For years, the global faith-based practitioner and entrepreneur of Jamaican and Nigerian descent has been a powerful force. He has been a dot connector and best-kept secret for those seeking to build relationships and navigate the African and Caribbean faith-based, political and business worlds. Faith has always been a cornerstone of these societies, and Dr. Dike navigates that space effortlessly.

An alum of Howard University, the University of the West Indies and the United Theological College of the West Indies, he is tapped whenever the U.S., African or Caribbean governments wish to engage each other from a faith perspective. Over the last 10 years he has partnered with the White House faith-based cabinet offices regarding immigration, criminal justice reform, education, disaster relief, religious persecution, internally displaced people, and global health priorities.

Dr. Dike and the CAFBLC create opportunities and premier events that convene kings, elected officials, national civic and faith leaders, corporate leaders, and stakeholders. Throughout the year, he invites prominent figures and advocates alike to Washington, D.C. to meet with the Presidential administration.

“My organization works in partnership with 14 faith-based cabinet offices in the U.S. government, and we bring outstanding foreign dignitaries to the table to engage the government and create linkages between faith-based leadership across the globe. It is a monumental achievement to facilitate networks and mission partnerships with them, he said.”

CAFBLC is linked with leaders serving thousands of churches with millions of members spanning the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, United Kingdom and Asia. As an interfaith leader, his fellowships include Christian, Islamic, Jewish, African and Caribbean indigenous religions.

These connections have allowed him to identify change-makers who have exemplified excellence in the areas of transformational leadership, economic development and volunteerism.

“We issue the Global Humanitarian Leadership Award and certify the U.S. President’s Lifetime Achievement Award for members, among others of our community, and those who positively impact our constituency – the African diaspora,” said Dr. Dike. “This year, we have a prestigious roster of recipients who will receive their awards signed by President Joe Biden himself.”

The honorees will be presented with their awards during the 9th Annual Caribbean and Faith Based Leadership Conference & Awards Gala scheduled for September 29 – October 1, 2022 in Washington, D.C. The lavish event will run during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s 51st Annual Legislative Conference.

Dr. Dike describes the affair as a way to champion the extraordinary work and volunteerism of the Presidential Award recipients by honoring them and allowing them to speak on panels. Additionally, it fosters learning, networking, partnerships, and serves as a gateway for people who desire to connect with the African and Caribbean communities.

“There is no other organization like this in the world, and we are happy to bring this kind of value on such a historic level,” he said.

Dr. Dike’s speaking tour garners worldwide invitations from global leaders, premier conferences, churches and educational institutions.

The post Rev. Dr. Agorom Dike Unites America, Africa and the Caribbean Through Faith-Based Partnerships appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Led by investor and entrepreneur Fernando Garcia, Bridge 3 Labs (B3L) is an Austin-based blockchain startup focused on long-term wealth creation through disruptive Web3 technology. Founded in January of this year, the startup describes itself as “the 1st NFT Venture Studio bringing access to exclusive IRL assets through utility NFT projects.”

Born in Spain and now living in San Francisco, B3L’s CEO and Co-Founder Fernando Garcia has made a name for himself as an unstoppable leader and entrepreneur. He currently holds the position of Vice President of K2 Capital and Senior Vice President at Postlane Partners, having held similar leadership positions at Gladieux Energy, CKC Partners, and Search Fund Accelerator. Fernando is now channeling all of his experience on Bridge 3 Labs, which he is sure will outperform his previous $75M fuel automation technology and distribution business.

With this mission in mind, B3L is bringing together a private community of entrepreneurs and investors from different backgrounds to revolutionize how NFTs create wealth. By sourcing, identifying, and investing in promising teams, the startup not only helps new Web3 projects get off the ground but also brings value to its members. The B3L team has over 30 years of combined experience as founders and leaders of start-ups and mid-stage across the IT, Energy, Luxury Real Estate, and Wine industries.

The project uses its own NFT “B3L Pass” not only to grant its holder access to the exclusive community but also to advanced trading analytic tools, research, educational content, private IRL event invitations, and exclusive rewards. While the use of NFTs as a means to access a community is not new by itself, the highly professional nature of the B3L pass. In addition to this, the team will soon be adding value to the Genesis Collection via “Heirloom” NFTs.

Non-Fungible Tokens have been long criticized for their highly speculative nature and supposedly “lack of value”. Heirloom NFTs address this issue by using tangible high.end luxury experiences and commodities as their backing. At this time, these include a private Bitcoin mining operation, a boutique hotel chateaux, and a world-class winery. The high value and utility of the assets backing these NFTs mean that they will be especially beneficial to long-term holders, resulting in them being an heirloom of sorts as they continue to appreciate in value.

By taking the idea of NFT away from an art-focused technological tool, B3L is looking to make them a more effective and attractive wealth-generating tool. While this would be closer to the idea behind cryptocurrencies, Heirloom NFTs differ in their use of stable IRL assets instead of services and trust. B3L is bringing the best out of the worlds of crypto, NFTs, and luxury assets into a single product, a mix that is sure to be a game changer in the long term.

The post NFTs Changed Art and Gaming Forever: B3L Doesn’t Think That’s Enough appeared first on Grit Daily News.

However, this has also led to a crowded market in just about every industry. You are competing with millions of other businesses. Standing out is incredibly difficult, especially if you are selling a popular product or service. In this context, diversity becomes key to getting ahead.

Before going into the reasons why, all entrepreneurs should be aware of the need for basic insurance. If you’re working from a home that you do not own, you will need good renters insurance for your possessions, including your office furniture and laptop. Since your business could be derailed without your possessions, make sure you are covered for theft and damage. Without a laptop (or the means to replace one), standing out will be the least of your problems.

Now, let’s discuss why diversity is key to standing out in a crowded market.

Finding a niche

Many young entrepreneurs make the assumption that targeting the biggest possible audience will bring them the most sales. This was once the case, with endless opportunity for companies targeting populations around the world. However, in a saturated market, taking such a generalized approach only ensures that you get lost in the crowd.

This is why finding a niche is so important. Niches are fields of interest that are compelling to much smaller groups of people. But by targeting a niche, you compete with a much smaller pool of competition as well. Furthermore, individuals grouped in a niche are usually a more captivated market.

Anyone can choose to target a niche, but the most successful businesses are those with a personal connection. As such, diversity is a huge benefit. Having someone on your team who relates to a specific niche that is outside of the mainstream gives you an organic entryway into the market.

Instead of competing with an endless number of other businesses for uninterested customers, you’re connecting with a group that truly feels seen by you.

Diversity brings innovation

But diversity is not just a link to target audiences you would otherwise miss out on. It actually changes the way you do business entirely. Diversity of thought comes from diversity of experience. If everyone in your team has similar life experience, you may work well together but will be ignorant to ideas and opportunities that you personally cannot relate to.

Diversity brings innovation, which can truly make your business stand out. Again, standing out may not be a good thing if you are trying to target as broad an audience as possible. However, if you are choosing a more focused audience, you will introduce products and services no one else is offering.

Broaden your audience

We’ve spoken about how diversity can help you specify your audience so as to target a more captive population, even if it is smaller. But diversity can do the opposite as well.

Let’s say you are already targeting a niche. When designing adverts, you choose to target populations that you know will respond to your product or service. If you lack diversity in your team, you will find it hard to identify the members of the niche who don’t look or think like you.

Diversity gives you insight into how people who are nothing like you relate to your niche. This gives you the opportunity to speak to those people, broadening your audience to include populations who are typically excluded but are just as engaged with the field.

Diversity in business is not just about opening up opportunities to people who have been excluded in the past, although that is important. It also helps you with choosing a niche, innovating, and marketing to people who everyone else ignores. Your whole team starts thinking with more nuance, leading to a better environment for exploration and discovery.

The post Why Diversity Is Key to Standing Out In A Crowded Market appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Kelly Hyman, founder of The Hyman Law Firm, P.A., knows all of this very well. We recently discussed high profile legal cases, celebrity hijinks and no-nonsense business advice from her perspective as a nationally-known legal justice advocate.

Elephants and Lawyer Jokes

I got to business right away with Kelly, tackling one of the big questions of our time: whether, and I say this tongue-in-cheek, lawyers are a “litigious drain of time and finances,” or a first-on-the-field needed defense of rights and the law.

Kelly responded in the spirit of things, commenting that this goes back to the age-old joke, “what do you call 100 hundred lawyers at the bottom of the ocean…?” Of course, no punch line needed here; it’s oldie and not necessarily a goodie so far as humor goes.

The reality is, she noted, that as much as people bemoan our legal system, we have one of the finest working systems of justice in the world. It’s not perfect (very few things are) but people have access to

the court systems, and the juries are made up of our peers siting in fair judgement according to the laws of the land and instructions about those laws.

My thought at this point is that, in an enterprising society shouldn’t the most talented, determined and knowledgeable individuals in any field deserve to create a prosperous living based on their success? While I personally have no issues with people earning good (or great) incomes based on their skills, perseverance or talent, Kelly had the type of perspective that comes from commitment to social justice.

Righting the Wrongs

Some of the most important societal protections of our time, Kelly pointed out, have come from expertly prepared and passionate attorneys arguing their case with conviction in our court of law. From voting rights to racial equality to righting egregious wrongs from unscrupulous business, attorneys – and the legal actions they bring to a court of law – are the defenders of individual rights and democracy at large. This makes sense, as Kelly has been involved in a number of critically important class action and mass tort lawsuits. One such important case involves the fight against human trafficking, in another she and a legal team have gone up against Big Tobacco in the fight against American Spirit cigarettes.

In our interview, Kelly is humble regarding her work. She feels honored that she’s been able to help large numbers of people prevail against wrongs done to their health, wellbeing and ability to earn a living or live a full and unencumbered life. Kelly noted that her passion for creating social justice and equity is what drove her to pursue a legal career and her commitment is to stand up and make the case for the legal industry’s role as the first line of defense in a free, fair and democratic society.

Johnny and Amber

Time for a shift in gears and topic. Clearly the legal system does, albeit at times imperfectly, function as the first line of defense in ensuring fairness and practice of the law. But now, it’s time to talk about the topic that is on all of our minds: Johnny V. Amber. I knew that Kelly had changed course from a career as an actress to the legal field. As an attorney with professional acting experience, including a stint on “The Young and the Restless,” I wondered if she could tell us where the legal defense ended and the acting and emotional engagement picked up in this lawsuit. And would there have been a different outcome if some of these purported acting or emotional elements were handled differently?

Court of Law Versus Court of Opinion

Kelly believes that, while this was a fascinating case, it was thoroughly and appropriately adjudicated through our court system – but the “court” of social media was an entirely other issue. In that arena, she felt, it was much less fairly judged through the lens of social media.

She shared that she is a strong advocate of our legal system as well as the #MeToo movement. Being raised by a single mom, she’s always been a strong advocate for women supporting women on all women’s issues. Having said that, there are standards to achieve in any juried courtroom and these legal standards outweigh belief systems and any attendant emotions. Kelly then proceeded to outline the things we need to remember about our legal system – and the process and outcomes in any highly visible court case:

Credibility Counts

It’s important to remember that we have a great jury system in the U.S. and that, based on the facts and evidence, the jury believed Johnny Depp on all of his claims of defamation, she explained. Based on the facts and evidence, the jury made a determination that Johnny proved all the elements for his case of defamation and he prevailed on all of his counts. It’s important to note that it comes down to the credibility of the witness–who the jury is going to believe based on the facts and evidence presented–the jury verdict reflects the fact that Johnny Depp was very credible and the jury believed what he had to say.  While Amber did win on one of her defamation counts, she didn’t win on all of her claims.

Having clarified this, Kelly proceeded to add that connecting with the jury and helping them understand – or believe – you are telling the truth is important to presenting your case. While jurors should adhere to the instructions they are given regarding adhering to the law, being credible, succinct and sincere can help greatly in conveying your case.

To Be or Not to Be: Truthful

So here is where it gets a bit juicy and draws upon Kelly’s experience as an actor. Informally, her impression is that Amber was overly dramatic. While this might not have changed legal outcome, it certainly made an impact in the court of public opinion. It further undermined the perception of her case in that she made several accusations that were proven not to be true, such as her statement that Johnny Depp had pushed a former girlfriend down a flight of stairs. Once the jury feels you have lied to them, they will be very vigilant to ensure “standards of truth” are met in the case before them.

Acting and Law

While Shakespeare’s Hamlet ponders to “be or not to be,” one might wonder if an acting career was meant to be a help in the legal field, or not?

Kelly feels her acting career enables her to see things in life from different people’s perspectives, that it was literally her profession to take on other people’s lives, personas and perspectives.

Because she honed that particular skill, she has the ability to understand, and have empathy, for what another person may be experiencing. The advantage for her is not only seeing things from her own perspective but also experiencing the situation from the eyes of the other person.

The take-away? This filter has helped Kelly tremendously in her legal career as a plaintiff’s class action and mass tort attorney, where she is tasked with the duty to help people who have been harmed. Empathy, she shared, has enabled her to step into their shoes and understand what they’re going through. This empathy also helps her to prepare clients for their deposition by guiding them through their experience and helping them capture their thoughts, feelings and experience in a way that helps them communicate and connect with jurors.

Having grown up in the entertainment business, the skills and values of empathy, communication, creativity and passion are tools Kelly relies on every day to advocate clients and get justice for them.

The First Rule for Entrepreneurs

Redirecting the conversation, I wondered about entrepreneurs. What are their stumbling blocks, legally speaking? What should they be mindful of to avoid legal action? Once again, the take-away from Kelly was succinct. If the motto “Think First” could be emblazoned on a t-shirt for every entrepreneur, that would be an excellent first step was my impression from Kelly’s feedback.

Her priority for business owners is simply: it is important for entrepreneurs to think before acting or reacting. “Think First, Act Second” should indeed be a guiding principle, whether it’s emblazoned a t-shirt, positioned prominently on their desk or simply top of mind each and every day.

The Big Three: Advice from the Trenches

Kelly had three key action items for entrepreneurs:

Seek Advice

Create a Plan and

Prepare for Outcomes.

Sounds great, but what does that look like in the real world?

First and most importantly, seek legal counsel before forming your business. Just as critically, make sure you connect with a legal expert who specializes in the area in which you need legal advice, whether it’s forming a corporation or just the day-to-day business. It may seem convenient and inexpensive to tap a friend or family member who, for sake of argument, is a divorce attorney, but it is important to seek the legal advice of someone who focus on the area of law in which you need legal advice.

Secondly, every entrepreneurs should plan to have business plan.

When she launched my own firm, one of the first things that Kelly did was create a business plan to establish the type of structure I wanted and envisioned for her firm. It’s the key to success, as it creates the roadmap to the type of business and outcomes you are seeking. As entrepreneurs, it’s important to think about different outcomes and the impacts of those outcomes so you can be prepared for the experiences that may come your way. Kelly added that outcomes can include success as well as failure and the middle-earth realm of so-so success. Understanding that you may end up in any of these three outcomes – and knowing how you want to respond, can turn almost any situation into the success you are aiming for.

When You’re in Front of a Jury

Time was starting to run out now, Kelly has some to go forth and battle evil in the courtrooms, yet there was a final burning question I needed answered. What to do to increase your odds of success if you find yourself on the wrong side of the juror’s box? Kelly’s thinking on this was equal parts advice and philosophy.

She feels that if you’re bringing a civil case, you have the burden of proof and you need to prove all elements of your case. Understand that jurors are human beings, and if someone comes across as not being believable, the jury sees that. Credibility is key. It’s important that when someone testifies they come across as believable and sincere.

We as human beings are not perfect; we make mistakes, but it’s important to own up and take responsibility and be accountable for the mistakes that you make. Owning your mistakes ( Like Johnny Depp did in his trial) can create empathy and connection with a jury in the right situation. Otherwise, you don’t come across as being believable – and it’s very hard for a plaintiff or defendant who the jury doesn’t find believable to overcome that obstacle and successfully make their case.

The post Kelly Hyman, founder of The Hyman Law Firm, P.A., Has Some Legal Advice for Entrepreneurs appeared first on Grit Daily News.

According to a report by Credit Suisse, not only are women less likely to hold executive leadership positions but they also receive significantly less funding. Data shows that in Europe, all-male funding teams receive 93% of all capital invested, with only 2% going to all-female teams. This, when combined with the fact that the percentage of women in management positions in companies around the world is only 19.9%, shows a clear bias against feminine stereotypes.

While the entrepreneurial gender gap certainly seems to be closing thanks to the efforts of many organizations and private individuals, there is a lot of work to be done. With most efforts having focused on female representation in leadership positions until now, venture capital financing for female-led teams and the empowerment of female limited/general partners seems to be the next step.

The Bridge is looking to do just that by connecting limited partners with emerging female-led technology VC funds. Founded in 2020, the organization has been fulfilling this mission by organizing “The Bridge Conference”, an invite-only event focused on providing resources to connect both parties, presenting emerging funds, and offering high-quality content.

With more than 36 commitments having already been made through The Bridge to emerging fund female managers, the organization launched its new initiative earlier in June. Known as Bridge Funding Global, the platform relies on a selection committee formed by US top institutional and family office investors. The committee will include 20 permanent judges who will help select the top female GMs to become the first members.

Female GPs interested in becoming members will be able to apply twice a year, with the cap being reached once 100 GP members are selected. The judges, who collectively manage over 2 trillion, will take into consideration the program’s promises to the community, which include:

• Create meaningful and personalized connections
• Be data and growth centric
• Keep a focused, directed, unbiased, and curated access to the community
• Increase transparency on the LP landscape 
• Engage ecosystem partners to ensure the best solutions and support to emerging VC managers

Competition is expected to be high given the increasing interest that The Bridge Conference has received over the past years. The last edition, which took place back in May, saw the participation of 40 LPs and 40 female GPs chosen out of 197 applicants, with a total of 36 commitments taking place. With applications closing on July 1st, there is still time to apply.

The post The Bridge Launches New Initiative to Fight Entrepreneurial Gender Gap appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Founded in early April of this year by Henry Joseph-Grant, Send-Off is a Belfast-based grief management startup looking to help people deal with loss. The startup, which is yet to emerge completely from stealth mode, was the result of its founder’s personal experience back in 2015 after his son died. In a series of tweets explaining the “why” of the startup, Joseph-Grant said: 

“In 2015 I had to arrange my son’s funeral. I wouldn’t wish burying your child on anyone. It’s an awful experience. For the last 7 years, I’ve experienced how the entire end-of-life industry/grief management at every step is inefficient. I’m obsessed w/ 10x’ing customer experience. Having been one of the first employees @JustEatUK It troubles me that it is literally easier to order a pizza than it is to arrange pretty much anything when you lose and grieve for someone. My team will change that and make a difficult time easier for everyone on the planet.”

The global death care services market was worth $102.58 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow by more than 10% by the end of this year. However, despite being one of the most valuable industries out there, most of its services focus on the process ranging from the preparation of the body to its burial and the upkeep of the resting place. 

Anyone who has had to deal with funerary services is aware of the emotional disconnection existing in the industry at a time when empathy should be paramount. While we are still missing details on its exact plans, Send-Off promises to bring the innovation that has been missing to help people manage grief. We know this much, though: diversity will be one of its pillars.

Joseph-Grant himself is a globally recognized entrepreneur who has successfully launched and scaled startups in the tech industry such as The Entertainer UK. He has also held a leadership position in companies like Virgin Media, Just Eat, Gett, and BigDish, as well as being a mentor for TechStars, Pi Labs, and Seedcamp before founding Send-Off. However, he believes that his experience is not enough to develop a grief management solution that can adapt to everyone’s needs.

The startup recently announced that it has completed six major appointments to its advisory team in order to make diversity a priority. The appointments include the name of some of the most well-known names in their industries:

• David Buttress: Former CEO at Just Eat. He is an entrepreneur and investor based in England. He is a renowned angel investor and venture partner who has helped numerous startups succeed and has been recognized as one of Debrett’s “Most Influential People in Britain”, GlassDoor’s “UK’s Top 5 CEOs”, and  London Evening Standard “London’s 1000 most influential people”
• Bari Williams: Business Attorney and Former Senior Lead counsel for Meta (formerly Facebook), She currently operates as Head of Ops at Stub Hub and VP at  Phil Libins global AI studio All Turtles. She is a published author on topics like diversity, equality, and inclusion.
• Steve O’Hear: A former educator and tech journalist for TechCrunch, he currently operates as VP of Strategy at Q-Delivery scaleup Zapp. With more than 15 years of experience in the world of startups, it was just logical that he also founded his own: last100 and Beepl. O’Hear’s work for TechCrunch, The Guardian, Macworld, Times Educational Supplement, and ReadWriteWeb earned him a place in Business Insider UK ‘Tech 100’ list back in 2016 and 2017
• Eamonn Carey: Former RTE TV and Radio journalist and Managing Director at Techstars, he is now a General Partner at Tera Ventures. He has invested in over 90 companies all around the world and is a sought-after speaker for some of the world’s biggest conferences, including Web Summit, Collision, SXSW,  and Mobile World Congress.
• Donovan Frew: Former CTO at Secret Escapes and StrataJat, he currently holds the CTO position at GoodLord, a PropTech startup based in London. Frew has more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality, e-commerce, intelligence analysis, and telecommunications industries.
• Justice Williams MBE: Former founder and editor-in-chief of Tru Life magazine and the Women of the Year Awards. Williams is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur, business coach, and trainer focused on helping women fulfill their entrepreneurial visions. In 2010, she became the youngest black woman to be awarded an MBE appointment to the Order of the British Empire by the Queen for her services to young people.

Joseph-Grant, who has an extensive list of achievements himself, said about the appointments:

“I hand picked our Advisory team to add proven, complementary experience and to be representative of the diversity of our users, I’ve never seen a startup attract the level of experience, caliber, and reputation of all six advisors so early on, it’s a real statement of intent of the world class company which we’re building here in Belfast” 

As with any startup working on getting out of stealth, Send-Off surely has many details to be worked on and decided on. However, with a stellar advisory board and a clear mission, the startup is expected to launch in Q2.

The post Is Grief Management a Market? The Seasoned Entrepreneur Behind Send-Off Thinks So appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Launched back in 2014, the event originally received a total of 1,500 attendees in Downtown Vegas. Collision has been experiencing rapid growth ever since, getting more than 1,250 startups, 200 partners, 1,200 journalists,  850 investors, and 33,000 attendees to join the 2021 virtual edition. This success has led to outlets like Politico and Bloomberg to nickname the convention “The Olympics of tech”.

Of all the tech events out there, Collision has also made a name for itself for being the fastest-growing tech conference by bringing some of the best speakers, startups, and investors, while playing special focus on startups and female entrepreneurs. If you are looking for an opportunity to network, learn, generate leads, find top talent, or increase brand awareness, Collision is an event you should attend too.

Collision 2022 will take place on June 20 and will feature speakers like  Michele Zatlyn, Co-founder of Cloudflare; Nicolas Cary, Co-founder & Vice Chairman at Blockchain.com; Flori Marquez, Co-founder & VP of Operations at BlockFi; Charles Hoskinson, Founder of Cardano and IOHK; Gavin Wood, Founder of Polkadot; Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia;  and Renate Nyborg, CEO of Tinder.

With Collision also being one of the top events for startups in the tech industry, especially those in the early stages, talks around fundraising will also take place. “From tiny acorns: The changing economics of seed-stage investing” will see our own Executive Director Jordan French take the stage with Jenny Fielding, General Partner at The Fund; and Kanyi Maqubela, Managing Partner at Kindred Ventures, to talk about the increasing competition for seed-stage investment. 

The panel discussion will take place Tuesday, June 21 from 12:25 – 12:50 in the Venture stage. 

About Jenny Fielding

Over the past 19 years, Jenny Fielding has become one of the most influential people in the startup ecosystem and a true venture powerhouse. She has personally mentored hundreds of founders all around the world, founded her own 2 businesses, and invested in hundreds of companies. Some of these startups include Chainalysis, Alloy, Dash, Headway, Supergreat, Contra, Particle Health, Bloomscape, Simple Health, Pair Eyewear, and Latch.

Jenny’s experience includes being Head of Digital Ventures for the BBC, Associate at JP Morgan and Chase, Managing Director at Techstars, and Adjunct Professor for Columbia University. Her role in all of these organizations has been closely related to venture investments and guiding entrepreneurs to succeed during the early stages of growing their businesses.

About Kanyi Maqubela

A graduate and undergraduate dropout, Kanyi Maqubela has always been known for expanding his horizons and learning about all sorts of things. Having originally worked as a teacher, Regional Field Organizer for Barack Obama’s campaign, and Content/Community Manager at Doostang, Kanyi joined the world of venture investing back in 2013, personally investing in startups like Earnest, Just, TrueLinki, Upstart, Opencare, Reddit, Zendrive, HelloSign, and many more.

Ever since, Kanyi has been dedicated to helping others fulfill their vision for the world by providing perspective and counsel based on each individual’s strengths and weaknesses, all while trying to “celebrate their good”. His unique approach has led him to serve as Advisor for Tala, Adjunct Professor at New York University, Partner at Collaborative Fund, and now Managing Partner at Kindred Ventures.

About Jordan French

An award-winning journalist and the Executive Director at Grit Daily, Jordan French has decades of experience in the engineering, law, and creative industry having worked for organizations ranging from NASA to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Jordan has also co-founded 6 successful companies, which provide him with a unique perspective on the world of entrepreneurship that he is now using to help others start and succeed in their own journeys. As an active member of the media and startup ecosystems, as well as one of the most sought-after speakers, he knows the ins and outs of the venture capital world.

The post Here’s Where to See Jenny Fielding Speak During Collision – Toronto appeared first on Grit Daily News.

But when I first saw the lineup of speakers, my response was not excitement. Instead, I felt a massive, almost crippling wave of imposter syndrome.

For those not familiar with this term, it is this experience of not having an internal sense of your own success despite any accolades and accomplishments. Internally, you simply can’t see it and you don’t believe it. I felt it hard and believed for a few moments I wasn’t worthy to join.

But here’s the thing I learned in that process that applies to every one of you, too, especially if you work  in a startup business: How we are showing up in our personal and professional lives every single day is explicitly linked to the effect we have on those around us. Can you see the crippling effect judging ourselves harshly in comparison to others can have on our actions and behavior, and the detrimental impact on influence on others?

And conversely, can you see how our confident behaviors invoke and inspire change in our lives and the lives of others?

As business and community leaders, we must learn to demand the best from ourselves irrespective of how we’re feeling on the inside. We do this because by default, we are setting the bar for those around us as well.

One of my favorite mottos is that change starts with me.

At SafeMoon, I have the honor to serve as a female executive leader at a company leading out in the development of blockchain technology for the purpose of creating social impact. We do this not as campaigns or give-back projects but as the North Star of our very existence. Our CEO John Karony speaks about Return on Impact, and how our community of participants, the #SAFEMOONARMY, influences our decision making in the best of ways.

As a company, we don’t compare ourselves to others. We compare what we are capable of now to what is possible 10 years from now. That is our only competition, and that is mine and your only personal competition as well, in comparison to your future self and how you positively impact those around you, which will likely also positively impact the people around them. This is the true ripple effect.

I recently started a new hobby, Power Paragliding. It is a sport very few women do, as the motor weighs upwards of 80 pounds and it involves strapping this giant motor onto your back and essentially getting a huge 24-plus foot set of wings inflated and then running to launch yourself into the air and fly.

It demands everything from you both mentally and physically. Last weekend while I was in training, my motor unexpectedly stopped, mid-flight. I was 2,000 feet in the air and I had my very first moment in which my instructor did not hear my emergency call for help. So, I had two choices: 1) Panic and face literally falling out of the sky to my death, or 2) Mind my mind and stay calm to remember my training and work out how to land safely, solo.

Clearly, I survived. But the ripple effect of this experience is worth sharing. Later in the weekend, I shared the full details of my flight with my oldest son (age 10) and shared just how scared I was. During this conversation, he said, “Mum, I am going to be brave just like you the next time I face a really hard thing.”

Everyone is watching each of us, whether we want to accept this or not. So, what kind of show are you giving them? This includes the women I presented with, myself included, who are focused on helping others. It includes my entire corporate career. My entire role as a mom to three children and my business journey has been focused on doing justice. I am the change I wish to see in others.

I am an example of the fact that no matter what is going on, you have the choice in how you show up and how you respond. What you say and what you do matters, and it affects those around you. There are so many people in this world waiting on my “extra” as an individual. There are multiple millions waiting on, and watching for, the progress and safety that I and my company can bring, and that’s a whole lot of “extra” to bring. I love the impact I have. I love the changes. I’ve seen others in greater ways as the result of my own actions and behavior. I’m deeply grateful for the positive ripple effect we are all creating in our respective lives, careers, and businesses. May we choose the path of impact in all that we do. May we learn to harness the Return on Impact to maximize our ability to improve lives and to change the world for better in innumerable ways. What an honor it is for each of us to accomplish this mission in every way. 

The post In Entrepreneurship, Courage Must Come from Within appeared first on Grit Daily News.

Ever since launching in 2011, the annual conference has become one of the main scenarios for startups looking to introduce game-changing technologies, products, and services. With the startups being the center of attention each year, the event presents a unique opportunity to attract investors, top talent, and partners.

Getting a startup off the ground is no easy feat, which is why the event has become a favorite for founders looking for that initial boost. By participating in the competition, after parties, different alleys, and the hackathon, the opportunities are multiple. Geniuses like Zuckerberg, Benioff, Musk, Kalanick, Mayer and Dorsey have all participated in TechCrunch Disrupt in the past, making it a stage for the rising stars of the tech world. 

If you are part of a team looking to have its startup noticed by those with the power to ensure its success, this is an event you should partake in. After all, as HBO’s Silicon Valley showed, this is the place for those looking to make the world a better place.

The Struggles of Getting a Startup Off the Ground

According to Crunchbase, over 23k startups raised seed funding between 2016 and 2022, quite more than the almost 18k startups that raised seed funding between 2011 and 2015. In addition to this, data also shows that the valuation of seed rounds has also grown to become comparable to the Series A back in 2016. 

While you could imagine that getting your startup to succeed would now be easier than ever, this is not the case. As any entrepreneur or founder knows, it is a battlefield out there when it comes to getting funding. With about 305 million startups being founded each year according to Forbes, competition is at an all-time high. This competition is one of the main reasons behind a well-known statistic: 90% of all startups fail between the first 10 years.

Most serial entrepreneurs will agree that there is no “fail-proof” strategy to have a startup succeed… They are right. However, most agree that the early stages of a startup are the most important as, after all, startups are all about disrupting their respective industries. Doing it with a bang will always play in your favor.

While there are cases in which successful founders choose to found a new startup, founders will not have founded a previous startup more often than not. This means that most founders have no previous experience in navigating the turbulent waters of entrepreneurship, which puts them at a disadvantage.

If this is your case, worry not. Fortunately, startups have proven to be a sound investment most of the time, with 2021 setting a new record for the amount of money invested by venture capitalists at a whopping $621 Billion. This has created an incentive for Startup incubators to spread around the world, helping inexperienced founders like you launch your startup.

Incubators will usually focus on helping you prepare your startup to attract investors and raise funding through funding rounds. However, there are many other ways in which startup founders can raise the money to help them survive the early stage, with one of these being startup competitions.

TechCrunch Disrupt is home to one of the biggest startup competitions in the world: Startup Battlefield. As of April of this year, this competition has seen over 922 companies participate for over $9 billion, resulting in 121 exits. If you think your startup has got what it needs to win against another 199 startups, let us tell you everything you need to know about the competition.

What is TechCrunch Startup Battlefield?

As the name suggests Startup Battlefield is an event that brings startups to compete with each other. Unlike other competitions, this event will see early-stage startups instead of already established ones, providing the winners with equity-free prize money.

With names like Yammer, Dropbox, Mobalytics, Vurb, Qwiki, and Mint, having won the competition in the past, Startup Battlefield has made a name for itself. If your startup chooses to participate, you can be sure that top media outlets and investors will be keeping a close eye on your performance. 

So far, Startup Battlefield has taken place in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East & North Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Latin America. This year, the Global competition will take place during TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco on October 18th-20th. However, regional competitions also take place from time to time, so you should keep a close eye on those.

Startups that wish to participate can do so as the event is not only open but also entirely free. This means that with a prize of $100.000 on the line and all attention on it, you got nothing to lose and everything to gain from participating.

The big prize is not the only reason to participate in Startup Battlefield. In fact, the competition will provide participants with much more benefits starting this year. Trust us: being selected to participate in this year’s event is enough prize in itself. Let’s talk about that.

How Does Startup Battlefield Work?

TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield will be changing this year. After all, this is the first edition of the competition after being 2 years on hold because of the pandemic. This year’s competition will showcase the 200 startups that TechCrunch considers to be on the top of the global startup ecosystem.

The 200 startups that participate in this edition will be receiving training, access to private receptions and communities, and participate in several meet and greets with investors. Founders like you will also be able to flash-pitch in front of a panel of judges composed of TechCrunch Editors and investors. Lastly, all of the 200 startups will have free exhibition space during TechCrunch Disrupt, independent of the selection process we will mention in a moment.

Depending on the panel’s decision, the top 20 startups will be selected to be finalists and partake in an “intensive mini-accelerator” 8 weeks prior to the event. During this program, the startups will receive even further support to improve their business model and pitches.

Once the time comes for their pitch in TechCrunch Disrupt, each startup will have 6 minutes to pitch in front of the judges. They will also have to engage in a question and answer session with experts from different industries, including names like Marissa Mayer, Ron Conway, Fred Wilson, and Roelof Botha. This will take place on Disrupt’s main stage, which means the entire TechCrunch audience will be paying close attention.

If your startup is the winner after all of this process, it will be the winner of a $100.000 prize free of equity. However, the publicity, experience, and support the event will provide is sure to be more valuable than the cash… We are not saying that the cash doesn’t help, though.

What Are the Requirements to Participate?

The first thing you want to do before learning about the application process is to make sure your startup is eligible to participate in Startup Battlefields. These are pretty easy to fulfill and are the following:

• Be an early-stage startup.
• Have a minimally viable product.
• Represent any vertical.
• Represent any geography.
• Have step-function innovation in your vertical.
• Be bootstrapped or have pre-scale funding (variable by industry).

If your startup is eligible to participate, it is just a matter of applying. As applications are accepted on a rolling basis, it is important not to procrastinate. By sending your application early, you will get more chances to be accepted!

What Is the Application Process Like?

If you have founded a startup already, applying to TechCrunch Startup should be pretty easy but quite extensive… depending on how prepared you are. The process is as easy as filling out a form providing general information and preferences. The general information required includes:

• Startup name
• Startup website URL
• PitchBook or Crunchbase URL
• Name, last name, phone number, email, and title of the point of contact
• Startup incorporation and office location
• Number of employees

This is information you surely already possess and can provide fairly easily. However, remember that TechCrunch is looking to have top startups participate in Startup Battlefield. As such, a pitch of sorts will be necessary. 

The next part of the application form is focused on letting the organizers know what your team and startup are all about. Some of the questions in this section have probably already come to your mind and you might have an answer for them, some might look new to you. While there is an application deadline and a limited number of slots, you should take your time answering all of the following questions:

• Why is your team uniquely suited to build this company? 
• In one sentence, what are you building?
• What core problem do you solve?
• What is the primary use case for your product?
• What is your solution?
• Who wants your product or service?
• If launched, what is the current feedback and testimonial on the product? What is the NPS? Churn?
• How big is your initial target market? Your total addressable market? TAM, SAM, SOM? 
• How do you/will you make money? Business model.
• How do users find out about you? How do you distribute your product? 
• Summarize your traction.
• What is your customer acquisition cost? 
• Do you have any revenue?
• Who are your biggest competitors?
• Why will you win amongst your competition? What makes you unique?
• Is your product proprietary?
• Do you plan to raise capital? If so, what are the milestones you are planning to achieve?
• Will you be launching something new onstage?
  • If so, what will you be launching on stage?

Now, you will need to provide 2 videos. The first video should be a product demo in the form of a short 2-minute video. Remember that the product has to be functioning. The second video should show the founder(s) explaining the product in less than a minute. These 2 videos are all about the content, not the video production!

In order to ensure there are no conflicts of interest, TechCrunch will also require you to provide financing and investment-related information. This includes:

• Total money raised
• Date of the most recent funding
• A list of your investors, advisors, and any incubator/accelerator program you have participated in.

The Press/Outreach section will allow the organizers to get an idea of how well-known your startup is and how you learned about the competition. While you would think that the more exposure your startup has, the opposite is true: Startup Battlefield looks for startups that have flown under the radar for the most part. This section will require you to provide the following information:

• Press coverage summary
• How did you hear about the competition
• Who referred you?

Finally, you will be asked for some additional information which quite frankly, could have been asked in the previous sections. The information required in this section is:

• Startup’s date of incorporation
• Startup categories and industries
• Number of founders
• Founder information 
  • First and last name
  • Title
  • Linkedin profile 
  • AngelList profile
  • Founder’s specialty
  • Demographic information
    • Gender
    • Are they a veteran?
    • Do they identify as LGBTQ+?
    • Ethnic background?
    • Do they identify as a person with a disability?
    • Age range

Once all of this information has been provided, you will be able to submit the application to Startup Battlefield and have a chance to join the other 199 startups. 

An important thing to keep in mind is that while the application deadline is July 31st, acceptances will start rolling out on July 1st.

Conclusion

As you can see, applying to participate in Startup Battlefield is an easy process that will provide you with important insights from the get-go. By filling out the application form, you will already be identifying key aspects that will come useful for future pitches, even if you are not selected. 

If TechCrunch finds your application to be good enough to be considered one of the top 200 applicants, the benefits will be even bigger. By participating in Startup Battlefield, TechCrunch will provide you with exposure, networking, and marketing platform, training, and if you win, money to help your startup grow. All of these without having to invest any money, commit to giving equity in return, or any of the other headaches that we all have grown used to.

If you are looking for an extra boost to get your new startup off the ground, this is it. Don’t miss the chance to compete with other teams out there and enter the world of startups with a bang!

The post Everything You Need to Know about TechCrunch Startup Battlefield this Year  appeared first on Grit Daily News.

This kind of collective effort is mentioned in Aristotle’s Politics, and volunteer researchers helped to compile the first Oxford English Dictionary (OED) in the 19^th century, but it has reached full potential in the digital age. Jeff Howe coined the word crowdsourcing in a 2006 article for Wired. Rather than outsourcing challenges to third party companies or countries, crowdsourcing is part of a collectivist tradition that utilizes the wisdom of crowds.

Why is Crowdsourcing Good for Small Businesses, Entrepreneurs, and Startups?

The benefit of crowdsourcing includes:

• Easy access to global freelance talent
• The promotion of diverse ideas
• A shared experience with customers

It can be a useful research and innovation approach for cash-strapped entrepreneurs, small businesses, and startups. There are three reasons for this:

1. It is a convenient and straightforward process in the digital age. Approaches range from contacting and polling social media contacts to using the latest crowdsourcing platform.
   
2. It is a quick solution. The citizen science project took just 16 days to complete. Research suggests the wisdom of crowds can produce a faster and more accurate solution than relying on a lone expert. This is illustrated by James Surowiecki in The Wisdom of Crowds. He analyzes the popular game show, Who Wants to be a Millionaire. In his findings, the audience gets the answer right 91% of the time in the ‘ask the audience’ lifeline compared to the ‘phone a friend’ option where a knowledgeable friend gets the answer right 65% of the time.
   
3. It is cost-effective. Using crowdsourcing as an innovation and problem-solving tool allows access to global talent without retaining full-time staff on the payroll and paying additional office costs.

Crowdsourcing is a key strategic lever for a growing business. It is also proving to be an essential innovation strategy for global companies. Major brands such as IKEA, Gucci, FedEx, Procter and Gamble, Lufthansa, and Starbucks use crowdsourcing platforms. Vodafone’s business blog forecasts that crowdsourcing will overtake traditional R&D and outsourcing by 2025.

How to Lead a Crowdsourcing Project

Crowdsourcing projects present unique challenges for any leader because the objective comes about through the wisdom of crowds that the leader does not directly manage. Antagonists of crowdsourcing argue that this means less control and a possibility of inconsistent outcomes. But this doesn’t have to be the case. It is possible to create the outcomes you need with the right attributes and mindset. It just requires a different approach to leadership. Leading through volunteer networks and collectives requires a more open and agile leadership style than the “old approach to leadership”, which is directive and controlling.

Three Attributes of Crowdsourcing Leadership

1. Making Connections

As I argued in my first book, Constructing Leadership 4.0: Swarm Leadership and the Fourth Industrial Revolution, modern collective leaders are not directors but connectors. Malcolm Gladwell coined the term connector to mean the “social glue” of the organization – someone who is well-connected and gets things done through others. In the context of crowdsourcing leadership, that means you are not directing through hierarchies and chains of command but connecting people and ideas. The crowdsourcing leader creates an environment for ideas to flourish and flow. Crucially, leaders need to select the right crowdsourcing platform and make important resourcing decisions.

2. Creating a shared vision 

Crowdsourcing leaders who rely on the input and energy of others need to provide direction without being directive. The trick here is collaborating with others and building the project’s vision together. In On Becoming a Leader, Warren Bennis uses a mountaineering analogy. He says mountaineers don’t climb mountains from the bottom-up but the top-down: “They look at where they want to go, and work backward… once you have the summit in view, you figure out all the ways you might get there.” The crowdsourcing leader helps the group visualize the summit to know where they are going and figure out how to get there.

3. Mentoring the system

Leading a collective effort requires a different mindset. Crowdsourcing leaders are no longer initiators or decision-makers but guides and mentors. In my latest book, The Nature of Business Transformation: A Swarm Intelligent Approach to Reinventing Organisations, I tell the story of Daimler AG, who transformed their approach using Agile Scrum to create what they called a swarm organization. These were leaderless innovation hubs where groups of people worked on core challenges. The CEO and other senior leaders dropped their traditional titles and mindsets and became mentors and enablers.

Conclusion: From Alpha to Beta

Crowdsourcing is an excellent way to drive collective innovation, problem-solving, and decision-making. It is used in many ways – even rescuing Ukrainian civilians from war zones. Small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs can capitalize on this approach by embracing the emerging crowdsourcing platforms and technologies. But this requires a different leadership approach. Traditional leaders are known as alpha leaders. They are transactional leaders who usually sit at the top of an organizational hierarchy and are the source of ideas and decision-making. Crowdsourcing is in a collective and system leadership tradition and requires an alternative structure and mindset. It needs beta leadership which is a more collaborative and responsive leadership. Beta leaders lead through collaborative networks rather than hierarchies and support and mentor the collective system to innovate and reach decisions. In crowdsourcing, the crowd is a diverse and innovative energy that savvy beta leaders know how to work and harvest.

The post Crowdsourcing Is an Excellent Resource for Entrepreneurs and Startups, But It Needs a Special Kind of Leadership appeared first on Grit Daily News.