founders

“That's a red flag. It's one thing to be willing to do a flat round if a VC asks. It's another thing entirely for the founder to suggest it.”

“Don't ask the investors for references to founders. Go to their portfolio list on their website and find a company that's no longer in existence. And reach out to that founder on LinkedIn. A founder of a failed company is going to give you a lot more informati…”

“It, it's actually when things are not going that well, or there are issues, is when people want to sell.”

“Now, I found that when people are getting a lot of no's, they over prepare, and so she's spending a lot of time to be really, really, really ready. But I guarantee you that her peers are not. And so a little bit of that sort of winging it, I know that sounds c…”

“I think like getting a founder that makes you believe, and then there are like some proof points and it feels like just the next change is the one that's going to make it. So like, if you can get an investor to believe in that, like that this next thing is the…”

“Our problem, I think, is that the capital structures are set up to be either or. Either you're for maximized shareholder profit, Or maximize mission. And I think most founders actually are somewhere in between on the spectrum, but they're pushed to one side or…”

“I think part of your job as a founder is to recognize when you're losing the room. And instead of allowing things to spin out of control, stop and like, hey, maybe I haven't been clear. Let me start over.”

“And I think in times like this, it's very easy to get attached To what you were doing before, but I don't think investors give you credit for persisting with something that probably won't become a big idea.”

“I tell founders in crowded spaces, always start with your competitive landscape. Because that's the only thing I'm gonna care about.”

“You can coach people on presentation, on answering questions, I think it's hard to coach people on, like, the thing they want to build.”

“The biggest mistake we've seen founders do is Take grants that don't fit in their existing plan.”

“VCs used to hold all the power, and they demanded a lot from founders, but now founders seem to be realizing how much power they have too, and there's more early-stage VCs than ever to choose from. So the ones that continue to play by the old rules We'll get l…”

“Founders, never, ever say a price for your round unless you already have terms.”