Thinkspace Member: Donuts – Named to WSJ’s "The Next Big Thing 2012" List

The Wall Street Journal unveiled its third annual ranking of the top 50 U.S. companies backed by venture capital—A list that attempts to identify start-ups that could become the “Next Big Thing 2012“. Geekwire reported “… after considering nearly 6,000 companies, here are the top 50 startups that The Wall Street Journal editors believe have […]

DIY SEO Bootcamp For Startups

image credit You’re a visionary. Your Idea will change the world!Every time you tell someone about your idea they instantly become a believer and start spreading the word. Your energy and passion for what you do is so contagious that you are attracting talent, people want to get involved. Only problem is you need funding, […]

Why Three Founders Is Better Than Two

Creating a company with a good friend or like-minded business partner is common, and allows you to both call the shots and make decisions that have a direct impact on your startup’s future. Unfortunately, a startup founded by two people can be a tough sell. It opens the door for disagreements and ultimately legal issues […]

Everyday Leadership In Your Startup and Lollipop Moments

Drew Dudley presented at TEDxToronto and gave a speech that completely resonates with me. Drew spoke about “Everyday Leadership“. When I think about today’s leaders, I think about President Obama, Richard Branson, my ex-boss Stuart Mckee and the list goes on and on. Drew believes leadership is not a characteristic reserved for the extraordinary. He […]

5 Types of Tweets To Get Your Startup More Attention

No matter who you are or what business you’re in, it’s hard to deny that Twitter has changed the landscape of communication between companies and customers. It has opened the doors for open and personal exchange, and now your startup can build a personal relationship with a growing amount of people with a minimal amount […]

Q&A With Thinkspace Startup: Donuts Inc.

Thinkspace is home to several startups, all with incredibly unique stories to tell. This week, I had a chance to talk with Paul Stahura, CEO and Co-Founder of Donuts Inc.– just one of many of the startups that call thinkspace home. Here’s a little bit more about this up-and-coming company and Paul’s advice for other […]

Transparency: Too Much Or Not Enough In Your Startup Culture?

Rand Fishkin, CEO of SEOmoz, has a corporate culture of transparency. Rand spoke to the local chapter of the Entrepreneur Organization recently. Based on the story that he shared with us, it sounded like he was a person that was not very transparent in the early days of Moz. However, today Rand is more like […]

5 Things Startups Should Blog About

When you think about building a business around a product or service, the farthest thing from your mind may be starting a blog on your company’s website. That’s completely understandable, though the benefits of having a company blog can be well worth the effort. A company blog enables you to keep your customers (and investors) […]

What the Return on Investment Looks like on a Startup Like Pinterest

The return on investing in a startup can be really hard to anticipate. I was reading an article on Tech Crunch titled “The One That Got Away” which highlighted how one investor had the opportunity to invest in Pinterest but passed. Let’s get real about investing in startups first before we talk about what happens […]

50/50 Equity Split Among Co-founders

It’s never a good idea. We hosted a Founder Institute event tonight and Dave Parker said something like “If you go 50/50 with your cofounder, you’ve already failed as a CEO. You can’t even make the first tough decision right”. I totally agree — there’s a ton of decisions that a CEO has to make […]