Free Articles

Our monthly articles discuss big mistakes you can avoid.


2025


2024-03: Social Media Marketing and Sales Strategy
2024-02: Cognitive Architecture for Companies
2024-01: A brand new day

2023


2023-12: Running out of time
2023-11: The importance of having fun
2023-10: Exits and Entries
2023-09: The ART Of the deal
2023-08: Starting up quickly
2023-07: Another AI Article - or not!
2023-06: How to send and respond to email advertising
2023-05: What should be in your pitch deck?
2023-04: Risk Ratings
2023-03B: Silicon Valley Bank's crash and knock-on effects
2023-03: The Business Risks of AI
2023-02: An article by ChatGPT
2023-01: CEOs for Startups

2022


2022-12: Turn your radio on
2022-11: Where did all the funding go... Long time passing
2022-10: The first 3 things out of your mouth
2022-09: How do you control your go to market program?
2022-08: Strategic selection of promotions
2022-07: How do how VALS, Maslow, and memes work in marketing
2022-06: Selling to investors - Investor Push
2022-05: What is the TAM?
2022-04: Executive Compensation
2022-03: Stock states: Authorized, Allocated, and Issued
2022-02: Measuring Environment, Society, and Governance (ESG)
2022-01: A Tough Week

2021


2021-12: Unit economics and sales and delivery projections
2021-11: How to do financial projections for a startup
2021-10: Fame is not Knowledge
2021-09: Frauds
2021-08: The Enterprise Brain
2021-07: Projections (That WAG won't hunt)
2021-06: San Francisco, 2021
2021-05: Why you need a diligence report...
2021-04: What came first - The Chicken or the Egg?
2021-03: Emerging from the Pandemic?
2021-02: Cash Flow Simulation vs. Spreadsheets
2021-01: How to make complex multi-factor apples to oranges decisions (for example about investments)

2020

2020-12: Look and Feel
2020-11: The Portfolio View
2020-10: It's harder than you think
2020-09: The Enterprise Control System
2020-08: Closing Sales is Simple
2020-07: The summer of disscontent
2020-06: How NOT to run a Zoom (or other online) meeting
2020-05B: Startup mentor or hindrance? - by Sydney Wong (VenturX)
2020-05: How NOT to approach funding sources
2020-04: Thriving in tough economic times
2020-03: How does this dilution thing work exactly?
2020-02: Classes of Stock and Preferences
2020-01: I'm not dragging you through a sale!

2019

2019-12: The 3 things you need to do to get funded
2019-11: You invested how much based on what plan?!?!
2019-10: I'll use social media to grow - at almost no cost!
2019-09: Measuring your company to help grow it
2019-08: Cash Flow Break Even When?
2019-07: Dealing with professionals
2019-06: How many hours are in the day?
2019-05: On the edge of the hockey stick
2019-04: I need to invest in something!
2019-03: Sex and the successful entrepreneur
2019-02: Following up
2019-01: Lessons learned 2018?

2018

2018-01: Autopsies from 2017
2018-02: Over-reacting
2018-03: Matching funds and burning out the risk in a round
2018-04: Sell your way out of it
2018-05: What I Learned From Building and Exiting 2 Companies - by Snehal Patel with permission
2018-06: Why didn't you come to me sooner?
2018-07: Every entity is not a Delaware C Corporation
2018-08: Exits
2018-09: Increase Customer Engagement
2018-10: The Definition of a Startup
2018-11: Boot Camp
2018-12: Who's the hero?

2017

2017-12: The meeting ... a.k.a. the ambush
2017-11: The pace of progress
2017-10: The cost of capital
2017-09: Fail Fast - Please!
2017-08: Holding Companies
2017-07: Equitable distribution
2017-06: Advisory Boards - Fair Compensation?
2017-05: Paperwork
2017-04: Impatience
2017-03: The domino effect
2017-02: Exaggeration vs approximation
2017-01: Focus

2016

2016-12: Reading and writing carefully
2016-11: But I am right!
2016-10: "No!"
2016-09: "Yes!"
2016-08: Defense
2016-07: Fiercely Independent
2016-06: The Buzz-i-ness
2016-05: Camero felony stop
2016-04: The scales of time
2016-03: Back of the envelope
2016-02: Angel to Exit™

Pointers to other articles and content

Due Diligence
Investment Instruments and Valuation
Comments on Valuation
A co-founder equity split calculator
Gary Rowe discusses angel investment

Articles and slide decks are provided without endorsement. It's up to you to evaluate them.

Slide decks

2018-02-07 Peter Freeman - an Introduction to Entrepreneurial Finance [A basic overview of key concepts and options]

The Team (Founders Institute)