The TAM Scam: Why the next economy won’t need your pitch deck’s market-size slide

For most of modern business history, directly observing economic activity was slow, expensive, or impossible. We developed proxies to compress uncertainty into numbers that executives, lenders, and investors could use. But as technology makes economic activity more observable, the proxies we built for an earlier era become harder to defend.

I was wrong about sports: Why KC’s ‘escape velocity’ keeps pointing back to 18th and Vine

By Tommy Felts / September 29, 2026

Sports, music, and barbecue are not three separate Kansas City brands, writes urbanist and entrepreneur Kemet Coleman. “They are one story, and it starts at 18th and Vine,” the Vine Street Brewing co-founder explained.

300 pitches later, GIFT founder offers a cheat sheet for selling your vision (hint: it starts with the pitch deck)

By Tommy Felts / September 14, 2026

“What does your business do? Tell me directly, clearly, and avoid unnecessary fluff,” writes Brandon Calloway in an open letter to entrepreneurs. “As someone making a snap judgment about your business, I need to quickly understand what it offers.”

Smart glasses at work: How employers using (or banning) the tech could face legal challenges

By Tommy Felts / August 25, 2026

AI-enabled smart glasses take a step further than the traditional “body camera” surveillance footage, given the technology’s ability to retain and assess information, such as biometric information. That creates new concerns for employers who might want to implement the devices — or even keep them out of the workplace altogether, writes a team of attorneys from Polsinelli.

Missouri founders need rules for crypto, digital assets that protect infrastructure and consumers, advocate says

By Tommy Felts / July 9, 2026

Congress should act quickly, writes Ryan Wright. If the United States waits too long, other countries will continue setting the standards for digital assets, AI provenance, and the next generation of financial infrastructure. Missouri should not be left reacting to that future. We should help build it. 

Royals chose Crown Center; KC now must decide how 18th & Vine stays in the game

By Tommy Felts / April 27, 2026

The Royals ballpark announcement was still eye-opening, because moments like this reveal what a city is actually willing to organize itself around, writes Kemet Coleman.

How can 90 days fix 18 months of revenue? Make trust and consistency your currency

By Tommy Felts / April 19, 2026

Many leaders start buying marketing the same way they buy any other solution .. one need at a time. It’s not uncommon for one company to have a web vendor, a PR partner, a graphic designer, an email vendor, and so on. The hire is based on need, not strategy; and the real cost shows up in places most leadership teams don’t calculate.

We all need help, honey: Nearly 3/4 of entrepreneurs are haunted by depression (Holistic Hustle)

By Tommy Felts / March 8, 2022

Kharissa Forte is a writer, certified health coach, and columnist for Startland News. For more of her self-care tips on how to keep your cup full, visit graceandgrind.co. You did it. After all the nights dreaming about how amazing it could be and overcoming the endless stream of what-ifs that stopped you from moving forward…

KC workers aren’t leaving — they just want more control over their jobs; Why that isn’t such a weird flex

By Tommy Felts / February 14, 2022

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Bo Fishback, CEO of Airtasker USA, a local services marketplace that connects people who need work done with those who are ready to work, previously founded Kansas City-based Zaarly. The startup was acquired by Airtasker in 2021. Corporate America’s “Great Resignation” is largely…

Faking it ’til you make it might be why you have imposter syndrome (Holistic Hustle)

By Tommy Felts / February 8, 2022

Kharissa Forte is a writer, certified health coach, and columnist for Startland News. For more of her self-care tips on how to keep your cup full, visit graceandgrind.co. I’m not one to get caught up in the hoop-lah of celebrity crushes, but if there’s anyone who I #WCW it’s my Pisces twin Rihanna. (I mean,…

The future is local: How masks helped neighbors look each other in the eyes again

By Tommy Felts / December 27, 2021

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Keith Bradley is co-owner of Made in KC, a brick-and-mortar and online retailer of locally made goods with neighborhood, marketplace and cafe locations downtown, on the Country Club Plaza, in Lee’s Summit, Lenexa, and across the metro. As we wind down our second…

How intersecting K-12 student competitions build design thinking, inventiveness and an entrepreneurial mindset

By Tommy Felts / October 26, 2021

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Callen Fairchild Zind is communications manager for the KC STEM Alliance. How do you prepare for a career when the world is changing at such a rapid pace that no one can quite envision what jobs of the future will look like? In Kansas…

White House vs ‘startup slump’: New executive order puts feds on notice in bid to reverse innovation decline

By Tommy Felts / July 20, 2021

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Victor Hwang is the founder and CEO of the Right to Start movement. Click here to learn more about Right to Start, a campaign to drive economic recovery and advance economic justice. This commentary originally appeared on Inc.com and is republished with permission…