Q&A

Page 1 of 9

Help! I Need Working Capital Right Now!

I am about to launch full-scale with a product at my industry’s largest trade show this weekend.  I do not have enough capital to finance the scale up and production likely required by the sales my product and booth at the trade show are likely to generate with nationwide distributors (I've •••

How to Hire Your First Employee

I run an early stage software startup and so far it is just me and a few part-time programmers, but I came across a great resume yesterday that a friend forwarded to me and I am wondering if I should hire this person or not as I think they could help the company a lot.  Any advice on •••

Help! I Keep Losing Money In My Business

I have a small owner/operator business where I offer five different services to my customer base: retail, rental, repair, onsite service work and storage.  It is very difficult to manage my business month-to-month because it seems like its feast or famine with more “famine” months than •••

Hiring the Right Team for a Startup

I have a very early-stage software company and I am meeting with a venture capital investor and he will likely ask about my management team, which is not completely in place yet.  What kind of questions should I anticipate and how should I best present the team I have? •••

Looking for an Intern

I am an experienced entrepreneur that is looking to hire a tech-savvy intern that would like to help me launch a new venture.  Can you please help me find one?  •••

Need Advice on Buying a Retail Store

I am negotiating to buy a retail business and would like your advice.  I’ve listened to your “Before You Launch Your Business” presentation -- which was very good -- but I’d like some help thinking through buying this business.   The business is a boutique in an upscale part •••

Growth Strategy for a Veterinary Practice

When it comes to growth strategies, what advice do you give to medical professionals (I am a veterinarian) who tend to not only be the "CEO" but also the main revenue generator?   It seems that my business structure is more of a diamond shape, if you will, with myself being the top and •••

Venture Academy Pricing

There are a number of men at my church who are interested in taking a group of young men through your Venture Academy in Tennessee in September.  I see the price is variable.  What would the approximate cost be for students in the 16 to 17 year old range?  •••

Connecting with NVL Members

I have a service that I would like to alert NVL members about.  What is the best way to do that? •••

Making Opportunistic Decisions

Thanks for all you do! During the CMR case study discussion in Venture Academy DVD Training Series one of the points you had mentioned was making "strategic" rather than "opportunistic" business decisions.  Yesterday I heard something interesting along those lines, so I'll describe the •••

Trying to Create a New Brand of Personal Care Products

I have developed several formulations for natural personal care products from skin creams to toothpastes and balms, etc.  I have a relationship with one contract manufacturer that can produce some of the products and I’ve been working with two large consumer packaged goods companies in hopes •••

How to Buy an Email List

We are trying to grow our customer base and we would like to buy email lists.  Do you have any good sources that you recommend? •••

How to Choose An Attorney

I am looking for an attorney in my area.  Specialty does not matter.  Do you have any recommendations? •••

Ordering the Harvard Business School Cases for the Venture Academy

How do I order the Harvard Business School case studies that are taught in the Venture Academy DVD Training Series?  Also, how much do the cases cost?  •••

Looking for an Intellectual Property Attorney

I have some intellectual property that I'd like to copyright or patent.  Can you send me some names and numbers?  I'd like for them to be close, but if they're out of state I guess we could work by phone.  Thank you so much and thanks for creating this website! •••

How to Launch a New Branch Office

I have a PC service business that I have operated in a small community for ten years, and two of my children are now old enough to work with me.   I have a process oriented, TQM background, and I've developed effective methods for handling large volumes of repair with high •••

Raising Capital for an Alpaca Farm

We are interesting in starting an Alpaca farm.  Do you think this is something investors might be interested in investing in? •••

Venture Academy DVD Set vs. Entrepreneurial Bootcamp DVD Set

Are there any differences between your new Venture Academy DVD set and the Entrepreneurial Bootcamp DVD set?  If so, what are the differences?  Is there added information, is it more applicable?  What advantages are there purchasing your DVD set?  This •••

How to Raise Early-Stage Capital While Minimizing Dilution

I need to raise capital for my software startup and I have investors ready, willing and able to invest in the range of $1m - $2m, but my dilemma is that I have a couple of significant events that are likely to happen in the next several months (major initial customer commitment and a major channel •••

How to Negotiate a Licensing/Royalty Deal

I am about to enter into a licensing/royalty negotiation with a company that is interested in taking my idea to market.  I've read your Q&A post on Taking an Invention to Market and it was very helpful, but I am looking for more specifics on the actual agreement itself.  Any •••

Page 1 of 9



You can add your own comments to any blog post or any Q&A post.

Your comments will be accompanied by the first and last name you used to register.

We are constantly adding resources, so check back frequently for new items.

Additional resources offered by New Venture Lab:

Family Works: Inspiring Profiles of Family Business – Volume One

Venture Academy Online - subscription-based HD video of our Christian entrepreneurship training course

Venture Academy DVD Training Series - the entire Christian entrepreneurship training course with 16 DVDs, 6 workbooks, and USB drive with 60 helpful business documents

Venture Academy Lecture Series - the lectures from the Christian entrepreneurship training course

Startup Financial Model Webinar Series - free webinar that explains in detail how to create a financial plan for your startup

Download Example Financial Model - the example model explained in the webinar 

Save thousands of dollars on legal fees by using our forms (organized by topic) and then only pay your attorney to review, rather than write an agreement from scratch.