Techstars – serie

Real life insights on what it takes to make it in a relationship with an entrepreneur Entrepreneurs are always on the go, looking for the next "startup" challenge. And while they lead very intensely rewarding lives, time is always short and relationships are often long-distant and stressed because of extended periods apart. Coping with these, and other obstacles, are critical if an entrepreneur and their partner intend on staying together—and staying happy.In Startup Life, Brad Feld—a Boulder, Colorado-based entrepreneur turned-venture capitalist—shares his own personal experiences with his wife Amy, offering a series of rich insights into successfully leading a balanced life as a human being who wants to play as hard as he works and who wants to be as fulfilled in life and in work. With this book, Feld distills his twenty years of experience in this field to addresses how the village of startup people can put aside their workaholic ways and lead rewarding lives in all respects. Includes real-life examples of entrepreneurial couples who have had successful relationships and what works for themProvides practical advice for adapting to change and overcoming the inevitable ups and downs associated with the entrepreneurial lifestyleWritten by Brad Feld, a thought-leader in this field who has been an early-stage investor and successful entrepreneur for more than twenty yearsWhile there's no "secret formula" to relationship success in the world of the entrepreneur, there are ways to making navigation of this territory easier. Startup Life is a well-rounded guide that has the insights and advice you need to succeed in both your personal and business life.

An essential guide to understanding the dynamics of a startup's board of directors Let's face it, as founders and entrepreneurs, you have a lot on your plate—getting to your minimum viable product, developing customer interaction, hiring team members, and managing the accounts/books. Sooner or later, you have a board of directors, three to five (or even seven) Type A personalities who seek your attention and at times will tell you what to do. While you might be hesitant to form a board, establishing an objective outside group is essential for startups, especially to keep you on track, call you out when you flail, and in some cases, save you from yourself.In Startup Boards, Brad Feld—a Boulder, Colorado-based entrepreneur turned-venture capitalist—shares his experience in this area by talking about the importance of having the right board members on your team and how to manage them well. Along the way, he shares valuable insights on various aspects of the board, including how they can support you, help you understand your startup's milestones and get to them faster, and hold you accountable. Details the process of choosing board members, including interviewing many people, checking references, and remembering that there should be no fear in rejecting a wrong fitExplores the importance of running great meetings, mixing social time with business time, and much moreRecommends being a board member yourself at some other organization so you see the other side of the equationEngaging and informative, Startup Boards is a practical guide to one of the most important pieces of the startup puzzle.

From Amos Schwartzfarb, serial entrepreneur and veteran Managing Director of Techstars Austin comes the elemental, essential, and effective strategy that will help any startup identify, build, and grow their customers from day 1Most startups fail because they can’t grow revenue early or quickly enough. Startup CEOs will tell you their early missteps can be attributed to not finding their product market fit early enough, or at all. Founders overspend time and money trying to find product-market fit and make false starts, follow the wrong signals, and struggle to generate enough revenue to scale and raise funding. And all the while they never really knew who their customers were, what product they really needed, and why they needed it. But it doesn’t have to be this way, and founders don’t need to face it alone. Through expert guidance and experienced mentorship, every startup can avoid these pitfalls.The ultimate guide for building and scaling any startup sales organization, Sell More Faster shares the proven systems, methods, and lessons from Managing Director of Techstars Austin and sales expert Amos Schwartzfarb. Hear from founders of multi-million-dollar companies and CEOs who learned firsthand with Techstars, the leading mentorship-driven startup accelerator and venture capital firm that has invested in and mentored thousands of companies, collectively representing billions of dollars in funding and market cap. Schwartzfarb, and the Techstars Worldwide Network of more than 10,000 mentors do one thing better than anyone: help startup entrepreneurs succeed. They know how to sell, how to hire people who know how to sell, and how to use sales to gain venture funding—and now you can, too.Sell More Faster delivers the critical strategies and guidance necessary to avoid and manage the hazards all startups face and beat the odds. This valuable resource delivers: A comprehensive playbook to identify product market direction and product market fitExpert advice on building a diverse sales team and how to identify, recruit, and train the kinds of team members you needModels and best practices for sales funnels, pricing, compensation, and scalingA roadmap to create a repeatable and measurable path to find product-market fitAggregated knowledge from Techstars leaders and industry expertsSell More Faster is an indispensable guide for entrepreneurs seeking product-market fit, building their sales team, developing a growth strategy, and chasing accelerated, sustained selling success.

How women can "lean in" to entrepreneurship to create the life they want! Claudia Reuter left a promising corporate career to raise her two young children but realized, when re-entering the workforce, that the gap in her resume looked like a gap in ambition—not a purposeful plan. Instead of leaning into a corporate career and fighting the structures and systems designed by and for men decades ago, or leaning out and giving up income, Claudia took a different path. That decision ultimately led to success in the corporate world and at home. In Yes, You Can Do This!, Claudia shares her own reasons for starting a business and makes a call to action for women to consider entrepreneurship so that they can create businesses with the rules they want and change the playing field for others, making a significant impact in the world. More than a "how-to book" on building a business, Yes, You Can Do This! provides clear examples and practical resources to help others create the life they want through entrepreneurship. In Yes, You Can Do This!, you'll learn: How to develop and share your visionHow to deal with stereotypes and unconscious biasHow to leverage perceived weaknesses and turn them into strengthsHow to balance life at high speeds and avoid burnoutHow to cultivate the confidence to move from idea to creating a company with the culture and rules you wantClaudia provides women with an electrifying third career option: it’s not just "lean in" or "lean out," but startup and change the playing field for others in the process. Praise for Yes, You Can Do This! "It's rare to find a book on entrepreneurship that fuels your heart with inspiration and encouragement and your mind with practical, tangible things you can put into action immediately — but this is one of them. As a woman who has started three companies and been a senior team member of five startups, this is the guide I wish I'd read when I was starting out." —Nataly Kogan, Author of Happier Now and founder of Happier, Inc. "Combining compelling storytelling with practical, tactical advice, Reuter has created a manifesto for the next generation of female founders. Rooted in the research around gender and work, this is a must read for women looking to launch the next new thing." —Jennifer McFadden, Associate Director of Entrepreneurial Programs, Yale School of Management "A must-read for any woman considering taking the leap into entrepreneurship, You Can Do This brings together today's best thinking about women in the workplace with practical advice for creating your dream career and life - by starting a company. Whether you are just curious or ready to take the leap, this book is a great read and a valuable resource." —Anna Barber, Managing Director, Techstars "Claudia helps not just the female entrepreneur, but all entrepreneurs, find their footing in what can be an overwhelming whirlwind of starting a business. This book is not only inspiring and uplifting, but positively necessary for any woman looking to find success in the startup space!" —Shira Atkins, Co-founder & CMO Wonder Media Network "Stories of entrepreneurial success exist in abundance for men who receive 97.8% of venture funding and hold 95% of CEO roles. What is most inspiring about Claudia's book, making me want to shout from the rooftop, is that it is told from the perspective of an everyday woman who pushed hard through barriers, doubts, and setbacks that any entrepreneur would face. On top of all that, she overcame obstacles that are uniquely ours as women today. Claudia is now a standout among women, but with her book in hand, women who want to build a business to scale have a blueprint and path to do so. Here's to making dreams come true!" —Coco Brown, CEO and Founder, The Athena Alliance. "As I read through the book, there were multiple points where I thought, 'Every man in any startup or fast-growing business should read this.' As a man in technology, I took away lots of new ideas, along with examples that were explained in a way that I wouldn’t have been able to do prior to reading Claudia’s book"—Brad Feld, Managing Director, at Foundry Group, author of Venture Deals and Do More Faster "Reuter breaks the stigma about mothers that chose to leave the workforce. She provides practical tools to start a business, by showing the path to success for every woman that wants to write her own rules"—Sharon Kan, CEO of Pepperlane & Co-Founder of the WIN Lab "Reuter manages to put into words what women have been facing and feeling for decades. She leaves the readers with stories, steps and inspiration to create the career path they are worthy of no matter if it's starting from scratch or breaking glass ceilings. This book will fuel the next generation of women in leadership and entrepreneurship giving them guides and confidence as it has fueled me to start the business I have always wanted."—Elizabeth Presta, CD(DONA), CLD

You’re only a startup CEO once. Do it well with Startup CEO, a "master class in building a business."—Dick Costolo, Former CEO, TwitterBeing a startup CEO is a job like no other: it’s difficult, risky, stressful, lonely, and often learned through trial and error.  As a startup CEO seeing things for the first time, you’re likely to make mistakes, fail, get things wrong, and feel like you don’t have any control over outcomes.Author Matt Blumberg has been there, and in Startup CEO he shares his experience, mistakes, and lessons learned as he guided Return Path from a handful of employees and no revenues to over $100 million in revenues and 500 employees.Startup CEO is not a memoir of Return Path's 20-year journey but a thoughtful CEO-focused book that provides first-time CEOs with advice, tools, and approaches for the situations that startup CEOs will face.You'll learn: How to tell your story to new hires, investors, and customers for greater alignmentHow to create a values-based culture for speed and engagementHow to create business and personal operating systems so that you can balance your life and grow your company at the same timeHow to develop, lead, and leverage your board of directors for greater impactHow to ensure that your company is bought, not sold, when you exitStartup CEO is the field guide every CEO needs throughout the growth of their company.