Tag Archives: startup

So, You Want To Be An Entrepreneur. Are You Really Ready?

Business meeting - two people shake hands over a tableBy: Lewis Dvorkin, Entrepreneur in Residence

Someone once told me the best title in America is founder. They were so right. To start a company means you had an idea, put a plan together, somehow some way got funding, and then put a product into the marketplace. It’s exhilarating. It’s frustrating. It’s rewarding. It feels good. I know, because I did it.

Well, now I’m doing a second startup. This time I’m the CEO of a ten-person company because I so believe in the founder’s idea. You can read about it here. Whether founder or CEO (I was both at my startup), the work involved is all encompassing. In fact, the work never stops. Those realities came rushing back to me this past week during a trip to New York City, where I introduced our company to the marketplace.

Let’s take a look at what I did in NYC. In other words, let’s take a look at the many roles I played as a startup CEO. Would-be entrepreneurs participating in CSUN’s 4th Annual Bull Ring New Venture Competition, get ready to count to 18! Continue reading

Conquering the ‘Hard’ As CSUN Students Gear Up for Bull Ring

Shark Tank Meets MatadorsBy: Lewis Dvorkin, Entrepreneur in Residence

Marc: “Do you know the best thing about startups?”

Ben: “What?”

Marc: “You only ever experience two emotions: euphoria and terror. And I find that lack of sleep enhances them both.”

Wow, so true, as I know from my own startup life. Last week, at the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics’s kick-off session for the 4th Annual Bill Ring competition, I saw both euphoria and terror in the faces of students aspiring to be entrepreneurs. Okay, maybe not terror, but certainly apprehension.
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After Mastering The Art of ‘No,’ CSUN Offers The Joy of ‘Yes’​

Cal State Northridge MatadorsBy: Lewis Dvorkin, Entrepreneur in Residence

I got a really good piece of advice when I started a news platform company 10 years ago: learn to say, “No.” So, I did. It took me little time to say no when a trusted colleague urged me to launch a mobile site with our desktop site. Sure, MVP (minimal viable product) was on my mind. Mostly, I wanted to avoid chasing shiny objects. Back then, the iPhone had just been released and mobile was still glitter. I practiced the art of saying no (mostly nicely, I hope) after Forbes bought my startup. It enabled us to reimagine an iconic media brand with innovative products and minimal distraction. Continue reading

On the Steps of CSUN’s Starfleet Academy, Ideas and Careers Are Born

By: Lewis Dvorkin, Entrepreneur in Residence

I started a new gig this month, the same day I began year two of Life in California. My mother always told me… “If you want to stay young, be around young people.” As I tell my wife all the time, “I embrace getting older” — the ups, downs, aches, pains, graying, wrinkles… all of it. But my mother’s words keep ringing loud. I jumped into digital media 20 years ago and quite naturally found myself working with people much younger than me. This time around, I headed back to campus — California State University Northridge.  Continue reading