Entrepreneurs love the continuous challenges of a startup, and the satisfaction of tackling them. Some are so high on this life, that they hate the fact that they have to "waste" part of their life in sleep!

• Minimal rules and regulations. Work in a conventional job is often difficult to get done because of all the "red tape" and consistent administration approval needed. With a startup there are no rules, until you make them.

• Challenge of originality. A good entrepreneur feels the incentive to offer a new service/product that no one else has offered before. That’s the same challenge an artist feels on every new canvas, or every musician feels when composing a new work.

• Beat the competition. Entrepreneurs are driven to offer a new or better product at the same cost, or an existing product as a lower cost. Competition drives innovation, and innovation drives competition. The cycle never stops.

Of course there are some disadvantages that every entrepreneur knows all too well:

• No regular paycheck. Starting your own business means that you must be willing to give up the security of a regular paycheck. In fact, most startup founders work for no salary during the first year or two of company operation.

• Few benefits. There will likely be no medical and dental benefits, and no vacations or other perks during the formative years. Don’t expect a staff to do the accounting, handle correspondence, or even clean the bathrooms.

• Decision responsibility. All the decisions of the business must be made on your own, better known as “the buck stops here.” This may sound like an advantage, but is actually a major source of stress and loneliness for startup CEOs.

• Staffing challenges. Hiring and firing decisions are hard, and that’s just the beginning. Often times, you will find yourself working with people who "don't know the ropes" and require extensive coaching and assistance. Then you have to deal with the mistakes.

By definition, if you see the rewards here as outweighing the risks, you are an entrepreneur. So you should fully appreciate the right to decide to take some time off, and enjoy the family. Take time this holiday season to savor the dream. You earned it, and you need the rest. Happy Holidays!

Source: http://blog.startupprofessionals.com/2012/12/this-holiday-season-entrepreneurs-need.html

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our readers! Happy Holidays!

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

Five top tips to starting a successful business

Today's resource post is by Richard Brandson, Fouder at Virgin Group, from his LinkedIn page.

As LinkedIn is a business that started in a living room, much like Virgin began in a basement, I thought my first blog on the site should be about how to simply start a successful business. Here are five top tips I've picked up over the years.

1. Listen more than you talk

We have two ears and one mouth, using them in proportion is not a bad idea! To be a good leader you have to be a great listener. Brilliant ideas can spring from the most unlikely places, so you should always keep your ears open for some shrewd advice. This can mean following online comments as closely as board meeting notes, or asking the front-line staff for their opinions as often as the CEOs. Get out there, listen to people, draw people out and learn from them.

2. Keep it simple

You have to do something radically different to stand out in business. But nobody ever said different has to be complex. There are thousands of simple business solutions to problems out there, just waiting to be solved by the next big thing in business. Maintain a focus upon innovation, but don’t try to reinvent the wheel. A simple change for the better is far more effective than five complicated changes for the worse.

3. Take pride in your work

Last week I enjoyed my favorite night of the year, the Virgin Stars of the Year Awards, where we celebrated some of those people who have gone the extra mile for us around the Virgin world. With so many different companies, nationalities and personalities represented under one roof, it was interesting to see what qualities they all have in common. One was pride in their work, and in the company they represent. Remember your staff are your biggest brand advocates, and focusing on helping them take pride will shine through in how they treat your customers.

4. Have fun, success will follow

If you aren't having fun, you are doing it wrong. If you feel like getting up in the morning to work on your business is a chore, then it's time to try something else. If you are having a good time, there is a far greater chance a positive, innovative atmosphere will be nurtured and your business will flourish  A smile and a joke can go a long way, so be quick to see the lighter side of life.

5. Rip it up and start again

If you are an entrepreneur and your first venture isn't a success, welcome to the club! Every successful businessperson has experienced a few failures along the way – the important thing is how you learn from them. Don’t allow yourself to get disheartened by a setback or two, instead dust yourself off and work out what went wrong. Then you can find the positives, analyse where you can improve, rip it up and start again.

Source: http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20121002115242-204068115-five-top-tips-to-starting-a-successful-business

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

Starting a Business is Good For You and Your Resume

If you are one of the many people still searching for that job lost during the recent depression, or about to dump the loser of a job you have now, you should be working on starting your own business, in parallel with looking for that ideal job. Let me explain why this is a win-win deal, no matter what the outcome.

You have probably secretly always wanted to run your own show, but with an existing job, never took the time to consider a startup. Then there was always the risk of failure, which of course doesn’t apply once your real job is gone. Also, for most of us, not having done it before, we have no idea where or how to start.

Here are my recommendations on how and why initiating a startup while looking, or about to be looking, for a job is the right thing to do:

• No gap in your resume. Instead of an embarrassing gap in your resume for your period out of work, you have an entry for your startup business, showing initiative, leadership, and breadth of experience.

• Fun learning experience. It’s more fun tackling the challenges of a startup in between job search activities, than sitting around feeling sorry for yourself and waiting for status callbacks on interviews (which seem to have gone out of style).

• Find a partner. Unless you are a true loner, you need someone like-minded but complementary in skills to help you with the startup plans. It’s always good to have someone to test your ideas, keep your spirits up, and hone your business skills. Now you have a reason for talking to people who may become lifelong friends.

• Incorporate an LLC. First, pick a name for your company and do the paperwork on starting a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC). Almost anyone can handle this without professional help, and the cost is less than $100 in many states. It shows everyone you are serious, and limits your liability on any mistakes.

• Develop low-cost plan. Pick a startup business that you can do for minimal cost, like a services business with the skills you have. With simple software available today, pick a domain name and implement your own website. Use social networking and blogging to get your message out. You don’t need an investor for this approach.

• Get business cards made. Nothing says you are serious about a business like handing out professional business cards at local events and Chamber of Commerce meetings. Do them on your home computer for a few dollars. Offer to help a couple of customers free, just to get your act together and your presence known.

• Highlight your startup efforts in job interviews. Work your startup efforts into every job interview and application. It will definitely show off your energy and vision, and will make you a more competitive candidate for any role.

• Make the decision – job or business. Obviously, at some point you will need to decide whether your startup business is better than the job opportunities. That’s good because it’s always nice to have an alternative, rather than feeling that you just have to take the first dead-end job offered.

There are other startup related points I could make here, like joining an existing startup as a “volunteer” for a time, just to learn more about what is required. Also, in most geographies, there are organizations springing up, and university workshops, to mentor people out of work and contemplating a startup. Get some help from them if you need it.

Just remember that problems are really just opportunities in disguise. Don’t miss out on what may be the best opportunity you will have in your lifetime for a new career. Start up now.

Source: http://blog.startupprofessionals.com/2012/12/starting-business-is-good-for-you-and.html

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

Global Entrepreneurship Summit / Entrepreneurial Ventures of Arabia

Global Entrepreneurship Summit / 

Entrepreneurial Ventures of Arabia

Today in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

StartupProPlus is officially covering live the 3rd Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) and Entrepreneurial Ventures of Arabia (EVA) Summit and Expo!

Get the live updates on Twitter and on StartupProPlus

The 3rd Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES)

Launched in Washington, D.C. in 2010 by President of the United States Barack Obama, the 3rd Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit now comes to United Arab Emirates, Dubai

Entrepreneurial Ventures of Arabia (EVA) Summit and Expo

Under the Patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai

Welcome to the 3rd Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) presented by Entrepreneurial Ventures of Arabia (EVA), the Middle East and Africa's Premier Summit and Exhibition for Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs.

With the support, direction and participation from the UAE Government, the event will offer key stakeholders clear insight into the regional new business climate, in a constructive and peer-to-peer setting, whilst providing Entrepreneurs and SMEs access to institutional and private Investors seeking to explore new business alliances.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/taherafridi

Web: http://www.startupproplus.com/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/StartupProPlus

Event: http://www.ges-eva.com/

Sponsored by: du - http://www.du.ae/en/default

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More

Features: IMOLLO on Storing and Sharing.

Features

Today's feature is with Raffaele Lafortezza, a key player in the team behind the startup IMOLLO, that is revolutionizing the way file sharing is done compared to the traditional email attachments.

IMOLLO is also one of the TOP 5 winners, coming in second place, in the recently held 1st Mediterranean Startup Awards. StartupProPlus extends their sincerest congratulations and appreciation for this interview. More information can be found at the end of the article in the info box.

 Show your support and Nominate IMOLLO for the "Best Design 

Award" at the Crunchies 2012 (by TechCrunch)  

by clicking the link below!!

http://is.gd/3wwKQc 

1- Introduction: Please give a short description of yourself and your business

IMOLLO (www.imollo.com) is a communication and information exchange software that gives everyone the freedom to experience easy and efficient file sharing and storage. IMOLLO offers its users and initial adopters fast and safe file exchange, free cloud storage, and simple messaging services designed to essentially integrate multiple functions into one easy-to-use software. IMOLLO it is shaping to be THE alternative to tedious email attachments. Users can now conveniently send files up to 500MB per transfer to one or more contacts in a single drag and drop motion to IMOLLO’s virtual tunnel. That’s the equivalent of 20 email transmissions with the traditional attachment limitation of 25 MB per message. With IMOLLO, users are connected to the desired contacts, not to spammers, so they receive only what they need. File exchange is made easier, faster, and safer. 

IMOLLO is developed by a team of experts from specific technical skills, Raffaele Lafortezza, Marcello Reina and Luca Amenduni. The team is also supported by other people such as: Gianni Lovece, Raffaele Verna and Barbara Livieri.  Raffaele, Marcello and Luca worked together on several projects related to website development, large database administration/management and three-dimensional digital modelling. Through different backgrounds and experiences, we are strongly linked by a passion for computer technology and digital innovations.

2- Describe your financial journey so far.

The project started approximately 2 years ago and up to know it has been supported by the co-founders.  We aim to raise some financial resources by the end of the year. 

3- How did you start out?

As said before, the idea started around 2 years ago. The original idea of IMOLLO lies at the heart of its purpose: to send and receive files, both big and small, expeditiously and hassle-free. The easiest possible way to do that is right out of your desktop – you identify your recipients, pick what you want to send, drag and drop to IMOLLO’s virtual tunnel, and your contacts almost immediately receive the files in their own computers. The same desktop app has a simple and uncluttered messaging system that allows you to instantly stay connected.

4- Are you a spender or a saver?

We are a young start-up so budget really is a limiting factor for us. What we are trying to do is using the limited budget to support software development and testing.

5- What's your philosophy regarding money?

Money are essential to develop a competitive business in any field. Our philosophy is to use what we have in terms of budget to support the software engineering process

6- What made you decide to launch your startup?

The idea of creating something unique that people can use and share across the net. IMOLLO is more than a software …is an approach to online communication…it is an email revolution! See this video: http://youtu.be/cflrjL5Vl5A

7- What inspires and motivates you?

The IMOLLO team believes that quality time matters. Spending time with your family, your friends and yourself. Watching a movie. Chasing the sunlight. Embracing the sea breeze. Every moment counts. With so much time spent with work, meetings and in front of your computer, you ask yourself, “Do I still have time for these?” We created IMOLLO to make your time more meaningful.

8- Did you make any financial mistakes along the way?

Yes, of course. We made a number of mistakes especially in the initial stage of the project, but we like to learn by doing things!

9- Do you believe in planning for the future?

Yes, but every plan has to be flexible, you never know what the future is going to present you, which opportunities, which threats. It’s good to always have a plan, but you still have to look around for thing that you might have missed or overlooked at a first sigh. And if you have missed something or if something new shows up, you have to be prepared to change your plan, no matter how good it was.

10- Is money important to you?

Money for us reflects the value of time, and IMOLLO is about saving the time spent on emails.…so..!

11- What is your idea of financial freedom?

Well, I think that a start-up has financial freedom when the level of debt is not so high to compromise the decision-making process. That means that the value created by a company should be enough to provide a good part of the company’s needs. Otherwise, you will lose decision power. So financial freedom means also decision-freedom.

12- What do you enjoy spending money on?

Well mostly on travelling and new projects/ideas which develop during travelling.

13- What value would your startup idea add to the community online?

We want to offer a single-platform solution addressing everyone’s online communication needs. IMOLLO essentially integrate multiple functions into one easy-to-use program, from sending huge files with ease, eliminating threats of virus attacks and inundation of spam and ads, chatting with convenience and directness (goodbye needless emoticons and unwanted requests from strangers), to the assurance that you spend the least possible time glued to the computer screen doing your daily online tasks. IMOLLO relieves the community online of the hassles of having to send several messages due to email providers’ attachment size limitations or the laborious task of zipping folders and ensuring recipients successfully unzip them. We want our users to have more quality time and (a lot) less wasted time, we want to shape a whole new experience for online communication.

14- What advice would you give to the new online Internet startup entrepreneurs?

The main advice is to launch their application ASAP in order to get the feedback from users and to start creating a community of early adopters.

More info at:

Web: www.imollo.com

FB: www.facebook.com/imollo

Twitter: www.twitter.com/imollo
Youtube Video: http://youtu.be/cflrjL5Vl5A
Nomination Link: http://is.gd/3wwKQc

For a list of TOP 5 winners of the 1st Mediterranean Startup Awards, check this post on Startup Media Lab

Get the latest resources right in your email! Subscribe to my RSS feed now. Thanks for visiting!

Read More