Evening update - 4 May 23

#TodayI

Shared why I love venture capital.
Had my Important not Urgent day and cleared a chunk of my backlog (sorry if you're still in it).
Had lunch with my neighbour-to-be.
Found out my stealth startup may be coming out of stealth.

#LaterI

Am having a glass of wine with Ciaran O'Neill and Adrian Lane.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Why I love venture capital

Why I love venture capital.

Greg Mccallum asked me why venture capital when we were recording for his video podcast yesterday.

I love meeting founders, hearing their stories and how they want to change the world for the better in a very specific way.

I love the energy I get from hearing their enthusiasm.

I love that I learn something about the world from every one of those conversations.

I love trying to figure out what to invest in.

I love the intellectual challenge of figuring out what are the right lessons to learn from the startups that are going well and less well.

I love figuring out what matters to me when I make an investment decision.

I love figuring out how to improve my deal flow.

I love figuring out how how to help more.

Thank you Greg for reminding me how much I love what I do.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 3 May 23

#TodayI

Shared why consensus investing is bad.
Didn't have pilates with Maria Jose Freeman (Fernandez) of Pilates Core Club.
Was pitched by Clive Kelman and Agron Elshani of UProspr.
Was pitched by Fermín Casaubon (he/him) of inka.
Was pitched by Sarah Wernér of Husmus.
Recorded a video podcast with Greg Mccallum of Think Work.
Chatted with Andy Taylor of Payful.

#NowI

Have to collect my kids from school.

#LaterI

Am taking them to see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 because it is my youngest's birthday. There will be pick n mix.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic.

Consensus investing is bad

Consensus investing is bad.

In venture capital, almost every investor rejects every deal. The consensus on every deal is almost always no.

So why does almost every venture firm require a consensus to be built to invest?

It encourages investment in deals that everyone quite likes rather than ones somebody loves. It encourages politics rather than collaboration.

You absolutely should listen to the opinions of others before you invest. You absolutely need a model where, after listening, you can have the courage of your convictions.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 2 May 23

#TodayI

Started my big birthday week.
Shared advice for what should be in a Series A pitch deck or FAQ.
Cycled to town with my son.
Was pitched by Sabrina Palme of Palqee Technologies.
Was pitched by a founder who wishes to remain anonymous.
Had coffee with Craig Whitman of Swoffers .
Chatted with Nathaniel Wade of Wakuda.
Met someone for coffee.
Shared Kuai Commerce's rebrand to YASO.
Spoke with David Arroyo i Calahorro.
Was pitched by Andrei Morari of Daydream Software.

#LaterI

Am attending "Exploring Digital and AI Art" at Guernsey Chamber of Commerce run by Guernsey Art Network and hosted by Patrick Earle.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Kuai Commerce is now YASO

Kuai Commerce, led by Jonny Plein, Adam Knight and James Campbell 甘吉, has rebranded to YASO.

YASO is building the next-generation solution for ambitious brands looking to sell directly to Chinese Gen Z consumers via Social Commerce.

If you are looking to take your brand to China, you should speak to them now.

The rebrand looks great and I am very happy unbundled vc is a small part of YASO's journey.

www.goyaso.com

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Questions to answer at Series A

Over the weekend, a founder in my network asked for questions I would like to see answered in a Series A deck or FAQ.

This is the list I sent them. What did I miss?

Where do you fit into the overall ecosystem in your space?
What is your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and how does that differ from other players in the space?
How did you figure out your ICP?
Why is this a must have rather than a nice to have for your ICP?
How are you going to market and can you evidence this works and scales?
Why are you the right team? So many sub-questions here - what skills do you have on the team now and what are you missing and when do you plan/need to fill those gaps?
What is the market size given the ecosystem?
Unit economics and what drives them i.e. how sensitive are they to cost of acquisition, churn etc
How much are you raising and at what valuation?
What growth rate do you expect this raise to drive?
How much runway will you have?
How do your plans change if you don't hit your growth targets, if you hit good but not killer growth?

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 28 Apr 23

#TodayI

Shared an example of positive karma.
Spent the whole day at the airport, originally trying to get an 8.30am flight and now waiting for the 6.40pm flight which will probably be delayed.
Rearranged the three in-person meetings I had planned.
Spoke with Matthew Codd of Cosmic Partners about the founder breakfast event we are planning.
Worked my way through the long Focal shortlist.

#IfIMakeItHomeThisEvening

I will come back to the UK tomorrow morning with my two youngest to meet my father and watch Leyton Orient be presented with the League Two trophy.

Have a great weekend all.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Treat people right and sometimes positive karma will smack you in the face

Seven years ago I was due to fly to Singapore. I had a flight transfer from Lugano to Zurich then the long haul to Singapore.

The flight to Lugano was cancelled at the last minute due to weather. The flights from Zurich were once a day. I got straight in my car to drive to Zurich and called up the airline.

I didn't rant, I didn't rave, I made very clear I knew it wasn't the person on the phone's fault and asked as politely as I could if there was anything they could do for me.

They told me if I wasn't there at least two hours beforehand I couldn't get on the plane. There was zero chance for me to make it. They asked if I wanted to be moved onto the flight the following day and that they'd have to cancel today's ticket to do that. I said yes please.

I got to the airport half an hour before the original flight time when the airport was empty and went to the desk. They looked me up on the system and told me to take my large hold bag through to security and run as fast as I could!

I ran, they put my large bag through the security scanner and I was the last person on the flight. They took my large bag and put it in a cupboard somewhere.

To this day I have no idea how I got on the flight. My ticket was meant to be cancelled, they'd been very clear there was no way on the flight if I was there late and I've never seen a large suitcase go through the security scanner then allowed as hand luggage. I can only guess that the person I spoke to had kindly left a note on file about me and that everyone else he'd spoken to about it had screamed at him,

Treat people right and sometimes positive karma will smack you in the face.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Morning update - 27 Apr 23

#TodayI

Am spending with old friends.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 26 Apr 23

#TodayI

Shared the three key skills I look for in founders.
Signed some SAFE conversion docs.
Bumped into Ciaran O'Neill and Zoe Ward of Rawlinson & Hunter LLP.
Had breakfast with 😃 David Fogel, Deborah Saunders and Joanna Shan of Alma Angels.
Met Samuel Cohen who is part of my founder support scheme for coffee.
Was pitched by Jonathan Blausten of Sprout.
Caught up with Monika Holod of Wangie.app.

#NowI

Am heading for dinner with Ariella Vildan Young and Scott Mackin.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Founder skills I am looking for

Founders, the key skills I am looking for are sales, decision-making and tenacity.

Sales because you have to sell to investors, you have to sell your product and you have to convince great people to come and work with you.

Decision-making because your startup probably won't look like you expect it to on day one and you need to navigate that process exceptionally and intentionally.

Tenacity because there will be many low points on your journey and you need to both fight through them mentally and be able to grind through a many-year journey.

I am looking for exceptional in one or all of those areas.

Does that sound like you or anyone you know?

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 25 Apr 23

#TodayI

Posted about incentives informing outcomes.
Took the kids to school.
Flew to London.
Had coffee with and was pitched by a founder who wishes to remain anonymous.
Had coffee with 🌈 Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed.
Started working through the long Focal shortlist.

#NowI

Am heading out to meet Daniel Sozonov of Unison.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

The power of incentives

"Show me the incentive and I'll show you the outcome" - Charlie Munger.

I've experienced this first-hand. When I was at school, I had a job at AutoTrader when it was just a magazine, before the internet. We had to phone people who had ads in the local paper and sell them on a photographer coming round to take a picture of their car to put in the magazine.

It was commission only, zero salary, and I did well.

It switched to basic plus limited commission and I did poorly.

I felt I was working just as hard but I couldn't have been. The incentive determined the outcome.

I've since seen this many times in my career. It will affect you and the people around you.

Make sure your incentives match your desired outcome. Watch the incentives of the people around you to predict their outcomes.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 24 Apr 23

#TodayI

Shared about going beyond your comfort zone.
Took the kids to Easter Camp.
Chatted with Kai Junghanns.
Was pitched by Alexandra Sheeran and Kerri Sheeran of TALY Subscriptions.
Had a call with an investor.
Was pitched by Charlotte Caleb of elleven world.
Had a call with another investor.
Took my kids for their bi-weekly injections.
Made an intro for R&D tax credit advice.

#NowI

Have to pack for London tomorrow.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Beyond the comfort zone

To be an exceptional founder or investor, you have to push yourself beyond your comfort zone.

Without that, you won't achieve or learn what you need to achieve.

The advice to struggle and suffer doesn't mean ignoring your mental health. Running can help with that.

Thank you Runna for today's motivation.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 21 Apr 23

#TodayI

Shared a hack for producing content.
Took the kids to Easter Camp.
Had coffee with a founder.
Chatted with Ariella Vildan Young of Silicon Valley Bank and Alma Angels about the panel she is hosting that I am going to be on.
Caught up with Euan Cameron of Willo®.
Had coffee with Barrie Baxter of Brixx Software.
Spoke with Daniel Blondel of BTP Chartered Surveyors who is helping us build our house.
Collected the kids from Easter Camp.

#NowINeedTo

Do my fantasy football team then feed the kids.

Have a great weekend all!

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Producing content hack

Producing content hack: listen to podcasts.

If there aren't two or three things you learnt or resonated strongly with you, you shouldn't have listened. Write about those.

If there's something you disagree with, write about that.

If there's something you're not sure about or don't understand, ask your audience.

It doesn't have to be podcasts, you can do this with anything.

The content is out there.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 20 Apr 23

#TodayI

Shared I have been working through and highly recommend Y Combinator's Startup School Online.
Took the kids to Easter Camp.
Spoke with Cyril Lutterodt of Black Seed about his fund and mission.
Had my Important Not Urgent day.
Collected the kids from Easter Camp.
Fed them.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Y Combinator’s Startup School

I've been working my way through Y Combinator's free Startup School Online.

The most important content is best summarised with YC's motto - make something people want. Talk to your customers, get feedback as soon as possible, have tight feedback loops and iterate fast.

I couldn't recommend it more highly to founders and investors.

https://www.startupschool.org/

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic