Dan J. Berger

Mentoring Best Practices (from a mentee's perspective)

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 16:20:53 -0400

As the entrepreneurial spirit rises so does the need for mentorship. New accelerators mean new mentoring opportunities and some [ambitious] people are mentors at multiple programs. That’s great and I hope these organizations have the systems in place to measure their mentors’ effectiveness.

But I want to focus on how to be a good mentor. Personally, I rely on an informal network of mentors to help me. I found that the best ones do the following:

Ask probing questions before giving any advice. One of my mentors always asks a dozen or so probing questions to really understand the issues at hand before saying anything.
Offer advice based on their previous experiences. One of my mentors provides me with frameworks that have helped him succeed so I can apply them.
Follow up after critical conversations. One of my mentors calls me after big meetings that he helped me prep for to see how they went.

Some entrepreneurs-turned-mentors fall into the easy trap of giving kneejerk advice without adequately understanding the situation. They think that their ideas is what we mentees want to hear when it’s actually their advice.

Keep on trucking, fellow founder

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 09:04:00 -0400

Successful entrepreneurs like to play with our heads. It’s ironic because years ago, when they were first-timers, they were being played with in the same exact way. I guess it’s their way of making us earn our stripes.

Throughout the year that I’ve been doing Social Tables, I’ve heard it at all. At first, it was “build something.” I did. Then, it was “get users.” I did. Then it was “think big.” I did. Then, it was “focus.” I did. Then it was “get revenue.” I did.

Are you seeing a pattern? Me too. No matter what you do and how well you do it, people will offer their advice because… they can… and because everyone’s frame of reference is different.

At the end of the day, if you got product-market fit with a solid and passionate team behind it, nothing else matters. You will win. Keep on trucking fellow founders!

Keep on trucking

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 09:01:53 -0400

Are you seeing a pattern? Me too. No matter what you do and how well you do it, people will offer their advice because… they can… and because everyone’s frame of reference is different.

At the end of the day, if you got product-market fit with a solid and passionate team behind it, nothing else matters. You will win. Keep on trucking fellow founders!

mmmm bone.

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 22:16:01 -0400

mmmm bone.

The world is his oyster.

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 14:08:41 -0500

The world is his oyster.

Can’t get enough of this face.

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 21:17:17 -0500

Can’t get enough of this face.

Zebra buddy

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:17:13 -0500

Zebra buddy

5 DC Startup Titans that Fly Under the Radar

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 16:51:02 -0500

5 DC Startup Titans that Fly Under the Radar :

inthecapital:

These guys have done incredible things for the DC startup community but are not the kind to hog the spotlight. Like a good Milford man, they are neither seen nor heard. Yes, I had to throw in an ArrestedDevelopment reference.

…

wowah.

OMG IS THAT @LEROY_BERGER ON THE OFFICE????

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 22:56:28 -0500

OMG IS THAT @LEROY_BERGER ON THE OFFICE????

Shower time.

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 17:33:11 -0500

Shower time.

How to respond to email intros

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 09:16:00 -0500

I really enjoy introducing people in my network to one another. This is especially rewarding for me because I love connecting people. In fact, creating meaningful connections is one of the driving principles behind my startup, Social Tables.

My intro emails usually look like this:

Foo, meet Bar. Bar, meet Foo.

Foo, Bar is blah blah blah. I know her through blah blah blah. She’s awesome.

Bar, Foo is blah blah blah. I know him through blah blah blah. He’s amazing. He needs help with X.

I’ll let you two take it from here.

Happy connecting,
Dan

Even though most of my introductions usually take off, my batting average isn’t perfect. Here are several intro “best practices” I have identified through the many I’ve made:

When you’re the person who needs the help/favor, try to respond as soon as you can (unless you’re a service provider - then you should respond fast so that they take you seriously).
If you’re trying to schedule a meeting with the other person, offer several times to connect. If you know the other person is very busy, try to be considerate.
Update the introducer (me!) about how the introduction went. It will make them feel warm and fuzzy inside (and make them want to introduce you to other people they know).
It is customary for the person who responds to the intro first to move the introducer to BCC.

I am thinking of including a link to this post in all of my introductions going forward. Do you have any tips for making good intros?

Driving.

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:03:12 -0500

Driving.

My plans for 2012

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 18:13:00 -0500

New year, new resolutions. It’s time to get my commitments for the new year down on paper. Here we go.

Track everything. I just got a Fitbit so I can start logging my daily activity, exercise and sleep habits.
Track everything - business edition. Make more data-driven decisions at Social Tables: More spit tests, more pattern recognition, more laser focus.
Read one new book a month. On my plate are: Drive, 4 Steps to the Epiphany, and Spent.
Follow one new interesting person (outside of the tech world) a day on Twitter.
Do whatever it takes to take Social Tables to the next level.

I’ll add any new commitments I make to this post. Let’s do this!

Oh, and if you’re looking for a tool to track your resolutions or commitments, check out 21habit.

Happy hanukkah!

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:59:26 -0500

Happy hanukkah!

The little toys on my desk have a party.

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:09:47 -0500

The little toys on my desk have a party.

Snack time.

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 10:50:43 -0500

Snack time.

retroglo's best of 2011 music

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 14:29:00 -0500

retroglo's best of 2011 music:

My friend Nancy, a bad ass chick with seriously awesome taste in music, put this list together of her favorite music from 2011:

in no particular order or number.

albums.

monarchy - around the sun

summer camp - welcome to condale

the weeknd - house of balloons

fabian - say goodbye

metronomy - the english riviera

katy b - on a mission

tracks.

m83 - midnight city

penguin prison - don’t fuck with my money

jai paul…

continued…

Head in a shelf.

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 14:57:58 -0500

Head in a shelf.

I can never get over how much of a cutie pie this guy is!

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 07:38:55 -0500

I can never get over how much of a cutie pie this guy is!

Art Basel 2011 Favs

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 09:32:00 -0500

Here is my album of pics I took of my favorite art from this year’s Art Basel, the country’s largest art fair that takes place in Miami every year for 3 days. Galleries from all over the world set up shop and show off their artists and pieces.

My top picks:

Strongest political statement: Bare-chested Muslim woman
Most beautiful photo: Elephant in Amboseli
Sculpture/Installation: Chanel gun with flower petals
Favorite Abstract painting
Favorite old-school Pop Art: Andy Warhol’s The Witch, pink version (going for 95k)

I literally saw thousands of pieces… from the absurd to the beautiful. Lots of “is this art” moments, including the “installation” of Brooklyn-based artist, Muri Kim, who lived naked with pigs in a pen for 104 hours.

Personally, going to Miami during the Northeast’s Winter was a total change of pace. I’m used to going down there for the Winter Music Conference to party. It was like I grew up… fitting for someone who just turned 30.

It was totally awesome. See you next year, Miami.