As VCs triage their existing portfolio companies—how do you navigate trying to fundraise? — Like many of you, we’ve had to reorient our fundraising strategies as the current crisis has unfolded. Many of my portfolio companies have also asked for advice because they’ve never seen a crisis like this before. …

Kickstart your company’s culture in a week with this easy framework for early stage companies — Almost all founders know that culture is vital to long-term success, yet investing in culture typically isn’t a priority at early-stage startups. It usually takes a backseat to more existential challenges like fundraising, sales, and product-building. I get it: Investing in fireproofing while fighting a fire doesn’t feel like the…

Lessons, learned mostly the hard way, from building and running a company — In startups, “founder CEOs” have a kind of mythic power — visionaries who not only give birth to new ideas, but bring them to life across every stage as the organization grows. Zuckerberg. Jobs. Benioff. A few names that embody that myth. But the truth is, founder and CEO are…

From politics to doctor interference, there are too many things in the way, but technology and listening to women can help fix the problem — In 1960, when the pill was first made available to women for the indication of “menstrual regulation,” it couldn’t legally be discussed in association with or prescribed for contraception. And that would remain the case for nearly a decade. Today, to a surprising degree, even as more than 99% of…

It feels wrong, but it’s a game-changer for productivity — Society makes spending money on reducing your workload feel self-indulgent and wasteful. Some would even argue that any dollar spent reducing work for the founder is inappropriate, that it’s anathema to the DIY ethos of startup culture. What, you really can’t keep track of your own schedule? I can, but…

You know it when you see it, and it’s not helping you get any better. So why are you wasting your time? — Most blogs about startups today could easily be classified as startup porn. Take an article like “When to Expand Your Business, According to This Successful Serial Entrepreneur.” The title alone should be a red herring. Instead of delivering the value premised by its title, the article offers up chestnuts like:

A ‘meh’ might as well be a no. Hiring managers need to stake their reputations on the candidates they want to add to the team. — A few years ago, I read a blog post by the author and entrepreneur Mark Manson entitled “Fuck Yes or No.” …