Harry Stebbings posted an interview with me on “How VCs Find Startups and How To Add Value Once Invested”, among other topics. This was his 95th interview on his 20 Minute VC podcast series. Listen here...
[Continue Reading]How Star Wars will help you raise capital for your company
When you’re raising money, you’re telling a story. So who are some of the best stories and storytellers? Greek mythology, the Bible, and in modern times, George Lucas and the Wachowski siblings. Star Wars and the Matrix are both modeled on Joseph Campbell’s wildly influential book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. In The...
[Continue Reading]Should you co-found your company with a software development shop (1 of 2)?
You’ve got an amazing idea. You’ve got everything it takes to bring a start-up from nothing to something that really makes a dent in the universe. … and if you’re like most of today’s startups — you need to get an app in the hands of customers. Once customers love your app and you show...
[Continue Reading]Corporate VC: obligatory or oxymoron?
When I meet with executives from large corporations, they’re often worried. And they should be; the feeding frenzy in the innovation economy is in some cases because startups are eating the lunch of more established companies. To quote a friend, if you’re an executive at an established company, your job is to blow on the ice...
[Continue Reading]18 ways to make your financial model stand out to investors
The median investor looking at your proposal is in her 40s. Her eyes are going, not to mention her brain. I look at a lot of spreadsheets and analytic reports, and way too many are difficult to read and therefore hard to understand. In an effort to make my life easier, I’ve summarized here the...
[Continue Reading]How long before venture capitalists (and angel investors) get liquidity?
It’s fascinating to be an angel investor, but do most angels actually make positive returns? And even more important, how long until they get liquidity? The theoretical returns look extremely attractive; we’ve identified 12 different studies showing annual returns of 18-54%. But the bad news: according to CB Insights, the average time for VCs to...
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