A three-way VC-Founder-Journalist ecosystem of greed, power hunger-fame is contributing to the current Tech Fallout
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A three-way VC-Founder-Journalist ecosystem of greed, power hunger-fame is contributing to the current Tech Fallout

Greed consumes VCs at all times, which is understandable given the nature of their business. And, of course, they are numerically obsessed. When everyone starts to think they’re all “great,” they lose sight of what it takes to build real businesses, which require much more than just numbers to function. When you look back, you’ll…

Gurbaksh Chahal: Ambition—Belief—Courage—Determination—Ethics: MY A TO E PLAN FOR SUCCESS
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Gurbaksh Chahal: Ambition—Belief—Courage—Determination—Ethics: MY A TO E PLAN FOR SUCCESS

Many up and coming entrepreneurs often ask me for my rules for success. They seem to think that as they set out on their entrepreneurial journey there should be a road map charting each step of the way. They imagine it’s like driving from San Francisco to New York and having their own personal navigator…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why Celebrity Sponsored Posts Shouldn’t Exist

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why Celebrity Sponsored Posts Shouldn’t Exist

Celebrity endorsements are not a new marketing concept. It is a time-honored marketing tool, dating back as late as 1930s for radio advertising, 1950s for TV advertising and as recent as 1990s for the internet. This framework hinges on borrowing a celebrity’s star power to build product awareness. The strategy behind celebrity endorsements are to…

Gurbaksh Chahal | How to Prepare for a World with Artificial Intelligence

Gurbaksh Chahal | How to Prepare for a World with Artificial Intelligence

With Artificial Intelligence (AI) now being seen as an essential tool in various sectors, it is important for our generation to incorporate innovative dynamic learning needs into our global education system. But when cutting-edge sectors evolve at lightning pace, it is not always possible for traditional sectors to change at the same speed. My company,…

Gurbaksh Chahal | The Harvey Specter Way – The Art of Negotiation
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Gurbaksh Chahal | The Harvey Specter Way – The Art of Negotiation

In the TV show “Suits” (just renewed for a fifth season) attorney Harvey Specter—brilliantly played by actor Gabriel Macht—is known as “the best closer in New York City.” He’s confident and speaks his mind. Quick-witted and intelligent. And he delivers great one-liners. Of course, he’s not without his flaws but he thinks outside of the…

Gurbaksh Chahal | What We Can Learn from Game-Changing Companies

Gurbaksh Chahal | What We Can Learn from Game-Changing Companies

Many companies are successful. Many companies are extremely profitable. Many companies become national brands. Some companies expand across the globe. And then there are those companies that are in a league of their own—the game-changing companies. They don’t follow the rules; they break them and change them. Iconoclastic companies such as Apple, Amazon, Starbucks and…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Starting Your Business on a Shoestring Budget

Gurbaksh Chahal | Starting Your Business on a Shoestring Budget

Start small. Think Big. When you’re getting a business off the ground you should certainly have big dreams. No-one ever got anywhere by thinking and acting small-time. Have a clear vision and set your sights high. Thinking small, however, is equally essential when it comes to your business overhead and operating expenses. It’s entirely possible…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Rise of the Social Executive: How Social Media Builds Brands and Causes

Gurbaksh Chahal | Rise of the Social Executive: How Social Media Builds Brands and Causes

Every executive needs to understand the power of social media to help drive awareness for his company and his own personal brand. The dynamics of the digital world dictate that any business leader who doesn’t stay on top of the ever-changing landscape is destined to see their business erode or be deemed irrelevant. Whether you…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why It’s Better To Be The Best Rather Than The First

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why It’s Better To Be The Best Rather Than The First

So many entrepreneurs want to have first-mover advantage. You feel compelled to get your breakthrough product into the marketplace ahead of the competition. You want the bragging rights of being the first and, of course, you know that because you’re ahead of the pack you will easily establish a dominant position. Right? Except, it’s not…

Gurbaksh Chahal | 6 Keys To Striking A Balance Between Business And Family

Gurbaksh Chahal | 6 Keys To Striking A Balance Between Business And Family

There’s an ongoing battle that most entrepreneurs and high-flying business professionals wage within themselves. And that’s how to balance their time between their personal and professional lives. When you’re building your own business or passionately pursuing the career of your dreams it’s all too easy to throw yourself into it all hours of the day…

Gurbaksh Chahal | All the Major Companies worth less than WhatsApp

Gurbaksh Chahal | All the Major Companies worth less than WhatsApp

Today, Facebook announced the acquisition of WhatsApp, the largest acquisition of any venture backed company in history. Started in 2009, the Company only raised $8 million and today is used by 450 million users globally across their mobile devices per month. Another remarkable stat is that – it only has 50 employees and never embraced…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why Mobile Will Become the Dominant Screen for Advertising

Gurbaksh Chahal | Why Mobile Will Become the Dominant Screen for Advertising

In his article on Facebook and the growth of mobile ads, Farhad Manjoo of the Wall Street Journal talks about the somewhat unexpected success of mobile ads over the past year and the growing tolerance that consumers (including himself) have for them. From where I sit, now on my third ad tech startup, I agree with…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Top Five Predictions for 2014 in Advertising

Gurbaksh Chahal | Top Five Predictions for 2014 in Advertising

In 2014, we’ll see brands and agencies harness digital advertising in a way that integrates seamlessly with people’s busy lives, whether through location retargeting on their mobile devices, predictive analytics or the intelligent automation of the ad buying process. Consumers send buying signals every day to advertisers and the brands that figure out how to…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Big Idea 2014: Geo-Targeting Is Everywhere

Gurbaksh Chahal | Big Idea 2014: Geo-Targeting Is Everywhere

Mobile phones have quickly become the remote controls to our daily lives. Next year brands will begin utilizing location-based data to more effectively reach consumers and successfully convert customers across the web and mobile. eMarketer estimates that mobile ad spend will spike from $8.4 billion in 2012 to $37 billion in 2016. But in order for the…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Swinging for the Fences: The Billion-Dollar Company
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Gurbaksh Chahal | Swinging for the Fences: The Billion-Dollar Company

If you want to start a billion dollar company, there are three things you should know: The odds aren’t good At the moment, there were only 39 companies in the United States that are worth over $1 billion that started within the last 10 years. But, about 50,000 new companies get funded every year, so…

Gurbaksh Chahal | I’m a CEO With A Paycheck of $0–And You Should Join Me
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Gurbaksh Chahal | I’m a CEO With A Paycheck of $0–And You Should Join Me

We’re all aware how A-list actors such as George Clooney and Brad Pitt usually make about $20 million up front and then 10% of the back-end to appear in a new motion picture. But if a performer really believes in their ability to bring people into theaters, the smart ones take far less, sometimes even zero dollars for a…

Gurbaksh Chahal | Time For A Trading Desk? Consider These Factors

Gurbaksh Chahal | Time For A Trading Desk? Consider These Factors

Marketers are accustomed to investing quite a lot of capital to build their core audiences. Until now, that’s mostly meant collecting mounds of data from multiple sources such as agencies, in-house metrics, marketing analytics companies and the social web, analyzing this data for trends and relevant insights before extracting the actionable information and deciding where…