When we talk about Capitalism being broken and economic uncertainty making people feel powerless, part of that conversation is really about the last quarter of our lives. Most North Americans have lofty dreams for the future, but too many aren’t prepared to bring them to life. Millennials are known for consuming “experiences”, and this often means a poor saving strategy when … [Read more...] about Saving for Retirement is Broken, Millennials aren’t The Only Ones Who are Screwed
The Middle Class is Shrinking, GenZ will be Poorer than Millennials who are poorer than Baby Boomers.
If you are a Millennial who graduated around the great depression of 2008, chances are your life went totally different than you expected. Millennials are being left out of the world’s middle class, research says As wealth inequality increases with each generation the Middle class is actually shrinking with a declining labor pool. Part time and temporary work masks this … [Read more...] about The Middle Class is Shrinking, GenZ will be Poorer than Millennials who are poorer than Baby Boomers.
Creating Immersive Experiences with Emotion
“Gamification” means more than in-game/in-product reward systems. There are other things we can learn from the gaming industry that I believe to be much more valuable. mmersive experiences are hard to build, they are both separate from the context they’re delivered in and agnostic of their audiences. So, how do you create something that powerful and abstract? The answer, I … [Read more...] about Creating Immersive Experiences with Emotion
Here Is How Google Works
Google is the world’s most popular search engine. A public company, currently with a $1.842 Trillion market cap, Google has a lot of irons in the fire, and it can be hard to keep track of them all. I thought I’d use this article to explain exactly how Google works. Google gained prominence as a search engine, and that still accounts for a lot of its revenue. Whenever you … [Read more...] about Here Is How Google Works
Why It is Not a Good Idea to Have Everybody Become Software Engineers
But rather find a solution to improve the quality of current software engineers. How often do you see posts regarding the need for more software engineers and a huge increase in applications teaching people how to code? Are these apps really that helpful in the long run? Do they really create the engineers we need? Here are my perspectives on a few common … [Read more...] about Why It is Not a Good Idea to Have Everybody Become Software Engineers
Finding Gifted Software Developers
Great developers are not made, they are born. I’m not one of those degree snobs. Though I hold both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in computer science, my experience has revealed a truth — the ability to write great software is a gift. It’s not something you can really learn. In music, anyone can be taught the notes but great musicians are born. No amount of practice can … [Read more...] about Finding Gifted Software Developers
Two Investment Deals Are on The Table. Which Do You Sign?
You’re facing two term sheets and have boiled them down to the most relevant facts, listed below. Which do you choose? Deal 1 $1mm total$500k now, plus commitment to help close $500k more from other angelsRoughly 33% dilution for full round ($2mm pre-money) Highly experienced, top-tier angelsVision for B2B, sales-driven technologyRequires team … [Read more...] about Two Investment Deals Are on The Table. Which Do You Sign?
A New (Old?) Model for Understanding The Stages of a Startup
The language we use for startup stages (discovery, validation, customer creation, company building) is abstract. The lines are blurry. And if jumping ahead of yourself is the #1 cause of startup death[1], that’s a problem. So here’s another way of thinking about the stages of a startup in visual terms using the business model canvas[2]. It’s based around three … [Read more...] about A New (Old?) Model for Understanding The Stages of a Startup
Blogging for Your Business Is Worth It Even if You Get no Traffic
I used to blog out of guilt. Every now and then, my investors would sternly suggest I blog more. I’d grumpily obey and then point to the flat traffic graph as clear evidence of blogging’s fruitlessness. It was a self-fulfilling prophecy of fail. I’ve written previously about my first month of serious blogging in terms of performance & initial thoughts. A couple months … [Read more...] about Blogging for Your Business Is Worth It Even if You Get no Traffic
Getting and Giving Good Startup Advice
Good people end up giving bad startup advice in two ways. First, it happens when the advice is given irrespective of which stage of the startup lifecycle[1] the company is in. Second, it happens when opinions are given about whether the whole idea is “good” or “bad”. Experts can often provide excellent insight about the practicality of a specific element of the business … [Read more...] about Getting and Giving Good Startup Advice