Ambition Today Is Now On Product Hunt

Ambition Today is on Product Hunt today! The latest episode of Ambition Today #13 is being featured on the podcast section of the website. Thanks to the incredible support of you and other listeners of the show we can make sure Ambition Today rises to the top as the best podcast of the day. If you have a moment visit Episode thirteens page on Product Hunt here. Take a listen if you haven't already and if you like the episode please support it with a simple up-vote. This is a great episode with Alex Konrad of Forbes joining the show. 

Product Hunt is a curation of the best new products, every day. Letting you discover the latest mobile apps, websites, and technology products that everyone's talking about. To check out all the episodes of Ambition Today that are on Product Hunt there is a collection to make it very simple. You can check out the collection here. Thank you again for your constant support of Ambition Today. 

Major Key Alert: Add Krsiskar On Snapchat

If you have been paying attention to the "pathway to more success" then you know Snapchat is a now a Major 🔑Key in the world of social networks. According to the 5 minute mini documentary video above, DJ Khaled (djkhaled305 on snapchat) is now getting between 3-4 million views per every single 10-second snap he sends out. That is two times as many views as a normal episode of Keeping up with the Kardashians, proving that snapchat is no longer just for sending pictures of food to your friends. 

With that I have decided to open up my Snapchat to the public. You can now get more of New York City and Startups by adding "krsiskar" on Snapchat. I'll make it even simpler for you. You can click the button below on your mobile device to add me on Snapchat with one click. And below that is also my Snapcode which you can screenshot and add me by as well. Lastly, if you know any other interesting snapchat accounts that are must adds, go on Snapchat and send me a snap telling me who else I should be checking out! 

Follow Kevin Siskar on Snapchat

How Ideas And Things Spread

Last week someone told me to listen to a new episode from the Ted Radio Hour podcast called "How Things Spread". After listening to Cognitive Neuroscientist Sophie Scott, marketing genius Seth Godin, President Bill Clinton, and more weigh in on the various ways ideas and things spread throughout the world I felt it was worth sharing it was so interesting. By looking at how laughter, viruses, products, death, and the human species itself has spread throughout the world you can start to see the profound and hidden ways all humans are connected. At the basis of all economic, religion, or political systems you will find a powerful and convincing story that enables flexible cooperation of humans beings in large numbers. Tapping into that understanding with your own life and business can be a powerful tool to have. Here is the link to check out "How Things Spread": 

Moving To New York City

New York City. The Big Apple. The Nexus of the Universe. Whatever you call it, it is one of the most unique places on earth and 8.4 Million people call it home. Many of those people moved here from other places in order to pursue their dream. New York City is the promise land of opportunity in the United States. Moving here however is no easy task. Getting a job in New York City without living here makes it next to impossible to get called in for an interview and securing an apartment in the cities crazy real estate market is a whole new world within itself. The city is expensive, the city is unforgiving, and the city is challenging. 

While living in Buffalo I knew that I wanted to move to New York City and that I wanted to get involved with startups there. I applied to jobs for months before actually moving to New York City. The call's I got back for an interview were to come into the office in a day or two, but I was still 600 miles away in Buffalo. I needed to be closer if I was going to make any progress. I flew to New York City on a day in July with Colleen to try and get us an apartment, but we quickly learned we couldn't get approved in a nice building without a job. After viewing a dozen apartments with a broker we finally got approved by a building. We were quickly educated that being as this was July, where apartments can come on the market in the morning and be immediately off the market after lunch we had to decide fast if we wanted an apartment or not. We took it; real estate broker fee, deposit and all. 

A month later we moved to New York City. After struggling just to get into the city I still had to find a job though. I ran out of money shortly after moving to New York City and ended up having to sell my car, which I had payed off while working bartending jobs during college. That only bought me a few more months of runway though. So I took a bartending job that I was able to get through a friend of a friend in Buffalo who happened to do some business in New York City (See Buffalo really is the "The City of Good Neighbors"). The bartending job was part time and still wasn't enough. Again, I was slightly better off than before but not by much. So I took a second job freelancing and working remotely online in the early mornings, writing for a tech website. I was still applying to potential full time jobs and taking interviews in my spare time. The cycle became that I would work bright an early in the morning, then apply to jobs and interview during the day, and finally bartend at night. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

I remember distinctly getting down to $20 in my bank account at this time while I would be waiting for my next paycheck to come in from either of the jobs. I was very close to having to move back to Buffalo. After months of this I finally got a full time job offer out of one of the interviews. I still remember being out to lunch. Colleen and I had company in town visiting us. We were talking about how life in New York has been treating us so far while eating cheeseburgers and I got a phone call. It was my future boss saying that the company would love to hire me and asked when I could start. It was an entry level job but it was enough that I could break even, pay my full rent, student loans, and live in New York City. Since that day, there have been hardships and challenges of course, but I am here. I live in New York City. Casey Neistat last year told a very similar story of his struggle in moving to New York City. How moving here can eat you alive and strip you of all your resources in the process. That even just getting set up to live in New York City is one of the greatest challenges people face. 

He explains at the end of the video how it has all been worth it though. How for him the opportunity has out weighed the tremendous cost of moving to New York City in the first place. I have to agree. The opportunities the city has afforded me since then have been tremendous. I get to experience new products, stores, movies, foods, services, and crazes in New York City long before people in other parts of the country. So many experiences. I am always surrounded by ambitious and motivated people here. I feel privileged and love what I get to do now with startups. It was not easy though. So as you can see there is a reason Sinatra once said if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. 

Ambition Today: Alex Konrad of Forbes on Harvard, Media, and Startup Venture Capital

Episode 13 comes to you from New York Offices of Forbes as we are joined by Alex Konrad. Alex is a staff writer at Forbes covering venture capital, startups and enterprise tech. 

Aside from our discussion around Kanye West's recent discovery of Twitter we explore Alex's journey to now. Alex grew up in New York City, then went on to write at the Harvard Crimson before working at Fortune. Alex now is a staff writer at Forbes and also works on the Forbes Midas List, ranking the top Venture Capitalists of the past year, and the Forbes 30 Under 30, highlighting up and coming creative and business people. Today we talk about Harvard, the future of media, startups and venture capital. We cover a lot in this episode. including: 

• Getting into Harvard.

• Working for the Harvard Crimson news and editorial board.

• Why empathy matters so much in today's world.

• How Alex got his start at Fortune working on the Fortune 500.

• The relationship between print and digital articles in 2016.

• When to go outside your "swim lane".

• How to become a real New Yorker?

• The advantages of the New York Tech Scene.

• Writing the Forbes Midas List and Forbes 30 Under 30.

• How large tech companies grow global startup ecosystems.

• What global cities are up and coming for startups.

• Why are the Venture Capital markets slowing down.

• The best way to get media attention for your brand.

Ambition Today Question of the Day:

How important is self marketing?

Links from this episode: 

• Alex Konrad at Forbes

• Alex Konrad on Twitter

• Alex Konrad at Fortune

• The Harvard Crimson

• The Future Is Empathy

• Forbes Midas List

• Forbes 30 Under 30

• Fortune 500

• Everything You Need To Know About A Possible Slowdown In Venture Capital Investing

• Ambition Today Stickers

• Founder Institute

• Audible

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS and on Stitcher for Android. 

Who should I interview next?  Please let me know on Twitter or in the comments. Do you enjoy this podcast? If so, please leave a short review in the comments below.  It keeps me going…

Listen to this episode now: 

Ambition Today Podcast Sponsors:

Audible.com

Founder Institute New York

The Power Of Saying I Don't Know

Lying, faking, and hiding is rampant. It permeates every industry and every company across the globe. When stress levels hit high enough it can affect any employee in a company. At times executives and founders are the ones that encounter the most stress and can therefore be most guilty of it. It is called imposter syndrome. It turn's out that there is one simple silver bullet answer to this problem and it is saying: 

I don't know. 

These 27 minutes of wisdom and honesty by Meghan Messenger exemplify why Meghan is one of the best leaders out there in 2016. Harvard Business Review just named Next Jump as one of it's only three Deliberately Developmental Organizations. 

It turns out that lying takes twice as much energy in your brain than telling the truth and it is done to avoid being judged. Here is what you can do instead: 

1. Listen: Do not default to just repeating what you have heard, actually listen.
2. Internalize: Personalize what you have just heard to your own life. (Use empathy)
3. Operationalize: Go execute with a real understanding. 

Along with the benefit of actually understanding each unique situation your in, there is one more key advantage as well. When you say "I don't know" you open yourself up to get help and feedback from other people. This is the most powerful benefit to keeping this mentality. It will open you up to new knowledge and therefore help you grow as an individual extremely fast. Check out Meghan's video below to hear the full story and a bit more of the story behind the the power of saying I don't know . 

Note: TP stands for Talking Partner. Its a program where Next Jumpers are paired off and meet daily. These partners develop relationships of trust and help each other grow through advice and support.

The Secret History Of Silicon Valley By Steve Blank

Silicon Valley's name is synonymous with high tech, innovation and startups. But even the great Silicon Valley had to start somewhere and it did so in government secrecy and wartime urgency. Steve Blank tells how Valley sprang out of the technology fight over the skies of Germany and secret efforts around (and over) the Soviet Union. This lecture is a must for those that want to understand how Valley came into being. (Thanks to Jeff Wald for surfacing this video and sharing with me.) 

Founder Institute New York Graduates FINY10

Wednesday February 24th celebrated the graduation of FI NY 10. The tenth batch of the Founder Institute in New York. The Fall 2015 semester in New York's Silicon Alley ends with nine great companies. Of course none of this would be possible with out the incredible lessons, experience, and wisdom brought to the program by our mentors. 

Here are the new companies building a better tomorrow: 

DealGeeks - Drive foot traffic into your business.

Donate Me - Help vetted students go to the college they deserve.

Home-Cooked Dinner Club - Fastest way to a home-cooked meal.

My Citizen Source -  The first U.S. citizenship game.

Paction - Friend to friend marketing platform. 

Pocmi - Connecting companies with international talent.

Ready To Go Survival - Personalized emergency survival packages.

Sofos Labs -  On-demand one-on-one legal experts.

Stareable - Searchable. Shareable. Stareable.

How To Pay Your Annual Delaware Tax For Corporations

"In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes."

— Benjamin Franklin, in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Leroy, 1789

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Learning to pay your taxes as an individual is complicated and confusing. For first time founders, learning how to pay your corporation taxes can be just as confusing. The state of Delaware website has tons of information but it's user experience wasn't exactly designed by Jony Ive. With the Delaware annual filing deadline coming up the question of what is going on here is a something I am hearing a few times from first time founders.

To offer some guidance I wanted to gather all the information and links you need understand filing your Delaware Corporations Annual Report and paying it's due taxes. The Delaware annual report due date to file without late fee's is before the March 1st deadline annually. 

Disclaimer: I offer this post only as helpful guidance as I am not a lawyer or certified accountant. You should still research on your own and consult your accountant if you are uncertain of the process for paying a Delaware C-Corporation Annual Tax. 

This information will help Delaware C Corporations file their "Annual Franchise Tax Report" and pay the amount due. Please note that the online portal to file and pay your Delaware taxes is not open 24/7, therefore you should not wait to the last minute to file. It is open between 8:00am and 11:45pm Eastern Time. For filling your Federal Annual Report with the United States IRS please note it is a separate process from the below.  

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FILE YOUR DELAWARE ANNUAL TAX REPORT AND PAY BUSINESS ENTITY TAX

• Go to the Pay Taxes page on the Delaware Division of Corporations website: https://corp.delaware.gov/paytaxes.shtml

  • Review and understand that there are two methods of calculating the Delaware annual franchise tax tax that is due. One is "Authorized Shares Method" and the other is "Assumed Par Value Capital Method". They are both explained here: https://corp.delaware.gov/frtaxcalc.shtml. I will be showing you the "Assumed Par Value Capital Method".

• On the Pay Taxes page click "Pay Taxes/File Annual Report"

• Enter 7 digit Business Entity File Number. If you are not sure what your is you can search for it. When inputted press continue.

• Click "File Annual Report" for the year you are filing for.

• You will now see the "Annual Franchise Tax Report" for you to fill out.

• If you applied for (link here) and have received a Federal Employer Id Number or EIN (for short) put that in the "Federal Employer Id" field. It is not required though for state taxes, so don't worry if you don't have one.

• On the top right you will see the Franchise Tax amount. It will most likely default to $180,000 (the most your taxes can be in Delaware, $400 is the minimum). Don't worry again as you will most likely recalculate this amount while filling out the report.

• Below that you will see the Stock Information that Delaware has on file for the company. This is where your most up to date capitalization table is going to be useful for you to reference. You are going to need to know the number of "Issued Shares". Look it up on your cap table and input it.

• Now input the "Gross Assets" of the company. The Division of Corporations FAQ page gives some information on how to report this.

• Put in the "End Date for the Companies Fiscal Year". Most likely 12/31/YYYY.

• Include "Any relevant Dates of Inactivity" for the company.

• Click "Recalculate Tax".

  • The amount of Franchise Tax due on the top right of the report should have now updated to a new dollar amount.

• Now finish filling out the form by adding:

  • Principal Place of Business: address, phone, and e-mail

  • Appointed Officers: name, title, and address

  • Directors: name and address

  • Authorization Section: date, name, title, and address

• Check over all the information you have input to ensure its accuracy.

• Read the terms and conditions and then check the box confirming you have done so.

• Press "Continue Filing".

• Review the copy of the information you entered.

• I highly recommend you print a copy of the information you entered for your records. You will thank yourself when you have that information handy one year from now to reference.

• Proceed to payment.

• Enter your payment information.

• Submit.

And you are done! You have now paid your Delaware Franchise Tax and filed your C-Corp’s Annual Report. If you still have questions the FAQ page from Delaware Division of Corporations can be found here and maybe helpful: https://corp.delaware.gov/taxfaq.shtml. If you still have questions or see any mistakes in the above, please put them in the comments below. Between either myself and the combined wisdom of all the other readers I am sure an answer is only a link away. 

Some Thoughts On Tidal And Kanye

I love Spotify. I became a user in England about a year before anyone in the United States even had access to the service. I have been a paid user ever since. 

Last year two new popular services came about. Apple Music and Tidal. In regards to the first, after seeing how Apple butchered my existing Music library on my iPhone with iOS 9 I have yet to try Apple Music. As for the second service, Tidal came along in the uniquest of ways. 

Mimicking the founding fathers signing the Declaration of Independence, Tidal lined up several Artists on a stage and had each of them sign the companies constitution. It was meant to be symbolically powerful but it didn't seem like the music industry revolution as it was intended. It was missing something. 

The Tidal Declaration came across as "tech ignorant". If that isn't a term yet, I'm coining it now. While already successful artists can build a walled garden around exclusivity of future releases, there is much more to building a successful product then simply access to exclusivity.

A year later that core thesis is being put the test. Exclusive album releases by Rihanna most recently and this week by Kanye West with his new album "The Life Of Pablo".

My album will never never never be on Apple. And it will never be for sale... You can only get it on Tidal.

— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 15, 2016

I write this to you my brothers while still 53 million dollars in personal debt... Please pray we overcome... This is my true heart...

— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 14, 2016

And since declaring this his album a Tidal exclusive it has been pirated over half a million times. For a man who is supposedly $53 million dollars in "debt", I am curious as the amount of money that a Tidal exclusive release leaves on the table from other potential platforms and CD releases. So a year later after Tidal's big release here we are. I didn't want to. I really didn't. But after seeing Tidal rise in the app store this week I have downloaded the app. I am currently listening to Kanye West's "The Life Of Pablo" in HiFi. Here are my thoughts in no particular order. 

When I left iTunes for Spotify it was because I could listen to any song I could think of on the spot. Instant streaming was a exponential increase in value over paying per song in iTunes and from what people have told me it was easier than downloading an album. I signed up for premium Spotify shortly thereafter to remove all commercials. I used both for a bit, as I had spent years building my iTunes library, but eventually I fully switched to Spotify. Years later I now have that same vested interested in my Spotify library of saved songs and playlists as I once had with iTunes.

Tidal's high quality HiFi music quality is not enough for me to make the switch though. Album exclusivity is not enough for me switch either. The album has been dying for awhile now and society is moving toward a constant release of singles every few months. Playlists are replacing the album. The value increase over my existing preference is simply not yet high enough. Lastly, "The Life Of Pablo" is an interesting album to say the least. I think I prefer Dr. West though over the new Ultra Light Beam of Yeezus. To end my mostly skeptical thoughts of Tidal on a positive note though, is that If there is one person who can make sense of Tidal perhaps it's the one currently Watching The Throne. 

Ambition Today: Avi Yashchin of Clean Edison Talks Having His Company Acquired, Data Science And Clean Energy

The sounds of science are ringing through episode 12 of Ambition Today when Avi Yashchin comes on the show. Avi is the founder of Clean Edison, the nation's largest sustainable energy education and training firm in the US. for those seeking to enter the Solar, Wind, and larger Energy space.

Avi had a fascinating front row seat to the great recession in 2008 while employed by Lehman Brothers and his story is quite incredible. The lessons and uncertainty created from being inside a failing company led Avi to afterword, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, found Clean Edison. In this episode we talk about his story growing and eventually having Clean Edison acquired by Kaplan. Also data science, the future of energy, and even more science: 

• How going to Rocket School as a kid impacted Avi.

• Starting a career in New York in late 2001.

• What the Great Recession looked like from the inside of Lehman Brothers.

• What to do if you have multiple ideas to start multiple different businesses.

• Having Clean Edison was acquired by Kaplan.

• Finding the right partners that compliment your business.

• The importance of building a business with recurring revenue.

• Why data science is cool.

• How the declining cost of data is going to impact the world.

• The future of clean energy.

• The future of the planet.

Ambition Today Question of the Day:

Do you always have “an ask” ready everyday just in case you meet the right person to answer it?

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS and on Stitcher for Android. 

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Links from this episode: 

• Founder Institute

• Audible

• Avi Yashchin

• Lehman Brothers

• Clean Edison

• Kaplan

• Earth Carbon Dioxide Levels

• 23 & Me

Who should I interview next?  Please let me know on Twitter or in the comments. Do you enjoy this podcast? If so, please leave a short review in the comments below.  It keeps me going…

Listen to this episode now: 

Ambition Today Podcast Sponsors:

Audible.com

Founder Institute New York

When Business Growth Creates New Challenges

The funny thing about growth is that it can be a double edged sword. As a founder it is your job to drive and create growth for your company. After all the hard work, eventual growth in your company is the result of over coming each early obstacle. But at the very same time growth can then immediately create new obstacles.

This happens because growth brings with it additional challenges that your company may not have experienced before. On one side you should be celebrating that recent growth has led demand to increase beyond your wildest dreams. At the very same moment though your company is reaching the maximum capacity of your existing processes and current team capabilities. 

This is one of the reasons entrepreneurship is a constant uphill battle. As an entrepreneur it is your job to keep problem solving new challenges over and over. Knowing this is one of the reasons we place such a high value on High Fluid Intelligence at the Founder Institute when evaluating new potential founders applying to the program. Can you quickly learn a rule set and apply it to solve a novel problem? With a constantly changing playing field, founders must recognize patterns and quickly adapt to survive.

The best founders have high fluid intelligence. They use it to quickly recognize the new obstacles growth has challenged them with, analyze, adapt and solve them. Ensuring that as the founder you are problem solving over and over is the path to increased growth and success for your business.

In order to prevent this repetitive cycle from becoming too daunting though it is important that throughout this process you make sure to remember to take a a brief moment to celebrate the wins as they come, or they may just quickly pass you by. 

Mise En Place Featured In Gilt City New York

This week is quickly turning into the week of startup companies on this blog and here comes another one. Starting today Founder Institute New York graduate company Mise En Place has launched an exclusive deal going on with Gilt City right now!

If you live in New York City and haven't tried a meal delivery service before (or even if you have tried Blue Apron and then realized its prep times take FOREVER) then Mise En Place is probably for you. I personally have tried both Blue Apron and Mise En Place and much prefer the simplicity and high quality meals Mise En Place provides. 

MEPnyc for short, Mise En Place is working to bring families back around the dinner table by providing fully prepped meals for two, that are available with same day delivery. There are a few options for you to give Mise En Place a try through Gilt City before February 19th. I suggest grabbing the "$25 Credit Toward Three Meals for Two" for $5 or at the very least make sure you grab the FREE "$15 Credit Toward Three Meals for Two" before the deal ends! 

• $15 Credit Toward Three Meals for Two - Free
• $25 Credit Toward Three Meals for Two - $5
• Two Meals for Two Membership - $44
• Three Meals for Two Membership - $66

Easy Aerial On "All-American Makers" This Wednesday

Last week I featured Easy Aerial as the Startup Of The Week. Today I am super-excited to announce that Easy Aerial will be featured this Wednesday at 8PM EST on Discovery's Science Channel during this weeks episode of "All-American Makers".

Easy Aerial's latest product, Easy Drone XL Pro, was chosen to be featured in the second season and Ivan, founder and CEO of Easy Aerial, claims to have put it through some rough testing on the show! So set your DVR or tune in Wednesday night to join the Founder Institute New York family as we look into the unique design features of Easy Aerial's modular approach while exploring the future of drones as smart and helpful autonomous machines.

The Coronation of King Siskar

Just need to fix the URL of this post before we get going here. Click here to fix this now and then you can keep reading! - Much better now! 

By the time you are reading this the 1:39pm EST Coronation has most likely come and gone. I Kevin Siskar, am now a King. Of an actual kingdom and an actual Castle in Ireland. You might be thinking to yourself: "I had no idea you were descended from Royalty Kevin?". 

Well the truth is me either. And to the best of my knowledge I am still not descended from Royalty. I am however now and forever a King. And I have some decrees to make before I explain to you how I found myself having the crown thrust upon my head. 

King Siskar's Royal Decrees. 

1. You must listen to the "Ambition Today" Podcast. You can find it here: http://www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday
2. All people need to hence forth refer to me as King Siskar, Kevin Rex, or Your Royal Highness.
3. One day I will own another castle. Once a King, Always a King. See you then.

As you can see I am having a lot of fun with this. This all started last year when I paid $15 to Cards Against Humanity for their Holiday Bullshit giveaway. The final gift of the promotion in 2014 was 1 square foot land on a Private Island named Hawaii 2 located up in Maine. Along with rights of that 1 square foot also came rights to use of the entire island. Thanks to that campaign I now own part of a private island! (See isn't this fun!) 

Naturally happy with the amount of fun that Cards Against Humanity generated with the $15 I gave them the year before, when I saw the 2015 holiday promotion I jumped on it right away. The first two gifts I got were socks. The third gift was also socks. Soon after followed a social experiment with laser cutting an original Picasso. For the final gift of the 2015 Holiday promotion Cards Against Humanity used a portion of the $15 from the 250,000 people that signed up to buy a Castle in Ireland. Yes, an actual Castle! 

Then they built a program around that Castle. Coronating it's customers one by one as actual Kings and Queens of this actual castle. They built a website to see at all time who sits a top the rocky throne of Sensible Castle. They enabled the ability for each King or Queen to make 3 decrees during their time as rightful ruler that would be entered in to the Kingdom's laws. And lastly each King and Queen will have their name etched within the castle walls so that generations to come can remember the great rulers who righteously spent their 3 minutes as King.

So there you have it. You can now call me King Siskar whenever you want. I am having A LOT of fun with this with my friends and family. I love the history around Royalty ever since I lived in London. My younger brothers have jokingly threatened to steal the crown once or twice already. 

I actually think there is a startup lesson in here too though. I am spending a lot of time and energy talking about Cards Against Humanity. It is all because of this awesome experience I have had with them over and over again. It could possible be the best $15 I have ever spent. The amount of creativity in this company is unreal. The result of that creative culture is extremely satisfied customers and organic virality.  

The island last year only cost them $200k which is much smaller than most corporate marketing budgets. Next time you plan to go dump your marketing budget in Facebook or Google ads in hopes of "going viral" stop and think to your self, is there a better, scrappier, cooler way to get the return on that money you are truly looking for. A concept that is actually worthy of "going viral". I should note that since the 2014 promotion I have spent money to also become a customer of Cards Against Humanities normal product, it's card game. I have bought it for both friends and family as gifts. I have transcended from a customer to a brand evangelist. That is the lesson here. 

Most importantly getting back to fun of today, just remember:

Once a King, Always a King!!! 

Startup Of The Week: Easy Aerial

I am starting a new blog segment called the "Startup Of The Week", or S.O.T.W.™ for short, where I plan to highlight a great startup each week. There are several startups working to make the world a better place and I want to tell you a little bit more about some of them. The Startup Of The Week I have selected for the week of February 1st is Easy Aerial. 

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Easy Aerial

Founder: Ivan Stamatovski, Founder & CEO

Headquarters: Brooklyn, New York          Operating: Globally

One sentence pitch: The longest flying quadcopter on the market. 

In my words: I had a few words to say about Easy Aerial recently. You can check them out here. 

In their words: "With three times more air time then any other quad. The newest modular drone from Easy Aerial deploys in one minute and flies for 45 minutes. That is double of the next competing quadcopter in the same class." 

Accomplishments: 

• Founder Institute New York
• 2015 Kickstarter - $38,500 raised
• 2014 Kickstarter - $45,627 raised

How it Works:  

If you want to learn more or let me know your thought on this week's Startup Of The Week you can contact me here.

Uber The Conglomerate

Google Logo 1997

Google Logo 2016

At one point in time Google was called BackRub back when Larry first met Sergey to show him around Stanford. Now it is called Alphabet and just yesterday over took Apple as the world's most valuable company at a $560 billion valuation. Throughout the years we have seen Google refine and even rename it's brand. It has come a long way from the small startup company that only operated a Search Engine using their initial $25 million dollar investment from Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins.  

Brand refinements can allow a company to take on much, much more. The Google of 2016 is a much different company than it's original search engine business. At a even higher level the Alphabet rebrand has solidified the company's new reorganization as an official conglomerate. Alphabet now owns the individual companies of Google, Calico, GV, Google Capital, X, Google Fiber, Nest Labs, and Verily.

I think we just saw the first step in this direction from Uber. Meet Uber the conglomerate. The company has just released a new logo and brand direction. 

"We leave no bit or atom unturned to create industries that serve people"

- Uber

 

Uber Old Logo

Uber's New Bits and Atoms Logo

While Uber is still the same company and no reorganization has been announced the new high level branding of the "bits and atoms" logo from Uber feels very similar to the move Google made with rebranding as Alphabet. Uber no longer just focuses on being everyone's private driver. The new vision of Uber focuses on the much larger goal of combining bits and atoms to create industries that serve people. While the company has yet to IPO, it's $60 Billion dollar valuation certainly shows the company has reached a scale at which it can start exploring other business models. For example, Uber Eats, delivering kittens, and Uber Rush are early looks at some of these potential other business models.

For now this is just a simple rebrand. But as with all rebrands the goal is to change the way in which think about a company. As customers, and employees, become accustomed to the new way of thinking about Uber I am really excited about the potential possibilities the company seems destined to explore. 

Alphabet, meet Uber. Another future conglomerate.

Alphabet Inc.  2016

Uber's New 2016 Logo

Tim Ferriss And Daymond John On The Power Of Being Broke

I listen to a lot of podcasts. Every once in awhile I hear an episode of a show that is so good I feel compelled to share it. That happened last night when I listened to Daymond John of FUBU and Shark Tank interview Tim Ferriss on how to turn weaknesses into strengths. Daymond turned the tables on this episode of The Tim Ferriss Show and interviewed Tim about the power of being broke. How to capitalize on a lack of resources and turn that into success. 

The power of being broke forces people to be scrappy, which could possibly be the best single word to describe the best entrepreneurs. Some nuggets of wisdom to absorb from this episode include: 

• Using empathy to attract mentors.
• How Tim overcame 27 rejections on his first book before getting his book deal for 4 Hour Workweek. 
• Making sure you don't over burden potential mentors. 
• Who makes the best business partners. 
• How to separate yourself from the crowd.
• Why you should be nice to EVERYONE.
• Don't be afraid to admit what you don't know. 
• Importance of putting yourself close to the action. 
• Always keep your sleeves rolled up.
• Maintaining your Time, Health and Nutrition. 

The Death Of The Headphone Jack

iPhone 7 concept design without headphone jack. Image credit: Handy Abovergleich

In 2014, I for the third time returned my wired Beats by Dre Tour headphones to Best Buy. Yet again they had stopped working in the one ear due to the cord bending down at the plug. Over the years I had tried Beats, Skull Candy, and many other brands of headphones. As they all suffered the same fate I needed to make a bolder change than just trying another brand. So to change it up this time I exchanged my beaten up tour headphones with wires for some Beats By Dre Powerbeats2 Wireless headphones. I made the switch to bluetooth headphones and said goodbye to the headphone jack, for the most part. 

The next day I went into the office, grabbed my shiny new headphones, and went to plug them into the headphone jack before a conference call; which I obviously couldn't. I had to take a moment, turn on my laptops bluetooth, and connect them wirelessly. Which then disconnected them from my phone as it also had it's bluetooth on. Also new for me was the concept that I now had to keep my headphones charged. Something I have never had to worry about before. I found myself from time to time gravitating toward my wired Apple headphones when using my laptop just to avoid having to reconnect back to my iPhone later. Needless to say, as a man whose headphones are so important they are always within arms reach, there were some behavior changes I had to make. 

Surprisingly though, I made those changes and I did not return my bluetooth wireless headphones. Two years later I still use my bluetooth headphones everyday. The sound is great! I am more handsfree with my devices when using them and my iPhone alway keeps me notified of the headphones battery level. As you can see the headphone jack is dying and rightfully so. The technology behind the modern headphone jack was actually invented in 1878. 

Earlier this month it leaked that the Apple iPhone 7 might not have the normal 3.5mm headphone port at all. Headphones will now have to connect to your iPhone either through bluetooth or by plugging into the existing lightning port where you charge your phone. A similar move to the one made by Apple last year when it removed all the ports on its Macbook and switched everything to a single USB-C port. I am confident that in 2016 we will witness the beginning of the end for the headphone jack as we know it for a few reasons. 

Image credit: Apple

First off, Apple now owns a headphone company. Apple is one of the few companies that could force the headphone standard to switch from 3.5mm to lighting ports across the industry using it's Beats by Dre brand. 

From the phone perspective this move immediately frees up more room inside the new device for other hardware, hopefully more battery. It also potentially removes the last hole on the iPhone that couldn't be properly waterproofed. Perhaps most importantly, switching audio from the current hundred year old headphone jack to using the digital Apple lightning port would enable higher definition audio. After all, every box of Beats by Dre headphones includes a quote from Dr. Dre in the studio telling you that you need these high quality headphones to be able to hear all the sound as it was intended to be heard by the artists. Lastly, a lighting connector enable's a whole new suite of digital software possibilities between your headphones and your iPhone 7. The rise of the smart headphones will likely be a result. 

Apple's growth has slowed and they will need to start finding new ways to keep increasing revenue. As shown by the new iPhone smart case, accessories seem to be one of their moves in addressing that gap. A lightning to 3.5mm headphone adapter would could be a major sell for the company if there is no other option to listen to certain devices without it. 

So just as in 2012 when TechCrunch declared Winter Was Coming due to Apple declaring the end of the 30 pin chargers that were in the iPhone 4, Spring will follow winter very quickly. We will all adapt. In the process we will finally update a 100 year old technology, have better sounding music, enjoy a smarter pair of headphones, and once again Apple will continue to lead innovation in the mobile space. 

Startup Of The Week: Fund That Flip

I am starting a new blog segment called the "Startup Of The Week", or S.O.T.W.™ for short, where I plan to highlight a great startup each week. There are several startups working to make the world a better place and I want to tell you a little bit more about some of them. The Startup Of The Week I have selected for the week of January 25th is Fund That Flip. 

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Fund That Flip

Founder: Matt Rodak, CEO

Headquarters: New York, New York          Operating: United States

One sentence pitch: The easiest way to fund your real estate investments.

In my words: Fund That Flip connects real estate investors, starting at only a $5,000 minimum, who are looking to invest money with house flippers that are looking to borrow money for an upcoming renovation.

In their words: "We are technology, real estate and financial service professionals on a mission to create new opportunities for Investors to take advantage of the positive returns real estate can provide. At the same time, we are helping re-developers access a new source of capital so they can focus on what they do best – finding and rehabilitating homes so they are again livable. Leveraging our team’s diverse expertise and new legislation passed as part of the JOBS Act, we are building the preferred real estate investment marketplace for investors and re-developers."

Accomplishments: 

• Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator
• Founder Institute New York

How it Works:  

If you want to learn more or let me know your thought on this week's Startup Of The Week you can contact me here.