Author: arianathacker

🤓 If I could re-design the early-stage founder pitch, it’d look like this (*open to feedback from founders who successfully raised):

1. Concise introduction that hits upon (1) your experiences, with highlights to historic abilities to make the highly improbable a reality – prior to newco and/or in newco (2) entrepreneurial abilities, even if your last role was 9-5 (3) bridging experience clearly to problem you’re solving (why you’re the ideal founder for this) (4) other exec team members and why they’re relevant.

Time block: 3 min. Pause for Q’s.

Get investor intro that gives understanding of (1) check size (2) thesis (3) process to ensure fit before going deeper. Ask Qs.

2. Directly and simply: state the problem, commercial value if a solution is found (expanding on the value proposition, what the status quo is, and why that sucks), and the “spark of genius” in your solution (be direct in differentiation and defensibility).

Show a deep understanding of the problem – know the right level of detail to meet your investor on by doing your homework before the call / listening closely when they introduce themselves.

Allude to strategies you have considered but are not pursuing in solving this problem (showing a deep understanding of the market / competitors / potential scope of solutions, and why your solution is the best possible for this problem).

You can always mention “in our data room we have data that demonstrates X”, to be efficient on the call.

Time block: 3-5 min. Pause for Q’s.

Note: When fielding questions / pitching, keep it conversational – use slides strategically as you’re telling your story / answering questions.

3. Progress so far in the company. Sprinkle in any validation of the points made from 2, and highlight stand-out early successes.

Include mention of customer discovery, potential / current partnerships underway, product progress, team members on board, scientific advisory board members who joined and why, in vitro / vivo data that is leapfrog and not incremental, upcoming progress over the next x months, etc.

Time block: 3-5 min. Pause for Q’s.

4. The $ raise amount, traction in the round so far, terms if available, prior fundraising history, and the use of funds (mapped to key milestones).

Time block: 1-2 min. Pause for Q’s.

5. Now we are 15-20 minutes into what is likely a 30-minute call.

Use the remaining time to have a discussion with the investor (each is a unique snowflake with its own process, so expect some variance in the types of questions you’ll be answering here).

If there are “warts” in the business, be direct. It’s a turn-off for investors to get into “PI mode” to get to what isn’t working / risks in the business.

If what you’re building is not a fit for the investor, no big deal, gracefully give back the time and get back to building — wasting time on investors on the fence / a no is a low yield for your efforts.

If a fit, be clear on the next steps / offer suggestions.

🐸 The Enlightening Tale of the Frog in the Well: A Journey Towards Expansive Understanding 🌊

In the quiet solitude of a secluded well, a humble frog resides, its universe confined to the stone walls and the sliver of sky above. This tale, steeped in the wisdom of Eastern philosophy, tells of the frog’s limited cosmos, oblivious to the ocean’s vast expanse until a sea turtle paints tales of its immensity. This narrative, an allegory of our cognitive insularity, invites us to transcend our epistemic confines and embrace the boundless complexity of the world.

To cultivate a more profound understanding, akin to the ocean’s depth, consider these strategies, each a stepping stone towards the intellectual vastness we seek:

1. Intellectual Humility: Socrates professed, “I know that I know nothing.” Acknowledge the finitude of your knowledge and remain receptive to the infinite wisdom that lies beyond.

2. Cognitive Curiosity: Foster a deep-seated desire to understand and explore complex ideas and phenomena beyond your current realm of knowledge. This curiosity is the compass that guides us towards intellectual expansion and discovery.

3. Diverse Discourse: Engage in dialogues with individuals from varied disciplines, cultures, and life experiences. These interactions can challenge our preconceived notions and contribute to a more nuanced worldview.

4. Reflective Contemplation: Embrace the practice of meditation and reflection, akin to a philosopher in quiet solitude. This introspection can lead to a more profound understanding of one’s thought processes and biases.

5. Awe and Expansion: Seek experiences that evoke awe, as they can dramatically alter our perception of time and space, encouraging a broader, more inclusive perspective on life’s possibilities.

6. Lifelong Scholarship: Commit to the pursuit of knowledge across the lifespan. Engage with literature, attend lectures, and participate in discussions that challenge and extend your intellectual boundaries.

By integrating these approaches into our lives, we can avoid the myopia of the proverbial frog in the well and embrace the boundless intellectual seascape that lies beyond.

A “super power” that anyone can do is listening and seeing what is not being said and shown, as much as what is.

Inquire internally:
1. What wasn’t shared in the pitch call that normally should have been?
2. What isn’t in the data room that normally should be? Side note: I have a checklist of what I normally see in data rooms, and usually develop my inquiry around what isn’t shared.

What isn’t mentioned/shared is usually where the risks live (as well as what is overemphasized as truth, ironically).

There are generally two clusters of personality types in business.

Guess which character mode opens up more opportunities?

Mode 1:
Calculating what can be extracted from the other person
Calculated reciprocity
Not really showing up
Not listening
Not seeing the other person / making an effort to
When something is over in their mind, they’ve quit long before they quit
Sizing the other person up and quickly sizing down if lacks relevance / “value”

Mode 2:
Giving without expectation, and seeking ways to be genuinely helpful without agenda
Bringing the best self each day and doing the work beforehand to ensure the good vibes stay high
Leaving an opportunity with a “bang” – a positive outro others will remember
Seeing the value in others – as a result of carefully listening and attention to what’s also not being said
Asking questions to seek understanding, without assumption of knowing it all

Certain individuals come to mind as you read both lists?

It’s not hard to see how Mode 2 (aka “abundance mentality”) will open up more doors in the most “lucky” ways and from the most “unexpected” people. It’s also an invitation for Mode 1 characters to meet you in Mode 2.

I’m serious about morning and nighttime rituals.

Here are things I do almost daily:

1. Walk in nature when the sun is out (30-60 minutes). During this walk, I either listen to the world around me or my pre-recorded positive affirmations. These affirmations are “antidotes” to identified subconscious scripts (now made conscious) running the show that I’d like to shift (across health, success, relationships, you name it). I have 2 hours of recorded affirmations that I listen to on 2x speed. My treat for completing this task (as I find myself wanting to “move faster” than a walk) is usually an alt-milk latte or matcha.

2. Supplements. I do a host of things: I self-inject subcutaneously glutathione, NAD+, B12 + methionine, inositol, choline (MIC) with insulin needles, take a host of supplements designed to my blood / gut test results (I test 120+ biomarkers every 6 months and adjust my protocol accordingly), and powdered drinks (a mixture of a few different products optimized for both gut health and complete protein intake). I also compounded my own nasal spray (includes essential oils, propolis, and peptides). I’m probably a bit too extra here but I’ve really enjoyed learning what makes my body tick and optimizing it to 110%.

3. Workout. This is usually 45-60 minutes of HIIT (running, jogging, walking) and resistance training (weights, bands), before the sun rises. This drastically improves my cognitive function and energy levels throughout the day.

4. Journal. I “brain dump” all of my fears and anxieties, which allows for them to leave my body so I can focus on the important things (Conscience VC). I like listening to instrumental music during this process. I also meditate on a phrase I’ve been writing / contemplating for years: “Drive infinite positive global impact”.

5. Skincare. Usual suspects: gua sha, face rolling, microcurrent, longevity products (topical NAD+, copper, peptides, hyaluronic acid, tretinoin with niacinamide). I love experimenting with new products every 1-3 weeks (it’s play for me).

6. 8 hours of sleep. This is critical. I’ve always been a deep sleeper but on nights where this is more challenging, I take magnesium, turn off all lights, put my phone on DND, and lay down on an acupressure mat.

7. Plan the day. I zoom out. I think about what are the most important and urgent tasks, and what should be eliminated from my focus entirely. Through self-inquiry, I ask: what are the highest ROI tasks I can be doing right now? What is a waste of time? Who should I reach out to? What is the most important thing to do today? What is holding me back? Where else can I exercise “default no” (removing tasks that are low ROI, not aligned, or do not bring me joy).

8. Slow mornings. I’ve altered my schedule to allow for slow mornings, aka, meetings don’t start until 10 am. This gives me ~5 hours each morning to think, create, write, listen, exercise, and practice more stillness.

In the world of entrepreneurship, we often find ourselves grappling with our internal monologue.

One powerful tool to navigate these mental roadblocks is “The Work” by Byron Katie.

This simple yet profound process of inquiry can help us question our thoughts, turn them around, and find peace and clarity.

“The Work” is a four-step process:

1. **Identify a stressful thought**: This could be anything that’s causing you distress or discomfort. For example, as an early-stage entrepreneur, you might think, “I’m not capable of running a successful business.”

2. **Ask yourself if it’s true**: This step involves questioning the validity of your thought. Is it absolutely true that you’re not capable of running a successful business?

3. **Consider how you react when you believe that thought**: How does this thought make you feel? Does it cause stress, anxiety, or self-doubt? Does it prevent you from taking action or making decisions?

4. **Imagine who you would be without that thought**: If you didn’t hold this belief, how would you feel? Would you be more confident, more willing to take risks, more open to learning and growth?

Once you’ve gone through these steps, you can “turn the thought around”. This involves finding an opposite, more positive or neutral belief. For instance, the turnaround for “I’m not capable of running a successful business” could be “I am capable of running a successful business” or “I’m learning and growing as a business owner.”

Let’s consider another example. Perhaps you’re struggling with the thought, “My product isn’t good enough.” Good enough for what exactly? After going through “The Work”, you might turn this around to “My product is a work in progress, and I’m constantly improving it.”

And one more. “My co-founder isn’t a strong founder.” Is it true? How do you know? Turning it around in this context means to make it about the self: “I’m not a strong founder.” Is it true? How does that make you feel? Who would you be without this thought?

Byron Katie’s “The Work” is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs. It encourages us to question our limiting beliefs, find new perspectives, and move forward with greater confidence and clarity.

So, the next time you find yourself wrestling with a stressful thought, remember: question it, turn it around, and see the difference it makes.

I personally love surfing YouTube and watching the many examples of how this is applied. 🤓

Here’s what I wish I knew day 1:

1. Assume you know nothing on founder calls. Staying in a place of complete open-mindedness, without arrogance tainted from prior experience, allows you to see the founder’s brilliance much more clearly, obtain new understanding, and see what may have changed to allow for opportunity today.

2. Ask simple questions. The simpler the better to allow for quicker decisions. Technical, nuanced questions can come later, but often don’t drive decisions.

3. It’s a dance. Meaning, it’s a two-way relationship, not a one-way interview. That doesn’t mean skip your due diligence process, but engage the founder in such a way that both parties are evaluating an aligned fit. Show up to all calls with that framing.

4. A start-up is a founder’s metaphorical baby. Treat the engagement with grace, particularly when declining the opportunity.

5. Find ways to be helpful early if you believe in the opportunity. It was more true 2 years ago than today, but rounds can still get competitive, and the truly helpful investors stand out.

6. A quick no is a gift to founders, especially equipped with feedback.

7. Who the founder is matters more than almost all else (obviously there are table stakes around the business too). Lean on references, understand the founder’s psychology, and design questions to define human potential. Get clear on what traits drive success and with 1st principles design your process.

8. The litmus test of “Would I get a beer with this founder” is lame. Separate likability / personal resonance from the probability of success. Be more open and less judgmental about how a founder should be, look, and speak.

9. Moving fast (but thoughtfully) as an investor is alpha.

10. Getting clear on your “pre-screening” criteria (min criteria to make an investment) to avoid wasting founder’s (and your) time is critical to your operations.

11. Designing a clear process to rapidly intake and evaluate companies will allow you to win competitive opportunities.

12. Integrity is important. Do what you say you will. Follow up promptly. Less talk, more action. Don’t miss calls. If you have to reschedule, notify as far in advance as possible. Reputation is tied to integrity.

13. Listen v closely. Absorb as much detail as possible. People show you who they are, mostly.

14. “Vibes” are underrated. The energy you bring to a call is critical. You often don’t partner with competitive founders by virtue of being a Stanford grad or having some tier 1 VC firm on your resume.

15. Brand is also underrated. Share your mind and show up as you. Founders resonate with your deeply weird and authentic self.

16. Lean on the founder to ask the best questions possible. When addressing risks, clearly state what you’re looking to understand “Help me understand how you will…”. Ask the founder to reframe to a better question / cover anything crucial missed.

What goes into the recipe of a POWERFUL co-founder relationship?
How do I know if my potential co-founder is “THE ONE”?

Let’s explore via creative inquiry!

Here are a few of the ingredients:

1. A shared vision, AKA aligning on long-term goals.

Q’s: Are you clear on alignment here, and how do you know? What questions can you ask to discern this? Have their actions and historic decisions reinforced this shared vision (or a different goal)? In what areas do you lack alignment, and how do you address those differences? Have they demonstrated resilience in achieving a long-term vision historically? Do their intrinsic motivations indicate a short-term or long-term focus? How well does your co-founder consider the impact of their decisions on the team, company, and shared vision? Do you often feel like you’re rowing in the same or different directions?

2. Trust & mutual respect.

Q’s: Have there been any instances where your co-founder’s actions or decisions raised concerns about their integrity, reliability, or transparency (with you or others)? How do they handle sharing sensitive information or making important decisions with you? Have there been any situations where trust was compromised or eroded? What were the consequences? How was trust rebuilt (if at all)? Have you had enough “reps” with each other to know you can trust each other? How do you know? Do you feel open, with an ability to be share thoughts without judgment?

3. Communication & ownership mentality.

Q’s: Is there a flow in communication and two-way listening? How easy is it for you to bring up topics, even difficult ones, with this co-founder? Have you had an issue or conflict in the past? How severe? How was that resolved? How do they handle conflict generally? How does your co-founder approach decision-making? Do they take ownership of their decisions and consequences? Do they take credit for your decisions and wins? Can you describe a situation where your co-founder made a difficult decision and took responsibility, even if the outcome was unfavorable? Are there any instances where your co-founder has avoided making decisions or has shown a lack of initiative?

Some mindfulness notes:
1. Allow people to show you who they truly are – pay close attention to words, intention, and action. It’s important to remove any illusions and delusions here and see the other objectively.
2. Getting keen with your observational powers (and reference checks, leveraging the observations of others) are critical. Your co-founder will be one of the most decisions you make, and has the power to positively transform or sabotage.
3. Relationships are two-way, so harnessing the power of observation extends to an analysis of you, and not just the other.
4. Self-responsibility in relationships has the power to shift the relationship dynamic entirely. Own how you can show up better.
5. Often the “pet peeves” you find in others, may be a subconscious behaviors you own, too.

The journey of a startup founder is an exhilarating adventure, one filled with tremendous highs and lows.

Building a business from scratch demands relentless dedication, unwavering perseverance, and an unyielding belief in yourself and your vision. 

For overcoming those occasional lows, a big driver in success is mindset.

This is a bit experimental, but, I’ve been working with around 5 of our founders on “rewiring the mind” via various exercises, with some positive and interesting results already.

This specific exercise is meant to uplift and empower the founders we work with on their special path, reminding them of their inherent strengths, talents, and potential.

This mindset reset helps to identify and attract opportunities aligned with their success – it’s a daily reminder that helps dictate decisions made, which compound over time.

Below are some of our favorites, in case valuable to you and your unique journey:

✨ Embracing Self Belief ✨:

1. I am a visionary with a unique and valuable idea that inspires others to join me on this incredible journey.
2. My passion fuels my drive, and I channel that energy into achieving remarkable results.
3. I am a catalyst for change, fearlessly disrupting the status quo and forging new paths.
4. I trust my instincts and make sound decisions for the betterment of my team and the growth of my company.
5. Failure is an opportunity for growth, and I embrace it with courage and resilience.

💡Harnessing Inner Strength 💡:

1. I confidently present my ideas, knowing their value and potential.
2. I possess the creativity and innovation to disrupt the industry and leave a lasting legacy.
3. I attract an all-star team who shares my vision and amplifies our impact.
4. Challenges are temporary; my unwavering determination propels me to new heights.
5. I am a magnet for opportunities, partnerships, and strategic collaborations.

🎉Channeling Achievement and Growth 🎉:

1. I celebrate every milestone, recognizing the progress my team and I have made.
2. Success flows effortlessly to me as I align my actions with my goals.
3. I attract partners and investors who believe in my vision and provide the resources to thrive.
4. My startup positively impacts the lives of many, leaving a lasting legacy.
5. With each day, I become a stronger and wiser leader, guiding my company towards greatness.

I have personally created my own, custom ones that I have recorded and listen to each morning. Believe it or not, this specific exercise takes me about an hour on 2x speed.

For the founders, I hope that these affirmations will serve as a powerful, constant reminder of your inherent gifts and the limitless possibilities before you.

Venture forward!

What do the top early-stage start-ups have in common?

Here are some of the winning qualities that catch our attention, and our internal dialogue as we evaluate investment opportunities:

The founder(s):

👉BIG visionary: do they have a unique way of viewing the problem they’re solving that others don’t? Is it a big problem worth solving?
👉Talent magnet: have they attracted the strong, A+ team needed to successfully build?
👉Mindset to win: have they demonstrated the ability to prevail over any challenge?
👉Velocity and execution ability: do they execute to achieve clear goals that clearly map to the overall vision? Do they have a sense of urgency and the execution abilities to tackle each goal? Have they demonstrated this?
👉Decision-making abilities: are they able to make hard decisions for the benefit of the company? Do their decisions reinforce a winning strategy?
👉Customer-centric approach: Do the founders prioritize understanding and addressing the unique needs, challenges, and experiences of the target customer? Has there been extensive customer discovery conducted?

The opportunity:

👉Significant commercial opportunity: are there evident tailwinds, a large market opportunity, and a whitespace for the company to lead? Is now the right time? Do the customers recognize there is a problem and want a solution?
👉Strong value proposition: have they mapped the customer pain points to clear and compelling solution(s)? Are these pain points needs vs. wants? Is the approach the best solution to the problem?  Is the value proposition quantified and clear?
👉Customer pull: do they have unique access to their customers that others don’t? Can they attract paying customers through organic means? Does it feel like an effortless “pull” to get target customers? Is their traction replicable?
👉Differentiated & defensible: is the opportunity N of 1? Is there enough of a moat to make it implausible to copy? Will it take another company significant time and resources to replicate?

In the fast-paced and competitive world of start-ups, a winning recipe requires a combination of edges.

This is by design of the problem and opportunity selected, as well as the founders’ own magic.

Not all of these elements need to come together to move forward with an investment. In fact, rarely are all of these factors clearly demonstrated at the earliest stages.

Each of these “edges” contributes its own compounding moat and advantage that drives the probability for success, and hence the overall attractiveness of an investment for an investor.

Introverts can be complex and mysterious. 🔮

Far too often, the world misunderstands them or takes their behavior personally – misinterpreting seeking solitude as being aloof, disinterested, snobby, upset, etc.

The list goes on.

Aware of how this more reserved nature can make others feel, introverts often feel pressured to “turn it on” and be socially extroverted in order to create comfort and inclusion. However, this is quite energy intensive, and those electing for their own authenticity over communal inclusion may opt out of this dance entirely.

These initial impressions can deter initial relationships from being built or even perplex and erode existing ones – all stemming from a misclassification of preferred being!

In fact, it may surprise you that even as an investor, I myself tend to lean more introverted (caveat: with a strong bent for extraverted intuition)!

(Author’s sidebar: I understand that identifiers like introvert and extrovert can be confusing, limited, and evolve over time… so bear with me.)

How does this self-defined introversion more specifically show up for me? I love people, however, I tend to prefer spending my weekends indoors, where I can immerse myself in meaningful work and creative projects, have movement in nature, engage in focused introspection, and pursue continuous learning across fringe subjects. These activities charge me up – often more than a party. 🥳

While my ambition and scientific curiosity drive me to frequently step out and engage with many founders and other investors, which I love, depending on the context, I can initially be quite reserved in social situations. Personally, this doesn’t stem from anxiety or shyness. Instead, it is indicative of having a grounded presence where I feel at home to be me.

One crucial aspect that often goes unnoticed is that it can take time for introverts to establish a sense of trust and familiarity before inviting others into their innermost circles. Once that connection is forged, they fully open up and go deep.

Recognizing and understanding this dynamic, without the common misunderstandings that arise, can lead to unexpected and rewarding friendship and meaningful connection.

On the flip side, VCs should also strive for a flawless pitch interaction.

A big shout-out to Steve Procter for writing the 17 ways that an investor could make a pitch meeting FLOP… 👇

👉 Not doing their homework. Investors should be familiar with the startup’s space and have some grasp on the problem the startup is trying to solve

👉 Interrupting the pitch. Investors should allow the founders to finish their thoughts and presentations before asking questions

👉 Unreasonable deadlines or demands. Pressuring founders to rush decisions or make unnecessary commitments can breed resentment

👉 Poor communication or follow-up. This is a two-way street. Investors should also be prompt in providing feedback or further steps

👉 Being overly aggressive on confidential information. Yes, due diligence is essential, but respecting the founders’ need to protect their IP is equally important

👉 Not clarifying their questions. Investors should make sure they’re asking clear, concise questions and make sure they get the answers they need

👉 Low enthusiasm or interest. Just as founders should show passion, so should investors. A lack of interest can lead to a lack of motivation on the founders’ side

👉 Taking over the conversation. Allow the founders to lead the pitch meeting. They know their business best

👉 Not introducing themselves properly. Founders want to know who they’re dealing with too. Investors should share their backgrounds, focus areas, and investment thesis

👉 Not recognizing founders’ stress signals. Pitching can be stressful. An investor should aim to create a comfortable environment for discussion

👉 Complicated investment terms. Keeping the deal terms straightforward makes it easier for founders to decide

👉 Being too passive. Founders appreciate investors who show interest and engage proactively

👉 Not providing feedback at the end. Even if they’re not interested in investing, constructive feedback is always valuable for founders

👉 Not understanding the startup’s business. If the investor shows a lack of understanding of the business, it could lead to miscommunication and missed opportunities

👉 Incomplete or messy due diligence process. Having a clear, organized due diligence process shows respect for the founders’ time and work

👉 Not open to founders’ perspectives. A good investor acknowledges that founders might have unique insights about their industry and market

👉 Overloading the first meeting with too many topics. The first meeting is a get-to-know-each-other opportunity. Investors should prioritize understanding the founders and their vision over deep diving into every detail

Lord knows I need to grow in a few of these – thank you again, Steve! 🤗

If you don’t have the life you want right now, there may be a limiting belief behind it.

The key is understanding your own unique psychology. 🧠

Here’s how:

1. Start with identifying where you don’t have what you want.

– What are you telling yourself? What limiting thoughts come up when you think of obtaining what you want?

– When did you first think that thought? Go back to childhood – 1st memory.

– How has these beliefs limited your life so far? Think of several examples, and feel the feels.

2. Consciously recognize that these limiting beliefs are not positively serving you.

– Ask yourself: What would your life look like without these thoughts? Imagine and feel it.

– Tell yourself it’s time to let go and you are ready.

3. Displace those limiting beliefs.

– Create your new positive script. In present tense.

For this to be potent, the new script must be *specific* to your unique psychology.

A precise antidote to a well-defined mind toxin.💉

A personal example to illustrate:

For many years, I worked HARDER not SMARTER because of my subconscious limiting beliefs.

And I was in total denial about it. To uncover truth you must get comfortable being uncomfortable with your inner workings. State a hypothesis you may not initially agree with, and be open minded to it.

A major perspective shift happened—I saw smarter ways to work and achieve the same, even significantly better, outcomes.

But how?

I was ready to get out of “survival mode” and see clearly. 👁👁

Here’s how I redefined my thoughts to free my mind and schedule:

❌ Worthiness issue:
1. Only if I work hard, then I’m worthwhile.
2. The only way to succeed is if I sacrifice everything for work.
3. I will win if I outwork everyone.
4. Anything else outside of work is a distraction.
✅ New mindset:
1. My worth is inherent and independent of external factors.
3. I embrace a balanced approach of daily self-care and personal growth.
4. I welcome ways to work smarter not harder.
5. I seek new ways to enhance creativity and source epiphanies with ease.

❌Trust issue:
1. I don’t trust others to do a good job.
2. I need to do everything myself/be the final approval.
3. I can only rely on myself to do things right.
4. Others won’t or can’t support me.
✅ New mindset:
1. By delegating and empowering others, I create space for diverse perspectives and skills to flourish.
3. I am confident in my ability to provide leadership so others can also successfully lead.
5. I rely on others to win.
7. I embrace the mentorship of others to align with abundance.

You could see how the prior thinking created bottlenecks. An example of the ego “tripping on itself”. 👟

Adopting a new mindset takes daily repetition. You will begin to observe yourself embodying these new beliefs, impacting where and how you see opportunity and the decisions you make.

This compounded over time is a powerful new recipe.

Now rinse / repeat for other areas.

Rewire your mind, create a new destiny. 💪

Manifestation super powers 101: giving away my secrets 1 by 1 🤗

Warning: the following exercise is not for the wishy-washy.

Your thoughts are powerful. Manifestation is real. With it, you can achieve (almost) anything you want.

First, envision what it is that you really want. It can be short-term (e.g. I want to get this job) or long-term (e.g. I want my company to be acquired).

Write out your vision on paper in as much detail as you can (think: pages of detail). Let’s run with the example goal of wanting your company to be acquired. On that paper, list out the amount you want. How it will happen. Who will acquire you. How soon it will be acquired. How quickly. How your team and you will benefit. What stage the company will be in at the time. Keep going.

Then, reread this paper every day. I even record myself saying it out loud and listen to the audio first thing in the morning. As I’m rereading or relistening, I close my eyes and imagine as if what I’m hoping to achieve has already happened. I feel all five of my senses waking up and playing out as if the scene was real.

If I want to move even faster, I do this more often per day, or continuously throughout the day if it’s one goal.

This exercise is meant to augment your clarity and focus around a certain goal. You have to really want it.

The second stage is proving to *yourself* that this goal is within reach. One approach I take is doing things for others (giving time, $, expertise) that are aligned with my goal. If I want to raise money, I help others raise money. If I want to find work, I help others find work.

This is how you move the fastest. By giving, you are also experiencing. If you practice what you plan to do, you can *feel* this experience more powerfully and prove to yourself that it *is* possible.

Anecdotally—to start the fund, I practiced the above for a few months. I spent every day visualizing and practicing what it was like to be the founding partner of my own firm. The journey was hard, but the “impossible” happened as I started meeting the right people at the right times, investing in the right companies, and having total flow in building a brand. This worked for me because I had 1) clear intentions and 2) knew what I wanted.

But, be sure to caveat everything, and carefully monitor your thoughts. Your thoughts are powerful, so be conscious if your thought patterns, actions, and words are CONstructive or DEstructive for you and others. If you slip into the latter, you may be speaking negativity into existence for yourself and others around you. It’s normal to have slips. Each time, notice and reframe these slips into POSITIVE thoughts.

Remember, this process requires a genuine desire and commitment to your goal. Stay focused, remain positive, and believe in your own abilities.

Now go get those dreams!

I had a funny interaction with an investor that has always stood out in my mind.

Investor: you invested in (stealth portfolio company)?
Me: yes we did 🤗 so stoked for that one.
Investor: why didn’t you notify me about that round?
Me: 😳umm
(In my mind: we’ve had 1 call and we rarely text/email, otherwise I would have)

My interpretation:

“Out of sight, out of mind.”

Early-stage venture (and many other industries) is a team sport and you need to show up at the game.

The interaction was a reminder of the importance of building a real relationship, with repeat touch points and reciprocity, to build trust and sharing.

Then, suddenly, you find yourself quite “lucky” with opportunity!

Here’s what erodes relationship security fast, if one party:
1. Isn’t engaged.
2. Has poor communication and follow-up.
3. Doesn’t respect your time.
4. Is aloof or off-putting to your introductions.
5. Doesn’t display a genuine effort to add value.
6. Doesn’t bring quality information or opportunity to the table.
7. Is entitled (expects to receive and not give).
8. Is arrogant (assumes they know something and refuses to seek understanding).
9. Doesn’t have your back (which so often gets back-channeled).
10. Doesn’t follow through / keep their word.
11. Is passive-aggressive.
12. Is insincere (eg, compliments masking envy or some other unhealthy dynamic).

These activities, whether you’re aware you’re doing so or not, get “registered”.

And yes – we have all been there! Me included 🤗. Owning that is how we grow.

The truth hurts so good. 😭

Let’s also be real. There are only so many people one can engage deeply.

We can’t be expected to be available to just anyone at any time, especially when one is violating the rules of engagement. That’s a recipe for Zoom fatigue and diluting your gifts (I’ve been there). Boundaries are important, too.

As a solo GP, my network of external partners has been incredible allies and critical to our success so far.

Knowing who to invest “relationship equity” in, and how to show up, have been mission-critical.

When we honor these relationships, this kind of magic happens:

1. We are truly invested in each other’s success.
2. We celebrate each other.
3. We go to bat with other investors and founders for each other.
4. We give the cool “hookups”, eg speaking engagements / media and high-profile events.
5. We notify each other first whenever we are considering an investment opportunity.
6. We fight to make room for each other – even if that sometimes means cutting back our own allocation.

Creating your own “luck” requires embracing a mindset of adding value to others. It takes putting in the work each day, recognizing alignment, and high-value communication.

📣 Conscience VC is entering a new era.

Our revitalized mission of “Science Empowering Humanity” underlines our commitment to investing in scientific and technical advancements as a positively transformative force for the individual – AKA, you!

Over the last 100 years, there have been many, significant discoveries leading to powerful paradigm shifts for humankind.

To list a few:
✅ The discovery of penicillin, which marked a turning point in medicine that unleashed the era of antibiotics and transformed treatment of infectious diseases.
✅ The emergence of synbio and programmable biology, which had implications across drug discovery, living therapeutics, food, agriculture, and cell therapies.
✅ The decoding of the human genome, which unlocked unprecedented insights into our genetic blueprint and paved the way for personalized medicine.

Imagine how much more we can accomplish in the next 100 years, at our exponential pace of innovation. Especially now, with AI…and soon…with new, enabling breakthroughs!

Conscience is at the leading frontier of this change.
We are on an expedition of scientific empowerment, and we want you to be part of it.

Below are (just a few) key areas aligned with our vision for the future:

👉 Precision Medicine & Health: Exploring personalized treatments, genomics, preventative care, and innovative therapies to enhance outcomes and access for all individuals.

👉 Longevity: Embracing breakthroughs aimed at extending healthspan and lifespan – advancing well-being and functionality across different stages of life.

👉 Human Augmentation: Supporting technologies that expand human capabilities, including cutting-edge neuroscience and exploring new frontiers in human-machine-AI interfaces.

THIS or THAT.

21 behaviors I’ve noticed in the best founders I’ve worked with:

1. They actively seek the truth and feedback – even if it hurts. They put being effective before their own sensitivity.

2. They work smarter not harder (but still hard).

3. They are assertive with what they want – they follow-up immediately and have a sense of urgency.

4. They are disagreeable but low ego – they solicit feedback, weigh options, and choose the direction that’s right for the business.

5. They are quick to lay off talent that isn’t working, or that’s simply good and not great. They understand sunk costs and move on decisively.

6. They are in command of their emotions and do not act impulsively.

7. They are paranoid. They are protective of their information, strategy, and talent.

8. They are obsessed with their time and energy. They actively recognize and cut off low ROI sinks.

9. They care more about facts vs. emotions, and have the leadership and courage to make unpopular decisions, and stand up for what is best for the business. They also take total responsibility for their decisions and the company’s performance.

10. They still understand the importance of culture.

11. They have done tremendous self work and have incredible awareness / abilities to read others and opportunities.

12. They are adaptable and adjust in light of new data.

13. They are persistent and resilient. They see “no” as “not now” and have the mentality of the only way their business will fail is if they give up.

14. They are optimistic and deterministic. They believe they CAN and they WILL.

15. They are big visionaries, and have clear execution that maps to a clear, big vision.

16. They have a keen understanding of human nature.

17. They are contrarian – they think and do things differently. Many don’t understand them or their decisions.

18. They always find ways to leapfrog / skip steps. They somehow pull off the “impossible”.

19. They understand the details matter and outlearning others is a massive advantage.

20. They understand their gaps and what’s needed from a resource and team standpoint.

21. They are tight with capital, mindful of dilution, and slow to hire – in the beginning of the business especially as it is most critical.

Comment: what else?

We review 200+ companies per month and have heard thousands of early-stage founders pitch. We’ve also anchored founders and helped close rounds quickly.

What makes a pitch FLOP? 17 ways:

1. Not deeply understanding the problem and customer. The CEO must be able to speak with nuanced depth of the problem, solution, and customer.

2. Long-winded answers and intros. Concise but complete answers are key. Founders should answer an investor’s imperfect questions with perfect, crisp responses.

3. Playing the game too hard. Aggressive / unrealistic deadlines, high ego, and rude behavior are mega turn offs.

4. Slow follow-ups to scheduling and materials. Every touch point is sales, including email communications. Have templates locked and loaded, and give investors what they need to make a decision.

5. Being cagey. Founders should be protective of their confidential IP, but not sharing anything substantial will likely not result in a 2nd call.

6. Evasive answers or not answering the question. Early-stage companies often don’t have all the pieces together and that’s expected! Own what is there and what’s next. Also, pay close attention to the question being asked. Confirm the question was answered.

7. Low energy. All founders involved should be high stamina and ready to conquer the world. A 1st call is often a vibe check.

8. Presenting from a deck vs. Q&A. Each investor has their own process. Always allow the majority of the time for the investor to run through Q&A. Give context in advance (AKA, send a non-confidential deck or one-pager).

9. Not learning about the investor. Allow the investor to intro themselves first. Go-to questions: what’s your typical check size, what’s your thesis, do you lead or follow, and how long is your process. Check their website first, as these questions may be answered.

10. Not reading the room. See when attention falters and when you’re getting strong engagement. Be adaptable and responsive to these signals.

11. Complex entity structure, cap table, or deal terms. Keep it simple.

12. Chasing too hard. When an investor wants something, they will make you a priority. Always follow-up with promised materials (same day), but appreciate this dynamic.

13. Not doing a temperature check at the end. Ask: what do you see as the biggest risk? Get feedback and map out next steps.

14. Logical inconsistencies and not *knowing* the business. Includes: saying one thing and doing another, strategy that doesn’t align with execution so far, and inconsistent numbers (eg, generating $X in revenue but financials show $Y).

15. Having no OR an incomplete data room / materials. This looks low effort and disorganized.

16. Not being open to feedback. Being able to rapidly integrate lessons learned is crucial for success.

17. Boiling the ocean on a 1st call. The purpose of a 1st call is to get a 2nd call. Share your top 3 points, and allow the investor guide the convo from there. Simplicity is key.

Comment: what helped you the most?

The founders who make it know they CAN and WILL make it.

This optimistic deterministic language shows up in fundraising pitches, customer conversations, talent interviews, team meetings, and self-talk.

This rooted belief in success permeates the business and way of being until it’s true.

Imagine a world where medicine is tailored to each individual’s unique molecular makeup.

This future is closer than you think, thanks to epigenetic reprogramming.

Epigenetic reprogramming is the manipulation of gene expression patterns without altering the DNA sequence.

By altering epigenetic marks on DNA, we can control cell fate and differentiation, making it a promising area of research for a wide range of diseases, including cancer, regenerative medicine, and aging.

DNA methylation and histone modifications are two of the best-characterized epigenetic modifications.

Here are three emerging developments in this field:

1. CRISPR-based epigenetic editing, which uses Cas enzymes to precisely add or remove epigenetic marks on DNA in cells. This therapeutic approach will mimic the mechanisms that cells normally employ to regulate gene expression.

For example, Chroma Medicine ($135M Series B) is developing a multiplex platform that can activate or silence multiple genes at once with a coupled DNA-binding and epigenetic effector domain. Their approach seeks to regulate gene expression without cutting or nicking DNA, which avoids the activation of unpredictable DNA repair pathways.

2. Epigenetic drugs, which target enzymes that modify the structure of DNA or the proteins associated with it.  The goal of targeting these enzymes is to restore normal gene expression patterns in cells that have undergone epigenetic changes relevant to the disease.

C4 Therapeutics (IPO’d) is developing an oral small molecule capable of degrading certain proteins that help cancer cells grow and survive. It does this by disrupting key signaling pathways in the cells that are important for proper cancer cell function. Their lead candidate for multiple myeloma and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is undergoing Phase 1/2 clinical trials. They also have ongoing strategic collaborations with Roche and Biogen.

3. Epigenetic biomarkers that can indicate the presence of disease or predict an individual’s response to a particular treatment. Once discovered, these biomarkers can be used to develop diagnostic tests or personalized treatments for those with the disease.

Guardant Health (IPO’d) has developed an FDA-approved blood test that can perform cancer screening and also inform the treatment decisions of patients with advanced cancer. This test can conduct complete genomic profiling without the need for tissue testing. It is also capable of detecting cancer-driven DNA methylation across the genome and aggregating it into a “methylation signal.”

We are excited about the future of these innovative technologies, and we want to hear from you.

Whether you are an established scientist in this field or a new founder just starting out, let us know about your work in epigenetic reprogramming.

As we continue to explore the potential of RNA, new technologies are emerging that are revolutionizing the way we approach disease treatment.

At Conscience, we’ve seen a large spike in the number and quality of RNA therapeutics companies over the last few years, generally falling into the following 3 categories:

1. Using RNA as a drug. 
For example, small interfering RNA (siRNA, and sometimes known as silencing RNA) can be used to target and silence the expression of genes that are overexpressed in certain diseases. It does so by degrading the mRNA that encodes the protein, therefore preventing its translation.

Switch Therapeutics is attaching siRNAs to sensors to conditionally activate it only in certain cells, and companies such as Eleven Therapeutics is using a computational approach to design siRNAs.

2. Using RNA to encode a drug.
This can take on many forms, but more commonly, as RNA, to encode for therapeutic proteins.

Strand Therapeutics, for example, is working on mRNA-based cancer therapeutics that can also control the location (cell type), timing, and intensity of expression of therapeutic proteins within the patient’s body, enabling precise and controlled delivery.

3. Using other molecules to modulate RNA. 
RNA modulation by other small molecules or proteins can be used to turn genes on or off, increase or decrease RNA stability, or even modify RNA structure to alter its function.

Skyhawk Therapeutics is working alongside some of the largest pharma players, such as Sanofi and Merck, to develop small molecules that can regulate RNA splicing.

There are also innovations operating across the intersection of these categories, eg, Laronde’s “Endless RNA” as a new class of programmable medicines to express therapeutic proteins inside the body while using non-coding regions to control expression, stability, and targeting.

At Conscience, our most recent investment is a stealth company operating at the intersection as well.

We’re excited about the next generation of RNA technologies and how they will enable more durable, longer-lasting drugs that can target previously “undruggable” genes.

If you’re a scientist, founder, or investor operating in this space, reach out to us for a chat!

As humans, we are constantly adapting to our environment.

Our bodies and minds have an incredible ability to adjust to changing circumstances, whether it’s a new job, a move to a new city, or navigating a major life transition.

But adaptation isn’t just a survival mechanism, it’s also a key indicator of our overall health and well-being. The ability to adapt to stress, change, and uncertainty is what sets healthy individuals apart from those who struggle to cope.

So, let’s focus on cultivating adaptability in our lives. Let’s practice resilience, flexibility, and openness to new experiences. Let’s prioritize self-care, mental health, and physical fitness, all of which contribute to our ability to adapt and thrive.

Adaptation isn’t just about survival, it’s about living a healthy, fulfilling life.

Perhaps it is our ultimate, meta-indication of health?

This year, biotech took an unusual pivot.

Companies were adopting lean business models. Scientific founders were operating more like tech execs. The future of how humanity benefits from science will depend on the convergence of biotech and software.

Here are 3 of the many innovations we see changing our world in 2023:

1. Building of the artificial body.

Last week, Congress passed the FDA Modernization Act. If signed into law, “nonclinical tests” will expand to include bioprinting, organs-on-a-chip, and organoids. Scientists are working to realistically replicate the brain, liver, stomach, heart, and many other organs.

Artificial organs are a step towards fundamentally changing the way we study and treat disease:
👉They offer greater insight into the way cells interact and communicate throughout development, enabling new drug targets.
👉They will allow for the simulation of therapeutic efficacy and collection of pharmacokinetic data for existing drug candidates at the preclinical stage.

More therapeutics will be brought to market faster as we streamline drug screening and shorten the drug development timeline.

2. Programmable biology, aided by software.

Personalized medicine is evolving to become more tunable and potent, which will strengthen the bioeconomy like never before.

Viruses, bacteria, and other microbes can be custom designed to edit genes and target malignant cells with higher specificity. Imagine a future in generative AI, where one day, we can produce DNA/protein structures for these microorganisms just by inputting custom text.

In 2023, we also expect more crossover into non-pharma industries like consumer products, industrial processes, and agriculture/food:
👉Microorganisms will transform personal care products to be safer and more sustainable.
👉It will replace chemicals in our supply chains that have traditionally been derived from petroleum.
👉It will address our global food crisis by making crops more disease-resistant.

3. Human augmentation and longevity.

Anti-aging tech will become more consumer-facing, as consumers take more ownership of their quality of life. This year, we saw new biomarker discovery for age-associated diseases (Parkinson’s) and investment poured into regenerative medicine, epigenetics, and cell rejuvenation research.

As we better understand the molecular basis behind aging, we will soon be able to predict biological age and risk factors for chronic diseases with high accuracy.
👉These predictions will be more accessible to consumers as D2C tests, personal supplements, and app-based recommendations.
👉Widespread adoption of cognitive enhancement products (improving memory, focus, and recall) will take place.
👉Reproductive aging and ovarian lifespan will receive more attention, eventually making fertility tech more affordable and accessible.

If you’re a talented, early-stage founder innovating in any of these areas, reach out! We’re excited to meet you.

#bigideas2023

What do the founders of Instagram, Shopify, Slack have in common?

They all decided to make major business / product pivots in the early days of their businesses.

As an early stage founder yourself, you may be considering a similar decision.

Perhaps recently, your business idea hasn’t been gaining as much attention in the market as you hoped, or your competitors are catching up with you. Is pivoting on the table?

The hardest part is figuring when the right time is to transition to something new.

In this recap of Conscience’s AMA with Shivaas Gulati unicorn co-founder of Remitly, Shivaas explains the two biggest hesitations that startup founders have when looking to pivot.

Hesitation #1: not knowing if you’re seeing the right signals for a pivot.

In this situation, rely on your customers as your feedback loop. Tighten your marketing processes and information channels so that hypothetically, your customers should know everything they need to know in order to make a purchasing decision on your product.

If they’re still not choosing to buy, there is a disconnect between your customer and your product.

This is an early indicator for a multitude of hidden problems that you should further investigate, including:

Your product didn’t identify the right problem to solve for your target audience.
Your product is actually meant for a different target audience.

Your customer base is too small or diverse for them to resonate with your specific product.

You could have overestimated how much your customer loves what you built. In reality, it’s only in very rare cases that customers will go to extreme lengths to keep their products.

As you try to diagnose these problems, keep in mind that a pivot does not necessarily mean a radical change. Pivots can also include a clear shift in marketing strategy, business model, or technology capability.

Hesitation #2: fear of losing your existing users.

When you finally choose to pivot, don’t shy away from being transparent and vulnerable with your users about your decision.

Be upfront that your current stage hasn’t been sustainable.

You can acknowledge that reason for being why you’ve chosen to take your business in a new direction, and encourage them to still come along.

If they don’t choose to stick with you, that’s okay. Users stick with products that solve their problems, and your pivot means that your modified product may no longer match their needs.

Through this process, you’ll find new users (and existing ones who stayed) who are enthusiastic about your new offering. These early believers are your strongest allies. Invest in those few and learn as much as you can about them, instead of chasing after the majority.

Founders who’ve recently pivoted or are going through a pivot—what’s your biggest tip?

You’re a founder.
You’ve researched the problem you want to solve.
You have a clear vision.

But, when it comes to figuring out how exactly to distribute that solution to the market—you feel lost. 

What are the best practices for startups looking to develop a successful go-to-market strategy?

Conscience asked this at our AMA with Shivaas Gulati, unicorn co-founder of Remitly (IPO’d 2021, $6.9B valuation).

His biggest GTM tips:

⭐Develop hypotheses about distribution, even before building a product. Then, work to validate those hypotheses with multiple customer audiences. 

Why is this so critical to figure out early on? 

By validating that your GTM strategy has legs, you’ll avoid competing in a market that entails high customer acquisition costs. This will enable you to capture high margins for your future product.

👉What does it even mean to develop a hypothesis around product distribution?

Hypotheses should be straightforward and testable.

If the wording of the hypothesis outlines a situation that involves a life or death decision for your business, it’s likely that your hypothesis is too conflated. 

Instead, break it down.

Be biased towards specificity, and run hypotheses for one small change at a time.

For example, take a Facebook ad—a small change could be to alter the tagline for the image, but keep the image and all other ad features consistent.

Regardless of this experiment’s results, you’re now able to attribute that success or failure to your tiny tweak. 

👉Okay, now I have my hypotheses. What is one non-obvious signal I should look for when testing them?

Look for differences in engagement across acquisition channels.

Let’s say you’ve set up a high-fidelity website landing page that allows customers to learn about the basics of your product and sign up.

You’re also running social media ads at the same time.

Comparing audience engagement between your ads and your landing page will give intel into where you’re hooking (or losing) customers on their way to buy your product. 

Picture the situation where social media users are viewing your ad, but not clicking to see your landing page. From this observation, you can determine what the issue is: whether it be captions that are unappealing to your audience or less obvious links to your website. 

The reverse scenario is where your ads are encountering low viewership, but your landing page is attracting a high volume of online traffic.

If you’re seeing this, one possibility is that the audience you’re targeting with your ads is not the same as the audience that actually wants to buy your product.  

👉Lastly, don’t be afraid to draw conclusions from small datasets. Testing hypotheses is a best practice any founder can do, even on a small marketing budget.

Thank you Shivaas for these insights!

Stay tuned for more AMA recaps—in coming weeks, Conscience will be open sourcing key learnings from our in-house portfolio education modules.

Whether you’re a first-time or seasoned founder, putting yourself in front of an investor can still feel nerve-wracking.

It’s natural to feel pressured to be a phenomenal salesperson, leader, and visionary—all in one.

🤔 What can founders do to ACE a first call with an investor?

🚀 Gather info beforehand on the investor to better cater your pitch.

Research (and ask others) the following: Check size? Diligence process? Similar startups to yours that they’ve invested in? Also, if you learned about this investor via referral, ask your referrer for the extra scoop: What should I bring up first? What are their dealbreakers? What is their vibe?

Knowing this information allows you to pitch more confidently and focus on investors who are a fit.

After calls, block time to immediately follow-up with the next steps that were discussed (hint: ask for the next steps that would be helpful to the investor to make a decision, on the call). Create templates for your fundraising process to save time.

Always follow-up (in 1 week). This helps the investor stay accountable to your timeline. Offer to hop on a call to answer questions/address concerns.

🚀 Show proof of success early. 

Although VCs are often seen as “betters”, they can still be risk-averse at early stages, especially pre-traction / pre-product.

Leveraging social proof drives momentum: lean on your network, demo days, and cold outreach to pitch and close notable angels, founders, and investors, as early as possible.

Also, demonstrating a deep understanding of the problem during the pitch (well informed by customer discovery / in-depth market understanding), in the absence of a fully built solution, can help investors get over the line.

🚀 Keep everyone wanting more.

The purpose of a 1st meeting is to get a 2nd meeting.

Don’t disqualify yourself from an investment or bombard your investor with too much information at once. Take it slow, while keeping the conversation high-energy, passionate, articulate, and focused. Stick to 3 main talking points and answer questions directly and concisely. Avoid long monologues (> 2 mins).

And lastly…

🚀 Don’t get frustrated.

“No” is not the enemy—it’s a lot clearer than being ghosted. A rejection note opens the door for learning how to improve, and potentially, a future check.

Continuous improvement is crucial. If we aren’t getting “No’s”, we aren’t trying hard enough. Take these rejections with grace. Investors remember sour responses.

Of course, a “no” today could be a “yes” in your next round. Ask for feedback, keep relevant investors updated (non-confidential), and request intros to more investors (from your existing investors) in advance of your next round.

Note: starting this process *months* in advance is *crucial*.

Throughout this process, you’ll hustle hard. You’ll be tested.

Remember: stay high frequency, classy, and take care of yourself so you can bring your best self to the pitch.

Upside Foods’s claim to fame is being the first to grow real meat from animal cells. Since 2015, they’ve hit unicorn status and developed a suite of (soon to-be-released) meatball, chicken, and duck products. 

🥩 How did they build a brand new market for themselves as a first mover? 

🐔 They validated their hypothesis first with an imperfect prototype. 

Because the tech was so new, the team doubled down on R&D. After isolating cells from the muscles of cows, chickens, and pigs, they realized they could develop these cells into actual muscle tissue over time using bioreactors. 

Only 1 year after this breakthrough, they revealed their first test to the world: a meatball. With an “undeniable and intense meat flavor,” this meatball became the first non-vegetarian meat alternative to be invented. 

But, there was a catch. This single meatball cost the company (then Memphis Meats) a staggering $1K and several weeks to make.  

That wasn’t the real win. The real win was that they were able to tangibly demonstrate that their idea was possible. A product doesn’t necessarily need to be flawless before it’s ready to be shown to consumers for feedback. 

Through this prototype, they showed that they could produce meat without slaughterhouses, antibiotics, or other additives that are typically involved with traditional meat. This was enough to generate the media buzz, crowd of volunteer taste-testers, and investor attention they needed to continue iterating and improving. 

🐄 They broke down barriers between themselves and the general public early on.

With products that rely so heavily on major behavioral shifts like changing your diet, it’s difficult for startups to expect customers to just “get it.” 

Upside Foods recognized that they needed to bridge the knowledge gap in order for consumers to understand and join their mission for clean meat. They tackled this in advance by investing in online campaigns to foster a strong cohort of early supporters. 

One of these strategies was a $100K IndieGoGo campaign, which they launched in 2016 as an early test to measure initial customer conviction. They also created animated videos explaining how and why their meat could be grown in cells to offer additional transparency. 

Another #mmfirstbite social media campaign allowed consumers to give input on product direction and feel valued. They could chime in on anything from the type of meat that should be developed to where the products should be sold. These early insights influenced the team’s decision to expand to chicken nuggets and seafood. 

Despite their tremendous growth, Upside has never stopped laying the foundation for the mainstream adoption of meat alternatives. They have continued to connect with their customers directly, even hosting public tours of their new 53k square foot meat production facility each quarter. 

🦆The best innovations don’t have to stay hidden behind closed lab doors.

We love the vision you’ve built for the world, Uma and Amy!

With a $6.1B valuation today, cloud software startup Benchling has taken the biotech R&D world by storm. It’s hard to believe that in their early days, they went several years without earning any revenue. 

So, how did they grow from 0 revenue to becoming a unicorn?

🌟 Customer obsession. Benchling invested into deep relationships with their initial customers, which caused a snowball effect.

What does this mean for founders like you?

☁️Deeply understand the problem that you’re trying to solve much better than existing solutions.

Back in 2012, the software world was booming around mobile and on-demand, but the biotech industry hadn’t caught up. Scientists were still capturing experimental data in notebooks or Excel, which made recordkeeping difficult to track and limited direct collaboration. There were no existing tech-enabled solutions.

So, Benchling’s small team of 5 grounded themselves in customer discovery and coding. They traveled to university labs at MIT and Stanford, sat down with scientists one-by-one, and understood all their pain points.

Through these individual conversations, they learned that sequence design and lab management inventory were major obstacles to overcome. This informed their vision to build top-notch software—as sleek and purposeful as consumer software—to suit biotech workflows.

☁️ Create an “unattackable” moat with your first customers.

They initially gave their software away for free to academic researchers. From a business standpoint, this was scary to investors. They were generating no revenue and weren’t courting big industry players.

Targeting scientists in academia, however, allowed Benchling to specifically cater software features towards these end users and completely win them over. Academics saw that Benchling was mission-critical to their research’s success.

When these scientists later moved on into industry or founded their own biotechs, they remembered Benchling and brought the software over. Growing alongside these early customers allowed Benchling to land industry clients, including well-known big pharma companies.

☁️Keep adapting with your customers’ needs, even after success.

Even with over 200K scientists on their platform, Benchling never stopped listening to their needs. They realized that biotech was quickly evolving into other areas such as consumer materials and foodtech. Lab techniques and instruments were also rapidly advancing. This meant more complex data sets that needed to be managed. 

Benchling’s software could not stay static if they still wanted to achieve product-market fit.

Over time, they’ve added advanced features to contribute value at scale. Recently, they saw opportunity in RNA therapeutics, following the success of Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines. Their newly released feature helps researchers create, test, and develop mRNA molecules.

Sometimes you need to innovate just as well as your customers!

🧪The future of biotech is bright with you, Sajith and Ashu!

Investors want to know: where are the incredible, overlooked opportunities?

The answer came from an epiphany during my fundraising process.

Throughout fundraising, the most frequently asked question was: “how old are you?”

I’m 30.

I was asked my age, fairly consistently, by both female and male investors.

I’m proud of the breadth and depth of experiences I’ve had by my age, including successfully launching a fund with fantastic investors, across multiple closings.

It came as a surprise that the winning question was not my investment strategy, nor the rationale behind my thesis, nor the case studies to support my 30+ portfolio companies.

I’m inviting investors to an opportunity and this is what they want to know?

So naturally, I did my research.

I get that age is a proxy for experience.

As an emerging manager, was it about experience?

Was everyone being asked their age?

As I got curious, and interacted with dozens of managers, it was hard to ignore a pattern developing, specifically across gender lines.

Interviewing my male colleagues, across all ages, they rarely, if ever, were asked this question.

Alternatively, the age question, or age-related comments, were posed often to my female colleagues.

And then, female fund managers opened up further.

They shared stories of feeling discriminated against for being “too young” or “too old”.

The experiences with respect to diverse managers were even more disappointing.

I felt their frustration: there wasn’t an age or scenario where they could win.

And it broke my heart.

Are these the unique challenges that all female fund managers face?

Beyond anecdotes, broader studies indicate:

1) Ageism hits women harder and earlier than men (age 40 vs. 45).

2) Older women experience more employment rejections than older men.

3)  ⅓ of managers would rather employ a man in his 20s or 30s over a woman of the same age for fear of maternity leave.

At this point, we’ve seen data to support that female investors outperform:

1) Goldman Sachs: “Since the market trough, 48% of female-managed funds have generated alpha, compared with only 37% of all-male funds.”

2) Fidelity: “Women earn higher returns than men when investing — to the tune of 40 basis points, or 0.4%.”

3) Warwick Business School: “Women outperformed the benchmark by 1.94 percent, beating men by 1.8 percentage points.”

You could argue selection bias with this data, aka only the top-performing women break through.

But still, only 5.6% of all US firms are women-led (1+ as partners), and we know, diverse teams drive returns.

With the double or triple bias of age, race, and gender… as an investor, this then begs the question:

Are we missing out on stellar, asymmetric opportunities – with respect to female fund managers – due to our own biases?

We all have blind spots as investors.

However, these blind spots impact performance.

What opportunities have you missed out on?

The 4 Agreements changed my life – as an individual and as an investor.

Big statement, I know. I’ll explain why.

But first – what are they?

1. Be impeccable with your word.

2. Don’t take things personally.

3. Don’t make assumptions.

4. Do your best everyday.

Simple, right?

I wrote these 4 reminders on my manifestation whiteboard (haha yes, I have one and recommend it).

So, every morning upon waking I see these 4 agreements, and take a moment to internalize them.

By internalizing, I mean, asking the questions:

Did I honor these agreements yesterday?

Why or why not?

In what scenarios could I have done better?

What will I change going forward?

I personally struggled/struggle the most with #2 and #3.

In fact, a growth opportunity became apparent while raising for Conscience, the fund I launched as a one-woman show, during the pandemic.

In the beginning of starting the fund, it was hard to not take a “no” personally.

Or to assume certain investors said “no” for reasons I totally made up.

Often the reasons I chose were far worse than reality, and not productive.

I was my own worst bully in this process.

It took awareness, mental fortitude, and consistent training to shift my internal response, and to successfully hit my fundraising goals.

We often don’t have control of certain events or outcomes in our life, but we have total control of our internal and external responses to them.

Instead, I started to reframe my thinking.

I started to look forward to the “no”!

Receiving a “no” provided clarity of where to focus time and attention going forward.

It also gave me valuable feedback on how to improve.

The same goes for start-up founders.

Being on the VC side (where I get pitched by *incredible* founders on a daily basis)… I have to say no a lot more than I say yes.

There are lots of reasons why investors pass:

Maybe it’s not a thesis fit, or we’re really interested but it’s just a smidge too early on the product side, or we don’t understand the problem, or we want to see a bit more customer validation, or the round dynamics don’t allow for our participation, or it’s not a stage fit, etc etc.

The list goes on (and on)!

What helped the most in aligning with #2 and #3 of the 4 agreements was reflection, asking for feedback, and reframing my response.

It turned out many of the assumptions I held during the fundraising process ended up being false.

And the reasons I took things personally – also false!

For example – a “no” just meant a “not now” – as some investors were keen to kick-off the relationship with intention to explore for the next fund.

The 4 agreements expedited my epiphanies here.

A big thank you Clifford Lerner for the brilliant book recommendation.

If you haven’t read this book – I’ll send you a copy!

But only for the first 5 people to comment “send me a copy!” 😉

I bet you didn’t expect a #giveaway.

What is my quick “do they hustle” test?

When folks have an ask, specifically an introduction request, I usually make one, small request:

To send me a forwardable email with context and materials, tailored for the introduction, to make it happen.

That’s it! Just that one little request.

I put the ball back in their court to see how urgent and important this ask really is, and to save my time in facilitating.

Surprisingly, most folks *never* take this easy step!

It’s the rare few that take action immediately and comprehensively.

This post is to celebrate the true hustlers. I got you.

Note: there is a plot twist in this post.

The elevator is marvelous!

This invention unlocked skyscrapers.

But, did you know it took some convincing?

Elevators were met with intense skepticism around their safety.

An inspired Elisha Otis, founder of Otis Elevator Company, developed a safety device (a brake) to prevent elevators from falling in case of a cable failure. 

In a bold and public demo, he elevated a platform above a crowd and *cut the cable* with an axe.

With the brake installed, the elevator stopped!

And the rest is history. We use elevators daily.

We can draw an analogy here to nuclear power.

Didn’t expect that, did you? 😉

Start-ups, such as Radiant, Oklo, TerraPower, NuScale, Terrestrial, and Seaborg, are exploring enhanced designs to make nuclear fission a reality.

Why nuclear?

1. Safety.

Major incidents from the past (Chernobyl, Fukushima) were due to poor construction and materials.

We’ve come a long way.

There are multiple mechanisms in place to shut down nuclear reactors in case of an emergency.

Eg, the rapid insertion of control rods into the core (which is gravitational, and does not require a power supply).

Materials used today are also meltdown-proof, and can sustain much higher temperatures than the heat that caused Chernobyl’s meltdown.

A note on nuclear safety from Doug Bernauer, Radiant’s Founder:

 “A demonstration like the one that triggered the success and adoption of the invention of the elevator is possible for nuclear reactors.

With a small system that is portable, we can bring the unit to crowds and demonstrate passive safety by allowing it to overheat, which causes a shutdown.

The fuel is the equivalent of the elevator, able to unlock a bright new future, and the meltdown proof coatings of the TRISO fuel, encapsulated kernels that prevent the release of radioactive fission products, are the equivalent of the elevator brake.”

2. Reliability.

Nuclear is the world’s 2nd largest source of low-carbon power, providing ~10% of the world’s electricity from 443 reactors across 30 countries.

Unlike other sources of energy, most Gigawatt-scale reactors can generate electricity continuously for ~18 months before having to refuel. 

Natural gas and coal capacity factors are less reliable due to routine maintenance and refueling.

3. Energy Efficiency.

Nuclear can consistently operate at 93% maximum capacity vs. geothermal (74%) and natural gas at (57%). 

In other words, you would need ~2x the coal to generate the same amount of electricity as nuclear.

It’s also the only dispatchable (able to throttle) power source that doesn’t require combustion or air.

Nuclear energy is also energy dense. 

Just 1 uranium fuel pellet creates as much energy as 1 ton of coal, 149 gallons of oil, or 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas.

Can you now imagine a future where nuclear fission is powering your home?

Thank you to the post co-pilots, Andrew Kirima, Gauri Jaswal, and Doug Bernauer!

Here is how to set up an OOO / away message on your text messages.

There are apps for this on Android, but for iPhone, here’s the workaround, shown via photos.

TL;DR on how:

1. Set your phone to Do Not Disturb while driving (Settings -> Do Not Disturb).

2. Manually set your phone to driving mode (Control Center -> Add “Do Not Disturb While Driving” -> select that option).

You can set your away message to whatever you want it to be.

Here’s mine: “Auto-Reply: hi! I’m doing a digital detox. Will return to your text next week.”

Folks can still respond “urgent” or call twice to break through the Do Not Disturb block, in case of emergency.

Let me know with questions.

Enjoy your Labor Day fully! 😉

What do you stand for?

Do you value diversity, education, personal well-being…?

Whatever it is you value, live it.

The foundation of our culture at Conscience is in the name.

Here’s what our friend, Merriam Webster, has to say about “conscience.”

“The sense of moral goodness of one’s own conduct, intentions, or character together with a feeling of obligation to do right or be good.”

How does Conscience VC align with this meaning?

Beyond a clear and unshakable mandate to do good and be good through our work and investments, our firm holds true to the following five values:

1. Aggressive curiosity.

Curiosity is rocket fuel for venture.

We have questions because we genuinely want to know as much as we can.

This gives us a better gauge of market opportunities and winning technologies going forward.

2. Empathy over ego.

When we look at situations through the lens of others, we see what they see.

This helps our firm see qualities in founders that others may miss.

We see, not only the genius of a founder and the potential for financial return, but we witness their passion, dedication, and loyalty.

By empathizing with these qualities, we consistently locate and partner with top-tier startups that would otherwise go untapped and unsupported

3. Radical open-mindedness.

Radical open-mindedness means listening to people with not just novel ideas, but transformational industry solutions.

It means being open to the spectrum of possibilities for our future.

4. Proactive problem-solving.

Some choose to sit in the back of the classroom, hoping to never get called on to provide an answer.

That’s not us. Our partners can call us for help anytime!

Even better, we anticipate problems and put out the fires before they ignite.

Consider us your VC fire extinguisher. 😉

5. Rigorous, independent thought.

We’re not followers.

It’s easy to do what everyone else is doing, but we can’t change the world that way.

As with the Conscience name, we carefully selected these values to inform good decision-making, win top-tier opportunities, and add meaningful value to our founders.

We’ll never abandon our values for what looks like “easy money” or because the other guys are doing it.

I suppose you can say, it is important to operate with Conscience – in Conscience.

Remember: hurt people (😡), hurt people (😭).

Instead of getting down, upgrade!

How?

1) Surround yourself with a tribe of loving, supportive people (🥰).

2) Don’t take it personally.

3) Do your best everyday.

4) Stay classy.

5) Let go.

Who needed to hear this?

Nothing sparks innovation quite as well as more taxes…

Wait…What?

Right now, the House Ways and Means Committee is meeting to discuss a controversial amendment to the Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) tax exemption.

The proposed legislation would drastically reduce who is eligible to benefit from this tax incentive. 

So, a lot of us would say that the government needs to stop giving corporate handouts.

Look, I get that.

But QSBS is NOT about big corporations.

It’s about the little guy, the underdog, the ambitious founder with a breakthrough idea, but without the funds to make it into a reality. 

Carrying a business—deep-tech or any other—from ideation to research, development, hiring, and all the way to the consumer market requires money…

A lot of it!

That’s where the venture capital system comes into play.

Venture investment is key to ensuring that the country’s greatest entrepreneurs get the support they need.

Investors spot an explosive startup and lend expertise, support, and of course…investment.

In fact, it was President Obama’s “JOBS” Act that made the 100% QSBS exemption stick.

The attempt to roll back this benefit will cost more than the actual taxes gained. 

In 2019, the Joint Committee on Taxation estimated the tax revenue lost from QSBS as ~$1.2B per year.

Okay, well that sounds bad, right? Take a deeper look. 

You’ll find out that the infrastructure of the bill is projected to cost $3.5 trillion! 

Yes, that’s trillions of dollars, not billions.

So, how does this make sense?

The bottom line is: if we cut the benefits of supporting early-stage companies, we risk missing out on the next potential Netflix, Uber, LinkedIn, etc.

We also miss out on the jobs and that impacts the economy from a macro level.

Political affiliation doesn’t matter in this case.

Our country’s greatest minds need our continued support.

Cutting QSBS benefits is bad for business.

That’s one thing we should all agree on.

Do you know what happened 75 years ago that kickstarted the scientific community to grow at an exponential rate?

Vannevar Bush—Leader of the Office of Scientific Research and Development during WW II—published a report called “Science: The Endless Frontier.”

The publication was a response to a request from President FDR for a plan that would continue scientific advancement in a post-war return to normalcy.

Bush’s vision was to secure federal funds that would support research and train scientists in a wide array of fields.

This was accomplished via the country’s leading academic institutions.

Then, the commercial sector would make use of the academic-led discoveries.

World-changing inventions and products then fueled the economy, enhanced public health, strengthened national defense, and vastly improved our quality of life.

That initial action proved that there are no limitations to what science can accomplish.

Now, our nation is presented with another boost of explosive possibility for the scientific community.

A bipartisan bill is on the table to reinvigorate the overwhelmingly successful agenda inspired by Vannevar Bush and one of our country’s greatest presidents.

The Endless Frontiers Act aims to expand the funding of the physical sciences, engineering, and technology at the National Science Foundation (NSF) by $100 billion over the next five years…

If passed, the act would create a new Technology Directorate focused on “use-inspired” (aka application layer) research, as well as secure additional provisions to protect current missions of the NSF.

This is an amazing opportunity for all science-led startups.

Oh, sweet rejection 🙂

Allow me to explain…

Nobody WANTS to get rejected, but sometimes, it’s inevitable and not such a bad thing.

In fact, the way you handle it can tell a powerful story about who you are as a person and as a professional.

When done properly, it can tell the world that you are confident in your abilities, open to constructive feedback, resilient in the face of challenges, and passionate about your mission.

Consider, for example, a “pass note” in the VC world.

I’ve seen two totally disparate ways a founder can react to this form of rejection. 

One of the best founder responses I’ve ever seen to a pass note?

Right here:

“Thanks for the email this morning, understand your reasoning and look forward to continuing the conversation at a later date.

I was just telling our board member, I love what you stand for and how you assist founders.

You’re the kind of VC I want to 100X their money because I know it’s going to go back into successful companies that make the world a better place.”

As opposed to…

“Disagree but ok.”

Which founder do you think got continued support and intros?

There’s nothing terribly rude, antagonistic, or even wrong about the latter response.

But there’s so much that’s right about the first one!

It’s understanding, complimentary, and even optimistic about revisiting the potential for support.

If you’re in business, you must get used to hearing no.

It’s part of the job description.

My take: learn how to leverage rejection for positive long-term results. 

Rejection in business means you’re pushing boundaries, which is incredibly healthy!

I would say if all you ever hear is yes, you’re not aiming far enough.

Sure, that can be hard when you’re pursuing a potential breakthrough for your business.

But, we all need to move forward when faced with adversity.

From my experience, those who don’t, simply get left behind. 

How do you handle rejection?

Leading a team, and meetings, is challenging.

Looking back, I’ve dissected what worked when initiating a new project with a new team:

1. Create an organized system of folders, including high-level categories that make sense for the team’s functions. Train on how to use document management system.

2. Have a detailed agenda and notetaker for all meetings.

3. Collect the team’s contact information and preferred method of communication. Share with everyone.

4. Set clear and detailed expectations at the 1st meeting. Cover ground rules, key success metrics, vision, and timeline.

5. For large/complex teams, divide the team by function and assign team leads. Meet with the team leads on a more regular basis. Make leads responsible for each function’s follow-through.

6. Create a Gantt chart. If the project is complex and has multiple functions, requires each functional unit to create its own Gantt chart, managed by the team lead.

7. Create a task management tool for the team to update prior to meetings.

8. Send weekly email reminders on upcoming deadlines.

9. Set recurring meetings in the same location/time.

10. Speak to underperforming team members in private.

11. Establish credibility/boost team confidence by tackling low-hanging fruit in the 1st week.

12. Set monthly performance reviews.

What else? 🙂

If you’re anything like me, you have about 28 hours worth of things to do in a 24-hour day.

How do you handle it?

In celebration of World Mental Health Day on October 10th, I’ve decided to share a few of my best tips to optimize emotional well-being.

1. Take a breath – I consciously resist the urge to immediately jump into work after first opening my eyes in the morning. This took some serious reprogramming, as this wasn’t the case for a while. Establish a wake-up routine that gives you the mental space you need to work smarter, not necessarily harder.

2. Eating right – When you eat healthy, you feel better. For example, I’ve noticed that limiting my caffeine intake greatly reduces stress and anxiety. Notice I didn’t say “zero” caffeine. I said “limited” caffeine. I’m only human :P.

3. Exercising – When you exercise regularly, a release of dopamine flows through your neural pathways, flooding your emotions with a natural sense of positive energy. Get the body moving every day and enjoy the good vibes that follow. I personally love bootcamps!

4. Journaling – Tremendous power exists in the ability to write down your thoughts, goals, and wins. Just thinking about these things is great, but writing them down makes them more tangible. To get into a more creative state, I sometimes do this by the Miami beach during sunrise.

5. Schedule gaps between calls – Jumping from one conversation to another and being on back-to-back calls all day is enough to mentally exhaust anyone. Even if it’s just 15 minutes, take some time to refresh between calls. Sprinkling in these gaps occasionally was a game changer for my energy levels.

These habits work great for me, but I’d love to hear additional suggestions.

Maybe your words of wisdom will help somebody who needs it.

So, please share your best mental health tips here.

I wish you all the best of days ahead :).

#WorldMentalHealthDay #WorkLifeBalance #MentalHealth

A uniquely flawed part of our humanity is our inherent bias toward certain things. For example, I am incredibly biased toward hot oat milk lattes.

As an investor, however, bias can stunt growth and prevent us from seizing the biggest, boldest, and best opportunities or falling victim to an epic boondoggle.

The following are the 10 most common investment biases I try to steer clear of. 

1. Overconfidence – It’s good to think positive. Without optimism, VC doesn’t exist. However, it’s equally important to not let emotion reign over our decision-making.

2. Overplanning – Plans never map perfectly to the desired outcome. We must be able to choose intelligent alternatives when the unexpected inevitably happens.

3. Over-confirmation – The cynic can be a VC’s best friend. Look and listen for opposing views to make sure you’re not overlooking something critical. 

4. Herding – If everybody wants in, we NEED to buy, right? After all, nobody wants to miss out on the next big thing. Truth be told, for every Apple, Amazon, or Facebook, there are thousands of busts. Be careful not to pay an exorbitant price for something everybody wants.

5. Anchoring – Avoid snap judgements based on limited information. Think about all variables and make informed decisions.

6. The Illusion of Complete Control – Luck and randomness will always play a role in investing. Focus on what you can control.

7. The Halo Effect – Always look beyond what’s in plain sight. An investor who sees what others don’t is what we call a VISIONARY. 

8. Stories over Analysis – Everyone loves a good story, unless it’s about a “revolutionary” startup that isn’t quite as innovative as we were told. Perform due diligence and investigate the details of every opportunity. 

9. Track Record Is Everything – A proven track record is a great thing, but it’s not the ONLY thing. 

10. Recency – People tend to fall in love with the last thing they saw. For instance, it’s likely that this form of bias will be the one people remember most and therefore, consider the most important 🙂

The larger point is that we’re all human, so we all have biases, but awareness is key.

With awareness, we can focus our efforts on eliminating them or at least diminishing their impact.

You know what? That’s not such a bad rule for life as well as investing 🙂

Have anything to add to the list?

Traditionally speaking, Venture Capital is improperly associated with a four-letter word…

Risk.

For some reason, people often see VC as an overtly risky asset class akin to playing poker blindfolded… with one less card than anyone else.

I find a fallacy in this and here’s why.

Any investment, including VC, runs three types of risk:

1. Systematic risk.

An example of this would be what we call “thesis” risk; it’s somewhat out of our control, but we can contain it by simple “dollar-cost averaging” through follow-on investments and staged investments. 

2. Behavioral risk.

Within all the uniquely wonderful things that make each of us who we are, including our personality quirks, habits, and attitudes, we also all have biases.

These traits make up the individual lenses with which we see the world…and our investment choices.

From an investor perspective, the key is to not let this filtered vision of reality control our decision-making.

I recently wrote a post dedicated to “investor bias” if you’re curious to learn more ;).

3. Non-systematic, or transaction-based risk.

This is the likely main culprit for the reason VC is given such a bad rap.

The fact is that with only a small number of investments, the chances of finding the diamond in the rough become increasingly improbable.

This is especially dangerous when combined with investor bias because then we find most of our investments tied to something we may see with rose-colored glasses.

An easy enough solution exists to virtually eliminate this risk. We call it diversification.

That last one is key to understanding how to properly execute on venture capital. 

Diversification is a fairly common term in the investment world, but many of us only think of it in terms of balancing our stock portfolios and retirement accounts.

Balancing VC funds requires an even higher level of diversification.

In the stock market, a fund that combines 20 or 30 companies provides peace of mind.

VC, at least according to one school of thought, requires a larger number of opportunities.

It’s often hard to go a week in this business without hearing “Power Law”!

However, there are trade-offs. It’s much easier to manage a portfolio of 20 investments than it is to manage 100 or more.

That is where informed management plays its largest role.

Once again, people prove to be the single greatest resource in an industry.

Isn’t that always the case?

The bottom line here is that inherent risk exists in any asset class, but VC is not unnecessarily “risky business.” (Queue movie scene with Tom Cruise.)

With the right people calling the shots, VC is exciting, empowering, and financially fruitful.

As Halloween approaches, remember VC is nothing to fear. 🎃

Thank you Joe Milam for inspiring this post :).

Question of the Day? 

How many “No, thank you(s)” should you receive before you give up?

True story: I pitched ~550 investors and ~60 came on board.

Do the math. 

That means I was told “No, thank you” (or ghosted) almost 500 times!

Instead of giving up, I went all in.

I liquidated everything, ditched a salary, and moved into my parents’ apartment just to be able to continue chasing after my vision.

Now, my early-stage investment firm, Conscience, just finalized our 10th investment in the fund last week.

We have hit the target raise, built a comprehensive scout program and community (ask me about it if you’re interested), and are pioneering the intersection of consumer and science in venture.

I’m not the only one who heard “No” hundreds of times (or much more) without giving up.

Did you know…

1. Robert Goddard (the father of modern rocketry) was mocked by the scientific community, as they considered his ideas around liquid propulsion rockets to be impossible.

2. Thomas Edison (American inventor) failed to create a working light bulb over one thousand times before success illuminated his path.

3. Henry Ford (king of transportation transformation) founded the Detroit Automobile Company. It went bankrupt fast. But that failure led to the creation of Ford Motor Company, which had slightly better results. 😉

4. Arianna Huffington (Co-Founder of The Huffington Post) had her second book rejected by 36 publishers.

5. Jeff Bezos (yes, that Jeff Bezos) admits to failing to the tune of “billions of dollars” with ventures like Pets .com and Kozmo .com.

So, if you’re out there trying to figure out where to go next after failing multiple times, or being handsomely rejected, dust yourself off and try again, just like these people did. 

The world needs you and your ideas.

Did you know that Coca-Cola was originally advertised, in 1886, as “a cure for most common ailments”?

I guess that means if you’re feeling a little under the weather, just chug a 20-ounce bottle of soda and presto! You’re cured!

Yeah… that didn’t really pan out.

Although the sugar buzz and initial flood of caffeine into your nervous system will probably pick you up a notch in the hyperactivity scale, the “tonic” will not cure anything.

The thought of a carbonated beverage being a cure-all provides us with an early example of something I’m going to call… “science washing”.

You’ve seen plenty of examples of “green washing” already I’m sure, so meet its nerdier sibling.

Yes, “science washing” – you saw it here first folks.

“What is that?,” you ask?

“Science washing”, as I’m defining it, is when a company makes a claim that their product is backed by hard science and data, when, in fact, there are zero or highly questionable validations to prove their claim.

Some examples and warning signs include:

1. Using the term “patented” technology.

Perhaps there are patents involved, but be on the look out if the technology involves a “design” patent (i.e., how it looks) or a “utility” patent (i.e., how it works).

2. Referencing that the “science” or validation that was performed in-house, vs. by an objective, third party.

3. Solutions that address the symptoms, rather than solving the root cause of the problem.

4. Claims that aren’t supported by meaningful testing of the right endpoints to demonstrate efficacy, and no mention of safety.

5. A lack of transparency or communication of the data, specifically how the tests were conducted, the results, and who conducted the tests.

So, plenty of ways exist for companies to skirt or muddy the facts. 

The positive spin, however, is that these are also opportunities for them to prove how amazing their unique solution really is, especially when backed by true science.

In the case of early-stage start-ups, an investor must often pay attention to this data, and evaluate early signals of a company’s potential, which can often be nascent… but still promising.

The moral of the story is two-fold:

1. Don’t stock up on soda as a medicinal aid. If you’ve already done so, a call to the dentist might be in order and maybe the gastroenterologist. 😉 Jokes.

2. If you’re an investor thinking of supporting a company, request the science-backed data to validate their solutions. Or, as a consumer, put on your “investor” hat and think critically about the claims offered before making your purchase.

Most of the time, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the fact that the company’s claims of innovation and world-changing solutions are in fact true.

When that is the case, celebrate your support of a science-backed, disruptive solution!

Happy Sunday folks.

Ok, knee deep in a non-stop travel trip to Miami -> NYC -> SF -> LA -> Palm Beach for a few weeks.

Some tips to keep energy levels up when you’re easing back into frequent, in-person meetings:

1. Have a set wake up / bed time

2. Upon waking, 15 min of jogging / fast walking to pump up music

3. Set an out of office email and check laptop just once at the end of the day

4. Move virtual calls to after your trips

5. Try inversions – headstands against the wall for 30 seconds

6. Locate a nearby juice / smoothie shop for daily veggies + take your vitamins

7. Schedule a quick infrared sauna

How do you stay high energy?

I know Thanksgiving is a month away still, but I already know one thing I’m hugely thankful for.

Rejection!

Most people have been told not to give up after one ‘no,’ but how about hundreds?

I was rejected by about 500 investors raising for Conscience.

I even wrote about it in a post here: https://lnkd.in/dzyq9hGc

The subject seems ubiquitous across every industry, so I figured a 2nd post was in order.

If you’re looking for answers on how to appropriately frame rejection, here are my suggestions:

1. Rejection hurts. There’s no way around it. Absorb the hit and move on.

2. Don’t take it personally. Rejection is just business; it’s not a reflection of your humanity. 

3. Candidly listen to why you were rejected, learn from the experience, and grow.

So, what happened to me after I was rejected by 500 people?

Well, I was accepted by 60 other investors.

That’s a batting average (baseball fans) of around .107.

So, nobody playing in the World Series tonight will boast of such a number, but…

Tuns out, those early rejections taught me a ton on how to pitch investors and be a better investor.

As a result, my business has grown to an amazing place, where I work with brilliant people and learn about something inspiring and innovative every day.

We’re proud pioneers at the intersection of breakthrough science and emerging consumer need.

Thank you rejection! We could have never gotten there without you 😉

Most things are exponential – especially for the builders.

How does the journey feel?

You bet this post is stacked with emojis.

Pre-inflection: 😓 Why are things so slow?! 😡Hurry the f@$k up. 😟 Why aren’t people understanding the vision? 🤔 Why am I getting rejected so much? 😭 Where’s the output for all of this input?! 🤦🏻‍♀️ What is life?!

At-inflection: 👀 Do … I … have… momentum? 😍Was that a yes?!😍Finally! 🥰 All those hours worked and happy hours missed are paying off! 😆 At long last, I am out of the hole of despair. 😌 Haha! See, I knew I was onto something.

Post-inflection / steep incline: 🤪🤩 OK WOW HOLDING ON FOR DEAR LIFE! ahhhHHHH!!! 🎉🥳🙈 Vroooom. 🏎🏎 SCALE, SCALE, SCALE, GO, GO, GO.

What a ride it has been, LinkedIn.

Where are you in the journey?

Emojis encouraged.

For a startup to gain momentum, they need feedback, and they need it fast. 🏎

When I choose to not continue the process with a company on a diligence call, I’ll offer to deliver my thoughts on the opportunity in real-time, during the call.

All I need to hear is for the founder to ask for the rationale or to request feedback.

“What do you see as the biggest risk(s) associated with my solution?”

“Why, specifically, are you passing today? What would you need to see?”

“Do you have any suggestions for how I can improve my pitch or my solution?”

This allows the founder to get ~ free consulting ~ on-the-spot, rather than a follow-up pass note through email, which likely would not go into the level of detail the founder would need to meaningfully advance their business.

This is also a means to get the information upfront as fast as possible so founders can iterate right away.

But, I want to hear from startup founders.

Which way do you prefer to get feedback from an investor who chooses to pass (immediately, on-call or email follow-up)?

No right or wrong answers here.

I just genuinely want to know what works best for most people, so I can tailor my approach.

Thanks to all of you who respond! 🥰

Ok so maybe controversial, but I’m surprised by the number of investors that pay MINIMAL attention to the founder or fund manager’s psychology during due diligence.

Instead, there’s a massive emphasis on strategy (or worse, the quality of the warm introduction, ha!), which is way more fluid than mostly permanently engrained behaviors. I’ve noticed this is particularly true of investor diligence of fund managers.

Remember it’s the Chief *Executive* Officer (founder, founding partner) not Chief *Strategy* Officer getting evaluated.

Aka~ can they set a compelling vision and execute.

Agree?

Want to know what the future of Venture Capital looks like?

So do I.

Guess it’s time to bring out the all-powerful prognosticator of everything in business and beyond—the Magic 8-Ball.

Shake, shake, shake. The Magic 8-Ball says, “It is uncertain.”

Ugh.

I’ll give it a second rigorous shaking. It reveals, “Cannot predict now.”

One more hearty shake…”Reply hazy, try again.”

Oh, Magic 8-Ball, why have you failed me?

Turns out predicting is really hard.

Let’s see what Harvard Business School professor and best-selling author, the late and legendary Clayton Christensen, and his firm, Innosight, have to say.

According to a recent document they authored, 4 key shifts are happening in VC.

1. Democratization – VC is growing. Increased access to corporates and family offices is one reason, but there are also lower barriers to entry for startups due to technology that is more widely available.

2. Deal Growth – A significant influx of capital is coming from varying sources. Companies that would previously launch an IPO are now choosing to become part of a mega-round, while the formation of micro and nano VCs takes place.

3. Diversification – Whereas traditional VC may have left some areas of the globe undiscovered, a new VC presence has emerged in China, India, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

4. Digitization – We’re moving from the Tech Age to the Age of Automation. AI, bots, and the use of big data will have an even larger presence in VC going forward.

What do these trends mean for investors and founders?

As always, those who can adapt to the changes and evolve with their industries will survive and thrive.

VC firms of the future will “adopt diverse strategies, become increasingly accessible to different investors, and become more data-driven.”

As those fundamental shifts take place and VC firms begin to futurize, Christensen says we can expect emerging new business models to replace traditional approaches:

1. Fundraising – Previous efforts focused almost exclusively on investor buy-in. New VC firms will raise capital through ETNs and by leveraging asset tokenization.

2. Sourcing – A sharper focus on partnerships with accelerators and developing proprietary platforms and venture studios will be the calling card of successful VC firms.

3. Selection – New firms are using diversification as a central strategy, while making heavy use of analytics to track their own performance as well as that of other VC firms.

4. Diligence – Modern VC firms are using automation to track KPIs and perform due diligence.

5. Support – Modern business models will leverage partners to support startups, apply an AI-based platform to recruit top-tier talent, and develop other software to assist in syndication and portfolio value add.

Wow! That is a much more useful response.

But let’s see what Magic 8-Ball has to say about the validity of this advice.

Shake, shake, shake…

“You may rely on it!”

Finally, the answer I was looking for :).

Need to find the perfect gift for that special someone in your life?

Here’s my 2021 Start-Up Holiday Shopping List for family, friends, newborns, pets, and of course, you!

1. Infinite Objects: Taking the gift of wall art to the next level, Infinite Objects creates a Video Print that creates a moving image and plays on an endless loop.

2. The Last Gameboard: Combining the communal fun of tabletop gaming with state-of-the-art technology. Eat your hearts out, Playstation and Xbox, this is The gift for the gamer in your life this year.

3. Willow: The perfect gift for any parent who said you were getting a lump of coal for the holidays. Why not give ‘em dirt? Gift a plant-nurturing soil that actually removes carbon from the atmosphere. 

4. Revela: A hair revival system free of hormones and toxins. It’s also guaranteed to have positive results or your money is returned.

5. Nimbus: You will officially become the coolest gift giver of all time if you pre-order this all-electric autocycle for someone special.

6. Pangaia: Revolutionary clothing via revolutionary science. Give hoodies, track pants, shorts, and t-shirts to the whole family. While you’re at it, you might just help to save the planet.

7. Neurosity: Technology designed to optimize your focus by analyzing brainwave data. By pairing a device called Crown with the Neurosity app, you’ll focus like never before. 

8. Unspun: What if you could have the feeling that comes with your most comfortable pair of jeans every time? Unspun makes customized jeans on demand.

9. Loyal for Dogs: While some dogs live for fifteen years; others live for only seven. Loyal is working on medicine that can extend the life of our beloved fur buddies.

10. Talli: Talli is a device that logs feedings, diaper changes, sleep, and more with the touch of a button. Talli—making life easier for parents everywhere.

11. Cradlewise: Some babies are night owls. Cradlewise is a smart crib perfect for tiny party tots. It mimics the bouncing motion of a mother’s loving arms and senses when they wake up and go to sleep. 

12. Eight Sleep: Improve someone’s sleep fitness by gifting a Pod Pro mattress, with heating and cooling tech. They also have sleep monitoring and coaching: “Hey rookie! Get some sleep now!”

13. Wild Earth: Skip the chewy toys for your pup this year. Give them super clean, plant-based dog food made from the best ingredients. 

14. Ephemeral Tattoo: Traditional tattoos last too long…like forever. By using “made-to-fade” ink, these tattoos last only about a year.

15. Oura Ring: 24/7 heart rate monitoring, personalized health insights, sleep analysis, and so much more in an v stylish ring.

Happy Holidays!

ATTENTION LEADERS (yes, you!)

Are you following these 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, (by Maxwell)?

1. Law of the Lid: the leader’s ability determines a person’s effectiveness.

2. Law of Influence: true leadership is influence. Best leaders raise others to their highest potential.

3. Law of Process: leadership develops daily, not in a day.

4. Law of Navigation: leaders remain focused and controls the direction.

5. Law of Addition: leaders add value by serving others.

6. Law of Solid Ground: trust is the foundation of leadership.

7. Law of Respect: lose respect, lose influence.

8. Law of Intuition: people are intuitive in their area of strength.

9. Law of Magnetism: who you are is who you attract.

10. Law of Connection: touch a heart before asking for a hand.

11. Law of Inner Circle: potential is determined by those closest to you.

12. Law of Empowerment: secure leaders give power to others, insecure diminish this.

13. Law of the Picture: people do what people see.

14. Law of Buy-In: people buy into the leader, then the vision.

15. Law of Victory: leaders find a way for the team to win.

16. Law of the Big Mo: momentum is your best friend.

17. Law of Priorities: understand activity does not equal accomplishment.

18. Law of Sacrifice: give up to go.

19. Law of Timing: when to lead is just as important as what to do and where to go.

20. Law of Explosive Growth: to add growth, lead followers, but to multiply, lead leaders.

21. Law of Legacy: lasting value is measured by succession.

Which leadership trait do you want to develop further?

We spend a lot of time, perhaps, monitoring our diet, steps, and heart rate.

Those feel like the wrong KPIs.

Instead, we spend very little time monitoring our thoughts and the content we consume (music, Netflix shows, news, social, etc).

All of these channels imprint and influence.

Understanding how you think – particularly your perception of the world – and bringing awareness around what needs adjustment will allow you to effortlessly hit your goals.

How did monitoring the mind become deprioritized to the physical body?

What is something surprising that you’re grateful for?

I’ll go first: moving around a lot as a child. We would change schools every 1-2 years growing up, from pre-school until college. At the time it seemed challenging, to make new friends, navigate new campuses, and get caught up with the curriculum. However, it gave me some of my greatest gifts – rapid adaptability and strong sensing abilities in new environments and with new people.

Your turn. 🦃🥧

2022 is a few weeks away.

So tell me, crystal ball, what will be THE BIG IDEA in the new year?!

The message: Consumer & Science

Over the last few years, we’ve seen various deep tech sectors converge.

To name a few:

-The advancement of synthetic biology, novel ingredients for alternative proteins.

-Sensors, AI and the rise of self-driving cars.

-Sequencing, screening technologies and longevity / health. 

What do these all have in common? 

Technical breakthroughs are bursting out of the engineering bubble and into the hands of consumers.

It is consumers, hand-in-hand with the scientific community, that can democratize these breakthrough innovations in the new year.

Why is this so thrilling? 

The consumer space is oversaturated.

Existing tech innovations revolve around software.  

These patterns are becoming predictable and underwhelming for consumers. 

What consumers crave now are solutions that address fundamental, human needs — from food security to sustainability.

At Conscience VC, we call this phenomenon “consumer-led science.”

We believe that companies at the intersection of consumer and science will be the most exciting, impact-driven, socially responsible, and financially promising in the market.

This is not to say that the investing world has been kind to science-driven founders. Investors have, for the most part, considered deep tech to be a risky investment.

Deep tech takes time to understand, time to develop, and time to scale. R&D, and then company-building, was not moving fast enough for VC.

With the explosion of tech enablers, such as 4G/5G and cloud computing, a bridge between technical innovation and consumer was built. What made the difference is that consumers found these products easy to use and accessible.

With that, we see consumer-led science emerging as the next big hit. 2021 was already a record-setting year, with many well-known science-led companies clearing $1B valuation. 

Investors are also better at seeing the value in early-stage technical investments after witnessing widespread adoption among customers.

Looking ahead to 2022, we at Conscience see the upcoming year as absolutely monumental for science-led, consumer-obsessed startups.

A few of the trends boosting our confidence:  

-New sources of non-dilutive capital for science-led companies.

-COVID as the catalyst for accelerated innovation. 

-With exponential tech and convergence, R&D timelines are getting shorter. 

-GenZ and millennials as the most progressive, open-minded, and technologically adept generation to date. With young consumers overeager to adopt technically-defensible products, product validation accelerates. 

-Unresolvable global problems that current technology can’t solve, and individuals are passionate about.

A key belief for us is that very soon, frontier tech and science will become less “frontier” and evolve into a more central commodity for the individual.

Just a few of my favorite questions during diligence:

1. What problem are you solving?

2. Why is that problem worth solving?

3. What is your solution?

4. Why is that the best solution to that problem?

5. How do you know it is / will be the best?

🙂

You ready?

The best response to a “pass note” (declining the investment) makes the investor feel like they missed out.

But – it’s not by selling the opportunity further.

So what does that look like?

“Thanks for the email this morning, understand your reasoning, and look forward to continuing the conversation at a later date.

I was just telling our board member, I love what you stand for and how you assist founders, you’re the kind of VC I want to 100X their money because I know it’s going to go back into successful companies that make the world a better place.”

An epic response to rejection. I keep this in a note on my phone. It is a powerful reminder for me to stay classy and positive as I was raising, and faced with hundreds of rejections.

On the contrary — petty, defensive, and dismissive responses to passes further reassure investors they have made the right judgment call on the leadership. I remember most (all?) of these poor responses because they stood out so clearly from the rest as bad form. The reactive response introduces a substantial mental hurdle for investors to ever reconsider the opportunity, or endorse it to their network.

The founder who sent the note above is an individual I’ve continued to support outside of my portfolio. In his early 20s, he has shown leadership capabilities beyond many. From the note above, I know he brings the right attitude to his team and work, even when things aren’t going as planned. This was truly the best response I’ve ever received, and it stood out for all the right reasons.

I have been waiting patiently for someone to out-class this note. 👀

How can you outshine the next time rejection happens?

It’s almost 2022. 🎉

Are we focused on the right resolutions?

This is a simpler question than we think.

And the answer requires a framing shift.

Let’s say our goals in 2022 are to “get a promotion” and “make $500k per year”.

These goals are admirable, but that framing is just OK… we can do *so* much better to reach our desired outcome.

How? We must embody the goals completely – accelerated through emotional connection to the mission behind the goals.

It’s hard to align emotionally with “get a promotion” (at least for me).

Instead of “get a promotion” let’s try: “to be an exceptional leader — the epitome of a role model — and to share these qualities with my team through expanded responsibility and title at work.”

Tying our goal to a higher purpose changes it from a checkbox accomplishment… to a total mission that we fling our entire selves behind.

To get a promotion – we must be someone people want to follow. Visualize – what does that look like? How do we move and act to embody this?

As for our second goal of “make $500k per year”, instead try: “to create well in excess of $500k worth of meaningful value for my clients, every year. When my clients succeed – we all succeed.”

Which was easiest to connect to and visualize? Did you start to see the many ways you can and have been adding value to your clients? Maybe even a few ways to do that so much better?

Enhance this imagery further on what value we will create with the extra $ in 2022 ;). Really see the positive outcomes of our abundant thinking.

In sum – first, identify and elaborate on the “why” for our desires – tied to our higher self / mission.

Then, as we align wholly to these missions – believe that you not only can, but will, make these goals a reality.

Lastly, watch as events, people, and opportunities flow at the right place and time.

Expect the good and that life is truly rigged in our favor.

Happy NYE resolution hunting y’all!

“I’m excited” is an understatement for 2022.

Already, 2021 was a year of high velocity for Conscience.

The kicking off and establishment of our 1st fund was only one high point out of many for us. 🎉

In 2021, we:   

1. Pioneered the intersection of consumer and science in venture. We invested in 11 stellar, early-stage companies, alongside several notable investors.

To name a few of the consumer x science verticals we invested in: micromobility, microbiome health, baby tech, and science-led beauty.

2. Prioritized value add for our founders. How? We:

a. Leveraged our strengths as hyper-connectors. We provided strategic introductions to other investors, advisors, talent, suppliers, and even banks to accelerate product build and validation, and access to capital. 

b. Built in-house platforms to support founders, beyond our investment. Alongside these platforms, we got hands-on and offered support for product positioning and public-facing messaging so that our founders could continue enticing consumers and investors.

c. Honored promises, but also over delivered. Just one example: we walked our founders through how to leverage non-dilutive sources of capital, an important catalyst during the R&D stage for emerging new tech where funds are critical early on. 

d. Hustled in order to understand what startups need to know in order to grow and thrive. We value quick, but *thorough* due diligence and asking thoughtful questions that challenge assumptions and drive growth for product, business model, team, and serviceable market. 

3. Expanded further diversity into the VC ecosystem, with underrepresented founders now making up over 70% of our portfolio. 

We invest in underrepresented founders not because they are diverse, but because their innate talent and creativity truly make them a massive arbitrage opportunity.

Our founders see the world through a new lens, so they naturally make big, early, and contrarian bets to solve our world’s toughest problems. 

4. Grew our Club Conscience community to over 400 friends of the firm, including several other firms and our many, talented scouts.

Through panels and in-person events, we talked nerdy with some of the smartest and coolest people on the planet on topics not readily found on the Internet.

5. Showcased our brand’s values of empathy over ego, aggressive curiosity, and radical open mindedness through features in Business Insider, Carta, TechCrunch and more notable publications.

Oh, we also cleverly growth hacked our way to #1 (now, #2) most followed VC firm on LinkedIn. 😉

A massive shout-out to our incredible, hard-working portfolio founders (in no order): Shail Mehta Lihang Nong Alice Albrecht Cheryl Sew Hoy Evan Zhao Anne Palermo Brittany Chibe Chad Massura Wendel Afonso Shana Kelley Peter Weijmarshausen Sarah Adler

And of course, a big thank you to all of the LPs, co-investors, community members, and teammates who made our 1st year in business a success!

Cheers to a wonderful 2022! 🥂🎊

Shameless confession: I’ve actually grown to love fundraising and the 0->1 process of starting a fund over the last year.  

Every time I pitch, I’m reminded that there are very few circumstances in life where you are forced to actively meet the most incredible and divergent thinkers and investors of our time.

The process of building, from scratch, is truly one of the most creative and energizing activities I have had the opportunity to do.

And of course — meeting with founders, getting to know them and their brilliance, is why I get up in the morning. It’s the most indulgent part of the job.

That’s not to say that this journey isn’t deeply challenging (sometimes, deeply defeating)!

Last year, while pitching hundreds of investors (and of course, the hundreds of inevitable rejections), it was clear to see the parallels between my experience and that of the founders’ I work with.

Juggling the highs and the lows of building deep relationships (“finding partners”), building a compelling offering to founders (“building a product”), differentiating our investment thesis (“competitive positioning”), and raising a fund (“raising a round”).

We are in lockstep, together, building out our most authentic vision, and all that comes with it.

Although, admittedly, the journey of a founder is much more challenging.

✨ Thank you founders for making magic happen daily. ✨

And, for future founders and founders early in the journey – I am excited for you.

At Conscience, we’re obsessed with putting in that 1st check (at our intersection of consumer and science).

It’s a goal of ours to believe in founders before anyone else, and gain their conviction in us as trusted partners from the get-go.

Being that 1st partner for founders means moving well in advance of their fundraising rounds.

It also means working those long hours, alongside founders, to help close rounds quickly, and offer resources, introductions, and thought partnership to move faster.

1st check in, is, well, a momentous occasion, for us both. 😉

Very much looking forward to finding our future partners in 2022!

What can founders do to win investors over?

Hint: it doesn’t require skill, it’s easy, and free!

Answer: Greater transparency in due diligence and beyond.

I like to think of due diligence as the “talking stage” with founders before I enter into a lasting relationship with them.

Having more transparent and frequent 2-way communication from the beginning is important for us to decide if we are the best partners for each other. 

Disclosing more information during diligence can feel scary and vulnerable for some founders.

What if some investors don’t like what they see and are turned off? What if investors get bogged down in certain details, and lose sight of what founders would rather prioritize?

Transparency, mutual respect, and empathy are qualities needed for a long-term match, and to quickly determine the best partners for you.

Founders who are proactive and send updates to their investors in the form of a short report, email with bullet points, or quick call every 4-8 weeks have better success finding trustworthy and helpful partners. These updates ideally include comprehensive highlights AND lowlights.

Investors who feel well-informed on a startup’s progress are more likely to push for initial (or further) investment and continue the relationship.

We sometimes like to ask for the last 3 updates a company (depending on stage) has sent to their investors as part of our process. This provides critical data points to assess founders’ velocity/progress, but also level of transparency.

Each update also allows founders to stay on top of investors’ radars, so we’re better positioned to help you when we see or hear something relevant, and to proactively problem solve when things aren’t going as expected.

Psst…and guess what, it comes with more useful connections, advice, and resources!

What does a great investor update look like?

(1) Honest analysis of existing problems, accompanied by founders’ thoughts on how they will handle them.

(2) Well-in-advance notice of fundraising rounds. A heads-up helps investors put the pieces in place to close rounds quicker. We can think ahead regarding check sizes, pull in other investors as needed, and offer advice to founders regarding their positioning for fundraising.

(3) List of most important KPIs that are also most relevant to investors and your business (team size, burn rate, $ in bank, MoM growth, new partnerships, yield rates, etc). Visuals are most helpful.

(4) Current status of the business, and tangible objectives for the next update. Thinking ahead inherently challenges founders to check-in with themselves and their big picture vision to see if they’re still on track.

(5) Clear questions and requests for help from investors. Even, proactively reach out for 1:1 calls! The more specificity you have here, the better (eg, introductions to folks in X roles at Y companies as partners).

I’m most curious to hear from founders, what are your best practices for engaging investors?

Common pushback I hear regarding consumer investing with respect to my science-led approach: “consumers buy off brand”, “IP doesn’t matter” or “science isn’t a value driver for consumers”.

You are CORRECT! BUT, with significant caveats:

Building the foundation of a traditional consumer/tech business now is just too easy (eg, e-commerce solutions allow you to build an online business, accept payment, partner with influencers/buy ads, and set up custom products in a few clicks). For the sake of emphasizing this point, high school and college students can and are doing this, quite successfully, part-time!

For this reason (and more nuanced points depending on the category), there is a proliferation of consumer brands, in which you’re competing not just with richly funded venture-backed companies, but also the attention and products of influencers, celebrities, and solopreneurs, and increased digital spend from most players.

Your brand can quickly become brandless in a sea of red-hot competition pushing similar products, differentiated largely by name, influencer, and packaging vs. value.

Question: how is a consumer expected to compare, choose, and stay loyal? How can consumer companies stay relevant?

Solving for this problem becomes significantly more challenging when the value proposition is roughly equivalent across competitors, even with a nuanced understanding of consumer needs to finesse the product.

Communities and other clever marketing (yes community is a marketing tool) approaches are being leveraged, but the fundamental value prop will still often be an incremental gain vs. the breadth of options available for any specific problem.

The low-hanging fruit addressed by SaaS and low-tech CPG is simply becoming barren and easy to replicate, until the next major behavioral shift (to fiercely compete on).

For most purchases, indeed, people aren’t swayed by the sciences. It’s not something I prioritize either in my shopping.

So what does IP / a breakthrough do for you?

Consumers buy value. If your breakthrough leads to a 10x, or even 100x+, critical improvement, that’s what people buy.

Science-led or technically defensible consumer opportunities look and feel different.

More companies are emphasizing a science-led approach, not for the sake of blowing you away with technical mastery, but because it’s tied to enhanced efficacy, safety, reduced cost, etc, and these are important to consumers.

Even better when this effort is compounded with a significant behavioral shift that is more trend than fad.

Again: tech defensibility (tied to an important value prop) with a behavioral shift means you have a significant moat in consumerland, likely for a while. I’ve always loved the phrase “competition is for losers”.

Simply put: It’s harder than ever to compete on brand / winning eyeballs without a truly differentiated, defensible offering. Tech defensibility, tied to a strong why / customer value, not just brand, gives you a winning edge.

All too often, diversity, especially in venture, is treated as a statistic.

Equally concerning, when diversity mandates or targets are not met, it is diverse *founders* who are unfairly blamed — for not reaching out to enough investors or for not being “qualified” enough for investment. 

As investors, the onus lies on us to look inwards and critically reflect on our sourcing and due diligence practices. Are there certain patterns or biases that are causing us to overlook or filter out diverse founders? 

If our current sourcing methods are not attracting as many diverse founders as we like, the issue is not with those founders. Investors, as a whole, need to recognize that our existing networks are catered towards certain types of entrepreneurs, so we end up missing other talented entrepreneurs who don’t fit our predetermined “types.” 

It’s essential to cast as wide of a net as possible, in order to meet as many potential founders as possible. 

Some underrepresented founders experience significant challenges preventing them from accessing typical mainstream networks. We can expand our current networks by redefining what our traditional go-to definition of a network is. This includes being more open to founders who are earlier on in their careers, screening cold emails, partnering with startup accelerators with a high proportion of minority founders, etc. 

Valuing entrepreneurs from unconventional experiences allows us to welcome diverse founders who may not fit the cookie-cutter professional journey. Incorporating inclusivity into the language we use to describe our firms, our investment theses, and how we support our existing founders allow us to encourage talented, underrepresented founders to join us at an earlier stage.

In every possible interaction or touchpoint with a founder, “diversity” should never be treated as a separate bucket or checkbox. Diversity is synonymous with talent.

Founders—what are ways that investors can best welcome, understand, and support you? Let the investor community know below.

“Work smarter, not harder.” The former is tenacity, the latter is persistence.

At Conscience VC, we want founders with tenacity, *not* persistence.

But wait—aren’t these two essentially the same?!

Persistent founders and tenacious founders both have the determination to work until they succeed, but the methods they apply differ.

Persistence is doing something again and again until it works. It sounds like “pestering” for a reason—continuing to apply the same old, tired frameworks to a problem until a solution may or may not be forced through. This is iteration, to the point of a dead end, without change.

Tenacity begins with recognizing when old methods are not working to solve a problem.

The inflection point is when founders then also *adapt* by using new data to make fresh decisions and finding more efficient ways to achieve the original goal. It is progress through change.

This is best illustrated with an example.

Problem: A founder who is raising a new round is meeting with as many investors as possible. Immense amounts of energy, time, and effort are put into pitching around the clock. Yet, this founder still finds herself chasing after investors, with incredibly low commitment rates after initial meetings.

The persistent founder’s reaction: “I must not have met the right investor yet. I need to expand my pool of investors and keep pitching. Maybe some more introductions will work, and I’ll get lucky…”

The tenacious founder’s reaction: “Let’s take a step back and reevaluate. Which investors seem to be most aligned with my company’s vision? Let’s focus on them. How can I do my due diligence into these investors and refine my pitch so that it appeals best to these investors’ goals and my own?”

Outcome: Tenacious founder closes oversubscribed round early, and has a line of investors eager for the next round. Persistent founder is still chasing investors for their checks.

The tenacious founder was able to achieve her target, on a faster timeline with more meaningful relationships built, because she analyzed other methodologies and tried again under these new frameworks. The persistent founder finds herself, unsurprisingly, experiencing the same lackluster result with the same framework.

What are other common challenges where founders can apply tenacity over persistence?

Getting into the “right” psychological state is important before starting something new.

However, the “right” state isn’t what you think…

The right state may *feel* like the wrong state.

Huh? Two examples.

1. Let’s say you’re going back to the gym for the first time in a while. 😱

Go in with the goal of trying to be as *uncomfortable* as possible for as *long* as possible. Not “getting stronger” or “losing 5 pounds”. Simply – getting uncomfortable.

Why? This raises your endurance levels and keeps you motivated (as you wanted and expected to be uncomfortable).

2. Now, let’s say you’re starting to learn a new subject or a new job.

Go in with the goal of learning so you feel out of your depth, and then spend time swimming around in the deep end.

Start with the fundamentals, and layer on new information until you feel you’re “at capacity” – then keep diving in.

Learning something new, similar to restarting at the gym, is an uncomfortable feeling.

TL;DR go in expecting and wanting discomfort for superhuman resilience ;).

Trends that *go big* don’t come out of nowhere, even though it feels that way.

They actually follow a pretty clear pattern, if you pay attention… and know where to look…

So, how do you spot these promising, but early, signals in the noise?

You pay attention to the fringe. You get weird.

Fringe ideas get into the mainstream via heterodox communities.

For example, today, you’re seeing lots of overlap in VC and crypto with sci-fi.

A big thank you to all of the “fringe friends” I’ve met over the years that keep me weird, and keep me in the future.

What’s your “fringe” idea / community / hobby?

A big thank you to all of the “fringe friends” I’ve met over the years that keep me weird, and keep me in the future.

What’s your “fringe” idea/community/hobby?

As an investor, over time, you form, break, and reform mental models that serve or hinder you.

One of my favorites — when looking at two opportunities that are approximately equal in benefits, choose the one that doesn’t “look the part.”

An anti-bias bias of sorts.

If you’re a Taleb fan, you’re likely familiar with the concept of “Surgeons Should Not Look Like Surgeons” in his book Skin in the Game – where Taleb adamantly chooses the butcher-esque, gruff character over the classical surgeon with “gentle hands”.

But – why choose the outsider? How is this an asymmetric opportunity?

The one who doesn’t fit the mold, conditional of having some success in their career, had much more to overcome in terms of perception.

After all, “reality is blind to looks.”

Agree?

There are 24 hours in a day and only 1 you — so how do you make the most of it?

Here’s how I learned to leverage my time at Conscience to deliver the most value. These are tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way, and I hope that these insights will inspire you in your own journey.

Doing business better and faster all starts with genuine investment in your team.

1. Screening for the best:

💡Have a rigorous and efficient talent screening process, developed by 1st principles thinking mapped to your culture + job requirements.

💡Ask for recommendations to talent from other A+ players to drive an efficient top-of-funnel process.

2. Delegating & training the best:

💡Emphasize talent development. Do not hold back resources, network access, and knowledge share to advance your team. Elevate your team publicly. Enable each team member to be a leader and drive value autonomously and expand a positive brand.

💡 Have clarity on your KPIs and tracking tools to measure velocity.

💡 Establish a clear division of roles within teams, and efficiently divide and conquer tasks. Enable the team to take tasks from start to finish without you being the bottleneck.

3. Minimizing less urgent tasks:

💡Synthesize important points before every meeting. Getting points across clearly and quickly naturally leads to shorter calls with the same outcomes.

💡Leverage two calendars, one dedicated to high-priority meetings and one reserved for less urgent meetings. Intentionally schedule meetings and intense deadlines around the times when you naturally feel most productive.

💡Group similar tasks together. Addressing them in batches allows you to stay in flow with minimal cognitive load.

4. Optimizing by looking to your team for honest feedback and creative energy:

💡Include a continuous improvement channel on Slack, where the team continuously brainstorms best practices to maximize ROI within less time. Engage daily.

💡Experiment with automation software so that team members are applying their best talents, not getting tangled up in avoidable grunt work.

💡 Value your and others’ time by making decisions quickly. Minimize red tape and streamline communications to enhance decision-making efficiency.

5. Prioritizing your health as much as possible, to bring your best self each day:

💡Manage diet, exercise, and sleep for higher energy output. Invest in a standing desk for improved circulation and a clearer mind.

💡 Be comfortable setting boundaries with your time. This means saying no often, and being OK with that.

💡 Take periodic breaks if you feel yourself slowing down or feeling overwhelmed. Feeling refreshed is more important than stretching yourself thin to get it all done.

I’m most curious to hear what’s worked for you, too. What are your efficiency hacks?

A reminder.

Impostor syndrome isn’t just limiting your own potential — it’s blocking meaningful value for your community or even the world.

Not shining your light is far bigger than you.

The unquantifiable, missed opportunities impact more than just your resume and self-esteem.

Go beyond your localized, self-constructed limitations (or the fictional limitations set by others) by being globally and exceptionally outward-focused.

Think bigger — beyond yourself.

You’re far more expansive than your thoughts, the thoughts of others (which are more a mirror for their internal state), and your history.

You’re doing more harm — to yourself and others — than you realize by staying small and not sharing your gifts.

So ask yourself: where are you holding back? Why?

After hearing thousands of founders pitch, over time, I’ve noticed that there are certain characteristics and values I gravitate more towards.

Evaluating early-stage founders through purely performance-based criteria can feel inorganic and forced. It can also unfairly filter out overlooked founders that don’t have equal access to the same networks or resources, which investors can easily provide. These disparities are most obvious at the pre-seed stage.

I’m still learning along the way, but there have been 5 clear indicators from founders that have resonated with me the most, in no order.

These 5 were carefully selected after years of research, learning from friends of Conscience (advisors, GPs), speaking with behavioral scientists, and pattern matching:

1. Integrity through transparency.

To develop a truly honest relationship, I appreciate founders who are open about what’s going right and what’s not. I pay attention to see if founders naturally bring up the “warts” and how thoroughly they’ve thought through their next plan of action.

They also answer my imperfect questions perfectly.

2. Obsession with primary source data.

This frame of thinking comes through naturally in the word choice and non-verbal communication that founders use to describe their companies. Founders who grow visibly excited by and prioritize learning about the customer discovery process also naturally translate to having the greatest empathy for their consumers.

These founders have intuitively taught me the ins-and-outs about their ideal customers, and learnings that surprised them.

3. Velocity: moving fast in the right direction.

High-trajectory founders are clear super-learners. They ask the right and many questions, and are obsessed with understanding their business to move fast with the optimal strategy. These founders also have amazing growth mindsets. They leverage every resource available to identify and execute towards their KPIs.

They are clear on their KPIs for the next 3 weeks and 1 year — with reasons to back it up.

4. “Solve any problem.”

A potent combo of a history of beating the odds (which didn’t need to take place in your career), demonstration of 1st principles thinking, and low-ego behavior to recognize there is a problem worth solving. By the end of our process, I walk away feeling the founder can hack any problem life throws their way.

5. Tenacity (not perseverance).

These founders don’t just relentlessly execute, but they also actively incorporate new data to adjust their direction along the way. They’re not afraid of admitting their course of action may be the wrong one, staying open-minded to new data, and pivoting (vs. repeating the same action for the same outcome, repeatedly).

I’ve found that these values have held true across a large majority of the founders I’ve spoken to and invested in.

For founders: Is this what you expected? What would you change?

For investors: What do you think? What are you prioritizing right now?

When it comes to that special partnership between founders and investors, alignment is where the magic begins.

Founders, as you consider investors — ask: who do you want by your side?

1. Practical fit is the lowest-hanging fruit to evaluate.

Don’t be shy to ask about level of participation. This demonstrates confidence on your part while also delivering crucial information.

Does the investor like to lead or follow? What is their check size? Are they actively involved with the boards of their portfolio companies, or are they more hands-off? These questions give insights into how frequently that investor goes “all in” for companies similar to yours or takes a more diversified approach.

2. Personality fit will indicate if you and your investor’s personal values are compatible.

Your personal values will affect the way you lead your company. Your investor’s personal values will affect the way they offer support to you.

The problem-solving founder may find harmony with an investor who’s obsessed with systems thinking and iteration.

The mission-driven founder may mesh well with an investor who’s hungry for a company with a clear social impact.

The consumer-centered founder can sharpen her skills with an investor who’s aggressive about product-market fit.

An investor who holds relevant expertise in your shared obsession will be attuned and empathetic to the mindset that you will approach opportunities and setbacks with.

3. Expectations fit will evaluate if the investor’s timeline and milestones for the company align with yours.

One aspect is growth rate. If an investor is geared towards a high velocity, “quick exit” type of startup, but you prefer to build a long-term, stable company, your expectations for pacing will clash in the future.

Have this conversation early on to find an investor who you feel does not rush you or slow you down.

Another aspect is risk. A founder who likes to take bets may face tremendous resistance from an investor who prefers a more conservative approach.

Understanding how open your investor is to uncertainty and experimentation will help you decide if they are the right partner for you during pivotal moments of your business.

A complementary partner is an investor who will energize you for maximum growth. These investors align with you fundamentally, and add fresh/tenured perspective in their method of support and expertise. They are founder-focused, as in focused on your success, not necessarily “friendly”.

Founders, what are your personal “must-haves” when it comes to finding an investor who’s complementary to you?

One of the simplest & fastest ways to upgrade your life ->

Put intentionality and focus behind asking the *best possible questions* to yourself and others.

The best questions are efficiently mapped to the root of what you’re trying to solve.

For example…

Let’s say you’re an early-stage investor evaluating a founder for their “customer obsession”.

You may start off by asking: “How many customers do you speak with each month?” or “Who is your customer?”

BUT…

I think these questions, and other questions like it, are the *WRONG* questions to ask.

The best questions unlock depth of understanding, and are hard to game.

So, instead, let’s try questions like:

“What is something that surprised you during customer discovery?”

OR

“How are customers using your product in a way you didn’t expect?”

OR

Perhaps, finding questions that validate customer obsession isn’t the right point to focus as an early-stage investor, in the first place!

Perhaps, instead, it is an obsession of the founder to win.

Perhaps, customer obsession is a side effect of this more important psychological point. 😉

Mastering the skill of questions (and, questions about questions) allows you to move faster through time and space, with improved outcomes.

Agree?

For pre-seed founders: when speaking to investors, it’s critical to showcase your deep understanding of the problem, not just your solution. 

Deeply understanding the problem your company is solving will heavily influence your ability to execute on your idea and ensure a “win” with target customers. Prioritize this for the highest yield and results from investors!

How?

1️⃣ Exploratory Stage: How do I know if the problem I’m solving is the right one? 

You may have already run social media ads and customer interviews to develop hypotheses about the potential problem you’re addressing. 

While these tests are important for determining which customers you should speak to, take these tests one step further and properly investigate if this is the *right* problem for your company to solve.

Founders who are obsessed with their customers are poised to gather as much valuable data as possible. They relentlessly pursue individual conversations.

For example, ask prospective customers to walk through how they use a competitor’s product. This gives them additional insight into their customers’ existing behavior and learn why the problem they’re addressing exists in the first place. 

Also, listen intently to customers through exploratory user interviews. Ask open-ended questions that prompt customers to freely share about their wants, needs, and frustrations, without a predetermined agenda or forced outcome.

2️⃣ Validation Stage: How do I know if my approach to the problem is the right one? 

How did you determine which of your many hypotheses about the problem is worth building a product around? What methods did you use to test your preliminary assumptions about what customers need? 

Founders that introduce prototyping and iteration (a bias to action) early on is a positive signal to investors. We have greater confidence in the founders to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the cycles of trial-and-error, as this indicates that these founders weren’t married to one particular idea/assumption while building. 

If the different ideas you have in mind all miss the mark, it’s possible that the scope of the problem you’re addressing is either more narrow or broad than you anticipated. You now have more information needed to refine your problem and tailor your future solution. 

🤔 Especially at the pre-seed stage, it’s important to detach yourself from the “If I build it, they will come” mentality during the pitch.

What’s more important to you: building a product for your customers or building customers for your product? 

Founders who have thoroughly researched the ins-and-outs of the problem their customers are facing are innately inclined towards reaching product-market fit.

Yesterday, I celebrated my birthday (which included a surprise Zoom party from the team)! 🍰

As I turn another year older, I’m reflecting on how building and expanding Conscience has challenged me to change and grow in ways I never thought possible.

Especially as an emerging manager, but also a founder / solo GP, I’m so grateful to have many wonderful, supportive friends and colleagues accompany me in this thrilling (and at times fear-inducing) journey. Together, we can do anything!

In particular, the rapidly growing Conscience family continues to teach me how we can best surprise and delight startup founders. ✨

We’re constantly seeking ways to continue scaling up our founder value-add as a team:

(1) Implementing innovative systems to serve portfolio founders that aim to solve and pre-empt their pain points and needs. These initiatives span knowledge sharing through our virtual events, personalized feedback through open founder office hours, and a jam-packed 170+ resource goodie bag.

We want our founders to focus all their energy into changing the world.

(2) Protecting founders’ valuable time through streamlined pre-screen and initial call processes. We review and discuss decks before calls and have strong intention around who we meet and what we are looking for.

Our first meetings instead seek to understand the heart and mind of the founder — we really want to see what makes our future partners and collaborators tick. We love to leverage async email communication to ask our more in-depth questions, which helps founders develop FAQs for other investors, and explore the nuances of their own business in new ways.

(3) Taking opportunities to develop our founder relationships at every touch point. We aim to serve, and this includes founders outside our portfolio.

If requested, we customize feedback post-calls to help founders think through critical business aspects and access new resources. We have also made customer/partnership/investor intros where appropriate, as we keep the relationship open.

(4) Establishing partnerships for non-dilutive capital. One great example is a webinar we’re hosting with InteliSpark on Wednesday, April 6th to guide our advanced technology startup founders through how to access federal grants and other government research funding programs.

We do this to help founders gain more credibility and financial backing early on in the game and continue to protect ownership of their ideas.

(5) Establishing a hands-on community of ~200 members, who are friends and family of the firm, available to serve founders and others in the community across tactical advice, talent, helpful resources and more. We’ve been blown away by the generosity and genius of these members, who span exited unicorn founders and tenured investors.

With these initiatives and other stealth ones in the works…I have no doubt that this will be another high velocity but also “high service” year.

Excited to be on this journey with you all. 🙂

What should founders at the ✨ very earliest stages ✨ focus on?

Understanding the problem you’re solving deeply.

👉 This means:

Learning the ins-and-outs of your customers: their frustrations, how they use existing products, how they would (efficiently) find your product, how you would displace their existing solutions, what has changed in the market etc.

Ultimately, uncovering these critical truths that the market has not yet found will ✨ make your business ✨.

👉 Not:

Burning time chasing after investors. 

Pre-seed investors typically like to see *some* validation you deeply understanding the problem you’re solving.

Showcasing this understanding gives investors tremendous confidence in your ability to own your business and execute, even before you’re able to capture customer buy-in.

Developing this understanding early on will boost your investor win rate to generate the momentum you need for a successful and expedient round of financing.

Disproportionately focusing your valuable bandwidth and energy on pitching to investors without a well-articulated idea or proof-of-concept in mind leads to both parties walking away empty-handed, and frankly, underwhelmed.

However, when you do engage investors *before* you have clarity on your goal, optimize for the investor’s feedback vs. a formal pitch.

This is also a fabulous way to build investor interest and momentum well in advance of a formal raise.

As you embark on your new company, here are a few growth hacks that don’t require investor financing:

1. Discovery: Conduct extensive customer discovery.

Be assertive and proactive in reaching out to many, many customers and develop questions using first principles thinking.

There are several resources available to founders on what an effective (and ineffective) customer discovery process looks like.

This also allows you to deeply understand the competitive landscape to identify a differentiated value prop.

2. Demand: Build a customer waitlist (and, even better if you’re able to get customers to pre-order what you’re building in advance).

Conduct beta tests and show stellar “retention” by folks graduating from the beta tests and pre-ordering the product.

3. Validation: Look into non-dilutive government grants to obtain early scientific credibility and an early cash inflection.

Lean on experts (that are compensated based on success-based outcomes) to help you navigate the application complexities quickly.

Also, build relationships with advisors to provide valuable guidance early on, on top of extending credibility to what you are building to future talent and investors.

Ultimately, you have to nail the building blocks and strategy for a viable business, not just the storytelling and investor pitch.

Those building blocks, early on, start with a deep understanding of the problem.

It’s time to dispel some common myths about fundraising.

I meet a lot of compelling founders that end up *rejecting themselves* for reasons that are simply myths — well, hopefully, no longer!

The myths:

MYTH 1: The “I need X”. Usually: I need to be a serial / exited founder. OR, I need to have attended Stanford, MIT, Harvard. OR, I need to have received an MBA.

Let’s not disqualify yourself so easily. 😉

There are many firms that back founders from all walks of life — even firms that *specialize* in some of the following founder archetypes: college drop-outs, immigrants, first-time founders, failed founders, underrepresented founders, PhDs, etc.

Successful founders can come in all shapes, sizes, and backgrounds — often, unconventional ones. Investors recognize that unorthodox paths can unlock new and refreshing perspectives.

Investors are not just seeking a template checklist of experiences for the founders they back. More importantly, it’s the qualities/skills/competencies gained from personal and professional experiences, and how that maps to success.

MYTH 2: I need to live in the Bay (or NYC).

COVID has expedited a remote-first working environment. We’re also seeing new start-up hubs (like Miami, my home base, and even places like Nashville and Raleigh) attracting notable VC funding.

Several businesses have been founded over the past 2 years while operating virtually. I’ve even heard anecdotes of co-founders (and several team members) not having met IRL yet.

A better way to rethink any hesitation around building outside of a big tech hub — how does your location best serve your business? How are you accessing the resources/talent you need to win? If you’re able to demonstrate successful execution in your chosen location, this concern is out. Also, there happen to be several firms that focus on “overlooked geographies” or identify as “geography agnostic” (like us).

MYTH 3: I need a co-founder.

Solo-founders are more common than you think. It depends on your business and gaps, but if you are equipped to go from 0->1, you’re not “alone”.

Some investors will pass on solo-founders (as some will pass on a certain sector or stage).

Not everyone will be your buyer, and that is perfectly OK.

MYTH 4: I need an investor network.

There are several firms that have an open application to pitch (like us) or respond to DMs / cold emails.

Investors are more accessible than ever, particularly emerging managers. It’s amazing the doors that open with a bit of hustle—even without a network.

MYTH 5: If I don’t raise in x weeks I’m a failure! 🙁

Most businesses take time to raise rounds. This is true especially in down markets, if you have a contrarian point of view, or if you’re not building in one of the “sexier” categories (eg web 3, climate).

Just because you don’t raise a lightning-fast round (more of an edge case than reality), it doesn’t mean your business doesn’t have merit. Don’t believe the hype.

For many of you, this may be the first time you’ve navigated market uncertainty as a founder.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed during these periods…

However, your psychology plays a vital role in the company’s leadership and success.

Here are a few friendly reminders to manage your and your team’s psychology:

1. Lean on founders and trusted advisors in your community.

Lean on the relationships that you’ve developed to learn from fellow leaders faster, and have reassurance that you aren’t going through it alone.

Ideally – from folks who have “seen this movie before”.

Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable when asking for advice from your trusted network. No one has ever become successful purely on their own. You learn and grow so much faster with a support system who gets it.

2. Rethink your goals.

Successful founders set ambitious but achievable expectations upfront.

Psychologically having “wins” are important for a company’s culture and maintaining momentum.

Alternatively, poorly designed goals lead to poor performance and low morale.

In uncertain times, it is a good time to reassess your goals such that your team stays motivated. 

These target goals are all about motivating desired behavior within your company.

Adjusting your goals doesn’t mean giving up on your wild and admirable ambitions, but adapting them to a changing environment.

This adjustment is rooted in having a clearer understanding of what has changed, and how these changes impact your business (and hence strategy). 

3. Focus on the “road”, not the “wall”.

In other words, focusing on what’s going wrong (the “wall”) can drive you and your team nuts!

There are always many things that can go wrong in a company, so focus on where you are going (the “road”) instead.

With a market slowdown in companies’ growth and sales cycles, take this as an opportunity to reinvigorate and unify your team with increased presence, develop a more detailed/adjusted strategy for the “road”, improve your internal processes, iterate on your product, enhance customer discovery, and more.

Question: Founders, how are you taking charge of your business and well-being?

Competition is a good thing. Here’s why:

1) Competition drives performance. It’s a forcing function for companies to hone in on satisfying true customer needs, at the lowest possible cost.

2) Ultimately, differences matter more than similarities. Competition allows you to position, and hence focus on your differentiated (and defensible) value proposition vs. the others. Their education of the market can be a valuable tailwind for you, too.

3) When competitors start copying you, you can write them off completely – it means they have stopped innovating. Don’t get distracted by this noise – continue to focus on outlearning (and consequently, out-innovating).

The next time you get that sinking feeling when you see an article about a competitor with a similar offering, take a deep breath. Rethink how you can channel this news to better your business, enhance your GTM, and out-deliver to your customers.

Of course, early competition has a downside: some companies can fail before they’ve built up their defenses. However, the right amount of rivalry can have incredibly positive effects on efficiency and long-term competitive advantage.

How can you use your competition to your advantage?

I love picking the brains of other investors, especially in stages, sectors, and geographies outside my own.

Even more so while I’m visiting Tel Aviv, Israel (AKA Start-Up Nation) for 2 months! 🇮🇱

The majority of my favorite, and most powerful, insights are gathered through many of these 1:1 discussions.

Each investor I interact with has their own unique way of evaluating businesses and founders, and their own informed vision of the future.

👉 Here is one of my favorite nuggets from this week:

Investors see funding rounds as removing layers of risk within the business.

So…

✨ It is critical to identify businesses where the biggest risks are front loaded… and the founders who know how to manage these big risks early on in the business. ✨

What does that mean?

The biggest risk, to an early-stage investor, is often whether or not the product will be adopted and generate revenue.

There is a preference for businesses with *some* sort of commercial inflection point early on (within 3-6 months) in the stage of funding (typically 18-24 months in duration).

Finding a way to hack early traction (even before a product is developed) gives plenty of time for founders to iterate and to gather proof of market demand for subsequent investors.

Now… back to meeting with the many talented founders and investors here in Israel. 🙂

For diabetes patients, measuring blood sugar is a necessity. However, the current gold standard involves multiple painful finger pricks a day, which excludes real-time data and limits quick and timely intervention. 💉

Enter Biolinq, a needle-free continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) company which raised a $100M Series B last Nov led by RiverVest Venture Partners. They envision a world in which diabetes management is low-cost, highly uniform, and easy to use.

CGM isn’t new — Dexcom, Abbott, and Medtronic have dominated for a decade. Their products feature a sensor that’s self-inserted under the skin, continuously tracks glucose levels, and transmits measurements wirelessly to a touchscreen. These sensors are inserted via a finger held applicator into the subcutaneous tissue, several layers deep into the skin, and the sensor / applicator and transmitter are sold separately.

Here’s how Biolinq managed to carve its own unique niche:

👉2012: Right concept, but wrong indication and market

Co-founders Jared and Joshua met during their PhDs at UC San Diego, where Biolinq (then Electrozyme) spun out of Joshua’s thesis work with wearable bioelectronic sensors.

At first, they built sweat-monitoring biosensors, applied via a temporary electric tattoo, to inform athletes about their hydration/electrolyte levels. This concept received $3.6M in seed funding from Mark Cuban and the NIH, but failed to find PMF.

Although beta products were sent to strategic partners (including a F500 company), subsequent field trials did not yield a scalable revenue model.

👉2015: Choosing to pivot to glucose monitoring and designing a differentiated wearable

They saw untapped opportunity within CGM, since current devices were still invasive and bulky.

Biolinq realized that they could develop a coin-sized skin patch with mini electrochemical biosensors that could be applied like a Bandaid. Thus, a new idea (and name) was born.

Biolinq’s patch would measure glucose found in the interstitial fluid, which surrounds skin cells and is a fraction of 1mm from the skin’s surface. A microchip would also be included to eliminate the need for a separate transmitter, thus presenting a unique all-in-one device. 

These novel features allow for Biolinq’s CGM device to be worn on other areas of the body, detect glucose molecules with higher precision, and be manufactured at scale. 

👉2020: Further validating clinical feasibility of Biolinq patch

They completed a POC study which indicated a high correlation between glucose collected in the interstitial fluid (Biolinq) vs. glucose collected from a vein (gold standard).

This is promising preliminary data for Biolinq’s methodology, and pushes them further along the pathway towards FDA approval. 

🚀Looking ahead: the’re looking to expand beyond glucose in such areas as fitness and physiology, nutrition, and the medical field.

Imagine texting or shopping, using only the power of your thoughts. What used to seem like science fiction may become reality in a few years. 

This is brain-computer interface (BCI) tech. It holds massive implications for restoring communication and mobility for paralyzed patients. Generally, it entails surgically implanting a sensor into the brain that measures electrical activity and wirelessly transmits data to a neuroprosthetic. However, BCI’s invasiveness has held it back for years.

📣Enter Synchron, the world’s first BCI that won’t require open brain surgery. Here’s how they’re making history:

🧠2011: Pitching overseas

Founder/CEO Dr. Thomas Oxley, a neuroscience resident at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, cold-pitched to DARPA (part of the US DoD) a brain-machine interface concept. He was offered a $1M grant by their prosthetic limb program.

While assembling a local team, he met Synchron’s CTO, Dr. Nicholas Opie, a PhD student at the University of Melbourne in bionic engineering.

🧠2012-2016: Iterating the perfect prototype

There were several technical needs:

A strong and clear signal, even when the device is fully absorbed. 

A biocompatible device, so the immune system wouldn’t form scar tissue around the signal.

The device could not interfere with the brain’s normal blood flow. 

Hundreds of designs later, they revealed the Stentrode, a basket-like cylindrical sensor lined with electrodes and inserted into the jugular vein with a catheter. (As this is a common cardiology procedure, this method is widely available). The catheter is fed up into the brain’s motor cortex, which allows the Strentrode to detect changes in electrical frequency in the region of the brain that initiates movement.

A wireless transmitter, the BrainPort, is inserted into the chest. It feeds brain data into a brainOS app which uses algorithms to output keystrokes/clicks onto a digital device.

For scientific rigor, they published preclinical findings into top scientific journals (Nature Biotechnology) and constructed a massive 70+ patent IP moat.

🧠2017 – present: Accelerating the pathway to approval 

The minimally invasive Stentrode made Synchron more appealing to the FDA than its competitors. They achieved Breakthrough Device designation in 2020 and Investigational Device exemption in 2021 to test safety.  

They also implemented clinical feasibility studies in Australia and the US, which were the first-ever BCIs to be implanted in humans. Notably, the procedure took only 2 hrs. 

🧠 2021 & beyond: Bringing a scalable BCI to market 

Although they’re testing PMF now with paralysis, they aim to expand to milder neurological conditions. As the Stentrode is inserted via blood vessels, it can reach all regions of the brain.  

They’re also building out prosthetics and therapy to scale as an end-to-end platform, which expands their market value beyond brain data collection.

For Ginkgo Bioworks, becoming the world’s largest synbio company (~$4.6B mkt cap) was no small feat. What many don’t know is that they bootstrapped for 6 years before receiving venture funding. 

So what can technical founders learn from their founding story?

🦠Learn how to tell a story around the science. 

Co-founder Tom Knight was an early synbio pioneer and even hosted the field’s first major conference in 2004. He approached biology using an engineer’s problem-solving approach, and envisioned making DNA building blocks programmable for any company in any industry. However, even he had a difficult time selling this idea in such a nascent market. 

What was key to a successful narrative was comparing their company to tech startups. An initial investor described Ginkgo’s platform as making “designing biology as easy as writing software.” Using similar positioning, Ginkgo changed perceptions of them from an ordinary biology company to an enterprise tech business. 

🦠Take advantage of as much non-dilutive funding as you can get. 

Despite countless no’s from investors and rejections from pitch competitions, they secured federal funding (DARPA, NSF) that still allowed them to focus on exploratory R&D and invest in their core IP. 

Without the added pressure of fundraising, this interim funding allowed them to fine-tune the scalable platform they use today to design and engineer genetic microorganisms. They also fleshed out their core value proposition: automation using software.

🦠Make every dollar count. 

The market was down in 2009, but they launched anyway. They set up their first lab for only $150K, and thus avoided burning operational costs early on. They bought equipment from eBay and Craigslist and repurposed materials from other biotech companies that had tanked during the financial crisis. 

This disproved two notions: (1) that biotech companies were only expected to develop drugs and (2) that millions of R&D dollars and fancy equipment is necessary to scale. 

🦠Iterate knowing your predecessor’s mistakes. 

Other synbio companies were choosing a vertically integrated business model (developing specific products for specific industries). This turned out poorly. Many burned through cash from attempting in-house manufacturing and failed to launch viable products. 

Ginkgo recognized that their strength was actually on the discovery/engineering end. They instead leaned on a licensing model where they would give strategic partners (later Roche, Bayer, etc.) rights to certain organisms. This allowed them to outsource the burden of commercialization to these partners. 

⭐In 2014, Ginkgo caught the attention of Y Combinator, became their first biotech investment, and the rest is history. 

Classic fundraising dilemma for founders – investors want to come into your next round, but not the current one.

It is kind of a weird circumstance that the round you’re not even raising for is already oversubscribed!

The feedback? That generalized and unactionable “too early” response that no one likes to read.

Well, if you are a homerun, they’re not making it in either round. Right? 🙈

Keep that hustle.

You know how some folks say your strength can also be a weakness?

For example:
High achieving (+), but unable to enjoy the moment (-)
Highly adaptable (+), but lacks structure and consistency (-)
Empathetic (+), but lacks personal boundaries (-)
Energetic (+), but restless and anxious (-)

By this same logic – that also means your weakness can be a strength.

Strengths and weaknesses are all relative concepts anyway.

It’s the holidays, so I’m sure founders are feeling the lull in investor communications. No fret!

Let’s talk strategy for folks gearing up to raise in the new year.

New founders will often set out with ambitious fundraising goals.

Setting a large $ target (at least initially) is often not the best plan.

With early-stage companies, there is usually not much business traction to command a large round.

It is best to set out with a minimum, even less than what you want, and build up investor interest from there.

It is also much easier to engage a small subset of investors to find interested and highly engaged folks (without being shopped around). Investors talk, and want access to exclusivity. 😉

From there, convincing already interested parties to commit to a larger round is within reach! The investors may even push you to increase your round preemptively.

This a far better position to be in vs. fall short of fundraising goals and losing the momentum and interest.

It’s not just about putting in the hours.

It’s also the energy you bring to your work.

There are lots of ways to stay high energy. I’ve found self talk as the most impactful.

Here are the 4 mantras I say on repeat, daily:

(1) Life is rigged in my favor.
(2) I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
(3) The perfect opportunities and people will present themselves when I am ready to receive.
(4) I am a winner.

Fear & negativity will rule you *only* if you let it.

By re-writing the narrative you tell yourself, you can re-write your opportunities and destiny.

Optimism is a skill that attracts abundance.

Motivation needs to be constantly recharged & rekindled.

These phrases (feel free to borrow or make your own) are powerful and compounding when said on repeat.

They also serve to supercharge your optimism and motivation to be the best version of yourself.

By being the best version of yourself, you can best serve others.

Treat this as the ultimate form of service – for you and your entire sphere of influence

What are your mantras?

I have grown to love the fundraising process!

Seriously.

Here are a few reasons why:

(1) It is one of the few processes that pushes you to actively get out of your comfort zone.

(2) There are very few circumstances in life where you are forced to actively meet the most incredible and divergent thinkers, investors, and founders of our time — as your full time job!

(3) It reinforces empathy and expands self awareness, across all areas of life — especially in how you communicate to founders and employees.

(4) It drastically improves your ability to sell, a critical skill to develop.

(5) It makes you an opportunity-hunting machine on a mission, and it inspires others to do so too. The hustle is real and very contagious.

(6) It imparts valuable learning and new ways of thinking, as well as, sometimes unexpected, partnerships (if you stay open-minded throughout).

(7) The wins feel *incredible* and are well deserved.

Any more experiences to add?

Who else is loving the building phase?

A big realization for me is getting things too easily and too early stunts growth, relationship building, and may not lead to the best outcomes.

This is why we have to step up to challenge.

It forces us to refine our strategy, hustle harder, and do the extraordinary.

I have endless gratitude for the building process – both the times of flow and resistance.

I know I will look back in my 80s and remember these days as the best times I’ve had with my work.

Happy Valentine’s Day! May we bring more love to all aspects of the building process.

Many studies have shown that first-time funds outperform across most vintages!

For example, a Preqin analysis showed a consistent outperformance in IRR of over 3% in several vintage years.

“Every top performing and “brand name” GP has had to raise a fund for the first time.

Many of the LPs that have supported these first-time GPs’ initial investment strategies and talents have been rewarded with strong (and in some cases, exceptional) fund performance, increased portfolio diversification, experience with niche strategies and other factors beneficial to their overall investment program.” (Preqin)

We have also heard that diversity drives returns…

Of all US VC firms that ranked in the top quartile between 2009 and 2018, 69.2% of them had women in decision-making roles!

There is a growing number of LPs backing emerging and female managers – and for good reason!

They outperform.

How do you transmute stress into total relaxation?

There is a constant dilemma between having to be really passionate about something… and not let it totally consume you.

This requires detachment.

Stay fully committed to your goals and work hard, but stay detached from the outcome.

Let it go and watch it flow.

I have to remind myself that folks that give advice have to be credibility weighted.

Charismatic, high status, and assertive individuals can be initially convincing – but what is their believability rating for the problem at hand? How do you know?

Decisions are critical, and ultimately, no one has more skin in the game than you.

Choose your advisors wisely and don’t doubt your own credibility when problem solving :).

After reflecting, I did everything I wanted to in my 20s:

(1) Graduated in chemical engineering.
(2) Traveled the world solo, and lived in different cities (and countries).
(3) Explored my creative potential across poetry and writing. In business, too.
(4) Made wonderful, supportive friends and colleagues (that feel like a special tribe out to change the world).
(5) Learned to love, manage heartbreak and rejection, exercise, eat well, let go, celebrate the ups, and manage the lows. I also learned from the many, many mistakes.
(6) Worked in startups, alongside brilliant founders, and for blue-chip companies. Got the VC job. Started the VC firm.
(7) Had some adrenaline-rich fun: skydiving, bungee jumping, multi-day backpacking, flying a plane, operating a sailboat, riding a motorcycle, etc.
(8) Met everyone’s childhood crush, David Beckham. 😎
(9) Explored the realms of spirituality, meditation, and religion.
(10) Found powerful ways to grow and give back to the community.

Aaaaaand chapter closed! Mountain climbed! Wooooo! What an adventure.

What now?

Whereas my 20s emphasized experience, resilience, and growth, my 30s will be setting the foundation for a legacy.

Here’s to a decade of focused building and expansion.

Let’s do this. 🎈

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.

I have to constantly remind myself — maintaining serenity and flow with my work should be prioritized above sheer output.

What does this mean?

More passive moments to be creative.
More days without meetings to think deeply.
More rest days to completely restore.
Saying “no” to opportunities that aren’t aligned.
Saying “no” to opportunities that are only good and not great.
Surrounding myself with partners that support and energize.
Backing founders doing incredible work with passion.

Easier said than done, but we do our best. 🙂

Alignment is critical.

I work so much harder for the investors that supported and believed in me early.

It’s my goal to see them win – because they made it possible for me to win.

These incredible institutions, families, founders, and individuals will always have access.

They are not just my investors – they’re my partners.

They rolled up their sleeves and got hands on.

They made the time.

They opened up their networks.

They went to bat for me.

They recognized the opportunity before anyone else did.

Their conviction motivated me to push harder than I thought was possible.

These actions are meaningful and have been critical to the success of the firm.

When you’re considering investors – ask: who do you want by your side?

It’s not just about a firm’s brand and capital.

Excited to be on this journey with you all.

Are you in creation, survival, adventure, or spectator mode?

Goal: to be in the elegant state of creation. But how?

1. Recognize where you operate today.

This is a state of meta-cognition.

Catch yourself saying “I’m not X”, “I’ll never be Y”, “I always do Z”.

What is your narrative?

2. Change your thoughts.

What is the state you want to operate in?
What would that new narrative sound like?

Essentially, create a new mind by tuning these thoughts.

Feel free to borrow mentalities from people you admire.

3. After you have awareness around this narrative, and where you want to be, convert it into action.

Adopt the new thoughts in real life.

Do things that prove the old narrative wrong and new narrative right.

Eg, “I am not fit” (step 1) -> “I am getting fitter each day” (step 2).

Take actions toward improved fitness (step 3).

4. Get out of your element – jump into the unknown by taking risks.

Eg, run a fitness community (step 4).

Create in a space that is new to you.

5. Amplify these efforts with distance and relaxation.

This could look like journaling, meditation, long walks, getting in touch with nature, etc.

Breaking habits require entering these relaxed states of mind periodically.

This separation also creates a birds-eye view for enhanced perspective.

What is Deep Tech?

Deep tech isn’t leading; it’s visionary.

Deep tech isn’t game-changing; it’s world-changing.

Deep tech doesn’t only solve problems; it makes them obsolete.

Deep tech doesn’t just go to the moon; it goes to Mars! (See SpaceX, 2026)

Deep tech isn’t about innovation; it’s about big, bold, and beautiful disruption.

Over the last few years, deep tech startups have received a lot of attention in the VC world.

Why?

Because it isn’t some sort of science fiction fantasy flick with no real purpose.

Deep tech is where expert engineering, vanguard science, and consumer value converge to shape our future.

A superpowered fleet of deep tech companies—like Auris Health, 23andMe, Beyond Meat, and more have cleared the $1B valuation bar.

Why do I believe in deep tech and science-led companies, specifically for the everyday consumer?

It’s the passion of the people.

The founders are driven by an empathetic quest for impact.

They’re not just in it to win it; they’re in it to revolutionize the way we live and work.

I am excited to support these amazing people and their companies on a daily basis.

We are changing the world together, starting with Earth — specifically from my (new) home base in Miami.

So, for now, I have plenty of work ahead of me, and I’ll pass on that first mission to Mars. 😉

Founders – when you get ghosted.

That’s ok.

Remind yourself…

That these are the types of individuals that can’t afford you in the next round anyway. 😉

—

What is and isn’t ghosting?

It’s considered ghosting if you never hear back, after a couple follow-ups. Give the benefit of the doubt to investors, and make the effort to check back in, before assuming this.

It’s not ghosting if you’ve never started a formal process with an investor for the current round. A non-response to a cold email isn’t ghosting. There should be at least a call or a clear demonstration of interest.

It’s also not ghosting if you already received a pass note. That is closing the loop and exactly the clarity you are looking for.

As an investor born and raised in Los Angeles, folks are wondering…

“Why Miami?!”

As if the sun-drenched blue skies, diverse cultural phenomenon, and tax-free living weren’t enough…

Miami has 3 attractions that should peak the interest of any serious VC.

1. It’s a burgeoning hotbed of technology.

Silicon Valley South?

It’s certainly trending in that direction.

Some of the greatest founders, investors, and deep tech masterminds are choosing Miami.

Miami went from what felt like a party-first city to a modern-day Renaissance town.

2. Southern Serendipity.

By coming to Miami, I’m constantly meeting these energetic, creative, and impact-driven superstars.

The close-proximity design of the city, welcoming nature of the residents, and accessibility of events enables Miami to being a platform for serendipity.

Spending time with these people, on a regular basis, is like getting the equivalent of a top-notch education in entrepreneurship and technology.

3. Mayor Francis X. Suarez is a political powerhouse!

Serving as the city’s emblem of strong leadership, Mayor Suarez is transforming Miami.

His marketing genius and strong support of all things innovation is adding fuel to this movement. These engaging efforts are naturally attracting top investors and tech leaders.

Suarez for President someday? Just sayin’. 😉

But, getting back to the original question: Why Miami?

I go where the best opportunity takes me.

Right now, that means Miami.

Founders and investors: if these reasons have piqued your curiosity, come see for yourself.

How does “name it to tame it” work?

If you’re feeling frightened, angry, anxious… you can reduce stress by 50% by simply stating your emotion.

This is a simple hack to minimize the hold certain emotions and experiences can have on your life and work.

But how?

Feelings of fear, aggression, etc. cause the amygdala (the part of the brain that regulates emotion) to get triggered.

Calling out emotions puts your “executive brain” (cortex) in charge to release soothing neurotransmitters, to calm down the excessively aroused amygdala.

In more scientific terms, via a study:

When subjects were asked to name the emotion (such as anger, fear or sadness), the person’s right ventro-lateral region (cortex) became activated at the moment that the emotion was named, and the subcortical regions that respond to facial expressions, especially in the region of the right amygdala, calmed down.

It’s believed that this happens specifically through the secretion of inhibitory neurotransmitters (hence decreasing activity) like GABA or glutamate.

The mind is a powerful thing.

And so is ensuring our mind and bodies work together in the most productive way possible.