Here’s another post in my Genius Business Idea series. My goal in this series is to show how entrepreneurial opportunities are everywhere, contrary to the common myth people who say they want to start a venture but don’t: that they haven’t found a great idea yet. This project is challenging, more for bureaucratic reasons than technical, but there is ample precedent of people overcoming similar challenges in New York. Read[…] Keep reading →

I stumbled onto a concept I suspect may become one of my important ones. Science has a famous and useful phrase, “not even wrong,” that describes something not worth considering scientifically. For example, science considers the idea that of Earth being at the center of the universe wrong. The evidence against that model is overwhelming, though for a long time it seemed plausible since the stars, sun, and moon seem[…] Keep reading →

Attendees keep giving me great ratings, so General Assembly keeps inviting me back. If you like entrepreneurship and you don’t know General Assembly, you should. They teach great courses and have built a great community around teaching relevant skills. On Sunday, October 19, 10am-5pm, I’ll lead a seminar with General Assembly on leadership in New York City. Register here, you’ll be glad you did. Here is the announcement (they use[…] Keep reading →

The more I teach and coach leadership and entrepreneurship, the more I see them as sets of behavioral skills anyone can learn. Behaving in certain ways results in people choosing to follow you. Behave otherwise and they won’t. There’s no magic to it. The question isn’t if you can behave like effective leaders do. The question is if you choose to learn and if you find effective learning technique. Your[…] Keep reading →

I found a problem last year teaching entrepreneurship at NYU. Most students I worked with were born outside the U.S. and many wanted to become entrepreneurs. As much as they wanted to start businesses, many of our conversations had this phrase in them: … but I have to get a job with a big company to sponsor my visa. Following on the last year’s successful Women in Entrepreneurship panel, I[…] Keep reading →

Hustlers and clowns are two types of business people I’ve found. Actually, they’re everywhere, not just business, but I’ll talk about them in a business context. Hustlers Hustlers do what it takes to do the job by learning and meeting people’s needs. I love working with hustlers, at least the type I mean. The student who sold an apple as a challenge for five dollars and made the buyer feel she[…] Keep reading →

I found a problem that I think helps no one last year teaching entrepreneurship at NYU, also as a mentor. Nearly all the students I worked with were born outside the U.S. They picked my course, “Entrepreneurial Marketing and Sales” or picked me as a mentor largely because they liked entrepreneurship. Many wanted to become entrepreneurs. As much as they wanted to start businesses, many of our conversations had this[…] Keep reading →

In motivation, influence, and persuasion, sales and leadership overlap a lot. Sales is also the most common route to CEO, I’ve heard, so if you want to lead, you benefit from learning sales. Below is a video interviewing a guy who is incredible at sales. He sold an apple for five dollars, with the buyer believing she got a discount! My retelling the story about it led to a friend[…] Keep reading →

People ask me if there’s value to learning leadership if you don’t plan to lead. Yes, at least with the style of leadership I teach, based in self-awareness and emotional skills. It helps across many areas in your life, especially your relationships and self-awareness. I’m not sure if command-and-control or some other styles help as much. Here are six reasons, not comprehensive, that come to mind first. 1. Leadership skills[…] Keep reading →