745_ Ted Turner: From CNN, to Bison, to the United Nations and Beyond
This is part 1 of a 4-part series. It's engaging, funny and loaded with learning points. The special guest on this Silicon Flatirons 'Entrepreneurs Unplugged' is Ted Turner. David H. Getches, Dean, University of Colorado Law School introduced Ted and shared some historical information that will open many eyes. Ted Turner lives his 21st Century life of giving and advocating to make things right and it is for that reason the University of Colorado Law School and the Silicon Flatirons Center for Entrepreneurship has created 'the Entrepreneur for Good Prize' and today we are presenting the 'Inaugural Prize' to Ted Turner. Then the Entrepreneurs Unplugged discussion was led by Brad Bernthal, Associate Clinical Professor of Law, CU Law School, and Entrepreneurship Initiative Director, Silicon Flatirons Center. Brad said, "Let's start out with the early days, 1963 and the bill board business. You're 24 years old, pressed into running the business under the most difficult circumstances I can imagine as your father passed away. Can you talk about growing Turner Advertising and your first entrepreneurial venture?" Turner is co-chairman of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a charitable organization working to reduce the global threats from nuclear, biological and chemical weapons; chairman of the Turner Foundation, Inc., which supports efforts for improving air and water quality, developing a sustainable energy future to protect the earth's climate, safeguarding environmental health, maintaining wildlife habitat protection, and developing practices and policies to curb population growth rates; chairman of the United Nations Foundation, which promotes a more peaceful, prosperous and just world; and a partner in the Ted's Montana Grill restaurant chain, which operates more than 55 locations nationwide. Listen for more...
Related Links: SFC Entrepreneurs Unplugged || SFC Photo Album || 'Call Me Ted' Amazon || Economy Builders || Podcast Directory || Keywords: Ted Turner, CNN, Entrepreneurs Unplugged, David Getches, Brad Bernthal, Silicon Flatirons, Entrepreneur, Channel: Entrepreneurs 22984253 bytes 11/23/09 LISTEN Part 1 of 4:

749_ Part 2 of 4:
The Turner Foundation is America's largest
private land owner...

753_ Part 3 of 4: Making a Difference in the World, Call Me Ted Style
...OR... Turner Invests in Future of Humanity

Part 3: Brad Bernthal probed into Ted Turner's worldwide passions. Ted talked about numerous countries and cities, including Denver. He referred to the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 mass killing of hundreds of thousands of Rwanda's Tutsis and Hutu political moderates by the Hutu dominated government. Over the course of approximately 100 days more than 500,000 people were killed. Ted went onto talk about Rwanda today under the leadership of H.E. President Paul Kagame of The Republic of Rwanda. Rwanda has outlawed plastic bags and every month his cabinet and everyone in Rwanda goes out and picks up all the trash in the country. Ted said, "People tend to think that philanthropy is giving money away. I don't approach it from that point, what I'm doing is making an investment in the future of humanity. I'm making an investment in a better world - I'm trying to, it's not easy. Kids ask me, when I speak at a high school or college, what's more satisfying making the money or giving it away? And I say you have to make the money before you can give it away. Then they say, 'It's easy for you, for rich people to give it away when you have so much. And I tell them it's easy for you to be a philanthropist too, one thing you can give is your time. One thing Ted does, when he walks down the streets of Atlanta or Denver, etc., if he sees a piece of trash on the street, he picks it up and walks to the nearest trash can." Listen for more...

Bytes: 19893642 - 11/30/09 LISTEN Part 3 of 4

756_ Questions and answers with Ted Turner Part 4 of 4
This is the last segment of the Silicon Flatirons Center's "Entrepreneurs Unplugged with Ted Turner". What a treat it has been! Very enjoyable, a great time with a man no one really expected to be so open and genuine. We wrap up an interesting, hilariously funny session with the usual one-on-on audience generated Q&A, of course with a special emphasis on student participation. Ted doesn't disappoint. And next time you get a chance, be sure to make a point of seeing Mr. Ted Turner, although he'll tell you to,
"Call Me Ted".
- 12/14/09 LISTEN Part 4 of 4

742_ Producer of Everyday Edisons and Publisher of the Inventors Digest
At the DaVinci Inventors Showcase, Louis Foreman was a keynote speaker. Louis is the creator of the Emmy® Award winning PBS TV show, Everyday Edisons and serves as the Executive Producer. The show is in its third season and appears nationally on PBS. He is also Producer of Everyday Edisons and Publisher of the Inventors Digest. In July of this year, his first book, The Independent Inventor’s Handbook, was published. In 2008 he was appointed to serve for a three year term on the nine-person Patent Public Advisory Committee of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Over the past 20 years Louis has created 9 successful start-ups and has been directly responsible for the creation of over 20 others. A prolific inventor, he is the inventor of 10 registered US Patents, and his firm is responsible for the development and filing of well over 400 more. Louis discusses ideas and how to figure out the ideas that are worth pursuing. "You have to understand the value of intellectual property and how important it is to not just have an idea but you've got to take that idea and reduce it to practice and figure out how you generate an economic return from that invention. Don't rely on what your friends and family think, develop a picture of who wants this product, figure out and identify your market. Build a spread sheet, figure out costs, these aren't made up figures but realistic estimates. We need data points in order to make a reasonable decision, whether or not it makes sense to pursue it. So we may put all of these numbers together and find that most likely our invention will generate $100K; worst case we may lose $70K, and if Oprah loves it, we can make $400K. Now we can weigh risk and reward..." There's much more... For your convenience: Part 1 of 2; immediately following Part 2 of 2
Related Links: PBS: Everyday Einsteins || Inventors Digest || Edison Nation || Inventors Showcase Photos || DaVinci Institute || Inventor Showcase || Find It || Keywords: Louis Foreman, Everyday Einsteins, Inventors, DaVinci Institute, Entrepreneurs, PBS, DaVinci Inventors Showcase, US Patents, Inventions - Channel: Entrepreneurs
23438313 bytes 11/23/09 LISTEN To Part 1 of 2

22501437 bytes 11/23/09 LISTEN To Part 2 of 2

738_ Going from Oil field engineer to IT executive to Web 2.0 CEO
Going from Oil field engineer to IT executive to Web 2.0 CEO is only an overview of Dave DuPont, Chief Executive Officer of TeamSnap Inc. Dave has twenty years of experience in technology leadership positions. He was previously CEO of SANRAD, a venture-funded storage networking company that he joined in 2006. Before that he was Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Plasmon. Dave first moved to Colorado in 2000, when he helped found LeftHand Networks, a Boulder-based company recently sold to Hewlett Packard. The tech titan acquired LeftHand for $360 million to help round out its storage and virtualization portfolio, and target midsize businesses. Prior to that, he was in charge of Dell Computer Corporation's North American Precision Workstation business. Dave's newest venture, TeamSnap is for the overworked person who's in charge of your recreational adult sports team or youth sports team. Coaches, managers, parents, and anybody else who's been tapped to keep track of your sports team. TeamSnap gives this person their life back. But most of all, TeamSnap is for the team because it enables your teammates to communicate, coordinate, and collaborate in ways that are both fun and time-saving. Bottom line, TeamSnap puts the enjoyment back into team sports. currently they have the following kinds of teams using TeamSnap: Baseball, Basketball, Cheerleading, Cricket, Cycling, Field Hockey, Football, Hockey, Ice Hockey, Indoor Soccer, Inline Hockey, Kickball, Lacrosse, Running, Soccer, Softball, Swimming, Tennis, Ultimate, Volleyball and many more — pretty much any kind of sport you can imagine. Dave has some very good advice for entrepreneurs that he shares with Larry during this interview. There's much more...
Related Links: TeamSnap Home || RVC Events || Angel Capital Summit || Find It || Keywords: David Du Pont, TeamSnap, Teams, Web 2.0, RVC, Angel Capital Summit, LeftHand Networks, Hewlett Packard, Entrepreneurs - Channel: Entrepreneurs 10572918 bytes 11/16/09 LISTEN

730_ Build an 'A' team, create a vision, build a culture for the long haul
Larry coralled Paul Jerde, CU-Boulder, Robert H. & Beverly A. Deming Center and Larry Jones the CEO of StarTek and Chairman of the Deming Board and asked them to share the three biggest strategies that they would recommend for entrepreneurs. Larry Jones said, "The first and foremost is picking your team. Picking the 'A' team, people you know well, who you think have the expertise whether it be technical, people, marketing & sales - but building the right team, and don't compromise. Second is create a vision and a passion. Yes, you have an idea, yes you have a view of whose going to buy your product, but turn that into a vision with a very big passion. And your life is going to be surrounded by this and therefore you're going to be singing this song over and over again to your employees, to your investors and to your customers. Make sure that that is a passionate message. " Listen for more great advice. Paul Jerde recommended, "I think the starting point is always for someone to do the best job they can of finding a passion, something that just personally they are very excited about, that they feel is important and worthwhile doing, and looking for opportunities based around that area of passion. Secondly, coupling that, wherever possible to emerging areas of opportunity. The great title waves of technology advancement and IT built a lot of wonderful careers. We talked in previous interviews about areas of energy, organics, healthy food, healthcare, bioscience, biomedical; as great examples, some of the world's greatest challenges. Clearly areas of great opportunity going forward." Paul also had more to offer. Listen for more and be ready to take notes...
Related Links: Deming Center || Technology Transfer Office || StarTek || Entrepreneur Channel || Mastering Change || Deming Center Event Photos 9/30/09 || Keywords: Paul Jerde, Larry Jones, CU TTO, Robert H. & Beverly Deming Center for Entrepreneurship, StarTek, Entrepreneurs, University of Colorado > Channel: Entrepreneurs > 5934083 bytes - 11/2/09 LISTEN

731_ Entrepreneurs Unplugged: With David Cohen, Executive Director of Techstars
Brad Feld, Managing Director & Co-founder of the Foundry Group, Brad Bernthal, Entrepreneurship Initiative Director at Silicon Flatirons and Jill van Matre got to do something many of us would like to do...ask David Cohen, Executive Director of Techstars how he got to where he is including the 'learning experiences' along the way. Brad really got into some deep and important issues. David Cohen is the founder and Exective Director of TechStars. David has a soft spot for technology startups and enjoys helping innovative early stage technology companies succeed. He also has a passion for Colorado and believes it's a fantastic community for any startup. The TechStars program combines these passions with capital, connections and real-world experience to provide a unique opportunity for early stage startups. David is a founder of several software and web technology companies including Pinpoint Technologies (now ZOLL Data Systems) of Broomfield, Colorado. While at ZOLL Data Systems, David was also the CTO. The company was acquired by ZOLL Medical Corporation (NASDAQ: ZOLL) in 1999. You can read about it in No Vision, All Drive [Amazon]. David was also the founder and CEO of earFeeder.com, which was sold to SonicSwap.com in 2006. David is also an active startup advocate, advisor, board member, and technology advisor who comments on these topics on his blog at ColoradoStartups.com. If you want to learn more about what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur listen to this live recording at the Silicon Flatirons Center 'Entrepreneurs Unplugged' event.
Related Links: Entrepreneurs Unplugged || TechStars || Colorado Startups || Foundry Group || Economy Builders || Photos from Entrepreneurs Unplugged 10/19/09 || Keywords: David Cohen, Brad Feld, Entrepreneurs Unplugged, TechStars, Colorado Startups, Foundry Group, Silicon Flatirons, Brad Bernthal, Jill van Matre, Pinpoint Technologies > Channel: Entrepreneurs 24509370 bytes 11/2/09 LISTEN

715_ Colorado is the place to be if you want to be in business for yourself
"If you are a new entrepreneur, coming into the market, the first thing you've got to realize is that you are a sales person. That is a skill that you've got to have to run your own business." Larry interviewed Dawn Todd the key person behind the Angel Capital Summit, of course, that's coordinating between Rockies Venture Club and Catapult Business Development and everything else. Dawn went onto outlining the top three things for new entrepreneurs. " The second thing I would say is that you've got to sell into which you already know. It's a challenge to sell into a brand new market. Third, in my opinion, you have to learn to manage your own thoughts, because it's true that not everything you think, is true. It's your consciousness that drives your business and once you learn how to manage your own thoughts, then you can drive your business where you want it to go." She went onto explain the key points about the Angel Capital Summit. The Angel Capital Summit is an event that brings together entrepreneurs and investors, and gives them a chance to create a relationship. Probably one of the most innovative events that I've seen put together. It really gives entrepreneurs an opportunity to prepare themselves and think like an investor. This will actually be the largest Angel Investor Event in the United States this year! And I've got to say I am very excited, I think I am the first woman chair of this event. I attended the Angel Capital Summit last year and Wildly Successful Woman was a marketing partner, and really excited to be part of that. I attended the event, there were about 700 people there last year, and I looked around the room and there were about 150 women and I was so shocked, amazed. So after the event...listen, there's more...
Related Links: Angel Capital Summit 11/17/09 || Rockies Venture Club || Business Catapult || Dawn Todd Home || Wildly Successful Woman || Mastering Change || Keywords: Dawn Todd, Angel Capital Summit, Rockies Venture Club, Business Catapult, Wildly Successful Woman, Entrepreneur, > Bytes: 8116665 9/14/08 LISTEN

705_ Here is some advice for entrepreneurs in today's challenging environment
Larry considers Dave Taylor a multi-entrepreneur. He asked "What are your companies?" Dave smiled and said, "The umbrella company is Intuitive Systems, then under that is Ask Dave Taylor and now, my new one is Dave on Film, I'm doing film reviews. And actually Boulder Weekly is publishing my reviews as well as ColoradoBIZ Magazine. I also have a parenting blog." Then they got into the nitty-gritty, "Dave you've been around so many entrepreneurs what would be some advice that you would give today in this challenging environment?" Dave replied, "My two pieces of advice are, follow your dream, but stay focused. The biggest challenge I see entrepreneurs have is that they don't stay focused. Too many entrepreneurs have creeping featurism. For example, where they're going to release a piece of hardware or an application or a piece of software, something like that, and they can't just stick with a feature set and ship. It's always, 'that would be good, let's add that'. And so what happens is they sort of run out of money, run out of steam, burn out the developers, they burn out the marketing team that they've built and it never actually ships and the company goes under. Unfortunately a lot of entrepreneurial companies never actually ship, they never get out of beta, because they just can't stay focused." Dave gave some other important advice to entrepreneurs, "Have fun! Try to structure a situation where there is fun as part of it because otherwise you will burn out and you won't want to go any further. It's remarkable to me how many organizations are just really a grind and it's just really...listen for more...Dave also talks about savvy and nimble companies in Larry's book, Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos.
Related Links: Intuitive.com || Ask Dave Taylor || Mastering Change || w3w3.com Blog || Keywords: Dave Taylor, Intuitive.com, Ask Dave Taylor, Entrepreneurs, Blog, Change > Channels:Entrepreneurs - 8/24/09 LISTEN

704_ Disrupting the Conference Call Market – Gold Systems does it Again
Until now it has not been practical for companies to host their own conference calls with any kind of scale, so conferencing service providers have thrived — and your costs have exploded. Traditional conference companies are paid for every minute that each person is on the call. Larry talked with Terry Gold, co-founder of Gold systems about the big changes in that industry. Gold Systems just released their new Conference Server. This is a new conference call product built on top of Microsoft Office Communications Server. Terry shared some great ideas for any entrepreneur as it relates to selling your product or surviving in this economic environment. "Yes, you know we've been through this before, my service anniversary was July 4th, 18 years, and so we've seen a few tough times. When this one happened, and I'll pin it back in October, that's when we saw a big change in incoming orders and the way customers were talking, and we realized it couldn't be business as usual. We were thinking of a new product at that time and made the conscious decision that we had to think of it from a customer's point of view - 'what would make it easy for them to say yes'. We think Unified Communications is part of that, in fact we sometimes think of this as a Trojan horse. Back in October we were thinking, wow, is now the time to go in and try to convince a company to rip out their old PBX's and replace it with something new and kind of unknown? We thought, No. " There are a number of specific ideas ...listen for more...
Related Links: Gold Systems || Conference Server || Feld Thoughts || Podcast Directory || Keywords: Terry Gold, Gold Systems, Conference Call Market, Conference Server, Unified Communications, Microsoft Office Communications > Channel: Software 6233759 bytes - 8/3/09 LISTEN

702_ Pushing Water Uphill with a Rake, Memoirs of a Successful Failure
Larry sat down with Steve Baker who was sued for $1.4 Billion and is the author of 'Pushing Water Uphill with a Rake, Memoirs of a Successful Failure'. Steve reflected back and said, "What I learned, going through this is, you can go out in life and particularly in business, do everything right and still fail. I did, we did everything right, as I tell the story in the book, and along came this suit for $1.4 billion dollars, and the stock market crash. Everything I did right didn't matter, everything went wrong. I lost everything, I lost my home, I filed for bankruptcy, and through that experience, I learned many valuable lessons and that's why I'm still here today. The biggest thing I learned going through that experience is the road to success is paved in failure, and you will fail to one degree or another, it's just part of being a business person. So know that going in, accept that and learn from it. As you and I have talked about this, the person who goes through this stands back and learns from it, that person will achieve success. The next thing that I learned and was able to do, is do your best and maintain your ethics, at all costs, as you're going through failure. Because what happens, and these are the turbulent times that try men's souls, and you must maintain that, because if you cross the line of ethics, very often, you're not coming back. I quote Thomas Hopkins, especially when speaking with kids, 'We are not judged by the number of times we fail, but by the number of times we succeed. And the number of times we succeed is in direct proportion to the number of times we fail and try again!'" Listen...
Related Links: Pushing Water Uphill || Steve's Blog || Colorado Rising - Steve Baker - Ethics || Colorado Rising 6/15/09 Pushing Water Uphill || Mastering Change Interview with Larry || Keywords: Steve Baker, Pushing Water Uphill, Stock Market Crash, Ethics, Thomas Hopkins, Mastering Change > Channel: Entrepreneurs 6542213 bytes - 8/3/09 LISTEN

660_ Colorado's Entrepreneur EcoSystem and ICT
Governor Bill Ritter was Introduced by Phil DiStefano, Provost and Interim Chancellor, CU Boulder. (Ritter is a CU Law School Alum, a 1981 graduate) The Governor addressed the topic of Entrepreneurship in Colorado. "As Governor I have this privilege of meeting really special people, and special in that they really contribute in a significant way. Brad Feld has been this remarkable presence in Colorado and as Governor, I can take advantage of having a person like Brad talk to me, help me, mentor me about this field, about ICT (Information, Communications, Technology) and about the world of entrepreneurship and his cohort in this is Phil Weiser. I lived in Africa for three years and I was a prosecutor before becoming Governor, and I used to tell folks, as a prosecutor, if someone would have said to me, "We need ubiquitous broadband", I would have arrested them, I didn't know what it meant. These guys really helped me, about this issue, make sense of this industry. Phil is really gifted in his own right as a law professor, but also about how he developed this eco system that we're a part of. We are working in this state so that we can emerge from this economic downturn in a way that is faster, stronger, that we are better positioned for the future because together we've established a strategy to get there." Ritter went onto talk about the economy and Colorado's Entrepreneur EcoSystem.
Related Links: Silicon Flatirons Center || Brad Feld Blog || Governor Ritter Website || PodCasting Directory || Keywords: Governor Bill Ritter, Brad Feld, Phil Weiser, Silicon Flatirons, Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, Information, Communications, Technology, ICT > Channel:Entrepreneurs Bytes= 29829854 > 5.4.09 LISTEN

612_ Building a company while building a bridge to the future
This is no surprise. Most startups face a great number of challenges. Some make it...most don't. Larry sat down with Tom and Deb Frey they talked about the past, present and future of the DaVinci Institute. This is an entrepreneurial story with a number of lessons. Tom is a world-renown 'futurist' and gives persentations about the future in many countries...from Canada, to Dubai to Spain to Mexico. Tom went onto explain, "Any startup has its rough times up front and certainly the DaVinci Institute was no exception. We changed our business model several times trying to determine what we were good at and what made sense. So it wasn’t until 2002 when we started doing events, and that’s when Deb started helping and things started coming together and made more sense. We were looking to do more of an online type business and then the dot com world started falling apart, and we had to rework our business plan at that point. But with the events we're doing now, we’re trying to create events around things that seem to be of interest at that time – hot technologies, new styles of doing business, whatever seems to be of interest to our members in the region. We try to stick with those types of events. Deb said, "I’m on Twitter all the time and we do a lot of marketing on there letting people know about the events that are coming up and I post the link back so they know where and how to find us. I think that has a lot to do with it. I have a very large following there and I think it helps because people are becoming aware of who we are and where we are. We’ve also noticed a trend with people getting laid off. You know it’s pretty bleak when you don’t know what you’re going to do next and I think they may want to start their own business." There's more...
Related Links: DaVinci Institute || Night with a Futurist || Twitter Boot Camp || PodCast Directory || Keywords: Tom Frey, Deb Frey, DaVinci Institute, Night with a Futurist, Twitter Boot Camp, Entrepreneurs, Futurist > Channel:Entrepreneurs Bytes=8899921 - 2/2/09 LISTEN

593_ Hickenlooper: From Geologist to Entrepreneur to Mayor of Denver
Twenty-one years ago when they were trying to start the Wynkoop Brewing Co, John Hickenlooper came to RVC, and it was kind of a similar time. The price of oil skyrocketed and then began a very rapid decline. One thing that creates is tremendous opportunity. Kevin Johansen, Chairman of the Business Catapult and Executive Director of the Rockies Venture Club Angel Capital Summit introduced the opening keynote speaker, Mayor John Hickenlooper. The mayor shared a number of insights about his entrepreneurial beginnings. He said, " I literally went to the library with a friend and got a book on how to write a business plan. I was a geologist; I didn’t know what the word ‘Performa’ meant. No matter how tight credit is now… I think you all recognize that economic framework follows perceived opportunity. The worse the public perceives opportunity, the lower your opportunity costs are – our rent was $1.00 per sq. ft. for a year in lower downtown. When I pitched to this group, Rockies Venture Club, it was a much smaller group, I will say nobody laughed out loud. I had two great angels I think are worth mentioning was a guy named Jim Owen. His father started Home Roberts & Owen, he was the managing partner there for many years, and he loved entrepreneurs and he loved helping businesses start. The second investor was my landlord, Jack Barton, he owned Kacey Fine Furniture, and our old building was their old warehouse. After long negotiations we worked out if I put $200,000 into this empty warehouse, I would get 12% ownership in the building." It's a great story. This is 25 minutes of his address...unedited.
Related Links: Angel Capital Summit || Rockies Venture Club || Venture Capital || Entrepreneurs || RVC Angel Capital Summit || Keywords: Mayor, John Hickenlooper, Rockies Venture Club Angel Capital Summit, Kevin Johansen, Business Catapult, Wynkoop Brewing, Entrepreneur - Channels: VC Bytes: 23563601 > 12/1/08 LISTEN

534_ Change Is Not an Event, It Is an Ongoing Process
(the Same is true with Chaos)
Mastering change is one of Pat and Larry Nelson's favorite topics. There's a good reason. They have lived in and owned businesses in five foreign countries stretching from Norway to Australia. They are truly serial entrepreneurs as they have started more than a dozen companies. Some were extremely successful and others learning experiences. One thing that was true in every situation were the rushing changes. At times they were victims and others they were victors. Larry has conducted seminars for numerous companies both large and small, public and private sectors, in a dozen countries, on the subject of 'Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos'. In this recorded discussion Larry and Pat discuss the 'Six Truths About Change'. The topic includes; Resistance, Involvement, Making Losers, Vision, Benefits, and Follow up. Like the Nelsons say, "Master Change Before It Masters You." Listen now...
Related Links: Beyond the Trends || 3-Filters || Training Trends || Free Newsletter || Keywords: Mastering Change, Chaos, Pat and Larry Nelson, Involvement, Making Losers, Vision, Benefits, Follow up > Bytes: 8472349 LISTEN 8/4/08

586_ The Opportunities for Innovation Have Never Been Better
Jay Walker, Founder of Priceline.com and chairman of Walker Digital, a private R&D laboratory based in Stamford, CT was a featured speaker at the DaVinci Institute Colorado Inventor Showcase. He also founded Synapse, which became the world’s largest seller of magazine subscriptions and is now a unit of Time Warner. Larry asked jay, "What's coming down the pike for entrepreneurs in these tough times?" Jay replied, "Tough times are ‘good times’ for entrepreneurs and innovators. When times are good, people tend to be coasting along and changing the way they do things is not high on most peoples’ lists because things are doing pretty well. But when things aren’t going so well, people say – Wow, I better figure out how to grow this business or reduce my expenses, or how to do both. So, in times of economic difficulty, those that are truly innovative often create opportunities and inventions and businesses and great fortunes. If you look back in history, many great fortunes were created over the ‘Depression’ simply because people were open for the first time to all kinds of new ways of doing things. I expect that’s what we’re going to see in the next few years, but not a great depression." Jay offered some very good advice for entrepreneurs and voiced his opinion about innovation. "Ultimately people who can innovate literally pick an area where they feel they have some degree of expertise or some degree of competitive advantage. One of the big advantages we have today is the leaders of innovation are no longer dominated by large corporations or by government; they’re really often dominated by individuals." ...listen now.
Related Links: Walker Didgital || Colorado Inventor Showcase || Inventors' Roundtable || Entrepreneur Channel || Keywords: Jay Walker, Walker Didgital, Inventors Showcase, Priceline.com, DaVinci Institute, Innovation, Entrepreneurs > Channels: Entrepreneur Bytes: 4885841 > 11/17/08 LISTEN

584_ Murphy Beds Came First, Then Wall Beds, and Now Flying Beds
To date, Ron McKey, President and Founder, FlyingBeds, has done 204 trade shows and is known as 'The' Murphy Bed Manufacturer in the world. He started in 1981 and there weren’t many choices for companies to reach customers if they weren’t using newspaper advertising. Ron went onto say, "I had to convince people of my validity and they also had to see how the operation worked. The best testimonial is visual." About nine years ago somebody challenged Ron, 'Put up a website'. Ah sure, and you know about two years later somebody called me. So, maybe this website is something. As you know it’s been very effective. I took that visualization from my trade show, where people could actually see the bed going up and down – I put it on the web site – now I don’t do trade shows anymore. I’ve gone international with my sales, we’re selling in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, to England and you know, it’s all over the place. I manufacture unique Murphy beds right here in Denver, CO. Those are the beds that fold up into the wall. Hollywood loves those beds, they make lots of jokes about them. We have different designers. They aren’t hired or on staff. They are our clients. We take their desire for functional change and design theme, and come up with a rendering and cost of manufacture that makes their Flyingbed a signature system. By signature, I don’t mean ‘expensive’, I mean we make the bed ‘fit’ the room perfectly instead of plugging in some cabinet that is made at a workbench by unskilled labors and finished in a tinted lacquer. Flying Beds has gone from attending trade shows, to doing it all on the Web...and he's selling worldwide. They will make your bed disappear. There's more, listen now...
Related Links: Flying Beds Home || Murphy Beds FAQs || Entrepreneur Channel || Find It || Keywords: Ron McKey, Flying Beds, Murphy Beds, Entrepreneur, Wall Beds, Channels: Entrepreneurs > Bytes: 10079402 - 11/10/08 LISTEN

492_ Board of Directors: To Be or Not to Be Is Not the Question
“CEO’s without a board are missing so much value,” states Sue Kunz, CEO/Founder Solidware. Just like building a good team, first look at your own skill sets and identify the gaps that you have and what you need in building a business. Then strategically look for folks who can fill those gaps. You want people around the table who are smarter than you are.” Generally investors come with a board seat. Sue pointed out that a board is not just active at the board meeting. She looks to her board for dialog, sometimes weekly, when a lot is going on, daily. When asked if there was a ‘downside’ to having a board, Sue said, “It’s a lot of work. With these top notch people you don’t want to waste their time. I try to be very organized, very focused on the dialog at hand. Sue goes on to point out, "Think small initially. You don’t want to build a huge board too quickly. Because you’re going to find over time, there are gaps you’re going to want to fill. Sit down, understand what you’re good at, and understand where your holes are. I think you can certainly find that combination of filling in your needs with someone who’s willing and able and has a proven track record. Of course, that’s a win/win for everyone. There is a difference when building an Advisory Board. Sue is a guest panelist at the Colorado Capital Conference. Listen Now for more ideas...
Related Links: Solidware Technologies || 20th Annual Colorado Capital Conference || Entrepreneurs Channel || Rockies Venture Club || Keywords: Sue Kunz, Solidware Technologies, Board of Directors, Advisory Board, Colorado Capital Conference, Rockies Venture Club - Bytes: 22736460 - 5/19/08

422_ Best Practices for Building a Successful Online Business
"When you look at the web analytics, how many people come to your site, how they got there, so many people go to the search engines. A lot of my customers find that 30 to 75% of their business comes from search engines," says Lee Kennedy. Lee has worked with Brad Feld, been the CIO at Webroot Software and today is CEO/Founder of TriCalyx, a consulting business focused on helping people build an online business. 85% of the world’s online population, purchase online! And that’s up 40% over the past two years. And then for people in the 75K and higher income bracket it’s more like 90+%. Even for people who don’t buy online, they come online to research their purchases. With search engine optimization, there’s quite a mystique around SEO because it’s not one of those things you can totally get your arms around. I'll try to demystify it. Basically it’s figuring out how to get your web site [and the words people are searching to find your web site] ranked on the first page of Google. If you are selling on your site, there are so many ways to bring traffic to your site that really cost you nothing...
Related Links: TriCalyx || NCWIT || Women in IT || Blogging || Keywords: Lee Kennedy, Tricalyx, Search Engine Optimization, Online Business, Bytes: 16982834 - 4/21/08

447_ Taking the Mystery Out Of Search Engine Optimization
Whether you are a new entrepreneur or successfully growing your company one of the things, top-of-mind for businesses and organizations of all sizes is acquiring new customers. One of the main ways of doing that on the web is acquiring them through search engine optimization. Jeff Finkelstein, founder of Customer Paradigm is an expert in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Pat asked Jeff, “Every business doesn’t sell something on line, why is it important for them to show up in the SEO rankings?" Jeff's reply really got Larry's attention beacuse w3w3.com does not sell online. "Every business doesn’t sell something on line, but if you do come up through word-of-mouth and your company still doesn’t come up top with the search engine rankings, you’re perceived by customers as less relevant, less important because your site isn’t coming up in the search engines. It is unfortunately a zero sum game," pointed out Jeff. He goes on to point out that Google is the overall market leader, they have, depending on who you talk to, between 55-85% of the search business, more so in the business-to-business community, a little bit less in the business-to-consumer realm; Yahoo is the second and MSN is the distant third. Jeff gives specific steps and metrics on how any company can make search engines work for them. LISTEN 2/25/08

Related Links: Customer Paradigm || 12 Strategies for Effective Email || Search Engine Optimization || Find It || Keywords: Jeff Finkelstein, Customer Paradigm, Search Engine, Optimization, SEO, Google, Yahoo, MSN > Bytes: 23684391 LISTEN

736_ Entrepreneurs Unplugged with Governor Ritter and Nir Barkat, Mayor of Jerusalem (Track 1 of 2)
Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., the Colorado BioScience Association, CSIA, Colorado's Technology Association; the Mizel Family Foundations, and the Silicon Flatirons Center worked together this special edition of Entrepreneur's Unplugged featuring Governor Bill Ritter and Jerusalem's Mayor Nir Barkat. (Track 1 of 2) in this interesting program started out with an introduction of Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. by Larry A. Mizel, Chairman & CEO, M.D.C.Holding. The Governor shared the five pillars that are the foundation of progress in Colorado. Even in these challenging times they have served Coloradoans well. The he introduced Nir Barkat, the 9th Mayor of Jerusalem. Mayor Barkat's early success as Mayor, significantly, is rooted in the business methods and entrepreneurial approach which he brings to City Hall. Mayor Barkat's roots are firmly in entrepreneurship. In 1988, Mayor Barkat co-founded BRM Technologies, a pioneering software house and later venture cap9ital firm that developed and marketed ground-breaking anti-virus software now standard on personal computers throughout the world. His leadership and business acumen brought him to the position of global chairman of one of BRMs largest venture projects. Mayor Barkat's early success as Mayor, significantly, is rooted in the business methods and entrepreneurial approach which he brings to City Hall. Mayor Barkat's roots are firmly in entrepreneurship. In 1988, Mayor Barkat co-founded BRM Technologies, a pioneering software house and later venture capital firm that developed and marketed ground-breaking anti-virus software now standard on personal computers throughout the world. His leadership and business acumen brought him to the position of global chairman of one of BRMs largest venture projects.
Related Links: Entrepreneurs Unplugged || Gov. Bill Ritter || Jerusalem Website || BD New Tech Meetup || Economy Builders || Event Photos || Keywords: Gov. Bill Ritter, Mayor Nir Barkat, Jerusalem, Silicon Flatirons, Brad Bernthal, Robert Reich, Entrepreneurs, >
Channel: Entrepreneurs - 20943044 bytes 11/9/09 Track 1: LISTEN

In track 2 of 2 we have the highly acclaimed, familiar, Silicon Flatirons 'Entrepreneurs Unplugged' moderated discussion led by Brad Bernthal, Associate Clinical Professor of Law, CU Law School, and Entrepreneurship Initiative Director, Silicon Flatirons Center along with Robert Reich, Founder of OneRiot; Host and Moderator, New Tech Meetup, and guest of honor, Nir Barkat, 9th Mayor of Jerusalem and successful global entrepreneur. This was an engaging discussion loaded with a great deal of information for entrepreneurs as well as everyone in Colorado. Track 2 of 2: Bernthal; Reich; Barkat

Channel: Entrepreneurs - 31749416 bytes 11/9/09

746_ Benjamin Franklin in His Own Words
We met Benjamin Franklin and his manager, Christopher Lowell, at the RVC Angel Capital Summit. I'm sure you're all familiar with Ben Franklin, you can find out more on his website www.benfranklinlive.org. Larry spoke to Ben at length and he had great advice for today's entrepreneur. Ben said, "Mr. Lowell is acting as my manager and my guide to the 21st Century because he has me speaking at a variety of interesting organizations across the country and in Europe. One of the things I would say is to expect failure along the path to success. Because you cannot, or I have not found it possible to tinker with new ideas, with the end goal being to create something of use for society without creating, at the same time, a number of mistakes and errors as an inevitable part of the process. And not to consider yourself a failure for the failure of different parts of your invention to perform as you wished. I certainly had much failure when I was studying one of the most fascinating things that I ever encountered, which was electricity. I was first given some electrical equipment back in the 1740s and I was fascinated with the concept that lightening, so dangerous to man, could be nothing more than a more dramatic form of static electricity. In trying to prove that, well I must admit I knocked myself unconscious three times, occasions. But I was not discouraged, I was a little bit shaken, but I kept my eye on the end that I was intending to prove. The other thing I would encourage inventors to consider is that like anybody who is interested..." There's more...
Related Links: Ben Franklin Live || Angel Capital Summit || RVC Events || Summit Photos || Entrepreneurs Channel || Keywords: Benjamin Franklin, Christopher Lowell, Inventions, Entrepreneurs, RVC, Angel Capital Summit, Electricity, Economy . Channel: Entrepreneurs 8838609 bytes - 11/30/09 LISTEN

723_ The Making of an Entrepreneur with Larry Nelson and Dr. Stanley Feld
Built on Promises Stanley Feld turns the table on Larry Nelson. Dr. Feld was intrigued with Larry’s success with their w3w3® Internet Talk Radio Show, which began as an on-air live business talk show in Denver back in 1996 and went digital on the Internet in 1998 - obviously Larry is an 'early adopter'. Stanley delves into Larry’s past to see 'what makes him tick - why he insists on the entrepreneur’s route. It all began with a tragic illness. Polio struck early after claiming the life of Larry's second grade teacher and at least temporarily cripling Larry. Never a quitter, Larry Nelson taps into the past, the drive and the passion for success. Dr. Stanley Feld continues to drill down on Larry Nelson in this interview. Larry turned his childhood stamp & coin collection into a thriving business (with the help of a $50,000 SBA loan) when he was 21 years old. He then went from coins to cosmetics to consulting. When things get tough, the tough don’t cave in.
Related Links: About Page || Blog || PodCast Directory || Mastering Change || Keywords: Dr. Stanley Feld, Larry Nelson, Entrepreneurs, w3w3® Internet Talk Radio Show, Mastering Change Change > Channel: About - 10/12/09 LISTEN

719_ Angel Capital Summit: An event by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs
The 3rd Annual Angel Capital Summit, November 17th at the Colorado Convention Center was the focus of an interview Larry had with Kevin Johansen, Chairman & Executive VP of Business Development, Business Catapult as he has been an integral part of the Summit since its inception. Kevin said, "I think the youngest chair person [we've got 14 different operating committees] is 24 years old. And we've got a lot of women involved this year - in fact the girls outnumber the guys this year. Dawn Todd the chairperson of the event is doing a great job - she is a study in perpetual motion and we're all struggling to keep up with her." Kevin went on, "This is the most wired group I've worked with ever. We've got a FaceBook page, you can friend us on that; we've got an active LinkedIn group that continues to grow - the Angel Capital Summit LinkedIn Group; And we also have a Twitter following of substance, there are close to 5000 people following us on Twitter right now. We've got to give a 'Shout Out' to Linda Hughes who is driving that. It's an event by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs.” There's more...
Related Links: Angel Capital Summit || Business Catapult || Rockies Venture Club || Economy Builders || Keywords: Kevin Johansen, Business Catapult, Angel Capital Summit, RVC, LinkedIn, Wired, FaceBook, Twitter, Change, Entrepreneurs - Channel: Entrepreneurs - Bytes: 5432532 -10/5/09 LISTEN

712_ Servicing your constituents by going global with rapidly changing markets
Larry sat down with Hunt Lambert, Associate Provost, Colorado State University Continuing, Education, CEO, CSU Global Campus to talk about CSU's new project. Hunt explained, "The global campus idea started about 3 or 4 years ago when a bunch of us said, 'Is CSU, as the states land grant, still serving all of the students we were designed to serve?' Well we did some research and discovered about 500,000 people in the state who aspired to complete their undergraduate degree or earn a Master's degree, and the reason they aren't is not about tuition - it's about location, their geography and their schedule keeps them from going back to school. So we took a hard look at what the privates have done on online education; We took a hard look at our mission; and we said, We ought to find a way to serve this market in Colorado. And that was the genesis of the CSU Global Campus. It's amazing how the students have responded. We now exist as a third campus within the Colorado State System. In the first 11 months from funding, we went from nothing at all - no employees, no students, no courses, to having a fully functional online public university. Nine months after we taught the first course, we had a thousand students! Hunt has been part of 40 startups in 12 countries - he has a very broad entrepreneurial experience. Envirofit.org is one of many he is very proud of. Hunt is also on a panel at a RVC program on 9/8/09, Social Entrepreneurship: A Giant Step for Mankind and Profits.
Related Links: CSU Global || CSU Continuing Education || Envirofit || Mastering Change || Social Entrepreneurship || Keywords: Hunt Lambert, CSU Global Campus, Colorado State University, Continuing Education, Social Entrepreneurship .. Channel: Entrepreneurs/Soc.Enterprise >> Bytes= 7311258 > 8.31.09 LISTEN

698_ Ground Swell of Change - Technology and Communication Article
We would really appreciate your input; comments, suggestions, additions. We are in the process of building a platform that allows everyone to interact and be an integral part of the ‘changes’ that are important to us personally and professionally. When leading workshops and seminars, there’s plenty of two-way interaction and this is how we can do it virtually.
Related Links: Mastering Change Book || Mastering Change Blog || Order Book || About Us || Keywords: Ground Swell of Change, Technology, Communication, Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos, Larry Nelson, Social Networks - 7/27/09

706_ The three distinguishing characteristics of a successful entrepreneur
Larry corralled Brian Schwartz, author 50 Interviews (Entrepreneurs), and got into the history and outcomes of his new book. Larry asked, "How did you get into this 50 Interview theme?" Brian credited his wife, Debi and went onto say, "Well, my wife challenged me to interview 50 entrepreneurs before she'd give me her blessing to quit my job, which I was ready to do. This was back in February of '08, I set out to do the interviews and about 5 interviews in, people kept telling me, "Hey Brian, these are some great questions, have you ever considered writing a book?" I figured there might be something to this, so I got myself structured, disciplined and started putting them together for a book which I actually finished in December. Larry wondered, "What were the 3 most surprising things you heard during these interviews?" Brian replied, "The three distinguishing characteristics of an entrepreneur - and I hadn't been familiar with these before writing the book: 1.) a consuming passion. If I offered you $1 Million today to give this up, you'd tell me to take a hike. It's like an addiction, you can't let it go and that's how you know it is a consuming passion; 2.) Find a purpose greater than yourself, it's not about the money 3) Was how entrepreneurs view risk. They see risk as dashing into the future with hope. To them it's an empowering word, it's not a paralyzing word, they see it as a possibility to make things better." Brian gives some great advice in Larry’s book, Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos. Listen for more...
Related Links: 50 Interviews || On the Shoulders of Giants || Entrepreneur Channel || Mastering Change || Keywords: Brian Schwartz, 50 Interviews, Entrepreneurs, On the Shoulders of Giants, Author, Risk, ChangeChannels: WiIT Bytes: 4492541 > 8/24/09 LISTEN

690_ Changing Rules for Raising Capital
Whether you talk to Venture Capitalists, Angel Investors or Lending Institutions they will all tell you the ‘The rules have changed for raising capital’. There are numerous factors in this changing equation. It’s not just the bumpy economy. It’s not just the lessons learned by VCs in the past 10 years. It’s not just the transparent environment created by technology and the Internet. It’s all these and more. Rockies Venture Club presents Moderator, Larry Nelson, Serial Entrepreneur & Author; with Steve Baker, Serial Entrepreneur & Author; Sue Kunz, American Bio Resources; Kelly Manning, State Director, SBDC Network; and Catharine Merigold, Vista Ventures. Check this out - Tuesday evening 7/14/09.
Related Links: Rockies Venture Club || Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos || Catharine Merigold || Steve Baker || Kelly Manning || Sue Kunz || Keywords: Chaninging Rules for Raising Capital; Larry Nelson, Mastering Change in the Midst of Chaos; Steve Baker, Pushing Water Uphill with a Rake; Kelly Manning, CO SBDC Network; Sue Kunz, American BioResources; Catharine Merigold, Vista Ventures; Rockies Venture Club -7/6/2009

691_ Authors offer sage advice to entrepreneurs about money and change
Steve Baker, serial entrepreneur, host of 'Startup Underground Junkie' and author of "Pushing Water Uphill with a Rake" along with Stephen Replin, Attorney and author of "Hard Money: Where to go when the bank says no" offer a quick start guide to starting your business. Steve Baker says, "The number one secret to success is knowing what you don't know and seeking those who do. None of us can have all the answers, though we sometimes think we do." Of course, Stephen Replin, attorney and money expert offers this sage piece of advice, "Don't go in under capitalized... that seems to be the number one cause for business failure, more than anything I can think of. Larry asked them both to identify and talk about the top three suggestions for new entrepreneurs. Their backgrounds and business experiences offer a treasury of ideas. It's short and you'll want to listen to it again...and take notes.
Related Links: Pushing Water Uphill || Replin & Rhoades || Changing Rules for Raising Capital || Mastering Change || w3w3.com Blog || Keywords: Steve Baker, Steve Replin, Entrepreneurs, Hard Money, Ethics, Change, Capital, Channel: Entrepreneurs 5741299 bytes 7/13/09 LISTEN

659_ Putting the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Perspective
The Entrepreneurial Week hosted by Silicon Flatirons Center was a smashing success on many fronts. On Thursday session, it was kicked off by Phil Weiser, Professor of Law, Associate Dean for Research & Executive Director of Silicon Flatirons Center and then Brad Bernthal, Associate Clinical Professor of Law Technology Policy, Entrepreneurial Law addressed the issue of an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Colorado. Brad said, "My contention is there are three notable factors which underlie these industry sectors with the drive and success or failure of the Front Range Eco System going forward. And they are these; first Creative Class, Critical Mass and third a Heavily Networked Ecosystem. The name "entrepreneurial ecosystem" suggests a place, a location in which people interact and if you are starting a company, where to locate is an important decision. Today more and more this decision is being driven by what region do you want to be in to start your company or want to work for an emerging company. The comparative strength of a region..." Listen there is much more.
Related Links: Entrepreneurial Ecosystem || Silicon Flatirons Home || Entrepreneur Channel || Find It Archives || Photos || Keywords: Brad Bernthal, Silicon Flatirons, Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, Phil Weiser, Creative Class, Critical Mass > Channel:Entrepreneurs Bytes= 17476548 > 5.4.09 LISTEN

608_ Colorado Rising: Myth, Miracle or Mystery - What are your thoughts?

Politicians as well as the state and federal governments will either help or hinder during these challenging times. We really feel the people that will help us all turn the corner are the entrepreneurs and other leaders that will be steadfast in their values and goals. Many are focused on the tough times we are facing and the rough road ahead. Others are focused on what they can do to actually capitalize on today's happenings. A key word is, "Innovation" along with "Persistence". At w3w3.com we would like to add the words, "Community Support". In the next few weeks we are launching a new Channel, "Colorado Rising". We will be interviewing startups to seasoned professionals; supportive associations to critical service providers. But we need your input. What do you recommend for the "Colorado Rising" effort? Whether it's interviewing new innovative startups or getting sage advice from serial entrepreneurs or talking to experts that can help in building business in Colorado and a better economy. It's up to us not them. Please send us your ideas.
Related Links: Email "Colorado Rising Ideas" || Economy Builders Channel || In the News Channel || Mastering Change || || Keywords: Colorado Rising, Larry Nelson, Entrepreneurs, Community Support, Innovation, Startups - 1/26/09

614_ Entrepreneurs - Make Your Venture Mighty! "Rules for Renegades"
"What’s a renegade?" asked Larry. Christine Comaford, founder of Mighty Ventures and author of 'Rules for Renegades' replied, "A renegade is a person with an exceptional degree or passion and commitment. A renegade is someone who wants to achieve great things without sacrificing their personal life. A renegade knows they have a mighty core and wants to live according to it." Larry asked Christine if she would share her 10 Rules for Renegades. You need to listen for the details, but here is a listing. Rule 1.) Everything’s an Illusion, So Pick One That’s Empowering  Rule 2.) An MBA is Optional, A GSD (Gets Stuff Done) is Essential  Rule 3.): Problems + Pain = Profit  Rule 4.) Build Power Instead of Borrowing It  Rule 5.) Rock Rejection and Finesse Failure  Rule 6.) Learn to Love Networking  Rule 7.) Only You Can Lead Your Life  Rule 8.) Work Your Money Mojo Rule 9.) Resign as General Manager of the Universe  Rule 10.) Don’t Just Do Something, Stand There.   - In each case, Christine defines each rule and gives some specific tips for implementing them. Larry asked, "Who is the book for?" Christine replied,"• Entrepreneurs with their own companies, or within someone else’s • People who want to be entrepreneurs: moms or anyone returning to the workforce, kids fresh from college, people who want to be more entrepreneurial in their lives and businesses • People who want to recruit and retain entrepreneurs. She is the keynote speaker at a special event in Ft. Collins on 2/4/09 - Beet Street presents Thought Leaders: Christine Comaford. It bound to be a great program...listen now...
Related Links: Beet Street Thought Leaders Series || Mighty Ventures || Rules for Renegades || Find It Page || Keywords: Christine Comaford, Mighty Ventures, Rules for Renegades, Entrepreneurs, Beet Street, Thought Leaders > Channel:Entrepreneurs Bytes=11581965 > 2/2/09 LISTEN

577_ Don't Spend a Dime Before Its Time
"The Inventors Business Plan’ tends to be, have idea, get patent, make money," pointed out Rita Crompton, Founder of the Inventors' Roundtable. Rita went onto say, "It just doesn’t happen that way. We really want to teach you how to do as much as you can before you start spending any money. Then how do you decide what money is the best to spend and where do you get the biggest bang for your buck. So we’ve really looked at bringing in resources for the inventor. Search Quest is the company that does most of the searches for our inventors. They’re one of the few that does the USPTO search by classification (so they actually go back 350 years) not just the most recent 35 that is on line. But they also do an international search and a product search. Knowing that material is critical, if something has been patented anywhere in the world at any time in history, you cannot get another patent on it. Now you’re making a big mistake that costs you money down the road and that’s why ‘Don’t spend a dime until its time’ is critical. The Inventors' Roundtable website has a number of helpful and valuable links. At The Inventors' RoundtableTM, the one and only safe, free, original inventors' roundtable, we have "inventor-approved" patent attorneys, engineers, marketing experts and others who donate their time once a month to work with the inventors." There's more...
Related Links: Inventors' Roundtable || SearchQuest || Colorado Inventor Showcase || FleCusa International || Keywords: Inventors' Roundtable, Rita Crompton, Business Plan, Patents, USPTO, FLeCusa International - Channel: Entrepreneurs > Bytes: 8231186 > 10/27/08 LISTEN

504_ Leveraging Technology to Increase Deal Flow, Efficiency and Visibility
The reality of finding quality investments is a quantity game. And the reality of investing is a quality game. So the investor has to combine quality and quantity, in turn the entrepreneur has to be visible enough to get those quantity views and then ultimately be able to deliver the quality to the investor. And that can be a very time consuming and arduous process without some technology and some tools, explains Kelly Burton, Founder, Investor Avenue.com. InvestorAvenue.com is the private equity and real estate investment community's web portal where accredited investors, entrepreneurs and service providers can present opportunities, capital sources and services to other members of the community. Investors need deal flow; entrepreneurs need visibility, and both need service providers to execute successful transactions. Post, find, and view opportunities and resources quickly and efficiently at your convenience 24/7 on InvestorAvenue.com. Listen, there's more...
Related Links: Investor Avenue || Venture Capital Channel || Rockies Venture Club || Podcast Directory || Keywords: Kelly Burton, Investors Avenue, Quality Investments, Deal Flow, Efficiency, Visibility, Entrepreneurs - Bytes: 10075222 - 6/9/08

572_ Successful Serial Entrepreneur Talks About the Global Age
Vic Ahmed made made some profound predictions during a w3w3.com interview. Vic said, "“Larry, I think we are going to experience a whole new fundamental change in which we operate. We are entering a new era of the global age! I think we are experiencing an all new phenomenon, which like all the previous eras we’ve experienced, shifted the equilibrium dramatically. Now we are entering a global era which is going to shift the fundamentals again and the countries and the people that align themselves with this new age are going to prosper. A whole new set of players, I think the same thing is going to happen now. I am originally from Pakistan. The first time I came to the US with my family, I was in third grade. The second time I was 19 and came for my education. I had this perspective, I knew this, the whole world wanted to come to the US for education, for the economic opportunity, for the way the people are in this country – for the value of freedom, especially of individual freedom. I remember when I came as a teen, and I had seen a little bit of Europe, a little bit of the Mid-East, a little bit other parts of the world. But the differences were dramatic in terms of the rest of the world. But if I look to my recent travels, now to the Middle East, to China to Europe, I feel the bold differences have dramatically diminished. And we are no longer the best in the world any longer. If you go to China, Dubai in the Middle East you’ll find the infrastructure is better than ours in a lot of places." There's more...
Related Links: TiE Rockies || Find It Now || Success Secrets || Mastering Change || Keywords: Vic Ahmed, Serial Entrepreneur, Global Age, Mastering Change, TiE Rockies, Predictions > Bytes: 11794706 > LISTEN - 10/20/08

571_ I O U Takes on a Whole New Meaning in This Financial Climate
In the current financial and credit crises, people are finding it harder and harder to get funding from traditional lending sources. After seeing the IOUnote.com team being chosen as a DEMOgala Showcase winner, Larry took the chance to interview the three cofounders: Kevin Archer, CEO; Scott Archer, CTO; and Erika Archer, Director of Operations. Larry Asked, "What do you mean by 'True Social Lending?' and Why are you only interested in 1st and 2nd degree relationships (friends and friends of friends)?" A great deal was discussed and they pointed out, "In the current financial and credit crises, people are finding it harder and harder to get funding from traditional lending sources. As a result, many people are naturally turning inward - into their existing social and familial circles. This not only allows borrowers to circumvent the traditional credit scoring system and still acquire funding, but it also allows lenders to reap the benefits with the potential to make a higher return on money otherwise sitting in a low return account. "At IOU Note, we know how easy it is to let loans between friends and family slip through the cracks. We think that when everyone knows what the expectations are, there are fewer chances for a misunderstanding. We like to think that we help friends stay friends." ...listen for more.
Related Links: IOU Note || DEMOgala Showcase Winners || Meetup || Blog || Keywords: IOU note, Kevin Archer, Scott Archer, Erika Archer, Loans, Credit, Social Lending > Bytes: 11400989 > LISTEN - 10/20/08

531_ "We Could Change This Industry Forever With the Right Team"
“Our goal was to develop a disruptive technology, photonic integration, and use that to change the fundamental economics of optical communications for our customers. When we started the company, the experts told us it couldn’t be done. We didn’t know if we could do it. But we knew that if we could do it, we could change this industry forever.” That's what Jagdeep Singh, President, CEO and Founder, Infinera said when he received the 2008 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award for networking and communications in the Northern California program. Prior to founding Infinera, Jagdeep was Co-Founder and CEO of OnFiber Communications, an optical telecommunications carrier. He was also Co-Founder and CEO of Lightera Networks, an optical switching equipment company, which was acquired by Ciena Corporation. Jagdeep was the keynote speaker at a TiE Rockies event held at the Level3 Event Center and there he revealed a number of key strategies for entrepreneurs of all sizes. The focus of these three strategies is people, teams and the need to not be concerned that others don't think you are right. Listen now.
Related Links: Infinera Home || TiE Rockies || Entrepreneur Channel || Photos, TiE Rockies || Keywords: Jagdeep Singh, Infinera, TiE Rockies, Photonic Integration, Optical Communications - Bytes: 4450328 LISTEN 8/4/08

443_ Venture Capital, Angel Investors and Getting Involved The Rockies Venture Club annual meeting has been the place to connect with others creating Colorado success stories. For nearly twenty years, through many market cycles, the CCC has been a great place to connect with others starting and growing Colorado-based technology businesses. Jim Franklin started with RVC in 1992 with no contacts and is now the President of RVC and has a robust Colorado technology network. Hear Jim Franklin tell his story of how the contacts he made at RVC -- and the CCC in particular -- have resulted in 100x return to shareholders, 100+ jobs in Colorado and an economic impact of over $100M to the state of Colorado. Jim feels the key is to get involved. When I first showed up and didn’t know anyone, I just raised my hand and said, ‘how can I help?’. I started off on the government affairs committee where I met Eric Weissmann, who is the founder of Decisioneering. About two years later, I became the CFO of Decisioneering and that was the company that I ultimately became CEO of and we sold to Oracle with a very successful exit. RVC has the Colorado Capital Conference coming up on May 22, 2008 – a true showcase event. Jim shares some great networking advice... 2/18/08  LISTEN

Related Links: Colorado Capital Conference|| Crystal Ball || Rockies Venture Club ||   Keywords: Jim Franklin, Crystal Ball,Decisioneering, Colorado Capital Summit, Oracle, Entrepreneurs, Rockies Venture Club, Technology > Bytes: 12860084 LISTEN

446_ Looking for that next role? Networking and Beyond
Whether you are in a job search or career enhancing process, there are some should do, shouldn't do and then there are the steps you can take that are magical. Larry talked with Jim Franklin, president of the Rockies Venture Club and VP and General Manager of Crystal Ball Global Business Unit of Oracle. As a 15 year member of the Colorado tech community, Jim Franklin has been on both ends of the Job Search process. Jim has been a CEO, VP Sales, Founder and CFO at various local technology companies. After having been fired a second time, Jim decided he should be more systematic in his approach. His approach includes the Who List, the Opportunity List and the Five Criteria for assessing the Opportunities (1- Team fit; 2- Market Traction; 3- Role to contribute; 4- Location; 5- Compensation, both equity and cash). Listen to Jim describe his methodology for bringing order – and results – to the Job Search process. It's beyond networking and the process behind the chaos. As an important side, Jim says that the Annual Colorado Capital Conference is one of the 'must be there' events comig up, 5/22/08. LISTEN 2/25/08

442_ Startup Capital: Family, Friends and Fools...or...?
Entrepreneurs specifically, always face the challenge of credibility early on. David Cohen, a serial entrepreneur, co-founder of Tech Stars and founder of Colorado Startups understands that challenge, firsthand. David points out a number of the comments (often not heard by the new entrepreneur)... who are these people?, what are they building?, you know, it’s two guys in a garage – are we really going to buy something from these guys?. Just getting great people around them is a big challenge. There are lots of startup companies that are coming out of the woodwork and I think the smart ones go and find great advisors and bounce ideas off of them. Those people are pretty easy to find, but there are so many companies looking for help, sometimes it’s a challenge to find the right people to help you. And if they’re looking for funding, of course you see one percent of people getting funding from angels and VCs, that’s a tough road. Most companies need money to get rolling and they do it with ‘Friends, Family & Fools’; and I think that’s right. You should start and get to the furthest out value point that you can with as little money as humanly possible, to show a prototype and some progress. Most people who need more money say $500k or so, tend to approach angel investors, that’s the range of money typically that angel investors can put together. Listen for more TechStar solutions... LISTEN 2/18/08

437_ Colorado is as Quintessentially Entrepreneurial as We Could Ever Imagine
Our mission here is we have a responsibility of educating future business leaders to tackle the complex problems of tomorrow. And at the heart of that is entrepreneurial thinking and critical skills, approaches and innovation. Paul Jerde, Executive Director for the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship, Leeds School of Business at CU Boulder gives the credit to his team and his predesessors. Last year, MBA enrollments were up 60% and still climbing. Paul went onto explain," We launched the “Sustainable Venturing Initiative. We then launched the “Clean Tech Venture Challenge”, a business plan competition in the clean tech sustainable space, and began to do a number of other programs." The Clean Tech Challenge is really a program element of the Sustainable Opportunity Summit. The operative word in the name of this summit is 'opportunity'. Sustainability in the past may have been thought of as something having to do with environment and regulatory threats, but what’s happened today is businesses are looking at it as a necessary element of creating and pursuing opportunities and that is what the Summit (SOS) is all about. listen now.... LISTEN 2/11/08

440_ Going From Yoga to High-Tech: From Yokohama to Boulder
Her first business was a yoga studio in Yokohama, Japan. Gwen Bell, a serial entrepreneur went on to explain; After 3 years she realized she needed a web site and so she entered the world of “tech”. Since then she has created a small design firm and ended up doing blogging, branding, all sorts of work in the tech world. Today she is a member of the TechStar team.
      The TechStars success rate has been extraordinary. In 2007, seven of the ten team have done either venture or angel funding. It would be wonderful to get a team of women hooked up with TechStars. Now based in Boulder, that is exactly what Gwen is focused on accomplishing. David Cohen and the other founders of TechStars are delighted to have a person like Gwen working on this. This is a wonderful opportunity with a number of perks...$10 - 15,000, surrounded by incredible mentors from Boulder to the Silicon Valley and tons more support as well as connections. The application to apply takes only a few minutes to complete...do it now! 2/11/08  LISTEN

Related Links: TechStars Home || Apply Now || Entrepreneur Channel || GwenBell.com   Keywords: Gwen Bell, TechStars, Entrepreneurs, David Cohen, Startups, Mentoring > Bytes: 8519160 LISTEN

432_ Global Ambition, Global Sales for Ambitious Mountain Entrepreneurs
Effective Sales and Sales Management is Mission Critical explains Ken Morse, Managing Director, MIT Entrepreneurship Center. Improving the effectiveness of the sales force in globally ambitious companies, large and small, is consistently cited by business experts as one of the highest priorities, year after year. In the current tough climate, every purchase by any prospective customer must be triple-justified at all levels of management. Ken has delivered hands-on workshops around the globe to CEOs and their top sales executives. He has developed a tailored program for Ambitious Mountain Entrepreneurs. In this interview Ken addresses the question, "Can mountain startups survive global competition?" and explains the 'Key Imperatives'. There is a hard-hitting message for CEOs that you need to hear. BTW, Brad Feld, Larry and Pat will be there. LISTEN 1/28/08
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435_ Raising Capital for Startups, Mentoring, and Much More
TechStars is essentially a mentorship driven investment model. We invest a small amount of money, $10 - 15,000. for a very early stage company explains David Cohen, the founder and Exective Director of TechStars. David goes on,"We bring them to Boulder; surround them with incredible mentors from Boulder, the Silicon Valley and elsewhere. It’s almost like a boot camp environment where they learn everything there is to learn about running an early stage company. At the end of summer we have an “Investor Day” and they get to pitch their ideas. We take ten teams every year and now is the time to get involved. The success rate has been extraordinary. In 2007, seven of the ten have done either venture or angel funding or a combination of both and an eighth that is quite profitable and hasn’t taken investment yet. They learn how to deal with early adopters, early customers; how to bring their product to market, figuring out what the right product is and tactically how to do that, really everything to do with startups, raising money, pitches, elevator pitches. They can also expect to build a really great network and that’s one of the key benefits of TechStars. LISTEN 2/04/08

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