Disqus - Latest Comments for Aruni

Re: Rebecca Kaden

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Fri, 20 Oct 2017 16:14:13 -0000

I'm glad to see you have put your money and time into making a decision that demonstrates your commitment to action and not just words! What's that saying about putting your money where your mouth is? I look forward to seeing how USV's investments and the things you and your team learn change over over time.

As a female entrepreneur who has raised VC money in the past, I have learned that the fundraising game is a very different one than most games people people play in this fascinating game of life. It's not for everyone regardless of what gender you are.

Good luck Rebecca!

Re: A $20,000 Match Offer On ACLU Donations Today

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 16:22:21 -0000

Thanks again for magnifying all of our good efforts and intentions! Just donated. I'm glad we have a way to contribute to help in this crazy situation.

Re: Make America Hate Again

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sun, 29 Jan 2017 16:06:23 -0000

Amen. Agreed. Awesome. I'm donating shortly as well. @aruni

Re: Temperament

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Tue, 27 Sep 2016 09:37:00 -0000

Amen! I'm just so surprised that there are so many people who like his showmanship. They don't seem to understand how the rest of the world is so important to our future economic, financial, and even physical health. Maybe they haven't traveled enough or studied enough history to know how much damage a person like Trump could do to all of us if he's president. It's scary how divided we are in many things for a candidate like Trump to get so far in what used to be a respected Republican party.

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Fri, 02 Sep 2016 11:44:46 -0000

Thanks Nicole. Maybe you can make it to sxsw this year? :-)

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Fri, 02 Sep 2016 09:29:07 -0000

As a writer/storyteller myself who has co-founded 3 organizations, raised money, and interacts often with customers & partners, the art of telling a good story about yourself and your company should not be underestimated. The stories we tell others and the stories we tell ourselves can and have changed the world!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Thu, 01 Sep 2016 18:32:09 -0000

Thanks Lani! We think A LOT of people need this panel. :-)

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 31 Aug 2016 12:50:07 -0000

Great points Noelle! We appreciate the support and thoughtful words!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 31 Aug 2016 12:48:56 -0000

Thanks Elizabeth. We look forward to seeing you there!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Tue, 30 Aug 2016 10:30:16 -0000

Thanks Clare! We are looking forward to the opportunity to share our experiences.

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Mon, 22 Aug 2016 17:40:03 -0000

Thanks Mike. It does make sense that putting the customer in the middle in healthcare industries would help immensely!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sat, 20 Aug 2016 10:15:41 -0000

Thanks Steve!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sat, 20 Aug 2016 10:15:10 -0000

Creating a simple, yet compelling pitch is extremely important and kids have very insightful comments! My kids have served as judges at a recent Pitch-a-Kid event and I was impressed with their questions and their choices on who won!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 17 Aug 2016 10:57:04 -0000

As a parent of a new middle schooler and high schooler, I think this is an important topic to discuss. We need to find an alternative way to ensure our students are truly learning and understanding material that will help prepare them for the careers of the future.

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Thu, 11 Aug 2016 12:26:15 -0000

I've attended Thom's session in the past and it's great opportunity to learn new ways to meet people and it's chock full of reminders on how to get the best out of the conference!

Re: sxsw-panelpicker-logo PanelPicker®

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Thu, 11 Aug 2016 12:24:21 -0000

Thanks Thom! We think it should be a fun and informative panel for all to learn how to better build relationships with customers.

Re: Furious Friday

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sat, 09 Jul 2016 11:25:46 -0000

Yes, I practice Kundalini and Yoga Nidra.

Re: Furious Friday

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 13:07:07 -0000

We've come so far, yet we still have a very long way to go towards inner peace as a species on this plant.

Re: The Pulse Nightclub Shooting

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Mon, 13 Jun 2016 10:56:49 -0000

So horrible. I have tried to comment a few times on your blog recently, but it seems like my comments don't come through. I would share a link to a great article on Super Beliefs/Doubt written by Mark Manson to add to this discussion, but think that it might get blocked for some reason. I tried to link to a post to an article on a great founder/CEO on your request for examples of great CEO traits post a few weeks ago, but after a few times of trying and not seeing it, I gave up. Please google the article on Doubt/Super Beliefs as a reason why I think things like this happen. Peace, Love, and Joy to all of us!

Re: The New Boss

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 12:24:00 -0000

I wrote a comment a couple of hours ago, but it looks like it didn't post. To sum up please read this article I co-wrote some years ago on Jimmy Treybig, founder/CEO of Tandem. He outlines many traits of great leaders, CEOs, and successful teams: https://issuu.com/riceunive... on p. 29.

Make sure your team is diverse from the start. Make sure you listen to them. Don't be afraid of the time investment to understand people who don't think, look, act, or speak like you. This holds true no matter your gender as a CEO. Jimmy had one of the most diverse teams in the 70's when he started Tandem. He was in it for the long haul and not a quick flip. He was thinking big from the beginning.

Find a diverse peer group of CEOs/leaders you can trust to bounce ideas of confidentially. It can be lonely at the top.

Re: The New Boss

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 09:52:51 -0000

Make sure your team is diverse and that you really listen to them as well as adeptly communicate your and their ideas. I interviewed Jimmy Treybig, founder/CEO of Tandem, years ago for the Rice Alumni magazine and here's a like to that article: https://issuu.com/riceunive.... Page 29. He talks about team building, diversity, etc. In the 70's he had the most women on his team, most African Americans, etc. and he grew his company to $2 billion.

Start early with diversity and welcome/absorb the differences of thought & ideas. It may not be easy or result in a quick flip, but building companies of real value long term are the ones who tend to make real differences in this world by positively impacting individual person. Change starts within each of us.

Also, find a trusted peer group of CEOs/leaders with different backgrounds. It can be lonely at the top.

Re: What A Week

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Sun, 28 Jun 2015 14:54:34 -0000

It has been a historic week! Amazing Grace is my favorite hymn. We sang it this morning at the end of our yoga class.

Re: Opting Out For The Kids

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Tue, 26 Aug 2014 21:37:37 -0000

As a long time reader of AVC, a female entrepreneur, a mother (single one now), and an advocate of professional women, when I first read the title of this post I first thought to myself "is he going to talk about women opting out of email newsletters so they can manage their time better?" That may be a strange initial thought, but I still work. I've started two companies and supported heavily (when married) the start of a non-profit school that our kids still go to. I work at a start-up even though I've thought many times I should work at a more stable company given the numerous financial and emotional ups & downs. My career has been rewarding but not as financially rewarding as I'd hoped by this point in my career, as is the case of many of my entrepreneurial friends.

This post seems to be a bit in contradiction to your post the other day about funding a kickstarter campaign to support the creation of a film to highlight women bosses/CEOs/entrepreneurs and one of the images in the video is of a woman working in front of a computer while "wearing" her baby.

What are these moms opting out of? Just because they are not in the day to day workforce, I see them "opting in" because they have choices, need to and/or want to spend their time mostly with kids. We have many talented moms at our school who had high powered careers and chose to "tone it down" because they could afford to make that decision and had a comfortable lifestyle but I'm not sure they were "opting out." I will share the info with some of those moms to see what they have to say...

Re: SXSW PanelPicker

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 13 Aug 2014 11:34:17 -0000

Be prepared to be blown away by the technology that will help students and instructors excel in STEM subjects in order to achieve career and professional development goals!

Re: Unresolved

Aruni S. Gunasegaram — Wed, 01 Jan 2014 22:55:33 -0000

I love it. I am Unresolved as well: http://www.entrepremusings.... I've certainly not achieved the financial and personal success you have for many reasons, but I consider myself lucky to be where I am. I'm fortunate to have been given the opportunity to experience what I have experienced as an accidental entrepreneur. Maybe my kids will absorb what they have seen of me as a survivor of many interesting life experiences and expand on that to achieve success based on their definitions and terms whether it be financial, spirtual, or whatever. I think being content with where you are no matter if you live in a penthouse in NYC or under a bridge in a 3rd world country is really the ultimate success. I'd much rather live in a decent apartment, but you do the best with the "hand you are dealt" as they say. Happy New Year!