Most investors want to be that veryyyyy last check into a company.
I get that, but really – that’s a loss in my book.
I have developed an obsession to be 1st – to find winning founders and gain conviction before anyone else.
If I don’t…
It means my systems and networks weren’t optimized to find opportunity well in advance of a round of funding.
It means my pattern matching abilities didn’t recognize real opportunity.
It means I missed out on a deeper relationship with the founder. No one forgets the people who believed in them before anyone else did. Gaining conviction early is memorable and meaingful.
It means the probability of being pushed out of a competitive round now or in the future increases.
It means my ability to make a significant impact around finding the right and most value-add partners for the business diminishes.
It’s a win and honor to be that 1st check in, to spot opportunity before anyone else, but you’ve got to *really* hustle for it.
