Recent Posts

Entrepreneurship

The ABC of raising your seed round

Usually, I am cynical about pithy posts proffering advice such as “5 steps to …” – particularly when it is about becoming a successful entrepreneur, or raising venture funding.  Most often, I find these posts written by articulate armchair quarterbacks (who have never really done it themselves) or by what I

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Entrepreneurship

Top Reasons Why startups Fail

So many articles; so many self-proclaimed entrepreneurship experts (who have never started a successful venture themselves) – yet this never stops them from publishing definitive advice on how to be a great entrepreneur. But every so often, one of these formulaic post nails it. Top Reasons Why Startups Fail  

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Attributions

"My Breakup Letter To (Some) VCs" – Well Said

Not since Adeo Ressi rocked the venture capital industry by creating the scathing VC feedback site, TheFunded, has an entrepreneur so bluntly articulated the frustrations about dealing with venture capitalists, and of the venture capital industry’s treatment of entrepreneurs. Recent article by experienced and accomplished entrepreneur, Sindhya Valloppillil,  founder &

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Articles

Crowdfunding – Five Big things

(Originally published as a Guest Blog on CX.com  on December 11, 2012)  Crowdfunding. You’ve heard of it — sexy projects by entrepreneurs who buck the establishment by going directly to the public for funding. Or maybe you’ve heard of the other crowdfunding — fraud, deceit and boiler room brokers bilking

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About

Phoenix People – Interview

[snap url=”http://www.phxpeople.com/cj-cornell-founder-of-propel-arizona-entrepreneur/” alt=”CJ Cornell Interview on Phoenix People” link=”on” title=”CJ Cornell Interview on Phoenix People” target=”_blank” ]   Interview last month for “Phoenix People“. Interesting to see how a one hour interview gets condensed into a few sound bites. Unflattering photos : ) – but honored to be showcased like

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Entrepreneurship

Vital Stats of the Modern Entrepreneur

Published in the Wall Street Journal, referencing a study by the Kauffman Foundation on what the average entrepreneur looks like, today.  The study is about “successful company founders in high-growth industries” , as opposed to the broader, largely meaningless category of ‘people who start their own business’. Notable (and counter-intuitive) for many:

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Entrepreneurship

Ideas: Worthless? Priceless? or 12 for a Dime?

I can predict it with near certainty. In every single conversation I have with an entrepreneur, or rather with a first-time entrepreneur, it becomes very apparent they place an comically high value on the one, single, good idea that they have. Whether they say it out loud (“this is a

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Articles

Models: Revenue, Business, Monetization. What’s the difference?

Someone posted a question on Quora the other day – and the question itself was insightful:  What is the difference between a revenue model and a monetization model? I’m a bit of a stickler for consistent definitions of terms in business (particularly entrepreneurship), so I provided a detailed answer clarifying

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Articles

Entrepreneurs: Psychopaths or Just Crazy?

A familiar meme is that Entrepreneurs are somewhat crazy.  Many use the phrase affectionately when implying that the prototypical entrepreneur is willing to attempt things that the average person would not risk.  Or perhaps it’s because entrepreneurs often paint a vision for the future that seems unimaginable, that they seem

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