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List of Figures | |
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List of Tables | |
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List of Sidebars | |
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Foreword | |
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Preface | |
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Acknowledgments | |
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The Genesis | |
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Start-Up Opportunities for High-Tech Entrepreneurs | |
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The Lure of Freedom | |
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The Professional Engineer | |
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The Recent College Graduate | |
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From Technology to Product to Marketing | |
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Is It Time to Create Your Own Job? | |
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Issues to Consider | |
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Small Business: Not Synonymous with Start-Up | |
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The Definition of a Start-Up | |
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Taking Risks | |
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The Technology-Oriented Professional as Company Founder | |
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Founder's Roles and Responsibilities | |
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Officers | |
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Title Inflation | |
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Frivolous Titles | |
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Founder Career Paths | |
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Entrepreneur's Profile | |
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The Nonengineer Founder | |
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Life in Your Start-Up | |
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Success and Failure: Statistics | |
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Vacation and Time Off | |
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Working Hours | |
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Divorce | |
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Holding Your Business Together | |
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Personal Planning Process | |
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Leadership and Business Basics | |
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Allocation of Effort | |
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Getting Down to Business | |
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Market- vs. Technology-Focused Approach to Growing a Business | |
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Delivering Benefits to Customers | |
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Technology and Markets | |
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Rapid Time to Market | |
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When High-Growth Business Is Desirable and Necessary | |
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Why Grow? | |
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The Self-Employed | |
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Investors Expect Rapid Growth | |
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Grow a Commanding Position in a Defensible Market Segment | |
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"Rule of X" Competitors | |
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Attract Customers in Expanding Markets | |
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Develop a Product Family | |
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Achieve Critical Mass and Economy of Scale | |
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Speed Is Not a Substitute for Strategy | |
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Diversify to Diminish Business Risks | |
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Create Career Opportunities | |
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Create Future Start-Up Opportunities | |
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Create Market Value, Attract Investments, and Cash Out | |
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Start-Up Financing Terminology and Stages | |
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Elements of a Successful Start-Up | |
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Create your Management Team and Board of Directors | |
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Management | |
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The Entrepreneurial Team | |
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Board of Directors | |
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Advisory Board | |
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Mentors | |
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Personnel Policies | |
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Signed Agreements | |
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Evaluate Markets and Target Customers | |
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Traditional Business Model | |
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Customers and Markets | |
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Define Your Product or Service | |
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Choosing the Right Product | |
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Finding Good Product Ideas | |
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Marketing and Competitive Analysis Considerations | |
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Exceptional Product Attributes | |
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Producing Your Product | |
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Write Your Business Plan | |
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Form vs. Content | |
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Types of Business Plans | |
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Getting Started | |
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Find a Team and Write a Plan, or Write a Plan and Find a Team? | |
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When to Write the Plan | |
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How Long Should It Take to Write Your Plan? | |
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How Long Should a Plan Be? | |
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Essential Tools | |
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Good Business Planning | |
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Business Plan Basics | |
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The Executive Summary | |
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Plan Emphasis | |
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Business Plan Outline | |
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Venture Capitalists' Typical Business Plan Contents | |
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A Business Plan Checklist | |
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Adding or Highlighting Sections | |
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Classic Problems | |
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Use Standard Ratios | |
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Looking Like an Amateur | |
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Understanding Financial Statements and Projections | |
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Working Backward | |
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Get Good Data | |
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Do Not Ignore Your Own Data | |
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The Three Most Important Financial Statements | |
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Balance Sheet | |
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Income Statement | |
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Cash Flow Statement | |
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Break-Even Analysis | |
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Investors' Hurdle Rate of Return on Investment | |
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Exit Strategy | |
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Private Placement Memorandum | |
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Due Diligence File | |
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Conclusion | |
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Funding Issues | |
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Investment Criteria | |
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Cheap Start-Ups Are Finished | |
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Looking for Seed Cash | |
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How Much Money? | |
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Seed, Start-Up, and Subsequent Funding Rounds | |
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Milestone Funding | |
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The Nightmare: Running Out of Money | |
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Where to Get Money | |
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Shopping vs. Selling Your Business Plan | |
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The Term Sheet--A Practical Overview | |
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Definition of Term Sheet | |
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Dilution and Antidilution | |
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Key Provisions of Term Sheet | |
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Dilution Is the Number One Business Issue | |
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A Sample Term Sheet | |
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Making It Pay | |
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Remuneration Practices for Your Start-Up | |
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Salaries | |
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Headhunters | |
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Equity Ownership: Stock and Stock Options | |
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Form of Equity Incentive Vehicles--an Umbrella Plan | |
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Other Compensation | |
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Employment Contracts | |
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Stock Ownership | |
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Risk-Reward Scale | |
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Ownership Interest over Time | |
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How Many Shares Should You Grant? | |
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Common and Preferred Stock | |
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Authorized and Outstanding Shares | |
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Acquiring Stock | |
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Founders' Stock | |
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Restricted Stock Grants | |
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Future Tax Liability on Restricted Shares | |
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Section 83(b) Election | |
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Transferable Shares and Vesting | |
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When and How Often to Grant Stock | |
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The Alantec Litigation | |
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Stock Options | |
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Stock Option Grants vs. Stock Grants | |
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When to Grant Stock Options | |
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How Often to Grant Stock Options | |
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On How Many Shares Do You Grant Options? | |
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Stock Options as Part of a Total Package | |
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Two Kinds of Stock Options | |
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Option Vesting and Exercise Schedules | |
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Exercising Options--an Interesting Twist | |
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The Future of Stock Options | |
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Administrative Details | |
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A Comparison of Tax and Accounting Effects on ISOs and NQSOs | |
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Alternative Minimum Tax--the ISO Trap | |
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The "Wash-Sale" Trap | |
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Helping Your Employees Understand Stock Options | |
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Other Equity and Wealth-Building Vehicles | |
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Unrelated Stock Purchase | |
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Tax-Free Exchange of Intellectual Property for Stock | |
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Investment Through the Provision of Real Property | |
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Warrants | |
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SARs and Phantom Stock Plans | |
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Employee Stock Purchase Plans (ESPPs) | |
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Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) | |
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Section 401(k) Plans | |
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Valuing Your Equity Position | |
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Valuations at Different Points in Time | |
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Valuation Benchmarks from VentureOne Study | |
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Factors that Venture Investors Consider | |
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A Secret: Venture Capitalists Don't Really Use Valuation Models--at Least Not for the First Round | |
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Peer Group Comparisons | |
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More Commonly Used Valuation Methodology | |
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Capitalization Formation Road Map from AVI Capital Management | |
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Valuation as a Black Art | |
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The Effect of Founders' Cash on Company Valuation | |
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The Importance of Negotiation in the Valuation Process | |
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Other Compensation and Start-Up Employment Considerations | |
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Entrepreneurs Need Insurance | |
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Do Some Planning Regarding Fringe Benefits | |
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Use the Internet | |
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Outsourcing Your Benefits Work | |
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Life Insurance | |
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Key-Person Life Insurance | |
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Health Insurance | |
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Disability Insurance | |
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Asset Protection Maneuvers | |
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Retirement Plans | |
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Section 125 Cafeteria Plan | |
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Employment Contract | |
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Emotional Distress Compensation | |
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Golden Handcuffs--When and How to Stay | |
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Golden Parachutes--When and How to Leave | |
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Summary | |
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Part 5 Doing It | |
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Protecting Your Intellectual Property | |
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Copyrights | |
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Patents | |
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Trade Secrets | |
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Trademarks | |
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The Legal Form of Your Start-Up | |
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Corporation | |
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Partnership | |
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Limited Liability Company (LLC) | |
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Sole Proprietorship | |
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Miscellaneous Legal and Business Matters | |
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Work with a First-Class Lawyer | |
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Making the Start-Up Decision | |
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How Commited Are You? | |
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Leaving a Current Employer | |
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Stay Fit | |
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What if Your Start-Up Fails? | |
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Some Final Comments | |
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Some Colorful Definitions | |
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Definitions | |
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A Foreign Language Test | |
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Resources Available to Start-Up Entrepreneurs | |
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Entrepreneur and Mentoring Organizations | |
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Organizations for Women | |
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Professional Services Organizations | |
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The Small Business Administration | |
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Venture Financing | |
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Human Resources and Equity Compensation | |
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Other Good Resources | |
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References and Recommended Reading | |
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Index | |