The Venture Edge

You may have noticed that in a lot of companies today, dressing for success is not something you’re seeing quite as often as you used to. Maybe it’s a sign of the times—more and more companies run by wunderkinds in jeans and t-shirts like Mark Zuckerberg, Time Person of the Year.  Looking like you’re too busy to think about showering or shaving seems to be in fashion. Or maybe it’s just laziness. After all, it takes a lot more effort to dress up for work and look your best, and besides, that might signal that you’re trying too hard and haven’t really made it.

There are plenty of articles out there on the biggest mistakes you don't want to make when you start a business.  In fact, I've probably written one or two of them, but at least I can proudly say I actually committed a few of those mistakes so I know for a fact they're mistakes you shouldn't make.  What disappoints me is when a consultant ( an entrepreneur wannabe and professional service provider) who does business plans and financial projections for startups claims to be an expert on the subject and completely misses perhaps two of the biggest reasons new businesses fail.

 I want to follow up Peter's great post about angel investors with my two cents from the perspective of an angel investor.  In addition to all the great advice in that post, it's important to note that angels are generally bypassing companies that don't have customers yet.  They might get involved to mentor the team to prepare them for money, but they won't risk their money in this economy until the business is revenue generating.  

I had to laugh when I read Peter's post Free is the New Black because I had just decided to cancel my online subscription to The Wall Street Journal (for which I was paying $155 dollars a year - up from $99 in the past two years alone).  It seems that everything I wanted to read in the WSJ was already available to me for free on the site.  Sure, WSJ probably won't let me search its archives once I'm not a member but there are other ways to find that information if I really need it. 

Today I fired up the Wall Street Journal app on my iPhone and was greeted with the following message: "Your trial period to subscriber access ends next week." You see, I have enjoyed reading the WSJ on my iPhone for free ever since I downloaded the app nine months ago. Unfortunately, that little pleasure will soon end, as Rupert Murdoch and News Corporation have decided that their bottom line needs a boost. However, I am not willing to pony up $50 a yearfor the privilege of reading this particular newspaper on my phone, so they will not be getting a boost from me anytime soon.