Silicon Prairie News

Posts by Guest Contributor
OPINION

Four rules for raising money in a ‘recession’

4010_8c24a70a99_small April 21, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Lincoln (This is a guest post by Christopher Kingsley.) Countries may be unable to pay their debts and the global economy is still struggling, but if you read any tech news, it seems like the one place in the world where they are still dropping money from helicopters like its 2007 is technology startups. There are few things currently hotter than funding the next scrappy vowel-less app team. From incubators handing out $150k to every startup to ridiculous 100x earnings … read more

SERIES

Set goals that put butterflies in your stomach

4004_24152f98d3_small April 20, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Kansas City (This is a guest post by Jayme Thomason.) I was asked to write about goal setting, but I'd rather talk about stretching. Stretching, at first, can be uncomfortable. Kinda hurts even. When you stretch more often, it gets easier. Enjoyable even. No, I'm not talking about your hamstrings. I’m talking about stretch goals. What’s a stretch goal? In your business, think of the outcome you want the most, but that makes you uncomfortable to even say aloud, so you keep it to yourself? That's your stretch goal. Every startup entrepreneur sits down with their co-founders and plans. We're getting pretty good at it ourselves. We set proper goals like "increase sales $2,000 this month," and "launch x, x and x features." These are fine goals. Goals like this … read more

SERIES

Setting goals is the easy part, the real challenge is how to reach them

3964_a2914c3ef1_small April 13, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Kansas City (This is a guest post by Adam Coomes.) If you ask a successful entrepreneur how they achieved their success, chances are, they will talk about setting goals. It's no secret that having some goals can push you to aim higher, work harder and stay focused. Goals can turn your daily grind into milestones, the murky waters of your future weeks and months into clear paths with a finish line. But setting goals is the easy part. The real challenge is how to reach them. Start your day as a producer, not a consumer: A recent article … read more

OPINION

America, the startup

3932_033595a502_small April 6, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Washington, D.C. Amazing day yesterday. Leap2 was one of 10 startups from across America that were invited to be a part of the signing of the JOBS Act. During my day, I walked to the White House with the CEO of the Startup America Partnership, Scott Case, and it was during my walk that Scott and I talked about the Act and what it potentially meant for America. To that end, I let him know that I spent several years in D.C. 16 years ago, and at that time I left feeling … read more

SERIES

Remember to stay focused and keep shipping

3926_526bfc68ca_small April 6, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Lincoln (This is a guest post by Calvin Pappas.) Following up Dusty Davidson's great article on goal setting will be no easy task, but coincidentally by writing this I'm taking a step in the right direction for one of my goals to write more. Looking back on what process I go through to set and achieve goals has really helped me better understand what it is that makes early stage startups tick. For me it comes down to setting goals that people would call me crazy for, but then creating bite-sized and focused to-do items to tackle them. When I was starting SelectOut … read more

OPINION

Activating the Silicon Prairie

3889_65d65a95f4_small March 31, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Earlier this month, I had the good fortune of participating in a forum with leaders from around the Midwest. Executives from Greater Des Moines, Kansas City, Omaha and St. Louis gathered around a central theme: Metropolitan areas in the Great Plains and Midwest can, and must, take proactive and collaborative actions that are critical to the global economic competitiveness of the Heartland. In Central Iowa, we have had an amazing first quarter. … read more

NEWS

Breaking down the Iowa angel tax credit

3851_8a44fa1cae_small March 26, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Des Moines During the 2011 legislative session, the Iowa General Assembly approved an annual $2 million allocation of state tax credits for investments in qualifying businesses, often referred to as angel tax credits. On March 15, 2012, the Iowa Department of Economic Development released the application form for the credits. However, for investments made in 2011, the deadline for filing … read more

OPINION

SXSnippets: With Jock Jams and Red Bull in tow, RecBob hits the streets

3802_5ff83cb1fb_small March 16, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Austin The home stretch – time to take what we've learned the previous three days and fine tune the machine. | 10 a.m. - Load up the RV and head downtown. This was our first morning to sleep (eight hours of sleep, more than double what most of us had gotten in the prior two weeks). This morning, we are ourselves – leaving the team uniforms, games and prizes to rest for a few hours while we re-discover what it feels like to wear our own skin again. | 10:15 a.m. - Stopped at an Imeet.com event at Texenza Coffee … read more

OPINION

SXSnippets: Dwolla’s Lampe learns the allure of ‘lasers, wine and geeks’

3794_953cf576fe_small March 15, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Austin 1:15 a.m. - Walk in late, drenched with rain, to Gary Vaynerchuck’s Secret Wine Party from Matthew Rosenberg's Fast Society/Cameo house party. Lasers, wine and geeks make for an amazingly awesome combination. | 9:30 a.m. - Christina Aguilera apparently looks … read more

OPINION

SXSnippets: AgLocal embraces ‘awesomely weird’ Austin

3790_3b44f24b57_small March 14, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Austin 8:45 a.m. - It’s day four for the AgLocal team, and we’re already droppin ya’lls and agreeing that Austin is in fact awesomely weird (and uh yes, the locals would like to keep it that way). We’re up early to grab some provisions for a bbq we’re hosting at our Airbnb house. Local rancher Windfall Ranch, is providing natural beef for a cook-out tomorrow, so we need to load up on salsa, guacamole, hot sauce … read more

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