This is part of my ongoing posts on  Startup Advice .  There are people who tell startups that they should hire the most senior people that they can find.  It is tempting because you not only see that they were VP Sales at 3 other startups but also that they have great access (according to their resume) to senior executives at companies you’re trying to target.  Only Hire A+ People Who Punch Above Their Weight Class I’m not one of those. 

This is part of my ongoing series Startup Advice .  Many startup companies hire advisory boards.  It’s mostly done by first-time entrepreneurs who want to persuade (bribe?) If you plan to set one up – no problem.  It’s very tempting.  prominent industry luminaries to be closely associated with the company. 

This is part of my series on Startup Advice. I love working with Aussies because their outlook on life seems very similar to what I grew up with in California.  Pretty YOU Selling – My wise old friend & mentor, Ameet Shah, once told me after a meeting we had with clients (when I worked at Accenture), “there are two ways to run a meeting: asking or telling.  You’re When I worked in London there were a ton of Aussies.  I Pretty laid back and non-hierarchic.  I

How he came up with the idea for Goodreads But people started to get burned out on those big generic sites. So then they started going to these niche sites. Andrew: Before we get started, I want to introduce you to Haystack. Here's an easy way to vote for this interview on Hacker News. --Andrew Andrew

And how she launched her latest startup, SkinnySongs. We were all starting out together and building our companies and competing and cooperating much as is the case of the technology industry today so a lot of fun, we’re all sort of around the same age, so it is very similar I think of what goes on today in the Valley with you know with the web companies. So that ends up being funny. The Harvard Business School Case Study on Heidi Roizen talks about the dinner parties she hosts for tech leaders like her personal friend, Bill Gates, and how people skills helped her build one of the most admired careers in Silicon Valley.

I asked Brian Johnson to teach what he learned from launching 3 startups because he has both the experience of an entrepreneur and the introspection of a philosopher. Don’t start with your masterpiece It’s not how you start. Brian is the founder of eteamz (a web site for youth sports), Zaadz (a social network for people who want to change the world) and Philosopher’s Notes (book summaries for busy self-actualizers). Here’s some of what he talked about in the program he recorded. (Download

He has a really interesting background as a product manager and now an entrepreneur. Tell me a bit about your background. Like many product managers, my background is fairly eclectic. That's where I learned I enjoyed interacting with customers and working with development teams to build and launch products. From there, I became the first non-founder employee at an e-commerce startup called BITSource, which was the first electronic software distributor delivering electronic volume software licenses to corporations. Visible networking is turning into a really great opportunity to get to know people better, get to meet new people, and have some interesting conversations.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009 -- Entrepreneur Mentoring Session. Nitro will help strengthen the region's eco-system for successful entrepreneurship by providing startup entrepreneurs with access to powerful mentoring and executive in residence (EIR) resources. The goal of the group's first event is to introduce entrepreneurs/researchers to experienced mentors, in a working session environment, so that both sides can see if there is mutual interest in continuing to work together. NITRO. Entretech is launching Nitro a new program designed to "Get more

Saturday, December 6, 2008 -- Entrepreneur Mentor Society continues its "LEARN FROM SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR" series. Meet two successful entrepreneurs who will share their startup story as well as provide insightful advice on how best to start your venture! Come learn the skills to launch your entrepreneurial dreams. See http://www.emsociety.org...

Entrepreneur Mentor Society continues its "LEARN FROM SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR" series. Meet two successful entrepreneurs who will share their startup story as well as provide insightful advice on how best to start your venture! Saturday, November 22, 2008 -- Saturday Speaker Series. Come learn the skills to launch your entrepreneurial dreams.