Venture Hacks

Why Games Are Fun: The Psychology Explanation:
“Fun games operate on the principle that our actions will definitely bring us closer to the goal. If you go and slash rabbits (action), you will definitely gain experience points (relation), and you will eventually level up (goal).
“This is the reason so many people, including myself, have failed at [...]

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Michael Wolff on Guess Who:
“Windows knocked him off the main stage for 10 years; then the Internet seemed to sideline him; not to mention that serious business people (along with many others) thought he was nutty; then he had problems with the SEC (and not insignificant ones); then he nearly died.”
They call this resiliency.

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This post is by Mark Suster, a serial entrepreneur turned VC at GRP Partners. If you like it, check out Mark’s startup advice blog and his tweets @msuster. And if you want an intro to Mark, send me an email. I’ll put you in touch if there’s a fit. Thanks. – Nivi

This is the last [...]

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Thanks to Walker Corporate Law Group, a boutique law firm specializing in the representation of entrepreneurs, for supporting Venture Hacks this month. This post is by Scott Edward Walker, the firm’s founder and CEO. If you like it, check out Scott’s blog and tweets @ScottEdWalker. He’s also writing a new series on VentureBeat: Ask [...]

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Thanks to Walker Corporate Law Group, a boutique law firm specializing in the representation of entrepreneurs, for supporting Venture Hacks this month. This post is by Scott Edward Walker, the firm’s founder and CEO. If you like it, check out Scott’s blog and tweets @ScottEdWalker. – Nivi

It’s a new year — which means it’s [...]

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This post is by Mark Suster, a serial entrepreneur turned VC at GRP Partners. If you like it, check out Mark’s startup advice blog and his tweets @msuster. And if you want an intro to Mark, send me an email. I’ll put you in touch if there’s a fit. Thanks. – Nivi
There are 10 skills [...]

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This post is by Mark Suster, a partner at GRP Partners. If you like it, check out Mark’s blog with startup advice and his tweets @msuster. And if you want an intro to Mark, send me an email. I’ll put you in touch if there’s a fit. Thanks. – Nivi
One of the questions I’m most [...]

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You’ll probably learn more from this clip than two years at Harvard Business School. From HBO’s The Wire:

(Video: The Wire)
I bet you didn’t know this is Obama’s favorite TV show.

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More wisdom from Randy Komisar’s The Monk and the Riddle (emphasis added):
Passion
“So why were they doing this? Why was it worth their time? I am always amazed that venture capitalists don’t ask that question. Perhaps at this point everyone assumes it’s obvious: to get rich.
“Passion and drive are not the same at all. Passion pulls [...]

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This is a great slide from John Doerr’s talk at Stanford:

It’s a little hard to read but it’s worth a squint. Or just watch this 4 minute video where he lays it out:

Video: John Doerr on Mercenaries and Missionaries.

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