Top 75 Quotes & Sayings by David Cohen - Page 2

I had to quit a 'real job' to start my first company.

If I had a do over, I'd indubitably start investing in startups earlier in life!

At TechStars, I have the privilege of working with hundreds of the best and brightest start-up mentors on the planet. We coach our mentors to take a Socratic approach and to provide data rather than decisions.

In the rare cases where I've had to cut a company loose, I just tell them why and wish them luck and hope they learn something from it. I don't spend more mental energy on it than I have to, and I try very hard not to hold a grudge or try to negatively affect them either. It's just done for me.

Ultimately, even if you follow the advice of a mentor or board member, it's still your fault if they were wrong!

We think of the Techstars product as not really the accelerator but the network. That's what entrepreneurs should be valuing here. I think it's the most undervalued thing that many entrepreneurs don't get.

I'm most proud of helping so many others achieve their dreams as founders.

The hot deal is often the one that does not work.

I was lucky to have amazing mentors like Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson.

Because one of the main jobs of a CEO is to set the vision and strategy for the company, I'm a big believer in making one of the founders the default CEO.

There is no doubt that Boulder was a supportive and open-door community well before TechStars ever existed. But one of the things that I'm most proud of is that TechStars has provided a real focal point for this sort of activity and has brought attention to just how impactful one community can be when it works together.

The best mentors present their opinions simply as data and not as direction.

In Boulder entrepreneurship circles, there is a genuine desire to see others succeed and a general belief that karma matters. There's a sense that together we're building something here, and that we're all a meaningful part of it.

I think entrepreneurs really appreciate directness and honesty, coupled with empathy.

There's no law that says you have to do what your mentor suggests. And the sooner you learn how to say 'no' confidently, the easier it will be to manage these key relationships.