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#25: Identifying Startup Opportunities and Validating Your Idea with Brad Feld & Dr. Sean Wise

About the Episode:

In today’s episode, we’re talking to Brad Feld and Dr. Sean Wise, co-authors of the best-selling business book, Startup Opportunities, which just released a second edition featuring a foreword written by legendary investor Chris Sacca and commentary from The 4-Hour Workweek‘s, Tim Ferriss.

Brad and Sean, however, are much more than just authors. Both have been in the world of startups and investing for a long time, and each started their first businesses while they were students.

Brad went on to sell his first company, become an angel investor, co-found the startup accelerator TechStars, and is now a venture capitalist at his firm, Foundry Group based out of Boulder, Colorado.

Sean, on the other hand, got his Ph.D. in business, became a lawyer, university professor, venture capitalist, and talk show host.

Now, they’re both incredibly active mentors for young entrepreneurs who want to skip past as many failures as possible and build businesses that tackle big ideas.

In Today’s Episode, we talk about:

[02:13] We find out what book Brad is reading at the moment.
[04:50] What Brad does today.
[07:50] How Brad landed his first and best-paying clients from within his personal network and while he was working.
[12:06] The very first company Brad invested in.
[17:10] The kinds of ideas angels & VC’s like to fund and what Brad looks out for in entrepreneurs he invests in.
[19:13] The best business advice Brad has to share with aspiring entrepreneurs.
[21:33] Brad’s best products, services, and investments.
[29:30] What book Sean is reading at the moment.
[30:35] What Sean does today.
[32:54] The first company Sean invested in.
[34:50] How Sean’s life changed after working for a food chain.
[37:29] How Sean landed his first and best-paying clients
[40:20] Qualities Brad Sean looks out for in founders that he invests in.

 

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Resources Mentioned:

Build The Fort: Why 5 Simple Lessons You Learned as a 10-year-old Can Set You Up for Startup Success by Chris Heivly

Startup Life: Surviving and Thriving in a Relationship with an Entrepreneur by Amy Batchelor and Brad Feld

The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan

The Red Web by Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan

Walkaway by Cory Doctorow

Startup Opportunities: Know When to Quit Your Day Job by Brad Feld and Sean Wise

Connect with My Guest:

Brad Feld’s personal blog

Brad on LinkedIn and Twitter

Dr. Sean Wise on Twitter and LinkedIn

Subscribe, Review, & Share:

If you enjoyed this episode of The Side Hustle Project, I would love your support. Head over to the show on iTunes or in the Apple podcast app and give us a rating please! And as always you can catch every episode on the Apple podcast app, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for tuning in.
In this episode, we’re talking to serial entrepreneurs, investors and mentors Brad Feld and Dr. Sean Wise, co-authors of the best-selling business book, Startup Opportunities. We dive into everything from how these two entrepreneurs got started, to what they look for in companies they invest in, how to validate your ideas and much more...

Hi I'm Ryan Robinson

Blogger, podcaster and recovering side project addict. Head of Content at Close. Join me here, on ryrob.com to learn how to start a blog, make money blogging and grow a profitable side business. Be sure to try my popular free keyword research tool & AI article writer tool, as well. Somehow, I also find time to write for publications like Fast Company, Forbes, Entrepreneur, The Next Web, Business Insider, and more. Let’s chat on Twitter and YouTube about our feelings (and blogging, of course).

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