Quick thought on Executive Summaries

Many Exec Summs I read are either too long or too wordy. Here’s some bullets/thoughts to keep in mind when writing yours:

  • Its purpose is to give the investor enough to see if they are interested.
  • It’s not to give in-depth info, that’s what the pitch/slides/businessPlan is for.
  • In many ways, you want to give enough to get them interested, enough for them to say “hey, lets look more into this”.
  • Investors are pretty smart and they can go through something really quickly and know whether they are interested or not.
  • The ES’ purpose is to state the plan in a quick and easy-to-digest way so they don’t have to think or move around it to get what they need to know.
  • LESS is ALWAYS better. Why? Because it forces you to only keep what’s absolutely necessary, allowing the reader/investor to cut through the fat and get to the meat in the quickest way.

How much of your own money have you invested?

I remember one presentation made by a CEO who had claimed to take several companies public beforehand, yet here he was pitching to raise a relatively small amount of money that someone with his alleged previous success would have easily been able to self-fund. When the investors asked him why he didn’t just fund his own venture, his answer was, “My wife won’t let me”. I’m sure he was telling the truth (my wife won’t let me invest in all the deals I want to either), but he definitely lost a lot of points with some of the investors in the audience.

This simple question (How much of your own money have you put in the venture) is an obvious one that you should be prepared to answer. In addition to looking for the direct answer, investors are also trying to subliminally find out:

How successful have you been on your previous ventures?
If you have presented a history of previous successes, you must have money in the bank, right? If you don’t have money in the bank, then you either didn’t make as much money as your success claimed, or you spent it all on something else.

How confident are you in your current venture?
An obvious point, but extremely important nonetheless. If you’re raising $X and asking investors to pony up their money, surely you have already stepped up to the plate. If you don’t have money in the bank, did you mortgage the house to raise capital? Hock the car?

If you haven’t invested any of your own money, don’t skirt the question and exceed expectations by proactively addressing the subliminal questions. Some investors will disqualify you right away regardless, but if you have an honest and compelling story that answers both the direct and subliminal questions, you may be able to come out of it alive.

I’m not the only one that thinks Google is for search only

A while back I wrote that Google is trying to do too much and hardly succeeding at anything other than search.

Its nice to see someone else agreeing with me. Read Don Dodge’s “Google a one trick pony?

Listen to a live pitch to real VCs

Here’s a cool post “Gnomedex 6: Should TagJag be funded ?” from Jeff Clavier that talks about how Chris Pirillo had the creative idea to do a live pitch to VCs about his company TagJag. I suggest you read it as the basic advice is excellent, pointing out many mistakes that entrepreneurs make. Also, listen to the mp3 file of the presentation.

Management Wisdom: Firing People

I’ve had to fire quite a few people over my past n companies. Some firings went really well. Others were a complete disaster, especially when I had to fire those that were consumed by the Dark Side. Wish I had read “When Firing Someone, Focus On Those Who Remain” back then. And if you’re planning on starting/running/building a company, I suggest you read these links too.

Success checklist for software startups

Kleiner Perkins has a condensed list that describes what the ultimate software startup needs. I suggest you ask someone other than yourself (or anyone else in your company) measure your product against this list and rate how well you do against each point:

  • Instant Value to customers – solve a problem or create value with the first use
  • Viral adoption – Pull, not push. No direct sales force required
  • Minimum IT footprint, preferably none. Hosted SaaS is best.
  • Simple, intuitive user experience – no training required.
  • Personalized user experience – customizable
  • Easy configuration based on application or usage templates
  • Context aware – adjust to location, groups, preferences, devices, etc.

Hat tip:

Don Dodge

Paul Kedrosky

Do you have a wealth-oriented mindset?

I don’t think it’s possible to achieve long-lasting wealth without the proper state of mind. Although I have not bought his book, T. Harv Eker’s “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth” does have this list that illustrates a wealthy mindset vs. a poverty mindset.

Take a long, hard, honest look at the list and decide where you belong. I think this helpful tool illuminates areas you might need to work on.

  • Rich people believe “I create my life.” Poor people believe, “Life happens to me.”
  • Rich people play the money game to win. Poor people play the money game to not lose.
  • Rich people are committed to being rich. Poor people want to be rich.
  • Rich people think big. Poor people think small.
  • Rich people focus on opportunities. Poor people focus on obstacles.
  • Rich people admire other rich and successful people. Poor people resent rich and successful people.
  • Rich people associate with positive, successful people. Poor people associate with negative or unsuccessful people.
  • Rich people are willing to promote themselves and their value. Poor people think negatively about selling and promotion.
  • Rich people are bigger than their problems. Poor people are smaller than their problems.
  • Rich people are excellent receivers. Poor people are poor receivers.
  • Rich people choose to get paid based on results. Poor people choose to get paid based on time.
  • Rich people think “both.” Poor people think “either/or.”
  • Rich people focus on their net worth. Poor people focus on their working income.
  • Rich people manage their money well. Poor people mismanage their money well.
  • Rich people have their money work hard for them. Poor people work hard for their money.
  • Rich people act in spite of fear. Poor people let fear stop them.
  • Rich people constantly learn and grow. Poor people think they already know.

Building a Winning Business Plan

Mahalo Nui to Monte Littlefield of Pipeline Communications and Technology for putting together this presentation on Building a Winning Business Plan.

It’s short, simple, to the point, and most importantly, is the result of Monte’s own personal experience in raising Angel funding for his fledgling company. He worked his relationships with Hawaii’s VC community for over a year and has proven himself to be a coachable CEO that listens to the right people at the right time.

Monte, we’re all cheering for you man. Go baby!