“I do biz dev.” Few times in history have more ambiguous words been spoken. Ask ten “VPs of Business Development” or similarly business card-ed folks what is business development, and you’re like to get just as many answers. “Business development is sales,” some will say, concisely. “Business development is partnerships,” others will say, vaguely. “Business […]

Being surrounded by an entire team that doesn’t feel like they work for you can be a ridiculous blessing. But is there a magic formula that makes work feel like joy, happiness and fun all rolled into a single cupcake you can munch on all day long? You bet there is. It’s culture talking. And […]

As female entrepreneurs under the age of 30, my business partner Brittany and I have found ourselves in our fair share of uncomfortable situations. From being carded at client dinners, to being asked if we were the sales girls, our looks and gender have never gone unnoticed by clients. Since starting the company in January […]

Instacart App Instacart founder Apoorva Mehta believes he can build an empire of Amazon-scale by helping people shop for groceries from their homes. While this may sound like a stretch, it mirrors Amazon in the 90s; books were Amazon’s starting point, on which a behemoth was built. Likewise, Instacart has big plans. Yes, countless companies have tried to […]

Recently, Paul Graham came out with a great (and comprehensive) post on how to raise money. Of the many great “rules,” the ones I find most important (and surprisingly often neglected) are: Get warm intros to investors; do not cold email them. Worse is the cold LinkedIn message Talk to your investors in parallel for […]

It wasn’t Nasty Gal CEO Sophia Amoruso’s fancy degree, tailored business suit, or five years of investment banking background that grew her e-commerce venture into a $128 million company, which has been courted by major potential buyers as of late. In fact, she had none of those things at first. She launched her business as […]

Recently while attending a session at Lowenstein LLP for the inauguration of the 2013 First Growth Venture Network, I had the pleasure to speak with and listen to some of NY and the Valley’s top investors.  Some of this advice comes from them, and some from personal experience. You quit your job, labored months building a […]