It’s the U.S. energy capital. It was the home of Enron. And for the most part, those two facts reflect the scope of startups in Houston, Texas. Enron, before it began conducting massive accounting fraud, was innovative in its approach to energy. And thanks [...]]]>

Why You Should Start a Company in… Houston

Anthony Broussard gave a great interview about his company Quantum Potato to the BusinessMakers radio show. You can hear the entire interview here http://www.thebusinessmakers.com/episodes/shows/2010/january-2010/episode-240/anthony-broussard.html

He talks about how his [...]]]> In light of the article written in the Houston Chronicle by Purva Patel last week: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/news/6808624.html# some other news has come out about the Houston mobile development scene.

Anthony Broussard gave a great interview about his company Quantum Potato to the BusinessMakers radio show. You can hear the entire interview here http://www.thebusinessmakers.com/episodes/shows/2010/january-2010/episode-240/anthony-broussard.html

He talks about how his very first game called Enlightenment Vision: http://linktoapp.com/enlightenment_vision was approved in four days by the App Store.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGEs0arX5qM

There is still time to register to attend the iPhone Dev Camp Houston

What is iPhoneDevCamp Houston?

iPhoneDevCamp Houston is a participant-driven gathering of like-minded individuals – also known as an unconference – with the goal of bringing together current and future iPhone developers and business owners to network, share ideas, and explore opportunities.

Dates:  Jan 30 – 31, 2010
Location:  CoffeeGroundz at 2503 Bagby Street
Registration: http://iphonedevcamphouston.eventbrite.com/?ref=ecount
Web Site:  iPhoneDevCampHouston.com
Facebook Fan Page:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/iPhoneDevCamp-Houston/207773391733
Twitter Page:  http://twitter.com/ipdchouston
Twitter Hash Tag:  #ipdchouston

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In the summer of 2009 from June-August I worked at the Houston Technology Center as an intern. I saw new technologies, worked with a talented staff, and most importantly learned [...]]]> [This is a Guest Post by Kumar - I edited it slightly for some factual corrections and of course to make myself look better - Marc]

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In the summer of 2009 from June-August I worked at the Houston Technology Center as an intern. I saw new technologies, worked with a talented staff, and most importantly learned quite a bit.

100 Things I learned at the Houston Technology Center – by H. Kumar Thangudu (@hkmr)

1. Be a self-starter
2. The Nine Box Matrix. It’s what GE adopted from Mckinsey with which Jack Welch set up a system to fire the lowest 10% of managers based on performance every year.
3. Startups donʼt have money. Bootstrapping and frugality are the way of the entrepreneur and should be encouraged.
4. You will experience actual elevator pitches at the HTC. Be prepared. I must have seen 30-40 by the time I left.
5. Know how to deliver an elevator pitch.
6. Attend toastmasters as many times as possible.
7. Go Local. Some procurements whether acquiring a lawyer, an investment banker, angels, VCʼs, customers, partners, part times, freelancers, and full times are better made with proximity. #SLGT – Support Local Growth Together
8. Interact with your customer. Customer Development is key. @rjurney @sgblank. Great on paper, better understood through experience at HTC.
9. Be vertical.
10. Execution is everything.
11. Tangibles are better than talk. I compare this to horoscopes, as people weʼd much rather edit our horoscope than tell people how we feel or are acting on a certain day. Having something down on paper is better than coming to a meeting empty handed.
12. Prepare to edit material, not create it. Red-inking an idea thatʼs down on paper, is easier than an analysis paralysis in which ideas are simply brainstormed and discussed.
13. Open Source is a beautiful thing.
14. WordPress is great.
15. Creating community is less important than bringing it together. It exists, be the glue, not the wheel re-inventor.
16. Introductions & Collaboration are vital.
17. Never stop networking.
18. Be coachable.
19. Know what it is you want as an entrepreneur.
20. Your goals should match the business opportunity.
21. Archive is pronounced (ark- Iʼve) not (arch- Iʼve).
22. KISS : Keep it Simple Stupid : Everyone should understand the value proposition of your company
23. Technology Companies scale up quickly. Scalability is key.
24. Coffee Groundz is the epitome of Rise of the Creative Class. My favorite coffee shop is in Houston. (I donʼt even drink coffee).
25. Embrace community, they will help you.
26. Give and expect nothing in return. – Thanks @jrcohen
27. If working with Marc Nathan, be prepared to keep up. Itʼs extremely fast paced.
28. Story-telling is one of the biggest parts of a company. Semantics are a lifeline of functionality, story telling, and the market’s understanding of your company
29. There are some knowledge roadblocks that money can solve, for everything else thereʼs Tom Kraft. I learned quite a bit from interacting with Tom, who is HTC’s Director of Client Services.
30. Know the differences of incorporating as a C-corp, GMBH, UG, LLC, Sole Proprietorship, etc.
31. Leave advertising and branding to the pros. Place emphasis on your specialized talents.
32. Know multiple business models before coming in. Brokerage, Infomediary, Advertising, Merchant, Direct Manufacturing, Affiliate, Community, Subscription, Utility. Thereʼs more, but if you can keep several in mind consciously, it helps.
33. Know your market.
34. Know basic startup vernacular: Series A, B, C, D, equity, burn rate, financials, pro forma, EDITDA
35. Google, Twitter, Apple, and Microsoft…..these are 1 in 6 billion. Dream big, but be realistic. Marc Nathanism: “Markets are certainly large, but clearly unobtainable.”
36. Landmines that first time entrepreneurs step on when talking to a potential investor or advisor. I must have heard these three rules at least 50 times – each time with a different entrepreneur. (Directly from @marc1919):
    1. Never say you will capture X% of market.
    2. Never say you are the CEO who is going to carry the venture to an IPO.
    3. Never say your numbers are conservative.
37. Small businesses make up 99% of all business in America, they are the Fortune 5 million. (I’m not sure where the term is referenced from, but I heard it retold by Marc.)
38. Sin Stocks. An interesting industry in itself.
39. People who are expected to see innovations, ideas, and business concepts on a regular basis will not sign NDAʼs or confidentiality agreements. Non-Competes are ugly.
40. Labeling new companies in terms of existing business models helps shape the business plan. Strong Pattern Recognition skills demonstrate a seasoned investor/advisor.
41. Marc Nathanism: “No such thing as a typical startup, but there are commonalities”
42. I worked with an extraordinarily dedicated and talented staff.
43. Rubber Vulcanization occurs when sulfur reacts with rubber to create a rubber that cures and is more robust.
44. Business ideas are fine, but Market Opportunities are much more important.
45. Anything you can think of has been thought of. (Reconfirmed by Beatles song on Delta Airlines flight). Marc Nathanism: “There’s nothing new under the sun, so what are you doing differently for your market?”
46. Marc  Nathanism: “No one retires to Houston; people come here to work.”
47. 70% + of all new jobs in the US were created in Texas. (Forgot the source.)
48. Marc Nathanism: “Your deals will never love you back.”
49. Technologists are the most valuable to the economy.
50. Disruptive technologies create jobs.
51. Understand Intellectual Property. Know the difference between copyrights, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, flash of genius, etc….. I advise reading The Business of Intellectual Property by Ed Carreras from beginning to end.
52. The Tipping Point. Go grab a copy and read it. Marc is the ultimate Connector, Tom is a Maven
53. When pitching to VCʼs, try turning the tables and ask them for their story. It is often very interesting and can help you re-evaluate your own ideas and business aspirations. They have “been there and done that” in some sense. In particular, Iʼm referring to an impromptu VC happy hour at the Caroline Collective in which asked a VC what he did prior to his current occupation.
54. Powerpoint /Keynote are basic tools of the startup trade. Know how to use them beyond the built-in templates. Avoid looking at the screen while presenting and never read off the screen. The best presentations have few words. No more than three lines made up of no more than five words per slide. Guy Kawasaki’s 10-20-30 rule is gospel.
55. Elevator Pitching should come as easily as breathing. What does your company do in 15 seconds? If the investor doesnʼt get it, then chances are the market wonʼt get it. The investor/advisor or listener isnʼt being rude, theyʼre doing you a huge favor. Go back to the drawing board.
56. Leave for 3 weeks and come back. (I went to Toronto & Portland and came back)
57. The world is small especially if you work with Marc. I jumped up to Toronto and got plugged into the startup scene real quickly going to Patio Fridays and other events. Basically, I used software from Ontario’s DemoCamp 09ʼ in Mississauga. I sent an e-mail to them regarding usability, and one of them had dinner with Marc at SXSW. Very Small World.
58. Avoid re-inventing the wheel.
59. “Two different set of books” means thereʼs impropriety in accounting.
60. Listen & Look.
61. Entrepreneurs are crazy by nature.
62. Get and update a LinkedIn account.
63. Take the Myers-Briggs test. Iʼm an ENFJ, Marc is a an ENFP – how about you?
64. LinkedInʼs valuation is over $1 Billion.
65. Please have a revenue model (that’s not based solely on advertising)
66. Get your IP together. (Intellectual Property.) Different business plans evolve around different patent strategies which all focus on one unique and very distinct value chain for every innovation. Marc Nathanism: “Don’t play checkers against chess players” meaning make sure you know what you’re getting into when it comes to IP.
67. Electron Beam technology is useful.
68. IT creates a breadth of jobs, not many jobs.
69. Bring in relevant industry experts to interact with your company. How you do this, involves creativity and simplicity.
70. Entrepreneurs generally didn’t get to where they were by listening to conventional thought or their elders. It makes for an interesting situation with regards to coaching.
71. Technology Transfer is painful. If youʼre a student who has innovated using resources openly available to the general student population, then youʼre much better off than if youʼve had access to exclusive campus resources.
72. The geeks, technologists, and people in garages breaking sweat are the people who drive technology.
73. QTAGS are really cool.
74. SATOP is a beautiful concept. I hope they come back.
75. Technion does a great job of commercializing technology.
76. A big rolodex is nice, but a warm acquaintance or a friend is much better.
77. Connectors are essential to building a vibrant community.
78. Mallieʼs Desserts taste great.
79. In the world of startups, there is a range of formal to informal. Suit & Tie. Business casual. Jeans and a t-shirt. Houston is very much in the middle.
80. Skills are replaceable, talent is unique.
81. If youʼre coming to Houston for business or technology. Save yourself networking time, visit the HTC and find out how you can get involved. Be a sponsor.
82. Googleʼs suite of tools is useful.
83. When planning events, slot out time for room transitions and networking.
84. Sparefoot is cool.
85. CXO is just a word. Anyone can hold a position name, few can yield it.
86. Brandstack is also awesome.
87. Nepotism is sometimes destructive and has its place. Go for the best candidates. Merit is valued and respected.
88. Think like a customer in terms of purchasing logic. This is a lot tougher to do at the level that is required for a startup company. Iʼm still learning how to do this and thereʼs a play between art & science when it comes to doing it properly.
89. If youʼre coming to Houston connect with the following through twitter: @marc1919 @coffeegroundz @carolineco @houtechcenter @jrcohen @btruax @werkadoo
90. Value Proposition. Really take a moment and understand what it means.
91. If you need custom electronics fabricated then you should talk shop with Erdos Miller.
92. GuestListApp.com is really useful.
93. It is possible to make a cardboard computer, have a look at my friend, Brenden Macalusoʼs, itʼs called the Recompute. While doing research, Brenden created the sustainable principles of design which can be used to re-design objects with a sustainable “kick.”: http://www.sustainable-computer.com
94. Marc Nathanism ‘Social Overhead’ a term to describe spouses, family, mortgages and any other functional roadblock to bootstrapping a startup.
95. The first round of funding is referred to as Friends, Family, & Fools. A playful term.
96. HTC is the place to intern. Paid or unpaid, seize the opportunity. Itʼs worth every second.
97. Ideas are worthless, execution is everything
98. Ideas are worthless, execution is everything
99. Ideas are worthless, execution is everything
100. In any given year, a typical entrepreneur comes up with 500 ideas, maybe 1 of them is worth pursuing. Knowing which one is the hard part.

I appreciate the entire HTC experience.

A special thanks to Marc Nathan for giving me a very unique opportunity to see and work with cutting edge technology companies.

I will likely be coming back to Houston as the perception of my hometown has changed. Houston is startup friendly, and itʼs the place where people come to work. I now have a desire to pursue my technology interests in Houston. You should too….

Mr. Murphree is stalwart advocate of the VC community in Houston and has taught investment management at the University of St. Thomas [...]]]> Purva Patel, one of the journalists at the Houston Chronicle who ‘get it’ about emerging businesses recently wrote up an interview she had with Dennis Murhpree of Murphree Venture Partners: http://www.chron.com/disp/discuss.mpl/business/6489409.html#

Mr. Murphree is stalwart advocate of the VC community in Houston and has taught investment management at the University of St. Thomas and the venture capital course at the Rice University Jones Business school for several years.  In short, when he speaks, people listen and his opinion matters. Even though he is personally trying to bring more investment here, he laments the fact that there simply isn’t enough capital in Texas to support our high growth business and we have to outsource 85% of our capital out of state.

Below is the comment I left on the Chronicle website but the bottom line is that I believe:

We need more money and more focused money

These are exactly the kinds of stories Houston entrepreneurs need to hear – especially from someone who has established himself as a leader in the venture investment community over a number of years. Mr. Murphree is well-respected because he tells it like it is and knows what he’s talking about. ’85% of funding comes from outside our borders? That’s both a little bit sad and just a touch frightening when you think about the spirit of independence and bootstrapping that drives most Texas entrepreneurs. Of course we need more money and $100m in a seventh fund certainly helps this effort. We also need more diverse sources of that money, so that pool of capital is spread over a wider variety of ventures. Demonstrating to investors who are used to putting their capital in the ground (Oil) or on the ground (Real Estate) that there is also value in the Cloud (Internet) is a real challenge for software and internet related ventures, but it is getting a little better. Thankfully this environment has proven that many internet based startups require a lot less cash to get going than in the past, but they still need investors who have expertise in the space and the willingness to roll up their sleeves to help these new style of startups.

Marc Nathan
Director of Entrepreneur Development, Information Technology
Houston Technology Center

I found out today via Marc Nathan and also via Dwight Silverman‘s TechBlog that Guy Kawasaki is coming to the Houston Technology Center to speak about The Art of The Start on Thursday, April 24th at 7pm. I can’t tell you how excited I was to hear this news as this is obviously the type of speaker that [...]]]>   

I found out today via Marc Nathan and also via Dwight Silverman‘s TechBlog that Guy Kawasaki is coming to the Houston Technology Center to speak about The Art of The Start on Thursday, April 24th at 7pm. I can’t tell you how excited I was to hear this news as this is obviously the type of speaker that could increase visibility for Houston in the startup world.

Apparently Guy was pretty impressed by all of the Houstonians at SXSWi and asked Dwight if he could set up an opportunity for him to come to Houston and speak.  With all of the great minds in the Houston tech and startup communities, I’m sure we’ll have a lot more to impress Guy with when he gets here.

You can find more details over at Dwight Silverman’s Chron TechBlog.

You can register for the event on the Houston Technology Center site (here)

Also, we’re putting together a list of startup questions for Guy, so if you have any good ones that you would like to share or get answered, make sure to add them in our comments section.

Update: Hurry and register now because I’m told that they are already nearing capacity

The Houston Business Journal put together a great interview with Blair Garrou of DFJ Mercury on what he thinks are some of the hot areas for investment and growth in Houston.  Here are a few excerpts I found interesting.

“Blair Garrou, managing partner of Houston venture capital firm DFJ Mercury, is bullish on the Bayou City as fertile [...]]]>

The Houston Business Journal put together a great interview with Blair Garrou of DFJ Mercury on what he thinks are some of the hot areas for investment and growth in Houston.  Here are a few excerpts I found interesting.

“Blair Garrou, managing partner of Houston venture capital firm DFJ Mercury, is bullish on the Bayou City as fertile ground for start-up companies.”

“DFJ Mercury typically invests between $100,000 and $1 million in seed and early-stage companies and also builds syndicates through its DFJ network for larger investments. The company has invested in six Houston start-ups over the last two and a half years — three in bioscience and three in technology. ”

“I’m a proponent that this is a fertile ground for start-ups. You can’t compare Houston to San Francisco. Start-ups are in the DNA in San Francisco — it’s been a way of life for generations. You don’t have those kinds of conversations around the dinner table here yet. I think Houston has the ability to be strong in three areas — life sciences, software and Web 2.0 deals.”

You can read the complete article here.  You can also see our previous interview with Blair on StartupHouston here.

Several months back, I met George Giannukos and Thomas Marriott, local entrepreneurs from Texas A&M who started a new gaming venture called GameWager. GameWager is an online, matchmaking platform that enables members of all skill sets to win cash/fun prizes & recognition competing in the most popular PC games online. They host pay-to-play (poker style), [...]]]>

Several months back, I met George Giannukos and Thomas Marriott, local entrepreneurs from Texas A&M who started a new gaming venture called GameWager. GameWager is an online, matchmaking platform that enables members of all skill sets to win cash/fun prizes & recognition competing in the most popular PC games online. They host pay-to-play (poker style), cash prize tournaments where the entry fees are distributed to the winners in structured payouts and free, token-based (arcade style) tournaments where gamers collect more tokens as they win; all of which can be turned in to their “Reward Zone” which will be full of prizes.

I cannot go into too much detail as this site has not launched yet but from what I am aware of, they have assembled many well respected names in the gaming industry as partners to make it easier to play with friends and offer a secure & fair gaming environment online. The addition of friendly wagering on one’s own performance adds a unique element to the game play which should make their model interesting to watch.

I had a chance to talk with Thomas Marriott recently and here are some excerpts from that conversation:

Josh: Gaming is a huge market. Why haven’t we seen someone succeed with this business model so far?

Thomas: The market size and opportunity are undeniable. However, it’s a tough nut to crack. There have been some fantastic attempts and we can attribute varying factors to the failure of each; from their twist on the model itself to strategy and execution.

Josh: I saw you guys present at the Houston Angel Network. Excellent job! You’ve been very successful in getting funding to date…to what do you attribute that to?

Thomas: Thanks! Although we’re gamers, we further buried ourselves in the industry and paid close attention to competitors failed attempts. As a result, we have taken an extremely methodical approach entering this space – spending a considerable amount of time conducting due diligence, assembling a rock star list of advisors and securing interest in the gaming community. Our efforts created results and that was key to investors.

Josh: Has being in Houston been a plus or a minus so far?

Thomas: As with anything, there are pros & cons – so I can’t say overall its been either. Austin and Dallas are some of the most vibrant gaming communities in the world, the quick drive to them as been invaluable for conferences, networking and business development.

Josh: Do you think you’ll be able to stay in Houston as you grow? What issues do you see going forward?

Thomas: I’m afraid the need for capital and better valuations will pull us out West – we’ll see how things go. For what its worth, we prefer to stay in Texas and will be back if relocated!

Josh: Anything you’d like to add?

Thomas: You guys are doing a great job with Startup Houston…efforts like these will allow startups to stay in Houston longterm!

Also, if anyone in and around Houston (or just passing through) wants to get together to discuss business, entrepreneurship, gaming or anything else we have in common, feel free to each out. We can be reached on LinkedIn, Facebook or GAMEWAGER.net

Thanks guys!

Recently myself and Josh Tabin interviewed the founders of FireSabre Consulting who have built a business in Second Life constructing virtual environments for businesses, schools and nonprofits.  The founders, Fred Fuchs and Kevin Shaum, who go by their avatar names of Gus Pliskin and Tinker Lafollette, are based here in Houston and took us for [...]]]>  

Recently myself and Josh Tabin interviewed the founders of FireSabre Consulting who have built a business in Second Life constructing virtual environments for businesses, schools and nonprofits.  The founders, Fred Fuchs and Kevin Shaum, who go by their avatar names of Gus Pliskin and Tinker Lafollette, are based here in Houston and took us for a tour showing us some of the worlds and models they have created.

[vimeo]http://www.vimeo.com/clip:462611[/vimeo]

One of the great things about using Second Life for school environments is the ability to demonstrate physics concepts in 3D space. Gus and Tinker showed us some of the recent projects that they have been working on, which include projects on both what are called the Main Grid and Teen Grid (separate areas with different permissions and protections for the age groups involved).  One of FireSabre’s biggest projects, and most long-running, is the Suffern Middle School on Ramapo Islands, a private estate in the Second Life Teen Grid. The Ramapo Central School District Suffern was the first school or school district to develop a presence in Second Life.

FireSabre represents what the future could look like for schools and other training institutions. The Future Room (which you can see in our video) is another example of an environment that FireSabre created to demonstrate different communication methods and concepts in Second Life.  Based on what we saw and heard, we look forward to seeing more of what FireSabre and Second Life will bring in the near future.

You can see the latest news on what FireSabre Consulting is up to here.

When I left my last position and was waffling on starting a consulting practice, everyone told me to talk with Ernie Rapp (LinkedIn, Facebook).  At the time, Ernie had his own consulting practice here in Houston for over 5 years and had made a wonderful go at it. We bacme instant friends and have kept [...]]]>

When I left my last position and was waffling on starting a consulting practice, everyone told me to talk with Ernie Rapp (LinkedIn, Facebook).  At the time, Ernie had his own consulting practice here in Houston for over 5 years and had made a wonderful go at it. We bacme instant friends and have kept in touch since. Earlier in the year, Ernie let me in on his new project, The Up Experience (Facebook group) and we met recently to talk more about it. Here are some excerpts from that chat:

Josh: Tell me about the UP Experience. Where did the idea come from?

Ernie: UP (to be held February 7, 2008) came from my experiences over the last several years, as I realized how focused I had become on my profession.  So focused, in fact, I realized I needed to add an intellectual/learning component to my life.  I did not want to go back to college, nor did I want to get another certification in a particular field.  I needed to understand what was going on in my world, both my local world and the larger world in general.   Getting unique perspectives from unique people who are doing amazing things and who are experts in their fields was what I was looking for.  I attended a 3 ½-day event in California called TED, and it was so educational and inspirational I wanted to create the same experience in Houston.

Josh: It does sound a lot like the TED conferences that several friends have attended over the years. How does UP differ from TED in format and construction?

Ernie: We have patterned UP based upon my own experiences from TED.  We’ll have 20 presenters each giving 20-minute on-stage presentations during a one-day event.  TED is 3 ½ days and their presenters are on stage for 18 minutes.  A unique feature we added to the UP format is the break-out session scheduled after each group of 5 speakers – during the coffee and lunch breaks.  The experts who just finished their on- stage 20-minute presentations will do another 20 minutes of informal question-and-answers for those attendees that are interested in a particular speaker.  We really wanted to give attendees and speakers this opportunity to get to know one another (and the presenters are extremely interested in seeing this concept succeed).

Josh: Do you feel that Houston can support this in the same manner that California can? What challenges do you see ahead?

Ernie: Houston is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States.  We decided to launch this event here because we are native Houstonians and our business and personal networks will help in getting the word out about the event.  I am beyond confident that Houston has a number of individuals that are working hard, very focused and need the same thing I do — an intellectual shot in the arm, in a fast paced, rapid fire way, on topics that are important to understand about our future.

Josh: The list of presenters is impressive (Malcolm Gladwell, Steve Wozniak, Ray Kurzweil to name a few)? What was the process of finding and securing presenters like?

Ernie: Our advisors, a group of business associates and friends, put together their recommendations on presenters and topics of interest.  That list grew to over 350+ suggestions.  We researched and discussed these suggestions for a long time.  Ultimately we narrowed their list to 70 possibilities.  From there we approached a smaller group of supporters for their recommendations.  Once we had the top 30 targets, we started contacting those individuals, their agents, etc.  Over a six-month period of time, the 20 confirmed speakers were finalized.  In some cases, it was someone knowing somebody else, or having seen a presenter with a message that was deserving of presenting at UP. In other cases, it was a sales process to convince a few that this (first time) concept would work and work well.    With only one or two exceptions, we were able to secure the presenters that were most appealing.

Josh: Shifting gears for a moment, you have been providing strategic advice to local businesses for many years now, both during your days at Arthur Andersen and on your own: what do you see as obstacles to Houston becoming an epicenter for technological development and commercialization?

Ernie: I think the only answer is lack of human resources.  Can you imagine saying that a metropolitan area as large as Houston could lack the necessary skilled work force?  With the price of oil and gas continuing to escalate, Houston’s economy will continue to do well. As it relates to technology and commercialization, we as a city need to continue to show a progressive attitude toward keeping engineers and getting a skilled work force to relocate to Houston, making Houston their home. For those of us who are native Houstonians, we need to show that same progressive attitude to promote Houston as we know it best, as a great place to live and work.

Josh: How do see UP helping Houston evolve in this direction?

Ernie: UP will be an annual one-day event in Houston, Texas that lots of folks put on their calendars as a day that cannot be missed.  Houston, to a large extent, does not get this caliber of presenter as often as we should.  In fact, the multiple speaker bureaus that we have worked with for the first UP have stated that Houston never comes UP as a place where these high caliber presenters get invited to speak.  That needs to change.   If we are to continue as a major international energy and business center, we need to attract the best and brightest and to promote innovative thinking.

Josh: How can Startup Houston help you?

Ernie: That’s easy: register to attend and tell others to do the same.  I realize that the startup world is beyond difficult; every day is one of survival.  To come to UP for one day, may sound difficult (perhaps even expensive with an entry fee of $1,000).  However, what is one good idea worth to the startup world?  It’s certainly more than the registration fee and certainly more than one day of your business life.

Josh: Anything else you’d like to add?

Ernie: Josh, thanks for having me on the blog with you.  Can’t wait to see other Startup’s attend The UP Experience on February 7, 2008.