All posts filed under: career&entrepreneurship

IN WAKE OF THE STOCKHOLM TECH FEST, PART II: Startups

(THIS IS THE SECOND PART. Read the first part here) Things weren’t that bad at Stockholm Tech Fest. We actually got to meet some very talented and creative people in the Tech industry….people who are changing the future….people who we chose to discuss here today. In fact, one of them won the Life as an Investment Award!   Detectify https://detectify.com/about Built in 2012 CEO Rickard Carlsson Who are they? Detectify audits your site’s security so that you can focus on web development. They were born from the simple concept that the internet is broken—and now today we have a full-blown SaaS application that has moved-on to become one of the most exciting new companies in web security. Why are you the hottest and the coolest start-up in the Stockholm Tech scene right now? Our competitors do not perform as well as you would expect.  We are a security company, and that means preserving confidentiality and integrity.  Our competitors cannot keep up with the ever-evolving web landscape. And beyond that, we can hack right through you. …

(c) Image courtesy of Klarna

In Wake of the Stockholm Tech Fest, Part I: Diversity

Week 36 in Stockholm the tech scene was in full swing! It was highlighted by a Swedish- based company known as Klarna – who arranged the event which was devoted exclusively to tech-creative women. The “Women Create Tech” theme gathered over a 1000 women at Klarna’s headquarters to talk about their role in the hottest investment field in the country – IT. According to official statistics  in 2013, investments in the Technology field increased by 60%. Following the Klarna event, the “Stockholm Tech Fest” took place, attracting over 2000 participants – the largest ever in Sweden. At the conclusion of “Tech Week” in Stockholm, Life as an Investment ran the “Wild Women Do” workshop organized by Marie Milligan, Pyladies Stockholm and sponsored by Lifesum. When the three-day marathon was over Merenlin and I sat down in a café trying to sort out the “reality” of what just took place. The STHLM Tech Fest raised a wave of discussions on in the media about diversity in the tech industry. Some of the comments and posts had …

Wild women DO, – interview with Marie Milligan

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” ― Nelson Mandela The human beings are strange in the defining the place that we call “comfort”. We need to have stability and diversity of new possibilities. Some of us are living the life with a wish of a stable family, life in peace and when they finally reach that, – they are still not satisfied. Some of us decide to climb to the top of the career ladder while sacrificing our private lives, and the day they become the CEO/CFO/COO they do not feel happy anyway. We decided to talk to Marie Milligan – a motivational speaker and coach from London, UK, who helps women to define their goals and plan their life in balance with the their ambitious goals and wishes.   Actual Marie holds a one-day free workshop for women in tech in collaboration with PyLadies STHLM “Define your purpose & build a …

New Sushi Roll Concept Hits Stockholm

We all have busy lives and there is no changing that perception until retirement. It’s just a plain fact that today’s society demands everything in an instant, so who really has the time to wait, especially when it comes to grabbing a “quick” healthy bite to eat. Here in Stockholm “grab-and-go” meals are limited. Even worse is that many Stockholmers may have food allergies, be vegetarians, or even diabetic and simply cannot eat what is available   Sushirullen STHLM AB  Founded 2012 -10- 01 Launched 2013-11-02 Founders Johan Falk (32 years old) and Margarita Falk (30 years old) First investment 400 000 sek Locations Drottninggatan 70, Stockholm, Sweden Nybrogatan 18, Stockholm, Sweden (grand opening 13-06-2014) Sergels torget (stay updated, coming soon) Amount of employees 12 http://www.sushirullen.se/ Do not miss free sushi rolls on 13 th of June from 12:00 till 16:00 at Nybrogatan 18.   Meet the Falk family—two young and inspiring entrepreneurs who’s Sushirullen (the sushi roll) concept has become a great alternative for thousands of on-the-go Stockholmers. The fast food industry is ready to be changed! …

5 main steps for the perfect elevator pitch

If you an entrepreneur with an amazing idea and want to pitch it to your friends or even an investor, get ready to experience sweaty palms and rosy, red cheeks. Why? Because you never have a second chance to make a first impression! Here are some tips to avoid screwing it up:     I.         Make a plan and write it down.  Here is a plan: The American Express advice US makes it simple and useful.  FIRST BLOCK 1)    Name of your business 2)    Your product/services 3)    Market segment 4)    Problem solving  SECOND BLOCK  1)    Why your product is needed 2)    Which problems can it solve (this makes life easier, saves time and is more productive) 3)    Why are you better than the competition—USP  THIRD BLOCK 1)    Sales & Profitability Statement 2)    End with a statement about what you are looking to accomplish   II.         Repeat your pitch format again, and again.  In front of mirror or video camera, run through your offer at least a few times. Also, pitch your idea in front of friends and ask them to be critical by asking several questions. Overall, if …

Start-Up Day 2014 from Stockholm School of Enterpreneurship

Previously known as “Good Morning” but now renamed “Start-up Day,” the Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship organizes this one-day event where it gathers entrepreneurs with and without experience as well as attracting various investors, students, and motivational speakers—all on three different scenes. Being curious and looking for new opportunities, contacts, and of course inspiration, I decided to visit the event once again. I attended it four years ago and still remember the summing-up speech by Magnus Lindkvist. “Start-ups I believe in” This year  the event took place 26 th of April 2014 at Munchenbryggeriet. I was a bit disappointed with the Start-Up Day event. In fact the only speech “Start-ups I believe in”that I feel worth mentioning came from Hampus Jakobsson—a truly inspirational and successful entrepreneur as well as a happy father of three. Hampus is theco-founder and CEO at Brisk.io—a project that is currently operating under the Creandum family*. Earlier in his career when he was co-founder of a software licensing company known as The Astonishing Tribe, he was responsible for shipping over 500 million …

Financial Education Books

Let’s admit it—financial education studies at school suck! It doesn’t really matter which country you live in. Everywhere in the world, biology, history, and math are the main subjects in school. Such subjects as financial education and communication in society are not included in ordinary school curriculums. However, these two subjects are essential, and used in everyday life. It doesn’t matter how old are you or how much are you earn, there is always the possibility to spend money wisely. Rethink your spending behavior in order to protect yourself, your future and your family. Here are two books that I strongly recommend to everybody. It doesn’t matter if you have a financial education, or not. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki I remember the feeling I had after reading this book at the age of 18. I felt like the biggest secret of the world was all of the sudden, revealed. The book is very easy to read, the examples are easy to remember, but the idea of the book is worthless.  Stay ahead …