Wanted: Women entrepreneurs | CNN Money

March 24, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

American Underground has a lofty goal — to become the most diverse startup incubator by the end of 2016.

Why the rush?

“Great business ideas aren’t getting the opportunity to come to market because the tech community of startups and investors lacks diversity,” said Adam Klein, chief strategist with the Durham, N.C.-based accelerator.

So by the end of next year, American Underground wants women and minority-led firms to make up more than 50% of its startups. (Currently, it’s 36% of the 225 startups.)

It’s not just lip service. Klein pointed to a variety of initiatives started in 2013 to aggressively recruit more female entrepreneurs to its three campuses.

There’s a nursing room at American Underground’s main location in downtown Durham. Networking, mentoring and cocktail hour events are scheduled before 6 p.m.

An Implant Could One Day Fix Spinal Cords And Let People Walk Again (Rats Already Are) | Co.Exist

March 24, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Here’s how we might fix spinal injuries in the future: with an implant that reconnects our body with the rest of our nervous system.

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, in Lausanne, have developed the e-Dura—a tiny skinlike device that attaches directly to damaged spinal cords. By sending out small electrical pulses, it stimulates the cord as if it were receiving signals from the brain, thus allowing movement.

“The purpose of the neuro-prosthesis is to excite the neurons that are on the spinal cord below the site of the injury and activate them, just like if they were receiving information from the brain,” says Stéphanie Lacour, a professor at the institute.

March Business Scan 2015 | LAECD

March 23, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Kyser Center for Economic Research is pleased to provide the March 2015 issue of Business Scan, a compilation of 16 key Los Angeles County economic indicators and business trends, including employment in 7 industries, unemployment rates, trade, housing, tourism and entertainment.

The Sharks Are In The Details | Peter Mehit

March 23, 2015March 23, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

We frequently review contracts for our clients. It allows them to get another set of experienced eyes on an important document without the expense of an attorney. We read the document finding clauses and language that may be gotchas, referring them to an attorney for further review if needed.

We’ve noticed a trend recently. Contracts are becoming onerous, in some cases, predatory. We see this trend in everything from leases to service contracts to partnering agreements. Many contracts are becoming one sided in favor of the party writing them. We’ve seen an increase in otherwise smart business people being stung by outrageous contract provisions. They sign these agreements because they are assured they are the same as contracts they’ve signed before. The behavior we’ve seen falls into a few basic areas.

Fee death: This is where you are nickel and dimed for every possible charge that the contract maker can imagine. A client’s recent partnership agreement had an 80 – 20% net profit split in the client’s favor. However, hiding in the paperwork was a 40% overhead fee, tens of thousands of dollars in marketing costs and a bunch of small, mostly unnecessary, charges. The true net profit to our client was 19%. The deal was exactly the opposite of what the client expected.

Continue reading “The Sharks Are In The Details | Peter Mehit” →

11 Major Spending Mistakes Many Entrepreneurs Make | Fox Small Business Center

March 23, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

When first starting out, it often seems that simple things like monthly subscriptions will only help your business. But after the first few months—then years—the small costs can really add up. That’s why we asked 11 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question.

Q. What is one major spending mistake entrepreneurs make unintentionally?

1. Paying Too Much in Merchant Account Fees

One critical component in your business is how you collect money from your customers. A large piece of that for many companies is credit card processing. As someone in the industry, I know how costly it can be to make a knee-jerk decision to set up what is quick and has a simple pricing model, rather than finding a reputable rep to save you on fees.

Why Fraternities Have To Go | AskMen

March 23, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It’s time to end the Greek system on college campuses — even Will Ferrell says so.

In a public Q&A via the New York Times last week, the comedian said that even though he was in a fraternity — Delta Tau Delta — during his years at the University of Southern California, the racist behavior of Sigma Alpha Epsilon brothers at Oklahoma University is “a real argument for getting rid of the system altogether.”

I couldn’t agree more. What began in the late 1700s as a small network of secret academic societies, in which young men at a few select colleges on the East Coast could gather and discuss topics deemed inappropriate by their institutions’ faculty and administrators, has devolved into a culture that not only condones abusive behavior, but in many cases demands it.

Small business tips | Business Insider

March 23, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

There’s nothing quite like starting a business from scratch. It is one of the most rewarding — and challenging — things you can do.

After all, it requires putting everything on the line for an idea that may not resonate with the market, and there are plenty of potential missteps along the way. The risks are clear: Half of all businesses fail within the first five years, according to Gallup research.

To help you avoid that route, we have compiled five important tips to keep in mind when you do decide to start your own business.

The BMW i3 Is a Peppy, Efficient Pain in the Back | Bloomberg Business

March 20, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Here’s the difference between an optimist and a pessimist.

An optimist drives the BMW i3 electric car and marvels at how great it is that he has only to lift his foot off the accelerator for the car to stop. The moment the foot releases pressure, the regenerative braking system will make actual braking—placing your foot on the pedal and pressing down—unnecessary. The car slows dramatically on its own.

A pessimist drives the BMW i3 electric car and finds himself annoyed that those blasted regenerative brakes make it feel like you’re stutter-stepping through every stoplight.

I tended toward the latter. It could be a character defect. I’m OK with that.

Immediate deceleration is not the defining characteristic of the car—the oblong body, 117-mpg efficiency, and variety of interior materials are all good candidates for that—but the sensation certainly commands your attention. And it gets more wearisome over time.

Lessons from an entrepreneur: Start before you are ready | BusinessTips.com

March 20, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ 1 Comment

I attended an entrepreneurship summit recently, where I was asked to help select and distribute an interesting award. Attendees were asked to write down something inspiring they learned at the summit and the best entry would win.

The majority of attendees entered the same mantra from an earlier speaker: Start before you’re ready. However, only one attendee went the extra mile and described what that principle meant to him. He applied the knowledge and was named the winner.

I was impressed by that because, of all the so-called entrepreneurs in the room, he was the real deal.

Thinking about this, I decided to look at my own entrepreneurship efforts (some successful and some not) to see how the “Start before you’re ready” mantra could apply to me. Here’s what I learned:

Sony has created the Cadillac of pay TV. Would you pay $600 a year for it? | Mashable

March 19, 2015 ~ knjohn ~ 1 Comment

Sony has built the Cadillac plan of Internet TV: It’s big, it’s shiny and it’s expensive.

Sony launched its new PlayStation Vue streaming TV service on Wednesday featuring a 55-channel bundle that includes shows from three major broadcast networks — although notably lacks ESPN.

Vue comes along just as the Internet TV market has begun to take off. Dish’s Sling TV, one of the first “over the top” (OTT) bundles of channels to hit the market, reportedly logged 100,000 sign-ups in its first month. Apple is also reportedly working on an Internet TV service.

Rich Greenfield, media and tech analyst for BTIG Research, said Vue represented the most recent of many steps toward breaking the dominance of cable providers.

“The bundling is coming unhinged right in front of our eyes,” he said in an email to Mashable.