Tag: Founders
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“When in doubt, take the shot.” Doug Leone, Managing Partner, Sequoia Capital The partners from prestigious venture firm Accel stood outside an office in Palo Alto, waiting to take theirs. These were the offices of a young startup called thefacebook. Most startups would’ve killed to meet them. But thefacebook’s young…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Reading, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Hi everyone, hope you had an awesome weekend! Today, I want to talk to you about some of the smartest people I know. As an angel investor, I meet with a lot of startup founders. As I took a walk on the Hudson today, it occurred to me that the…
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+ Angel Investing, Entrepreneur, Founders, Investing, Small Business, Software, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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There’s tons of advice out there on how to pitch investors. But what about what comes next? After any pitch, investors are likely to ask numerous questions. How do you answer them in the most effective way? Here are some tips: Pacing One of the biggest mistakes I see founders…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Silicon Valley, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Last Thursday, I was preparing to judge a startup pitch competition. I thought to myself, “How can I make sure every startup hits the key points?” Then, it came to me: a checklist! Every time you pitch investors, you need to give them certain key pieces of information. Without those…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Public Speaking, Startup, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Everyone running a startup knows about the deck. There are countless tutorials about how to write this PowerPoint presentation that forms a key part of a startup’s pitch. Shoot, I’ve even written one. But what about the deck’s mysterious cousin: the deal memo? Founders generally send potential investors a deal…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Small Business, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Every now and then, I see the unthinkable: an LLC trying to raise venture capital. You want to give your startup every chance of success. So don’t shut yourself out from venture capital with this rookie mistake! Repeat this mantra every night before bed: “investors want a Delaware C Corp.”…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Small Business, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Never miss a post…subscribe! Every month, I look at over 200 startups. I choose one. Among those hundreds of companies raising funds, I always see tons of cool ideas. So what distinguishes the companies I choose from all the others? The number 1 reason I say no to founders is…
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+ Angel Investing, Finance, Founders, Investing, Silicon Valley, Software, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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You’ve been meeting with investors day after day. You get a lot of “very interestings” but no actual checks. What are these people looking for? Today, I thought I’d explain what I look for in a startup. As an angel investor, I invest in about 1-2% of the companies I…
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+ Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Silicon Valley, Startup, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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You’ve run through your deck a hundred times. You’ve practiced pitching to your cat. He declined to invest. Startup founders work incredibly hard to pitch their dream to investors and get funded. As an angel investor, I see a lot of presentations. So, I thought I’d share the 3 biggest…
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+ Angel Investing, Entrepreneur, Finance, Founders, Investing, Money, Public Speaking, Startup, Startups, Tech, Venture Capital+
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Tremendous 