3/22/11
Good morning, All,
What a week, eh? The supermoon on Saturday evening (http://bit.ly/gXsVP8) and if you missed it, you won’t be able to see it again until 2029; war #3 in Libya and the battle between Michael Yavonditte (hashable) and the press (How Not to Interact with the Press: http://bit.ly/ii7oWi). Onward and forward:
Deadlines!
Enter the Startup 2011 Competition For A Chance To Win $100,000 In Cash And Prizes, courtesy of Business Insider. Do you have what it takes to bring home the big check? From hundreds of applicants, our judges –Joel Cutler of General Catalyst, David Pakman of Venrock, Rick Heitzman of FirstMark, Stuart Ellman of RRE, Habib Kairouz of Rho, and Laura Sachar of Starvest — will winnow the list down to seven. Each will present on stage and withstand the judges’ grilling. One lucky winner will pocket $100,000: a $25,000 investment from founding sponsor General Catalyst Partners and $75,000 in goods and services to boost his or her startup. Even more valuable than the cash investment is the exposure and networking opportunities you’ll receive if you’re chosen as one of the seven finalists. Startup 2011 is for startups that have raised less than $2.5 million in outside financing. Application deadline: midnight, March 30. For more information and to enter: http://read.bi/gz6cSS
Lean Startup Machine is back and the deadline is tonight! At Lean Startup Machine, you’ll learn how to figure out what customers really want. In 48 hours, you’ll form a team with other participants and work on a new startup while competing for cash, mentorship, and glory. Lean Startup Machine will change the way you think about building startups.Deadline: March 22. Details and to apply:http://nyc.theleanstartupmachine.com/
Good Deeds Time:
Twestival is two days away: Thursday, March 24 and it’s for a good cause: Twestival is a global movement where people come together with their Twitter buddies to raise money for charity. This year, the NYC group chose iMentor, where young people and volunteer adult mentors build their relationships through a combination of e-mail correspondence and in-person meetings. Sponsorships are still available and did we mention that #Hashable (yes, Michael, again) is the headline sponsor? For tickets: http://newyork.Twestival.com. Come meet, tweet and give. The event will also be broadcast by watchitoo.
Taka Kigawa Benefit Concert for Japan, Saturday, April 2. As you know, Japan is now facing the series of unprecedented, unimaginable crises. Pianist Taka Kigawa is doing a benefit concert for Japan. Details to come. Tickets $25 and the 100% of the ticket sales goes to the Japan Earthquake Relief Fund by Japan Society. For more information: http://on.fb.me/dV5Ij7 Also, if you have friends or family in Japan and are a TW phone customer, you can make free calls to check in on them, until 4/15: http://tinyurl.com/4pz38tl
This week’s Entrepreneurs Roundtable will be the largest one ever, with Metamorphic Venture’s Lewis Gersh, a Q&A on Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator, and some of the ERA mentors will also be attending. ER is this Thursday http://bit.ly/e0cl1b. Deadline for ERA is April 30th. For more information: http://bit.ly/eB43sg
This week’s reading:
From Steve Blank, The New Rules for the New Internet Bubble. The rules for making money are different in a bubble than in normal times. What are they, how do they differ and what can a startup do to take advantage of them? http://goo.gl/Whatu
We’ve heard it ad nauseam: in a startup, who is as important as what – teams matter, so from Mark Suster: Whom Should You Hire at a Startup? (Attitude Over Aptitude) http://bit.ly/i7kk1d
From SXSW: Reid Hoffman and Web 3.0. The Fast Company article: http://bit.ly/gRCl63 and the youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6mb5imj2pM
8 Questions on How to Prepare for VC Meetings. Good points from Ben Yoskowitz, a successful entrepreneur and founder of an early stage accelerator: http://bit.ly/eG0Wge
Since it is finally Spring, and New Yorkers love to eat, and be outdoors, and take our meals walking: The 11 Best Food Trucks in NYC: http://bit.ly/hjJVOy
And yes, this week we will leave you with a chuckle of the week. This one is just too good to miss and a definite contender for the Stella Awards: Man Complains To Police About Being Shorted By His Cocaine Dealer: http://bit.ly/hcRO6l and yes, he probably would have been better served – no pun intended – had he called the Better Business Bureau.
Finally, we are planning another StartupOneStop gathering, and once again, you’ll be able to do your elevator pitch on video! Developing, and we will have a time/date/venue for you next week and in the meantime, help is on the way…