There are some people who don’t need to speak loudly in order to be heard. Openbox founder, Marquise Stillwell, is one of those people. With a quiet but powerful presence, Stillwell talks with a poignancy that makes his tidbits of wisdom seem new and fresh, no matter if you’ve heard them before. We sat down with him […]

Whether you’re just getting into the game or you’re a seasoned pro, you probably know that being an entrepreneur isn’t easy. It takes a special kind of person with a certain set of personality traits to be able to ride this emotional rollercoaster and come out on top. As an entrepreneur who has started several […]

My father taught me a valuable lesson when I entered the world of digital media: Matt, you need to learn how to express thousands of words in a few. You need to reduce, reduce, reduce. But in 2013, there’s always a cooler, more innovative way to express yourself. About.com (highly reputable, I know), for example, […]

You’ll never catch Michael Parrish DuDell sitting around and doing nothing. The entrepreneur, award-winning speaker and newly minted author of the book, “Shark Tank: Jump Start Your Business,” is always keeping busy. “I fill my days with meetings, friends, events and tasks,” he told us. “I’m just not somebody who likes sitting in one place.” […]

Many companies have this idea that PR has an “on/off” switch, and when you turn it on it’ll work immediately. Startups are often the worst culprits because, by nature, they’re used to moving very fast and iterating often. Unfortunately, PR doesn’t quite work that way and it can end up hurting you in the long […]

When organizations face intense pressure, we find they naturally default in one of two directions: 1. an unleashing of furious activity or 2. doing absolutely nothing. Both are fear-based (essentially 1.flight/fight or 2.freeze) and because they are extreme, both are debilitating. This is written for the organization that is so seized by fear it cannot […]

Founders and management should familiarize themselves with 409A valuations early in the company’s life. Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code will come into play once you start to think about hiring. We’re here to help and we’ve brought in the big guns. We’ve enlisted friend of EquityZen and business valuation guru Bo Brustkern to […]