To me, good health is all about alignment. Aligning mind, body, behavior and spirit (if you're religious) promotes good health. My belief is based on personal experience. When I was in my early twenties, I was profoundly unhappy. I thought I was just "not happy" and going through the daily routine of life. I was …
5 Things About Turning 50
I turned 50 recently. Some books, people, things that make me more excited about the next fifty years than the last: Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder - Surprisingly inspirational read for anyone in their 40s or 50s in any fast-paced industry or environment. I say “surprisingly” because I’m usually turned off …
“How I Built This” (SoulCycle) Notes January 6, 2019
Both founders had babies when they started the company around 2005.Saw boutique fitness studios were a thing in LA (no changing of user behavior)Quote: “Had a need for a product” - not “I want to be an entrepreneur”Quote: “One of those things that would not leave me.” Always came back to this idea.Everyone thought this …
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New York State of Mind, 6 Years Later
I visited NYC for the first time in a few years. I blogged about NYC 6 years ago. NYC still has the best pizza in the world. I ate two slices every day. Not kidding.NYC has the best bagels in the world, too. I was a mule and brought a dozen back for my family.Some …
5 Years
I put my life on hold for five years. I had Stage IV lymphoma twenty 24 years ago when I was 24 years old. While the chemo and radiation were grueling, the emotional aftermath was even harder. My doctor told me that I was “touch and go” for a year after my treatment - the …
2015 Summer Reading List
The over/under on books actually read is 1.5. Michael Jordan: The Life. This is the Steve Jobs book for anyone who likes or follows sports. Not clear what Jordan thinks of this book but the author got great access. Thinking, Fast and Slow. The authoritative book on how to decide and the biases that affect …
Valuation vs. Ownership
When I speak to most founders and investors about financings, we focus on valuation. And when we think of valuation, the other side of the coin is dilution. For any fixed invested amount, the higher the valuation, the lower the dilution. Investors and founders can get fixated on this tradeoff of valuation vs. dilution. A …
Fundraising Advice – A Fortune Cookie Message
YCombinator had its Demo Day this week. There were 100+ startups with an unprecedented breadth. I particularly liked the health informatics/tech-in-bio startups, an area I’ve talked about before. And with every Demo Day, we at SV Angel and many other investors try to meet and evaluate many of the startups. We try to give advice …
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Mindfulness, by Joe Flacco
I don’t know if Joe Flacco meditates but this mindset is a great illustration of the benefits of mindfulness. “Everybody’s different,” [Joe Flacco] said after the game, when I wondered why he’s so good when the stakes are so high. “I wish it was as easy as not caring, not giving a crap. But it’s …
Ten Things I Think I Think – 2014
With a hat tip to Peter King, whose format I’ve used before: 1. I think 2014 was a great year for Bitcoin. # No major security failures. No systemic loss of confidence, i.e., price dropping to single digits. https://twitter.com/elidourado/status/545015760075382784 Increased merchant adoption: https://twitter.com/davidlee/status/544956822646300672 https://twitter.com/davidlee/status/543099540174155776 Healthy regulatory scrutiny: Ben Lawsky: “Four decades of slow-to-non-existent progress in …