8-30-2016, Entrepreneur -- When I first took the helm as executive director of the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center over a year ago, I brought with me 15 years of experience in the Silicon Valley venture capital community. I’d been through tech booms and busts, economic upswings and downturns, so I was feeling an abundance of confidence: Like anyone who’s been in a profession for over a decade, I (initially) found it easy to sit back and think I'd "seen it all.” I was mistaken; in fact, my first year of leading the Center taught me, through the experience of others as well as my own, that when it comes to starting and leading any young entrepreneurial organization, every day is filled with surprises and unexpected lessons. The Nasdaq Entrepreneur Center, for those who don't know, is a new San Francisco-based non-profit organization designed to educate, innovate and connect aspiring and current entrepreneurs. Since the center's 2014 inception, some 2,000 entrepreneurs have gained from its classes and programs. Through interviews I conducted with the Center’s Young Executive Advisory Board members, I myself gleaned five practical lessons that can help any entrepreneur who dreams of starting something big: Customer problems are solved on a continuum, not with a single solution. Data…

8-21-2016 -- As the event took on its second day, courses continued with packed rooms full of eager-to-learn attendees. While topics like fabricating to factory fit and practical tuning for a profit went as expected to hit all points on the head, there were added bonuses to most courses that presenters could not have anticipated: great questions from attendees. As KnowledgeFest continues to grow, so does its potential for learning. It's become clear in the last few years that for attendees to maximize their experience, they need to participate in a more active manner. This is understood by presenters as well, as most make it clear that feedback is encouraged throughout sessions to help provide the best knowledge possible from each expert.  One example of this took place in the course, "Business Roundtable: Leveraging New Opportunities in Safety and Driver Assistance." The course consisted of a panel that included two retailers, Brian Layton of Sound FX and Mark Millar of Westminster Speed and Sound, and two manufacturers of safety and driver assistance products, Steve Witt of American Road Products and Phil Maeda of Rydeen Mobile Electronics. During the session, the presenters made their case for why retailers should get on…

8-21-2016 -- Everyone wants success. But are you willing to change? Without change, there can be no growth. And in order to get what you’ve never had, you must become someone you've never been. Before you go into the woods, you'll need a map. Rest assured others have forged the route before you. Their experiences can help guide you to your own best you. Live forward by making a life plan. With "Living Forward: A Proven Plan To Stop Drifting And Get The Life You Want," authors Michael Hyatt and Daniel Harkavy help you begin to become the architect of your own life. Most of us make plans for everything -- vacations, dinner, our children's school functions. But rarely does a person make a life plan. If I asked you to summarize your life plan, could you tell me? Probably not. If you finally want to live with more intention and purpose in your life or become an entrepreneur now and not later, then your extraordinary life is on the other side of your life-planning design process. "Living Forward" offers solid advice in several key areas: Understanding why you need a plan (because as humans, we drift and get distracted). Learning how to create your life plan beginning…

Turn a valueless business phrase into an experience that will define your business. 8-21-2016 -- No introduction, no names. When the phone picked up, I started right in.   "What is this noise?" I yelled over the incessant beeping, holding my phone up to the radio. I don't really know why I did that, since I was using the car's Bluetooth and the sound wasn't actually coming from the radio, but rather from the installed radar detector speaker. At the same time the two blue LEDs took turns lighting up my car's interior. With the factory red dash lighting, it was like getting pulled over, just inside-out.  I figure my dumb phone holding was either because of the frustration of not knowing what was going on, or the surprise that, at 11:36 p.m. California time on a Thursday, some guy named Brian in Chicago actually answered the phone. "It's the speed alert," he said, with all the patience I wasn't feeling. "It looks like you may have accidentally set it." Sure enough, I slowed to under 70 mph and the sound stopped. Yes, I was speeding. A little bit. "How in the heck did I do that?" I said, now feeling…