#10 Bucking Convention: How Carley Roney Rode the Roller Coaster to Success

Broadmic Startup Shortcuts

What’s every entrepreneur’s dream? To build a big business, successfully exit and lead a life of autonomy with choice. Our guest today needs no introduction: Carley Roney co-founded The Knot in 1996. Think about where the internet was then. It was AOL chatrooms, dial up modems, and a single photo took five minutes to load. Carley takes us through the roller coaster ride of her entrepreneurial journey – from pitching the “worst idea ever” – according to AOL – to building the first model of an ad supported business, and talks about what it was like working with 3 other co- founders (spoiler alert: one was her husband), to going public, being de-listed and going public again. And while you may not think startup lessons from 1996 are relevant today, guess what folks, they are more relevant than ever! Efficient use of capital has not gone out of style! Knowing your customers has not gone out of style! If you’re the least bit worried about being unconventional in your approach as an entrepreneur, then you will want to listen to this episode where you will get all the permission you need from Carley Roney!

Notes

Yes Please by Amy Poehler, iBooks

Instagram Is Getting So Good at News, It Should Scare Twitter by Jessi Hempel, Wired

Meet Seasoned Silicon Valley Investor, Ann Winblad by Shradha Sharma, Your Story

Additional Reading

The Knot Straightens Out by Emily Maltby, WSJ

Wedding Spend Reaches All-Time High, PR Newswire

Why is Peter Thiel not a big fan of the lean startup/MVP movement? Quora

How To Find A Co-Founder For Your Startup by George Deeb, Forbes

Lessons From A Study of Perfect Pitch Decks by Kim-Mai Cutler, TechCrunch

The Long Lost Myth of Capital Efficiency by Brad Feld, FeldThoughts

3 Ways Startups Can Accomplish More With Less by David Klein, Inc

A Complete History of the Rise and Fall — and Reincarnation! — of the Beloved ’90s Chatroom by Caitlin Dewey, WaPo

The 5 Commandments of Running a Successful Business With Your Spouse by David and Carrie McKeegan, Entrepreneur

Guest bios & transcripts are available on www.broadmic.com.