Startup Newsletter - Innovators Can Laugh

The Importance of Sleep for Startup Founders

 

Julian Martijn is the founder of Somnox - a revolutionary product that helps people sleep better. But before Julian created Somnox, he had a brief music career. In fact, one of the songs he co-produced made it in the top 40 of the Dutch pop charts. That’s right - he chose to give up a music career and instead focused on building something. 

In this conversation Julian shares

• How they burned a lot of cash with the wrong advertising in the US market

• How he made a first time founder mistake of chasing meaningless awards and recognition instead of focusing on growing a profitable business

• The importance of sleep for mental health and how to stay sane as a founder in times of turmoil

🎙️ Catch the episode on Apple, Spotify, or other player.

Just Act Natural

 

5 Reasons you are not generating leads from webinars

1️⃣ You are not solving a pain point.

When you should be addressing and providing a solution for what the attendees are interested in.

2️⃣ Your webinar is not engaging.

When you should have a strategy to engage with the audience that makes the webinar more entertaining.

3️⃣  Your call-to-action doesn’t align with the audience’s interest.

When it should be compelling and valuable.

4️⃣  You don’t have a post webinar strategy.

When you should be following up with everyone who asked a question or shared feedback/comments.

5️⃣  You’re not sharing your email address.

When you should be sharing your contact information in the chat window.

-----------

I’m still not perfect, but after giving 50+ webinars in the last 2 years, I’ve learned a few things 😁

Selling my Degree

 

🤔 I wonder how much I could get for MBA?

When an unexpected gift is a cyber curse

(part II of cyber security series)

 

Picture this: In a thriving startup, a friendly delivery person drops off a high-tech gadget as a promotional gift from a popular tech vendor. The gadget, a fancy smart speaker, finds its new home in the company's busy open office.

But all is not as it seems. What the team does not know is that the 'gift' is actually a wolf in sheep's clothing. The smart speaker is equipped with a hidden network interceptor that collects data from the company's unprotected Wi-Fi network undetected and passes it on to crafty cybercriminals.

How do we safeguard our castles from these covert Trojan horses? By carefully checking and managing all the tech devices in the office. Even the harmless devices. It's also important to secure Wi-Fi networks and consider a separate network for IoT devices. Remember, in our quest for cybersecurity, even the smallest keyhole can invite unwanted guests. Let us be vigilant and keep our digital home safe!

Interested in learning more about cyber security to protect your business? Let me know, I can introduce you to someone I know, trust, and has several years experience in this field.

The End

 

I have been hearing from my family back home how hot it’s been in Texas. As a kid, it rarely got above 38’ Celsius. However, this past week temperatures were around 44’ Celsius and hovering around 40’ is the new norm!

Just this week the BBC released a story ‘Will Texas become too hot for humans?’
This is one of the reasons we relocated here in Romania - the weather. I love doing outdoor activities with my kids. Whether its riding bikes, kicking the ball, going to the playground, or playing tennis….these are the things I wouldn’t be able to do back in Texas because of the heat and humidity.

I think in the next 5, 10, 15 years, we are going to see a migration of people moving to places where there is cooler climate. And I feel we are lucky to be here in Romania where sure it gets hot, but no where near as hot as some places like Spain or Texas.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Eric M.

P.S. That’s me last week in front of some random door I was passing by while walking in London that had a plaque with a quote I like. Can you read the quote?