Investing is a ranking game

Investing is a ranking game. Investors have to pick what they think the best five (for example) things they see this year are.

What does this mean for investors?

You have to see as many high quality opportunities as possible. You have to be good at ranking. You have to get picked by founders when the deal that ranks in your top five is competitive.

What does this mean for founders?

A pass doesn't mean you are not a good business. It means that specific investor doesn't think you are in the top five of the hundreds or thousands of startups they've seen this year.

It's not personal. It is a competition. If you win, someone else doesn't.