The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 16 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Barrett: Hiring outside VC executives caps internal talent and drives them away
“How many of those same people just brought in some kind of outside executive from their VCs? Yeah, you just fucked your entire company. Because by doing that, you just indicated to every one of your employees, you cannot grow here. That we value skills that yo…”
Barrett: VCs make money deploying capital, not on exits
“But the VC business model is they get paid when they invest. And so it actually, they don't really make money on the exit. Like, there's the carry, they would say, at the very end.”
Barrett: Hiring outside executives tells top internal talent to leave
“The second that you hire in, you know, sort of that, that, that pro who comes in above everyone else, you've just told everyone else in your company, fuck you. There's no way you can ever grow in this company. Because we have just hired someone above you whose…”
Barrett: Startup complexity is invented by people who profit from it
“Starting a business is so much easier, ah, than it's made out to be. It's so much easier than, it's like all the complexity is invented complexity. It's a complexity, I would say, being sold to you by Primarily with people who profit from that complexity. Who …”
Barrett: Nothing of value happens inside board meetings
“Nothing of interest or value happens in the board meeting itself.”
Barrett: Seed and Series A rounds are driven by storytelling, not meaningful numbers
“This, like, the seed and A are primarily just about, like, you and the story you tell. Like, especially the seed. A, it's like you have to have some evidence that, like, you know, the story has some anecdotal evidence of some kind of traction. And then, like, …”
Barrett: Never email pitch decks ahead of VC meetings
“Never mail your deck ahead of time, because then they'll make their decision before they see you.”
Barrett: Reaching $1M revenue is the startup valley of death
“It is just a brutal, awful slog in the start, and so as much of this conference is about getting to that hundred million, really, I mean, the hard part is getting to that, that one million. Like, that is the valley of death that basically will wipe out probabl…”
Independent board members brought in by investors aren't truly independent
“And I think they're brought in by the board, and if they're brought in by the board, that means that they're not really independent. They actually just kind of work for the board. Now not really, it's not quite the same, but it's similar.”
Barrett: The greatest companies are built on controversial decisions, not boardroom consensus
“The greatest companies don't happen because suddenly, miraculously, everyone in the boardroom always agreed on every single decision. That's never happened. The way it happens, great decisions are always controversial.”
Barrett: The best startup ideas face the most board pushback
“And in fact, the better the idea is, the worse it looks on the surface. And I think that's where it manifests itself in the board dynamic, is when you believe in something, when you truly believe in the best of possible ideas, you should expect the biggest pus…”
Barrett: Consult dozens of informal advisors instead of adding expert board members
“If I wouldn't pick one person, I'd pick 50 people, and I'd call them all the time and I wouldn't, and I would consolidate their knowledge, and then I would present that consolidated answer to my actual board, people that have, like, some influence over me.”
Founders should allocate zero equity to non-investor advisors
“I just don't think the best advice gets bought. I think that if you're not an investor, you don't get shares.”
Barrett: Startup failure is devastating for founders, but merely a bummer for employees
“Employees are naturally sort of aligned, ah, to your vision. But also, they don't really have the same downside as yours. Like, they're not, their emotions aren't as tied in the company as yours aren't. If they, if you lose, you know, if you fail, To you, ah, …”
Barrett: A startup board's purpose is checking power, not running the company
“The part of the board, like the purpose is not to actually collectively run the company, but it is to serve a check on your power.”
Barrett: Continuous dialogue with investors reduces the need for frequent board meetings
“The more successful you are in having a strong dialogue with your investor, the less necessary it is to have frequent board meetings. If, on the other hand, you haven't really established that rapport, then maybe actually more frequent could be helpful.”