Amber MacArthur and Leo Laporte from thisweekintech have a good PodCast interview with Alex Bard of Goowy.com. Go check it out. Goowy has some cool new features coming soon.
I did a couple of posts previously, about Goowy, here and here.
technorati tags: goowy, Leo+Laporte, thisweekintech, gui, email
Tom Coates has posted a great slide show presentation from his “Future of Wep Apps†presentation. Go check it out.
technorati tags: plasticbag.org, tom+coates, web+apps
The Stanford Technology Ventures Program (The Educators Corner )has a nice Podcast with Cofounder/Brother Jeff & Bobby Beaver of Zazzle. They talk about starting Zazzle from scratch and how bootstrapping worked for them. CLICK HERE for the Pod cast.
technorati tags: zazzle, stanford, t-shirts, printing
I just read some great tips on makeing a perfect pitch to a VC. Go check out “10 tips for a perfect pitch” over at the Fleck/blog.
Tip 7: Don’t bluff, lie or try to be a smart-ass!
What you shouldn’t say: We don’t really need money right now (THEN WHY ARE YOU HERE?), that your exit is going to be an IPO or acquisition by Google (YOUR INVESTORS KNOW THAT), that this is a sure thing (NO SUCH THINGS AS…), that you don’t have any competitors (YOU ARE LYING, DIDN’T DO YOUR RESEARCH OR YOUR PRODUCT SUCKS), that you aren’t going to do it yourself (MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR IDEA, MONEY AND TIMING IS THE ENTREPRENEUR. IF YOU DON’T DO IT THAN NOBODY ELSE WILL) and don’t tell them they should decide quickly because you have other investors waiting unless it is true!
technorati tags: fleck, startup, Entrepreneur, VC, ceo
I’m sure that most of you know already that Guy Kawasaki has a new(er) blog. If you don’t know who Guy Kawasaki is then you should check out “The Art of The Start†or “Garage.com†or his Wikipedia entry.
Anyway, Guy started blogging a few weeks ago and has churned out more useful Entrepreneurial content, than any one I’ve seen. Does this “Guy†have a huge back-log of content? Or, is he just that good that he can churn this stuff out on a daily basis, on top of his normal daily work load? I think he’s just that good. I also think he’s might be addicted to his web traffic. With every list that he puts out, it shoots straight to the top of Digg, Reddit, Del.icio.us etc and then is referenced by other blogs all of the world. I think, maybe, once you get that kind of spike in traffic it’s hard not to try and better your previous post. No matter, I just hope he keeps churning it out.
The following are links to my favorite Guy Kawasaki posts so far:
technorati tags: guy+kawaskai, powerpoint, Entrepreneur, digg, ceo
A few months ago I did a short post called “Why you should start a Internet Company Today”. Turns out, that short post has become the most read post here at ATC. Go figure. So, for my benefit, I wanted to expand on that list and kind of make it a little more complete. Who knows, maybe this list will be helpful to others as well. I’m currently in the beginning phase of starting a company and am always on the look out for advice, tips and tools to help me along.
This is not a Top 10 type list, lets just say it’s a directory for a web entrepreneurs to get inspired, get connected and get shit done. I’m sure I’m missing some other great stuff so let me know what else might belong on this list.
technorati tags: startup, ceo, Entrepreneur, vc, design
With the end of the year quickly approaching, I decided to take a look around to see what kind of tax info I could find. While it may seem too soon to think of April 15th; like the holidays, not waiting until the last minute can prove an effective strategy for getting the most out of your taxes this year.
So when making your holiday plans, squeeze in time to give your taxes a once over. See how they measure up to our checklist below, and your pocketbook may thank you later.
I know that this post doesn’t really fit into my usual format but after getting screwed by the IRS for so many years I thought I would go ahead share this info with my readers. Hopefully you can use these tips to be more informed about your tax situation.
Year-End Tax Tips
1. Compare standard versus itemized deductions – Put the amount of your 2004 standard deduction next to your itemized deduction and see how the two compare. If your itemized deductions exceed the amount of your standard deduction, you will save tax dollars by itemizing. If your itemized deductions are close to your standard, then consider shifting some of them from one year to the next. For example, if you can’t itemize in 2004 but can in 2005, consider making your annual charitable donation in January instead of December.
2. Make flexible spending work for you – If you don’t rack up enough medical expenses in 2004 to meet the amount you set aside in your flexible spending account, you’ll lose the money. If you’ve got extra, it’s a good idea to start making a few last-minute appointments, and be sure to save your receipts for medications.
3. Keep track of medical costs – Keep track of your unreimbursed medical expenses all year long. You can deduct those only if they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. If you think you’re close to the 7.5% requirement but not quite there, you may consider having an elective or necessary procedure before year-end.
4. Get serious about retirement – One way to effectively lower your taxable income for the year is to contribute to or open a retirement plan, such as a 401(k), 403(b), deductible IRA, SIMPLE IRA or SEP. Make contributions for 2004 up until December 31st for 401(k)s and 403(b)s. With some other plans, you have until April 15th to make those donations. Check with a tax professional to determine which move is best for you.
5. Adopt a charitable attitude – Donating clothing and household goods to charities before January 1, 2005, is not just a good deed; it’s also deductible on your 2004 return. Be sure to get a receipt from the organization you’re donating to, and keep in mind that the deduction is limited to the item’s current fair market value (what you could sell it for at a garage sale). So do a good deed, and let it work for you.
6. Save with the sales tax deduction – If you itemize deductions on your return, you can choose either to deduct your state income tax or the sum of your sales tax for tax years 2004 and 2005. For those living in states that don’t impose an income tax, the choice is clear. For everyone else, number crunching will point the way to the most advantageous option. Since the change went into effect only in October, the IRS has provided a sales tax table you can use to estimate your tax for 2004 prior to October. Next year, though, save those receipts.
7. Put off the wedding – If you’re planning on getting married toward the end of the year, it may be wise to wait until next year. The so-called “marriage penalty” occurs when you pay more tax on a joint return than you would have had you remained single and filed two separate returns. Couples whose taxable income puts them in a marginal tax rate above 11 percent can pay a higher rate. Plus, deductions and credits can be reduced or eliminated when the incomes are combined.
8. Sell off stock – If you have a large net capital gain so far this year, you might want to consider selling some stock to generate a loss before year-end. Doing so could reduce the amount of tax you pay this year. However, remember that if you do sell stock to generate a loss, you are prohibited from purchasing substantially similar stock within 30 days before or after the sale that generated the loss.
9. Give the gift of cash – If you’re planning on giving large cash gifts this holiday season, it’s best to know the rules. If you’re married you can gift up to $22,000 to one individual free of gift tax. If you’re single but the person to whom you’re giving the cash gift is married, you can gift each person up to $11,000 tax free. A married couple can gift another couple up to $44,000 with gift tax consequences. Keep in mind that a gift of future interest (contribution to a trust that cannot be accessed by the beneficiary until some date in the future) does not qualify the $11,000 annual gift tax exclusion.
10. Don’t let extra money sit around – If you have a large amount of cash to invest and want to shift some of your income to 2005, consider investing in a short-term CD or a Treasury bill that matures in 2005.
11. Strategies for the self-employed – If you’re self-employed and use the cash method of accounting, you can decrease your 2004 taxable income by delaying your December billings until January, setting up a qualified self-employed retirement plan (SEP) and deducting contributions you make on your 2004 return, and buying supplies and equipment this year instead of next.
technorati tags: tax, irs, tips, tax+tips
I found one of my notebooks from the late 90’s; – when I was working on starting my first company (skateboard.com). That notebook had a list of companies and websites that were offering productivity tools and start-up information. It got me to thinking about how starting a company today is very different than it was then.
There are so many reasons to start a company today, but the biggest one is because it’s cheap. You can now rule out having to pay Microsoft for anything because of open source software, like Linux and MYSQL, and all of the free – or almost free – productivity and communication tools like Basecamp and Skype. And, let’s not forget how inexpensive hardware and Bandwidth is. In 1999, we had to spend $500k to build a website that, today, would only cost $20k-$30k . Operational costs haven’t changed that much, but the point is it takes a lot less money than it did only 5 years ago.
Additionally, now with blogging taking hold, you have, at your fingertips, a vast resource of information from CEO’s, VC’s and programmers that you didn’t have then. That information, that you can get from blogs, basically gives you details on the tools to use in starting your business and, even ideas on what companies to start. Below is a list of some useful information that has been blogged about recently. With the vast amount of information and resources that are out there today, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be starting a company. So, why wait? I forgot to mention this when I wrote this earlier but, of course you also need a good idea.
Evan Williams CEO of Odeo, INC posted his “Ten Rules for Startupsâ€. Click Here to view the list.
Nick Denton Ceo of Gawker Media posted his links to what he calls his “Start-up Kitâ€. Click Here to view the list.
Michael Arrington from Techcrunch Posted a list of companies that he would like to profile but don’t exist yet. Click Here to read his post.
Business 2.0 magzine went so far as to interview VC’s and have them desicribe companies that don’t exist but they’re wanting to invest in. They even give the VC’s email info so that you can email them your Business plan. Click Here to read the article.
technorati tags: startup, web2.0, CEO, techcrunch, basecamp, odeo, gawker+media, tools