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While big companies in the American economy have never been more successful, entrepreneurial activity is near a 30-year low. More businesses are dying than starting every day. Investors continue to dump billions of dollars into photo-sharing apps and food-delivery services, solving problems for only a wealthy sliver of the world’s population, while challenges in health, food security, and education grow more serious.

In The Innovation Blind Spot, entrepreneur and venture capitalist Ross Baird argues that the innovations that truly matter don’t see the light of day—for reasons entirely of our own making. A handful of people in a handful of cities are deciding, behind closed doors, which entrepreneurs get a shot to succeed. And most investors are what Baird calls “two-pocket thinkers”—artificially separating their charitable work from their day job of making a profit.

The resulting system creates rising income inequality, stifled entrepreneurial ambition, social distrust, and political uncertainty. Our innovation problem makes all our other problems harder to solve. In this book, Baird demonstrates how and where to find better ideas by lifting up people, places, and industries that are often overlooked. What’s more, Baird ultimately outlines how to create long-term success through “one-pocket thinking”—eliminating the blind spot that separates “what we do for a living” and “what we really care about.”

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Over the past twenty-five years, Jason Calacanis has made a fortune investing in creators, spotting and helping build and fund a number of successful technology startups — investments that have earned him tens of millions of dollars. Now, in this enlightening guide that is sure to become the bible for twenty-first century investors, Calacanis takes potential angels step-by-step through his proven method of creating massive wealth: startups.

You can get rich — even if you came from humble beginnings, didn’t go to the right schools, and weren’t a top student. The trick is learning how angel investors think. Calacanis takes you inside the minds of these successful moneymen, helping you understand how they prioritize and make the decisions that have resulted in phenomenal profits. He guides you step by step through the process, revealing how leading investors evaluate new ventures, calculating the risks and rewards, and explains how the best startups leverage relationships with angel investors for the best results.

Listen to the author on the Backstage Capital Bootstrapped VC podcast!

Buy the Audible version (Arlan’s fav!)

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Meet the women who haven’t asked for permission from Silicon Valley to chase their dreams. They are going for it — building the next generation of tech startups, investing in each other’s ventures, crushing male hacker stereotypes, and rallying women and girls everywhere to join the digital revolution.

Geek Girl Rising isn’t about the famous tech trailblazers you already know, like Sheryl Sandberg and Marissa Mayer. Instead, veteran journalists Heather Cabot and Samantha Walravens introduce yiou to the fearless female entrepreneurs and technologists fighting at the grassroots level for an ownership stake in the revolution that’s changing the way we live, work and connect to each other.

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What makes a hero? Is it circumstance? Privilege? Luck? Or is it passion, will and a belief in one’s self? Silicon Heroes is a 96 page graphic novel that explores what it means to be a hero or a villain in the special little bubble of Silicon Valley. Follow along with five young tech workers as they embark on a quest to discover their inner superpowers. Will they band together to overcome seemingly impossible challenges? Or will they fall victim to hipsters, CrossFit cults and bad tech puns? From writer Joseph Floyd and artist Michael Penick, Silicon Heroes takes place in a world where the amazing is commonplace, and the common man has an opportunity to be amazing. Read more about Silicon Heroes at www.siliconheroes.com.

Profits from Silicon Heroes benefit Girls Who Code, an organization that educates and inspires young women to pursue opportunities in technology and Code.org, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding school participation in computer science.

Arlan is a proud sponsor of the Silicon Heroes initiative.

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Lead-generation marketing is evolving rapidly, but many companies are still using the same methods they always have. What’s been missing—until now—is a strategic look at how lead-generation tactics can work together to produce the maximum number of quality leads. In The New Rules of Lead Generation, marketing expert David T. Scott examines the seven most successful tactics, including e-mail, direct mail, and search engine marketing; banner and social media advertising; cold calling; and trade shows. He reveals when to use which tactics, how to use them cost-effectively and get the best results, and how each tactic has changed in recent years and will continue to evolve in the future. Readers will also discover how to test new approaches on a limited budget and how to combine multiple tactics for a more powerful, integrated campaign. Featuring valuable tools for tracking costs and measuring results, this indispensable book shows marketers everywhere how to capture the leads they need to help their companies succeed.

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This is the highly anticipated third edition of the best-selling book which has become the definitive resource for understanding venture capital fundraising. Whether you are an entrepreneur, lawyer, student or just have an interest in the venture capital ecosystem, Venture Deals is for you. The book dives deeply into how deals are constructed, why certain terms matter (and others don’t), and more importantly, what motivates venture capitalists to propose certain outcomes. You’ll see the process of negotiating from the eyes of two seasoned venture capitalists who have over 40 years of investing experience as VCs, LPs, angels, and founders. They will teach you how to develop a fundraising strategy that will be a win for all parties involved.

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Designing for iOS with Sketch takes you through the process of designing your iOS app using Bohemian Code’s Sketch. Sketch is a powerful new design program that is quickly replacing Adobe PhotoShop for many designers designing for mobile apps and the mobile web. This book will introduce you to the program and then take you through the steps of designing your very own app. It includes examples and shortcuts as well as a helpful list of plugins and 3rd party resources that will greatly improve your workflow.

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Angel investing has exploded during the past decade, channeling over $20 billion annually into startup companies in the U.S. alone. But until now it has been a niche activity—a way for power-players and risk-lovers to place exciting, high-stakes bets on promising new ventures. Angel Investing: The Gust Guide to Making Money and Having Fun Investing in Startups is the first book of its kind to discuss the human and financial rewards of being an angel investor, the benefits of joining an angel group, and the crowdfunding revolution that is bringing early-stage investing to millions of new participants. Investors looking for a powerful new asset class will find Angel Investing a valuable and comprehensive resource.

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“If you are an entrepreneur thinking about raising capital for your business, or just someone interested in learning about the venture capital industry, I think Jeff’s book is a one of the best resources available. As a former entrepreneur turned VC (and now part time HBS professor), Jeff wanted to help others outside the industry get a better understanding of how the venture capital industry works. In the book he tells the stories of some of the most successful entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to give readers practical advice on the process from beginning to end including how to meet a VC, structuring a deal, choosing your board through to exit. I recently joined Jeff and the Flybridge team as an investor and can say first hand the book was invaluable to me as I transitioned from entrepreneur to investor. We hope you enjoy it!”

– Jesse Middleton, General Partner, Flybridge Capital Partners

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The Startup Checklist is the entrepreneur’s essential companion. While most entrepreneurship books focus on strategy, this invaluable guide provides the concrete steps that will get your new business off to a strong start. You’ll learn the ins and outs of startup execution, management, legal issues, and practical processes throughout the launch and growth phases, and how to avoid the critical missteps that threaten the foundation of your business. Instead of simply referring you to experts, this discussion shows you exactly which experts you need, what exactly you need them to do, and which tools you will use to support them—and you’ll gain enough insight to ask smart questions that help you get your money’s worth. If you’re ready to do big things, this book has you covered from the first business card to the eventual exit.

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This year more than five million entrepreneurs will launch a new venture. Many of them believe they have the Next Big Thing. But very few startups live to see five years, and even fewer make it to ten. Even fewer still go on to become a global success story. This book is a practical guide to evaluating your business idea and a must-read for all aspiring entrepreneurs.

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