Startup One Stop

Good morning, All,

Our first SOS bbq of the season will be on May 3rd  (rain date: May 10th), sponsored once again by our friends at 1099partners.com (http://www.1099partners.com/). Come and have some BBQ, talk to the 1099 people and enjoy the great outdoors in a lovely garden! Rumor has it there may be investors there as well. $15 in advance; $20 at the door. To RSVP: http://sosbbq20121.eventbrite.com/

Our next SOS 1-on-1 with an investor is coming up and we have a direct pipeline to a group of serious angels whose representative will be at the event. Caveat: you must send us your deck in advance, and you can submit from anywhere in the world. The focus is on startups who are looking to get to the next level, which means, you need the money to get there, and they’re not focusing on any particular vertical.  To clarify: You do not have to be at the event, but if you are in the NYC area, it’s recommended that you come and have face time, if they’ve asked to meet with you after having seen your deck. For every one else, well, there’s VOIP, so do feel free to send your deck to hello@startuponestop.com and we will pass it to investors’ rep. Good luck, And looking forward to seeing them! Read More...

Good morning, All,

First, yes, it’s finally happened: we’ve built out the StartupOneStop website, and all of the past newsletters are there – sans posts, as we respect your privacy and wouldn’t want to be responsible for you being spammed by the world at large. Happy to hear your feedback/suggestions and our thanks to our developer – an SOS member who built it in a day. Seriously! If you’d like to get in touch with him, let us know (hello@startuponestop.com) and happy to make the introduction. Also, our thanks to those of you who utilized our new ‘donate’ button and showed your appreciation. Thank you so much and donations – and sponsorships, now that the website’s more robust – are always appreciated!

Our first SOS bbq of the season will be on May 3rd on it will be in NYC, not Chicago (eventbrite glitch and sorry about that). rain date: May 10th), sponsored once again by our friends at 1099partners.com (http://www.1099partners.com/). Come and have some BBQ, talk to the 1099 people and enjoy the great outdoors in a lovely garden! $15 in advance; $20 at the door. To RSVP: http://sosbbq20121.eventbrite.com/ Read More...

Good morning, All,

Our first SOS bbq of the season will be on May 3rd (rain date: May 10th), sponsored once again by our friends at 1099partners.com. Come and have some BBQ, talk to the 1099 people and enjoy the great outdoors in a lovely garden! $15 in advance; $20 at the door. To RSVP: http://sosbbq20121.eventbrite.com/

Our next SOS 1-on-1 with an investor will be in a couple of weeks and we have a direct pipeline to a group of serious angels whose representative will be at the event. Caveat: you must send us your deck in advance. Your startup must be tech-based, and the focus is on startups who have developed product and are looking to get to the next level, which means, you need the money to get there, and they’re not focusing on any particular vertical. Send your deck to hello@startuponestop.com and we will pass it to investors’ rep. And looking forward to seeing them! Read More...

ood morning, All,

Our next ERA + SOS Startup Breakfast is April 12th, and for those of you who missed the ER Accelerator Happy Hour last week, Murat will be there and happy to answer any questions you might have about applying and the upcoming session.  Breakfast will include famous Fairway bagels, our own fat-free muffins, coffee, tea, juice – and yes, we do know it’s Passover and we will have food on hand to accommodate our members who are observing. . There’s inspiration for you! $15 in advance and $20 at the door. To register: http://bit.ly/GRXHrA and hope to see you there, bright and early. And don’t forget that New York Entrepreneur Week. starts Monday!

Our next SOS 1-on-1 with an investor will be in a couple of weeks and we have a direct pipeline to a group of serious angels whose representative will be at the event. Caveat: you must send us your deck in advance. Your startup must be tech-based, and the focus is on startups who have developed product and are looking to get to the next level, which means, you need the money to get there. Send your deck to hello@startuponestop.com and we will pass it to investors’ rep. And looking forward to seeing them! Read More...

Good morning, All,

Our next ERA + SOS Startup Breakfast is April 12th  at SOS Headquarters, in a lovely backyard on the UWS. Breakfast will include famous Fairway bagels, our own fat-free muffins, coffee, tea, juice – and good conversation and hopefully some help, if that’s what you need. $15 in advance and $20 at the door. To register: http://bit.ly/GRXHrA and hope to see you there, bright and early.

Larry and Sergei were just out of Stanford when they launched Google. Zuck left Harvard to focus on Facebook. Let’s face it: we’ve never seen a generation who’ve achieved this level of fame/wealth/power when they were barely old enough to shave. And who have managed to wield a great deal power before they’ve had a chance to develop an understanding of the long-term repercussions of their technologies/actions. We really have no idea what consequences this will have down the road, either for them personally, or for the world at large. Although it is interesting to see what’s happening to Google now that the founders are no longer twentysomethings, and FB is poised to be one of the largest IPOs in history. Which may help to explain why GOOG is chasing Apple on the smartphone front, and FB on social – and seemingly losing their direction (Forget Evil. When’s The Last Time Google Blew You Away? http://read.bi/GVDPUb). That has to be one of the pitfalls of so much success so fast/young: the frustration/desperation that comes with not having experienced not being #1, and believing that you can crush the competition because you’re, well, you. Being knocked out of the top spot at Apple, and returning later, older and more seasoned, certainly didn’t hurt Steve Jobs. Youth has its place, but so does experience outside of the little bubble in which you’ve been secluded, probably literally since birth. With FB cataloguing our lives and Google tracking our every move, we the people are surrendering a great deal of personal information – willingly – to these kids which, had the government required that we do so, we’d have been up in arms. And what is Google’s next move?  Google wants to serve you ads based on the background noise of your phone calls: http://tnw.co/GDvAIV). Weren’t they slapped down not too long ago on geolocation issues? The Google response: We file patent applications on a variety of ideas that our employees come up with. Some of those ideas later mature into real products or services, some don’t. Prospective product announcements should not necessarily be inferred from our patent applications. Guys, you’re not above the law; you’re not kids anymore and the idea is to live and learn, and – heaven forfend – develop a moral code, not to try to figure out some other way around law in the pursuit of more profits. Grow up: it’s certainly not endearing you to us and frankly, well, like you, your shenanigans are getting old fast, too. Onward and forward. Read More...

Good morning, All,

First, come join us for our next ERA + SOS Startup Breakfast on April 12th, This one will take place at SOS Headquarters, in a lovely backyard on the UWS. Breakfast will include famous Fairway bagels, our own healthy, fat-free muffins, coffee, tea, juice – and lively conversation. Date: April 12^th, 8.30 am – 10. $15 in advance and $20 at the door. To register: http://bit.ly/GRXHrA and hope to see you there, bright and early.

The big news this week is employers asking job applicants for their facebook passwords (Two US senators ask the Attorney General to investigate employers asking for Facebook logins: http://vrge.co/GNYTMi). Yes, it is an invasion of privacy, not to mention various laws that it violates, but are employers really that clueless? With more and more people tweeting, all they really need to do is – follow that potential hire on twitter. Seriously. We know a number of people who attended SxSW, many of whom were sent by their employers and what was the big standout in the tweet stream? The free food trucks and the parties, re drinkfests. From what we saw, little or no real news was reported or technologies touted – or tweeted. What were you tweeting and think that employer is likely to send you again next year? A few simple guidelines on social media and while they may seem obvious, hey, our tweetdeck is always up, and sometimes it’s the obvious that escapes us:
1.     Think before you tweet – someone’s always watching and/or retweeting
2.     Do we really care where you had breakfast/lunch/dinner – and you had how much to drink and where? Tweets are forever, the health police are out in force and your employer will know it’s a hangover and not some 24 hour bug.
3.     Keep your tweets relevant: you never know who’s reading them. It’s a public record of your life and you don’t need share everything with us.
4.     Never tweet when you’re angry
5.     Stay the hell off your computer/ipad/smartphone when you’re drunk
6.     While employers – or potential employers – might not get access to your facebook password, they can still read your blog. Careful what you say. It’s not a personal diary – unless it’s password protected.
7.     Foursquare: another favorite or soon to be favorite of employers, burglers and stalkers everywhere.
We’re not picking on SxSW attendees, and we know you worked hard and did what you needed to do, so calm down. We’re also a big fan of social/networked media and like many applications, it’s a tool and one to be used wisely and with forethought. With video cameras pretty much ubiquitous and social media filling in the blanks behind closed doors, careful out there: what happens in Vegas – or Austin or anywhere else for that matter – no longer stays in Vegas. Onward and forward. Read More...

Good morning, All,

Happy Springtime and looking forward to seeing some of you at our SOS 1-1 tomorrow!

As we all know by now, Denveen is no more. Yes, foursquare’s junior cofounder and tech lead Naveen Selvadurai has decided to move on to new projects and who wouldn’t want to strike while the iron’s hot and leave one of the darlings of the industry? We’ve seen it before – founders being ousted from the companies they helped to create, including Jack Dorsey (twitter), who did go on to found Square, and more famously Steve jobs, who returned to Apple older, wiser and obviously much more capable of taking the reigns. We have no special insights as to the reasons/causes for Naveen’s departure, but in an industry where people are constantly looking for their cofounder, we can offer only something of a roadmap to potential landmines:
1.     You’ve heard it before: finding a cofounder is like dating/marriage, and actually, it’s usually more like a speed date. Choose wisely and…
2.     Don’t propose on the first date
3.     Don’t jump into bed on the third date
4.     Do your due diligence and yes, use social networks. That person might have great recommendations on Linkedin. Also use Linkedin to find people who might have worked with him or her, who didn’t write a recommendation. See what they have to say about your potential partner
5.     Don’t give away the store  at the beginning of the relationship. Build in milestones and make sure they’re met before you give away the keys to the kingdom. This is your baby: make sure you’re not in bed with an axe murderer. Think of it as a pre-nup.
6.     Hire a lawyer to negotiate your agreement. And yes, make sure to include a non-compete. If/when things do go south, and your partner has the information/tools  to build without you – don’t leave him/her with the weapon to do so.
7.     All of the above holds true, even in cases where you’ve known your potential cofounder forever. Look at Larry and Sergei. Larry’s at the helm. Sergei works on ‘special projects’ and shows up for photo ops: he hasn’t been booted from the company.
8.     This is especially important: is the cofounder you’re bringing on today the one who can see the project through for the long haul? Is he/she there to build the prototype, but does he/she lack the necessary skills to be the CTO? Or does he/she have the contacts to get you going, but is not the leader you need long-term? Ask these questions up front. Have that conversation early on. Leads to less hurt feelings/potential lawsuits/unwanted media attention down the road.
Yes, a business partnership is like a marriage and you can potentially spend more time with that person than with your spouse and we are reminded of the Dorothy Parker poem, which you should keep in mind while you’re meeting/courting a potentially cofounder you might have happened upon at some event:
“Oh, life is a glorious cycle of song,
A medley of extemporanea;
And love is a thing that can never go wrong;
And I am Marie of Roumania.” Read More...

Good morning, All,

First, our next SOS+ER+Hubitat breakfast March 15 at Hubitat on 26th Street. Come meet some new people and get first-hand help or advice for your startup – or just come tell us what you’re working on. It’s 8.30 am – 10. $20 with an RSVP or $25 at the door, and hope to see you there! To RSVP: http://erasosbreakfast2.eventbrite.com/

Next, our next SOS 1-1 with an Investor is March 21^st, but as we said, this one is different: we have a direct pipeline to a group of super angels whose representative will be at the event, and you must send us your deck in advance. This event is focused on startups who have developed product and are looking to get to the next level, which means, you need the money to get there. That said, it is also a networking opportunity, so all are welcome to come and meet new people/fellow members – but in order to meet with the rep, you must send your deck in advance and we’ll notify you if he has decided to meet with you at the event, so, no, you’re not guaranteed an opportunity to pitch. Just wanted to be clear. Send your deck to hello@startuponestop.com and we will pass it to investors’ rep. And congrats to those of you who’ve already submitted and were notified that he’d like to hear more. We love that and always happy to help – and looking forward to seeing you there! To RSVP: http://bit.ly/yhSveL Read More...

Good morning, All,

First, just a couple of weeks until our next SOS+ER+Hubitat breakfast March 15 at Hubitat on 26th Street. It’s March 15^th, 8.30 am – 10. $20 with an RSVP or $25 at the door, and hope to see you there! To RSVP: http://erasosbreakfast2.eventbrite.com/

Next, we are hosting our next SOS 1-on-1 with an investor on March 21^st, but this one is different: we have a direct pipeline to a group of serious angels whose representative will be at the event. Caveat: you must send us your deck in advance. Your startup must be tech-based, preferably a game-changer in whatever area on which you are focused (we know; they all say that), and this SOS 1-1 is focused on startups who have developed product and are looking to get to the next level, which means, you need the money to get there. That said, it is also a networking opportunity, so all are welcome to come and schmooze and meet new people/fellow members – but you’re not guaranteed an opportunity to pitch, unless you’ve submitted your deck in advance. Just wanted to be organized and clear. Send your deck to hello@startuponestop.com and we will pass it to investors’ rep, and yes, he is someone we know, so no need for paranoia. And looking forward to seeing them, and you!  To register for the event: http://bit.ly/yhSveL  $20 in advance; $25 at the door and of course we’ll have food and beverages. Read More...

Good morning, All,

First, happy Leap Year Day (tomorrow), which is also Sadie Hawkins Day, and it’s just a couple of weeks until our next SOS+ER+Hubitat breakfast March 15 at Hubitat on 26th Street. It’s March 15^th, 8.30 am – 10. $20 with an RSVP or $25 at the door, and hope to see you there! To RSVP: http://erasosbreakfast2.eventbrite.com/

As many of you know, we are a compulsive networker. It’s part of our job. We meet a lot of you at the various functions we attend, and a number of you have asked us for introductions to people who could potentially help you to move the needle forward. And we’re happy to do so, when appropriate. But we’ve noticed that some of you never follow up with us, so guess what the subject is this week? Right: Read More...