http://courtneypowell.com/

A Bath for Your Business Brain

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:30:00 -0600

A good friend once told me that running is like a “bath for your business brain”. It’s absolutely true.

My cofounders and I took up running as a team about four months ago as a way to relieve stress, keep focused and counterbalance our startup diet. We signed up for the Big Sur Half Marathon to keep us accountable and the race is now just four days away.

This morning was my last “long run”. I’m a terrible example of half-marathon training. Prior to today my longest run was five miles. For comparison, my cofounders have been running 12 mile long runs for the past three weeks.

I ran just under nine miles today with relative ease and I fully attribute my ability to finish the run to the energy I derived from two great podcasts (1, 2) and an inspiring route.

It’s no secret that I’m obsessed with Stanford Technology Ventures podcasts. As a CEO and founder, I constantly feel the pressure to make the best possible decisions and avoid derailing the success of the company. At times, it can be extremely isolating and stressful. Hearing the gritty details of other entrepreneurs’ struggles and aha moments helps give me perspective and motivation.

This morning we started the run in Menlo Park, headed down University Ave and back through Stanford. We ran right passed the building where these STV class takes place and I found myself inspired by all of the great founders who had passed through and encouraged others to keep at it. Think about all of the innovation, jobs and dollars that originated in just a few square miles. It made me feel extremely fortunate to be in a place with immediate access to the top talent, thought leaders, investors and academics. Unfortunately, success does not occur by osmosis.

I realized recently that it often takes two different phases of learning before something crystallizes in my brain: pre-learning and experience. I derive most of my startup related pre-learning from speaking to other founders or investors, reading business books or Quora.

My brain understands that what I am ingesting is beneficial and therefor stores it for some later use. But clearly, even though one may have heard Steve Blank talk about the importance of customer development prior to building a product, you don’t really *know* what he means until you experience the results (positive or negative) yourself.

Anecdotally however, I have found that podcasts that I listen to while running or exercising tend to affect and stick with me much more effectively than those that I listen to while, say, working at a computer. It’s a great feeling to zone out, forget that you are running and let your mind apply all the extra endorphins running through your body to your business.

I also make it a point to revisit books, podcasts or conversation notes after actually living the experience. For example, prior to raising our seed round, I did a ton of reasearch about round dynamics, negotiations, networking etc. Post-raise I listened to the ‘Angel Investors Revealed’ podcast again and was amazed by how much more the words meant to me.

The combination of both direct and indirect experience has helped me to fully articulate my thoughts on raising a seed round when others ask me advice about fundraising.

Here are a few of the things that stuck with me from the Polyvore podcast on this morning’s run. If you are a runner, I highly encourage you to try the “founder motivation route” I’ve shared here. If you aren’t a runner, throw on some shoes and don’t forget your podcasts.

Path and Purpose of a First Time CEO: Jess Lee of Polyvore

When given two choices in your career, take the path that is most challenging
Success and failure are their own unique breeds of education
Witnessing hyperscale (Google) is valuable but don’t stay too long
Hire to offset your deficits as a CEO
Don’t waste time doing admin work (searching for office real estate)
If you reach gridlock with cofounders, pick a direction and set time to prove success
CEOs focus on *systems* to build product, less on building product
Build company as blocks that work well independently but have “APIs” to others
Don’t isolate: talk to other founders for mental health, data points, solutions
Fire people who don’t fit, in spite of your emotional ties
You must fall in love with the purpose of the company
Really great companies spend a lot of time thinking about why they exist
Filter out candidates with different motivations than that of the company mission
Executive team must have shared, interlocking direction “this is what we are committed to beyond ourselves”

PublikDemand Seeks Paid Video Production Intern to Make CEO Look Like Combo of Barbara Walters + @iJustine

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 20:54:00 -0500

Here’s our original version, now show me yours.

Please do the following to apply for this position.
Download project folder here (it’s 2GB).
It contains the raw footage, graphics and script needed to produce a new version of Episode 2 of the PublikDemand Smart Customer series. See original video above or here.

As you can see from the original video, we are not video pros. We would like to see what you could do to make us look more professional and more interesting (and less orange).

The goal of the Smart Customer series is to give people a quick overview of pressing issues, complaints or news that affects consumers.

Additionally, we want to help spread awareness of what we do and highlight our CEO as a champion for consumers. Learn more about our vision at http://www.publikdemand.com.

We like Barbara Walters because she is warm and credible. We like the iJustine style because it is enthusiastic and entertaining (in small doses).

The recording quality of the footage included is not great but we are in the process of ordering new equipment. Now we just need someone who knows how to use it.

***Submission deadline is Sunday, November 4th, 2012 by 5PM PST.

Please note that really awesome videos will be shared.

Download footage, graphics and script here (it’s 2GB)
Script included is a rough guideline only
Video should be three minutes tops, better if you can make it shorter
Company is PublikDemand but we would like to brand this series Smart Customer TV
These videos will be shared weekly with at least 6,000 people
Use graphics as you desire but don’t jack up our logo please
Don’t do anything stupid with brand logos please
You can also use anything from PublikDemand.com
We like music, feel free to use it but don’t get us in trouble with copyrights
Watch the video we made here to see the info we would like shared on the screen
Email link to unlisted YouTube video and your resume to courtney@publikdemand.com
See orignal job posting here

· Submission deadline is Sunday, November 4th, 2012 by 5PM PST.

Steve Blank at TwilioCon: Developers Guide to Failing Less

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 14:01:17 -0500

These are my notes from Steve Blank’s keynote at Twiliocon. All material belongs to Steve Blank.

Ways to get meeting with a partner at a VC

• Did you make previous investors money?

• Are you famous?

• Did someone they know refer you?

If no to the above, you must have product market/fit.

What is a startup?

A startup is based on the founder’s vision into day one. Your job is to turn that vision into a fact as quickly as possible. The company must get past your faith and get the facts.

• Startups are not smaller versions of larger companies.

• Startups search and companies execute.

• More startups fail from a lack of customers rather than from a failure of product development.

• A startup is a temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and salable business model.

• A startup should aim to become a company.

9 Components of a Business Model (not in order)

Value Proposition: What problem or need are you satisfying for a customer
Customer Segments: Customers don’t exist to buy from you, you exist for them. Understand their archetype.
Customer Relationships: How you get, keep (reduce churn) and grow customers (upsell).
Channels
Revenue Streams: What value is the customer paying you for? Pricing tactic is not a revenue model. Each customer segment may require a different revenue model, product and distribution model.
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners
Cost Structure
Customer Segments

Download The Business Model Canvas here: http://www.businessmodelgeneration.com/canvas

What is Product/Market Fit?

The connection between what you are building and who you are selling to.

What is Customer Development?

• Customer Development is how you search for the truth behind the Business Development Canvas.

• Leave the building: hypotheses, design experiment, test, get insight

• Customer Development leads to the Minimal Viable Product

• Understand your customer’s wants and needs from the top to bottom.

• Pivot: what happens when a hypotheses doesn’t match reality

• Pivot: Big change, Iteration: Small Change

What is Customer Discovery?

1. State your Hypotheses,

Draw the business model canvas inside the building

2. Test The Problem

Test outside the building
Build wireframe
Test your understanding of the customers needs

3. Test The Solution

Build high fidelity app or prototype
Test your understanding of the customers agreement you have the solution?

4. Verify or Pivot

Do people agree you are solving a high value problem or need?
Do you understand the customer enough to start selling?

What is Customer Validation?

1. Ready to Sell

2. Get out of the Building

3. Develop Positioning

4. Verify

31 Practical Tips for Future 500 Startups Founders

Tue, 28 Aug 2012 14:59:00 -0500

The start of the new 500 Startups cohort is approaching quickly. Prior to the start of our batch, my PublikDemand cofounders and I found ourselves scrambling to learn the ins and outs of moving to Mountain View and finding ways to make the most of our time in the program. Big thanks to all of the 500 family that made us feel at home! My cofounders and I decided to keep a list of tips for future 500 founders in hopes of making your soon to be busy lives a bit easier. Feel free to reach out if we can help in anyway. #500strong :)

31 Practical Tips for Future 500 Startups Founders

Rent your place and buy your furniture from a previous 500 team
Live as close as possible to the office
Outsource cooking and cleaning as much as possible
Eat at Vive Sol if you like real Mexican food
Be nice to the bartenders at St. Stephens
Don’t jokingly panhandle at Mervs
Hookah Nites in Palo Alto
Make a list of target mentors and maximize your office hours with them
Don’t try and meet with everyone
Book the conference room
Best working hours are from 8am-10am and 9pm-2am
Get to know as many of the other founders as possible, as early as possible
Share your challenges and be honest with other founders
Take advantage of 500’s platform relationships
Ask your batchmates for intros to investors that they believe would be interested in your deal
Get out of Mountain View for the weekend
Amber India is the best Indian- order the Gobi Manchurian for an appetizer
Caltrain is easier than you think
SJC is your friend
Jump in the Pacific with your team at least once
There’s no A/C in the building on the weekends, dress accordingly
Be nice to Melissa, she’s the nicest, most helpful person ever
Review past demo day slides and video on SlideShare and LiveStream/500Startups
Record your pitch and watch it
Get to demo day early to do the run throughs
Make sure to have business cards and t-shirts by demo day
Start fundraising well ahead of demo day
Lead with traction if you have it
Celebrate the little wins and don’t beat yourself up (my slides did not work at all on preview day)
Ship, ship, ship
Take all advice with a grain of salt

On Alchemy and Finding Your Personal Legend

Thu, 23 Aug 2012 11:51:28 -0500

And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. – The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo

I met a guy at 5th and Brazos once. I was walking back to my office from lunch and he was jogging. He said he had seen me before and that he felt compelled to talk to me.

Normally I would have dismissed his comment as a super lame pick-up line but for whatever reason he seemed normal and I thought I recalled seeing him once before in the Greek restaurant I frequented. We became friends but eventually lost touch as life happened.

Four years later I ran into him again in East Austin. We caught up on the last few years and I gleefully told him about what I was working on with PublikDemand.

At the end of our conversation he mentioned that I should read this book that had meant a lot to him, a book that he said he felt compelled to tell me about.

The book was The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo. The Alchemist tells the story of Santiago, a young shepherd boy whose mysterious recurring dream and encounter with a young girl he met while taking his sheep to market compels him to return to the foreign city.

On the way to meet the girl, Santiago stops in to a gypsy’s house and asks her to interpret his dream. She agrees to interpret the dream if he promises to give her 10% of any future treasure he discovers. She proceeds to tell him that he will discover a treasure in Egypt. After initially dismissing the interpretation, Santiago meets a strange man who turns out to be a King disguised as a vagrant. The King tells him of the same treasure and encourages him to follow the omens.

Santiago sells his sheep and risks everything to make the journey. It takes him years of hard work and growth to get to Egypt. He ultimately finds his treasure and although it was not what he expected it would be, he becomes whole and fulfills his personal legend.

It’s a very famous book and I’ve heard many talk about the direct impact they believe the book has made on their lives.

Looking back, I see a marked distinction in my life after I read the book. I do not believe the book had any mystical influence on me, but rather I believe it was the trigger that helped me get over the last hump of self doubt and even guilt I harbored when I considered leaving behind my comfortable life to pursue my dream.

I’ve felt compelled my entire life. Compelled to join a promotional product startup when I was 19. Compelled to drop out of college when I was a senior. Compelled to start my own consulting firm when I was 25 and ultimately compelled to start PublikDemand when I was 27.

There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure. People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.

I was at my kitchen table with my mom and a friend the first time I realized the impact of an idea like PublikDemand. I had to accept that placing myself and my company in a situation where we helped consumers fight for justice against the world’s biggest corporations was more than a bit precarious.

Aside from the long-term threat of litigation, I had plenty of other more pressing fears that might have prevented me from pursuing the idea. But every time I came to the edge and even halfway considered giving up, a new door opened and I was forced to continue.

Although the majority of my fears were circumstantial in nature, the most crippling myth was my fear of failure and the sheer inertia I encountered as I attempted to move out of the life script I had previously accepted.

Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.

I am a 27 year-old female, single mother from Texas. Moving to California to start a company and living with three male cofounders is certainly not the norm. Occasionally, I felt the consternation of people as I told them my plans. “You already have a great life,” “Shouldn’t you think about settling down?” they would say. “Don’t you think you are too old to keep chasing your bucket list?”

I have found myself wishing that I had a little less ambition. But this year I finally realized that it’s not ambition, it’s hope. Hope that I can be a part of some small part of helping people feel better about their lives.

I’ve had to let go of the norms and traditional desires that I grew up believing would fulfill me. I no longer believe that marrying the right person, buying the right house, or having a big enough nest egg will make me whole.

It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.

For me, happiness is avoiding boredom and unabashedly pursuing a purpose that I believe is bigger than myself.

That definition may be a direct result of the dominant characteristics of my personality. According to the Enneagram personality test I am 100% Achiever and 100% Enthusiast. (If you have never heard of the Enneagram Test I suggest you try it here. My entire team has taken it and we reference it all the time in our attempts to understand and better support one another.)

When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision.

Nonetheless, pursuing what I believe is my “personal legend” has opened up my mind in a way I never thought possible. For the first time I feel as though I am exactly where I need to be. I have remarked several times on the ease with which PublikDemand has progressed. At every turn I have happened upon meeting people who have opened doors, introduced me to other supporters, and often found myself at the right place at exactly the right time.

You will never be able to escape from your heart. So it’s better to listen to what it has to say.

Sometime I still get scared. I wonder what will happen if I spend my life pursuing my dreams whether or not I will somehow miss the white picket fence that American psyches have been so programmed to seek. But then I try to think back to how I felt when I’ve done something I knew was not right for me just because I thought “I should.”

To realize one’s destiny is a person’s only obligation.

If I am wrong then I will deal with the consequences, but either way I’m glad I sold my sheep.

***If you choose to read The Alchemist, I highly suggest the audiobook version read by Jeremy Irons (Mufasa!!). It’s short and immersive. You can order the book here (Refer.ly link).

My 500 Startups Lessons Learned Part 2: On Business

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 17:08:35 -0500

I recently shared a few of the lessons I learned about people and teams while at 500Startups. Here’s a few more thoughts related to business models, timing and persistence.

Know Your Niche

I never thought I would find myself in the consumer advocacy space. Never. I spent the first eight years of my career in marketing and lead generation. It was a total surprise to me that I ended up feeling so passionate about helping people to solve their problems with big corporations. It was an even better surprise when I realized consumer advocacy was a largely untapped $30B a year space.

My hunch is that Tie Society did not predict they would end up being the Netflix for Ties or Chalkable app discovery for schools. Building social networks isn’t the only game in town and witnessing the diversity in markets and models for the 27 companies along side PublikDemand in 500 Startups was an eye opener in how to make money in virtually any market. Know your niche.

Sqoot Sqoot and Pivot

Sqoot sat next to us at 500. We immediately fell in love with their Hacker, Hustler, Hipster team (resident hipster Brandon Weiss in photo above). It wasn’t long before we pushed all of our desk together began referring to ourselves as Pangea.

Sqoot began as a daily deal API, feeding deal data to thousands of deal aggregators and other services. Although the company quickly became profitable they opted to pivot after discovering a new metric that was very compelling to a thriving set of companies. The Sqoot Score was born as way for SMB driven companies like Yelp, Foursquare and Groupon to determine how socially savvy a small business was, thus reducing the need for their massive sales teams to waste time calling SMBs who “still think the internet is a fad”.

It’s a very compelling idea. Had Sqoot not have had the foresight to be open and receptive in their problem space- the Sqoot Score may never has been created. Know when to pivot.

Be Unsexy

500 Startups is a huge supporter of business models that “do real shit and make money”. Tender Tree was a great example of an unsexy business that solved real peoples problems in an enormous market.

The company takes the difficult experience of finding a caregiver for an elderly loved one online and makes it easier to match the caregiver and caretaker based on compatibility and skill. There is something to be said about sexy businesses- I wish I had started Cinemagram for instance- but finding success in the actual problems of real people is possible and profitable.

Practice Makes Perfect

500 Startups founders go through a minimum of 45 hours of pitch practice prior to demo day. 45 hours! And that does not include the time you spend in the shower, driving, or incessantly reciting your cues in your head when you are supposed to be listening to someone else.

I was so incredibly proud of the batch founders as they stood up on stage and pitched to a huge, global audience at demo day. Having seen our pitches evolve from nervous rambling to polished, cohesive and compelling previews of really great businesses was mind-blowing. (See final pitch decks here.)

There is no substitute for practice. You may have internalized your business, your metrics and maybe you can rattle off every accolade your team has ever earned- but there is no substitute for standing in front of a room full of people and knowing exactly when to pause, crack a joke or make eye contact. Take advantage of every opportunity to practice you get.

Big Picture

Forty percent of the companies from 500 were international. We worked alongside incredible teams from Japan (Tokyo Otaku Mode), Mexico (Fontacto, Yogome), Italy (Timbuktu), Britain (Bluefields), Brazil (Ingresse), Slovenia (Toshl) and many others. Being in such close proximity of international companies- one is forced to realize the magnitude and importance of markets outside of the USA. Take India for example; they have 1.3 billion people and only 300 million are currently online—that’s enormous upside. The entire U.S. only has 300 million people! Don’t leave money on the table in burgeoning markets like India and South America.

My 500 Startups Lessons Learned Part 1: On People

Wed, 08 Aug 2012 13:54:00 -0500

It has been two weeks since the last 500 Startups Demo Day in NYC. We made huge strides as a company, team and as individuals. I highly recommend the program and encourage other founders to consider it as an enormous opportunity. If you are interested in being a part of the program I recommend that you read this and this before reaching out to anyone.

At the outset of starting PublikDemand, I made a conscious effort to take notes, journal and observe how my thinking would evolve. Here are a few thoughts that have crystallized for me during my time at 500 Startups. This post deals specifically with my thoughts on people, relationships and startups. Stay tuned for future posts on business, fundraising and a list of practical tips for future 500 Startups founders.

No White Picket Fence
Startups are extremely difficult on personal relationships. Founders are often obsessively driven by their desire to build a company and that passion can leave them completely blind or indifferent to anyone or anything else that was previously important in their world.

I’ve seen and experienced startup relationship casualties first-hand. All around me I saw other founders struggling with having to choose over and over again whether to fully commit to their irrational, soul consuming drive to build a successful company or to focus their time and energy on relationships.

I stopped going to “work” the day I joined my first startup. There is no difference to me between work and “real life”. I’m not advocating that others follow suit but I do implore you to carefully consider and even strategize how you will deal or not deal with personal relationships while birthing a company.

Trust Your Team
Startups are difficult enough by themselves but growing your startup in a pressure cooker with 27 other Type Crazy entrepreneurs and engineers produces a whole new level of personal stress. The 50^th time you share your deck or pitch your cofounder and they STILL have stuff to say or some crazy bit of feedback- you are forced to decide how to react.

I learned the importance of first dropping your defenses and believing that your cofounders and even batch mates have the company’s very best interest at heart. Its much easier to get to the best possible version of whatever you are doing by accepting suggestions, feedback and criticisms from people whom you know possess the right motives and want to see you succeed.

Over the course of three months, most especially when you live together, your team will see your insecurities, idiosyncrasies and everything in between. Speak up, value honesty and address anything that you may be harboring as soon as possible. I recently read Dennis Crowley’s article on over communicating and took a lot away from it. Definitely check it out.

Mind Over Matter
Five weeks in to solid, non-stop fundraising I was mentally, emotionally and physically exhausted. I had stopped running; pretty much stopped sleeping and could think of nothing else besides caps, partner votes and our future cap table. At one point I had 15 meetings in three days! Had it not been for the willingness of my cofounders to give me a lot of grace and rides between Menlo and San Fran, I’m pretty sure I would have had an aneurism or at the very least a lot less money in the bank.

Immediately before I made the final decisions on our seed round I went home to my parent’s house. I spent three days sleeping, working out, getting a massage and generally trying to feel like a human being again. I know there are lots of entrepreneurs who are familiar with the feeling—the one where you can move right into your pitch and instantly recall every metric associated with your business but don’t know what time, date or city you are in.

Try to avoid this. Pace yourself. Workout or destress in whatever way you prefer but just remember that there is no term sheet that can bring you back from the dead.

Losing that Loving Feeling
When you get to the moment when you and your teammates are at each other’s throats and you find yourself seriously examining the choices you have made up to that point in your life—it’s time to take a FounderMoon. A FounderMoon is a short break with your team meant to help you rediscover why you chose them in the first place. It’s easy to get caught up in endless deadlines, finances and your own personal problems. It’s critical that you and your team respect one another. Step away from the office for a bit and take the time to hang out with your team as people rather than resources. We highly recommend AirBnB to find an amazing, inexpensive place.

PublikDemand accomplished this by taking short trips to nearby San Francisco and spending a couple of days just hanging out, running or eating at our favorite restaurant together. We also play ‘The Phone Game’. At every meal, everyone present must put their phones in the center of the table. If you choose to touch your device during the meal you must pick up the whole tab. We’ve yet to have anyone lose and it has forced us spending time actually talking with one another.

We even convinced Dave McClure to play the phone game with us. He left his phone in the center of the table for two entire hours but we couldn’t quite convince him to do the same with his iPad. ;)

Avoid the Tilt
For many founders, 500 Startups is one of the rare times in life, outside of college, where you are surrounded by young, newly-funded, fun loving, risk-tolerant people in a town with only two bars. It can be difficult to find the balance between fun and what we lovingly refer to as ‘going on Tilt’.

Tilt is drinking, partying, sleeping or generally doing anything besides moving your business forward. We all took turns going on tilt in our own ways and I saw other teams struggling with this as well. In the end you make a decision about how serious you are in making your company successful. PostRocket CEO Tim Chae discusses his journey at 500 Startups and his success in conquering the Tilt here. Recognize the Tilt when you see it and support each other in getting through it quickly.

*More to come. Thanks for reading.

@courtneypowell founder @publikdemand @500startups demo day

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 14:56:34 -0500

@StartupLive shot a quick interview with me on the inception and future plans of @PublikDemand.

The 8 Fears that Almost Stopped Me From Starting a Company

Mon, 09 Jul 2012 15:59:55 -0500

My first visit to the Valley was in October of 2011. I was in Santa Clara attending a mobile dev conference when a friend suggested I stop by and chat with the partners at 500Startups. What was meant to be a five minute meeting turned in to three days of getting to know the 500 team and then-batch founders. It was also the first real step I took to live my dream.

My original idea for PublikDemand came from a bad experience with Time Warner Cable last summer. You can watch me tell the story here. Although I truly believed that a problem existed in the consumer complaint space and that I had a unique solution, I was not totally sure how to even begin with launching a company.

I joined my first startup when I was in college. I remember vividly the first day I met the two founders. They shared their vision for the company emphatically enough, but I remember thinking that all that I saw was a small office and a yellow notepad.

Fortunately, I took the job and the company went on to raise several venture rounds and become one of the biggest players in the promotional products space, doing over $50M a year in sales. The founder was an experienced entrepreneur, a domain expert.

I, on the other hand, was 27-years-old and found myself feeling alone and somewhat overwhelmed by my new idea and a growing fear of failure. Thankfully, in the year that has passed many of the fears that I had about starting my own company have faded away.

Here are a few that held me back at one point or another and a few thoughts that helped me surmount them.

I’m too young/old

 Last month I met a 19-year-old that was on the founding team of Pinterest and Turntable. And he just raised $7M from Kleiner-Perkins to build out Gumroad. This guy just turned 21, he’s on his second startup and just closed his seed. Don’t forget about Zuck.

On the other hand, I read somewhere that Colonel Sander’s of KFC didn’t get his first break selling his chicken recipe until he was 77.

I believe that age has very little correlation to your ability to start a successful company, provided that you have the domain or technical expertise that surpasses your life experience. There is certainly something to be said about having previous experience in things like bio tech, etc but your willingness to get around people smarter than you, teach yourself and try things will far outweigh your youth.

Get a mentor! Actually, get a couple. One who is light years ahead of you and one who is not quite as far along to help you take things one day at a time.

I didn’t go to Stanford

 I dropped out of UT Austin my senior year and I probably could not have gotten in to Stanford based on my lopsided SAT scores (math is hard). Ivy League graduates are amazing but the only advantage they have to someone who did not go to school or went to a lesser-known institution (in terms of startup life) is exposure to entrepreneurship and a potentially greater network.

Although I am sure UT had resources during my tenure, my first exposure to entrepreneurialism was reading Guy Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad. I did not pursue real estate but it opened up my eyes to the fact that one day I could own my own time.

In general, I think that we will see a proportional decrease in the number of entrepreneurs arising from prestigious academic backgrounds. Education is undergoing a revolution.

Much like the church in the middle ages that was irretrievably disrupted by the invention of the Gutenberg press, colleges will no longer be able to charge exorbitant prices for knowledge that is now freely available thanks to the internet and its people.

I am quite confident that you can get a sound basis in finance, business, marketing, and sales by reading or listening to podcasts and more importantly, rolling up your sleeves and getting started as soon as possible.

I don’t know anyone in startups

 The single biggest surprise I have had in moving to the Valley is the willingness of incredibly smart, talented and even well known people to take the time to share their thoughts and give me advice. It’s really mind-blowing. I find people in startups to be incredibly gracious and happy to help point you in the right direction, provided you do your homework and don’t waste their time. There are thousands of meet-ups across the globe dedicated to introducing new entrepreneurs to all manner of startup beings.

I don’t have any money

 Work on a compelling challenge and pay your dues arriving at a marketable solution and money will find you. Should you wish to hasten the process, platforms like AngelList and the up and coming crowd funding legislation/platforms will go a long way in getting you connected. I encourage you to read and do your due diligence before taking money from just anyone.

My first investor came from my participation in an angel investment network in Austin. I met the organizer by attending Open Coffee (a globally accessible event) and talking to others about what I was working on. He asked me if I would be interested in pitching and then took the time to review my slide deck before I went on. I ended up meeting two of our future investors at the event. Money is everywhere. Getting funded is more possible now that at any other time in history—take advantage of it.

I don’t know how to code

I highly suggest learning if at all possible and feasible for you in a business sense. I overcame my lack of coding prowess by learning how to share my vision with technical cofounder candidates and convincing one of them to take the plunge with me. I would suggest starting with those that you know and working outward if you don’t have any luck finding a tech cofounder. There are also many new sites and events created to help marry technical and business cofounders. Don’t take this partnership lightly- it truly is akin to marriage. Make sure you understand the values and goals of your counterparts. Times will get tough.

I don’t know how to sell

You probably know more than you think you do. We sell all the time without even realizing it. Convincing your friend or significant other to do what you want to do is one basic example of salesmanship. Many of the worlds greatest CEOs were not salesmen at all. I suggest reading Brian Tracy or Zig Ziglar. Assuming you have a decent product or idea, the rest is mental and can be learned.

The last company I started was focused on Enterprise customers with long sales-cycles and high-touch relationships. I would never have predicted how much I really enjoy helping companies find solutions to their problems. Once I stopped thinking about it as sales and more about it as people with problems that I could possibly help solve- the easier it became to close deals.

Don’t over estimate the power of practice here. Cold call your worst leads first and practice your technique. You will learn a ton and if you do it enough, you will start letting go of the fear of “no”.

I’m a woman

25% of the founders in this batch of 500Startups are women. My gender has never once stopped me from doing what I wanted to. If someone responds to you negatively because you are a woman, you are talking to the wrong person.

I’m afraid to fail

I am not sure if anyone ever truly gets over the fear of failure completely but I do believe that the fear begins to subside when you know that even if you do fail there is always a next time (at least in the world of internet startups). Be honest and diligent. If at the end of the day your idea comes to nothing, give yourself some time and just start again. [Insert bad perseverance proverb here]

I still struggle with many, many fears but making the decision to start this company was the best choice I ever made. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

15 Entrepreneurship Podcasts That Changed The Way I Think As A Founder

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 16:40:00 -0500

If you’ve ever spent more than twenty minutes with me, then you know that I am obsessed with Standford’s Entrepreneurial Thought Leadership Series.

I stumbled upon Joe Liemandt’s talk in 2008 when I was interested in learning about what happened with Trilogy (the company that almost single-handed-ly caused the tech boom in Austin) and I’ve been hooked ever since.

These podcasts are an incredible resource for every stage of entrepreneur. I *always* walk away with tons of motivation and usually a new way to think about a problem I am experiencing. It was Ron Conway and Mike Maples’ Angel Investing Revealed talk that convinced me to move to Silicon Valley and start PublikDemand.

The talks typically run about an hour, so I listen to them while working out, driving or working.

Let me also encourage you to also catch a live recording at Stanford if you have the opportunity. It’s free and open to the public. I totally geeked out when I met Tina Seelig there!

These are in order of personal impact. My personal favorite, and probably the best talk I have ever heard—Steve Blank’s Retooling Early Stage Development is embedded below. Watch it! Especially if you are a newish founder or have found yourself building something that didn’t stick.

I am not fully caught up on the 2012 season but I plan on sharing some favorites soon. Feel free to share your own favorites with me. courtney@publikdemand.com

15 Entrepreneurship Podcasts That Changed The Way I Think As a Founder

Retooling Early Stage Development Steve Blank // Stanford
From Stanford to Startup Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger // Instagram
Young at Heart: How to Be an Innovator for Life Tom Kelly // IDEO
Angel Investing Revealed Ron Conway, Mike Maples // SVAngel/Floodgate
The Power of Curiosity and Inspiration Jack Dorsey // Square
Getting to Plan B Randy Komisar // KPCB
Phases of a Startup Mark Jung // IGN
Creating Enchantment Guy Kawasaki
Customer Focus Builds Global Growth Diego Piancentini // Amazon
Spotlight on Scalability Sheryl Sandberg // Facebook
The Black Swans of Energy Invention Vinod Khosla // Khosla Ventures
A VC Perspective on the Life Sciences Beth Seidenberg // KPCB
Nine Lessons Learned about Creativity at Google Marissa Mayer // Google
From Harvard to the Facebook Mark Zuckerberg // Facebook
Choosing the Entrepreneurial Path Reid Hoffman // LinkedIn

Fundraising Playlist: 29 Songs That Will Definitely Help You Raise Money Faster

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:32:28 -0500

Walking in to meeting after meeting with investors can be a nerve wracking and sometimes lonely experience. There were many mornings I found myself needing a motivation or confidence boost to get me out the door.

This playlist is a recap of the songs that I used to make the job a bit easier. Though I cannot directly attribute any one investment to a particular song—I am quite positive that blaring Aloe Blacc’s ‘I Need a Dollar’ down Sand Hill road in my 2004 Honda Accord helped do the trick. ;)

I made the list collaborative so feel free to share and add your own faves.

Follow playlist here.

No Naked Emperors: Have the Hard Conversations

Mon, 18 Jun 2012 22:08:00 -0500

I live with my cofounders- four of us in a 900 square foot, two bedroom apartment. We spend about 99.9% of every waking moment together.

We were friends for a while before we started working on PublikDemand, each of us working on our own startups. (KeepStream (acq. by Infochimps)/Forecast/LeedSeed).

When I first told Jim about my original idea for PublikDemand, he pretty much told me he didn’t like it-mainly because I originally intended to build it as an iOS app. I respected him and was happy to hear his feedback but I quickly went about my own vision. A couple of months later he joined as a co-founder and his opinions became equally important as my own.

Our initial product sessions were fun and very cordial. By that time, A.T. and Richard had joined the team and a couple of weeks after moving to the Valley we launched a major update to the site- both in terms of look/feel and functionality. Because of the short amount of time we had been working together, the site was still very close to my original project vision.

One week later the conversion rates weren’t what we had hoped. I became quietly concerned about the lack of performance, but I was worried that I might be making too premature of a decision and didn’t want to upset anyone since we had all put in so much time and effort to get it out quickly. I wondered if everyone else was worried but we all kept chugging along dutifully.

One night as we were all sitting in the living room, Jim looked at everyone and said “I think we are missing something. I just don’t get the value prop for our users based on the new features.”

I immediately began explaining why it was the correct feature set and how great it could be. I really don’t think I even took two seconds to process what he had just said. Out of human nature or pride or whatever I just jumped right into defending my position. The room became a bit tense as the other guys gave their opinions and watched as Jim and I went back and forth.

By the end of the evening we had talked through all of the reasons we felt the current release wasn’t performing as expected, where we had fallen out of alignment with the value prop and what tests we could run to find out what we were missing.

Somewhere in the middle of the heated conversations, we had all taken a step back and realized that everyone wanted the best possible product and experience for our users and that all of us had unique merit and expertise that brought us to the team.

But more importantly we discovered that we had to have the hard conversations before we could get to the great ones.

In the six week since we’ve had to have many hard conversations- on value, on product, on investment, even on life. I’m thankful to have a team that teaches me so much.

From time to time I still get a tinge of fear that I’m going to step on someone’s toes, uncover one of my own deficits or just be uncomfortable. But EVERY time it pays off.

I think back to the first startup I joined and wonder how many hard conversations the founders must have had before they reached tens of millions of dollars a year in sales.

I think it’s possible that your ability to hash things out as team and still feel respected and respectful has an impact on your company’s overall success. Your ability to speak up and not drink the Kool-Aid will set you apart.

It’s hard to hear someone call your baby ugly, or tell you you’re wrong, but it’s essential to growth in the product and in the person.

Company policy: no sacred cows, no unspoken agreements, no naked emperors.

Do’s and Don’ts for Raising Money As a First Time Founder in the Valley

Thu, 14 Jun 2012 02:34:00 -0500

One day I hope to describe in greater detail my lessons from fundraising for PublikDemand.
It has been an extraordinary experience. Have more do’s and don’ts? courtney@publikdemand.com or @CourtneyPowell.

In the meantime…

On AngelList

· DO get on it: you, your company and your team members

· DON’T publish your profiles without a more experienced founder or advisor reviewing it first

· DO read this AngelList tip goldmine first

On Funding Strategy

· DO read this and know where you are in your company’s funding lifecycle

· DO read this on creating your own demand

· DO use a funding spreadsheet to keep track of your progress. Download mine here.

On Social Proof

· DO find 2-3 well-connected, credible people to build a warm referral plan

· DO understand the ‘back channel’. People will check up on you. Mind your P’s&Q’s.

· DO understand the theory behind VC SIGNAL

On Financing Structure

· DO: Watch Naval’s talk on Dynamic Pricing. All of it.

· DO: READ BRAD FELD’s Venture Deals. Seriously.

· DO understand the difference between convertible notes and priced rounds:

· DO search Quora if you don’t understand things about boards/equity/advisors

On Investors

· DO keep a list of reoccurring questions and understand why they are being asked and fix the issue or find a way to mitigate it in your pitch. Download my example questions here.

· DO be courteous, genuine and respectful of people’s time

· DO remember that it’s the relationship that matters the most. They may not invest in this company but you will hopefully have many more.

· DON’T skip on getting references from your investors. Talk to other founders they have invested in.

· DO have your funding docs and wire info at the ready so you can close quickly.

On Pitching

· DON’T pitch. TELL A STORY. Give macro context.

· DO show that you understand your place in both the PROBLEM and SOLUTION space.

· DO skip BS projections.

· DO articulate why you, your brain, your skills, your experience and that of your team is the right combination to build this company.

· DON’T just talk to hear yourself talk. Engage your audience and LISTEN to their questions and suggestions. Hopefully these are smart people and there is a huge opportunity to LEARN FROM THEM.

· DON’T rely on your pitch deck. You should be totally fluent in your product, marketing, metrics and vision.

On Motivation

· DO know why you are doing this. If you don’t believe it you will not make it happen.

· DO listen to other successful entrepreneurs and LEARN. I swear by Stanford Ventures Entrepreneurial Thought Leadership Podcast.

· DON’T beat your self up if you hear a “no”. It happens to everyone. Brush yourself off and KEEP GOING.

· DO use affirmations, Brian Tracy, or some other positive mental mechanism to build yourself up for this battle. It sounds hokey but it’s not.

· DO take a couple days break when you can no longer think clearly.

On Sanity

· DO get some sleep. They can tell if you are delirious.

· DO work out, get a massage or de-stress before big meetings.

· DON’T take it out on your team.

Finally..DON’T lose sight of the fact that Silicon Valley is a strange place and asking people for money is not a normal thing either. It will pass and you will be able to get back to what you love.

You can reach me at Courtney@publikdemand.com or find me on @CourtneyPowell.

10 Beauty Products Under $40 That Will Rock Your World!

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 01:59:00 -0500

I spend more time than I’d like to admit getting ready to face the world (see my daily sitting in the sink routine left)… but these gems have made my routine a snap. I can’t get enough of these products! Hope you love them too!

P.S. // I love to share my favorite finds with my girlfriends and the new website refer.ly has made it easy and fun! Be sure to check it out.

MoroccanOil Hair Treatment

Words cannot describe what this magic oil does for hair! My naturally curly (read: frizzy) hair soaks up this delicious smelling oil and turns soft and vibrant looking. I use it every day and have bought it for my sisters! Around $16

MoroccanOil Hair Spray

Incredible smell and perfect level of hold. I swear I notice a hint of extra shine as well! People will stop and ask you what you did to your hair. Around $23

Stila Liquid Eye Liner- Intense Black

I often look at Pinterest only to find myself envious of the women in pictures with perfect liquid eyeliner. I finally asked a girl with a great cat-eye look how she did it and she graciously let me in on a little secret. It’s all in the applicator! A pen tip liner makes all of the difference! Around $20

Stila SPF20 Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer

I’m pale, like really pale. Plus, I don’t want wrinkles, so sunscreen is a must for me! I have never worn true foundation but Stila’s Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer is the perfect combo of light coverage, sun protection and a touch of that dewey summer look! Around $32

Benefits Cosmetics BADgal Lash Mascara

This is the only mascara I have used from which I can truly see a difference in the length and thickness of my lashes! My sister buys it for me every Christmas and I beam each time I open it!
Around $20

Origins GinZing Under Eye Miracle

My under eyes need a miracle. Like most women, I juggle work, family and little sleep. I might not be able to show my face if I did not use this cream everyday! I recommend applying it above and below the eye. Around $30

Remington T-Studio Curling Wand

One day my best friend, an avid YouTube beauty tip connoisseur, came over to help me with my hair before a party. She swore by the new ‘beach wave’ look and showed me a new way to create soft curls that stayed forever. Using a curling wand makes achieving the look much easier! Be sure to use the glove and avoid burning yourself because it is one of the hottest tools I have ever used! Don’t leave on hair too long—it works fast! Around $25

Philosophy Tinsel Town LipShine

Pinterest strikes again. I’m loving the 40’s and 50’s era red lip stain. Philosophy’s TinselTown LipShine produces the perfect amount of color and shine! Around $9

L’Occitane Soothing Almond Shower Oil

I feel like a million bucks every time I use this stuff. The smell is intoxicating and it leaves your skin feeling like silk. Makes me want to move to France. Around $9

Earth Science Almond-Aloe Moisturizer

Call me old-fashioned but I hate spending a ton of money on moisturizer. Earth Science’s Almond Moisturizer smells great, is super light and all-natural! Around $9

Video

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 19:23:59 -0500

Munich Day 2

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 10:30:00 -0500

Ubahn

City life

Town Hall

Sun

Biergarten

Sheep

Freedom

Surfers

Munich Day 2

Munich Day 1

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 09:03:21 -0500

Milan > Munich

Angle Tower

City

Oktoberfest

Carnival Rides

Happiness

German Friends

Leiderhosen

Munich Day 1

Driving Nice > Cinque Terre> Lake Como > Lindau...

Wed, 22 Sep 2010 07:51:49 -0500

Driving Nice > Cinque Terre> Lake Como > Lindau >Munich.

Happy Pills

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:24:53 -0500

Happy Pills

Day 3 and 4 Barcelona

Tue, 21 Sep 2010 20:17:38 -0500

Las Cascarole, Oldest Rest..in Barcelona

Lechuga Va! :)

Right before guard come outs with gun...

Mariposas @ Tree Bar, Barcelona

Plaza Espanya

Montejuic Teleferic, Barcelona

Future Wall Hanging, Barcelona

Montejuic Museum, Barcelona

La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

Catolico, Barcelona

Day 3 and 4 Barcelona