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My good friend has a great story about how he and an account exec went to go pitch a client. They met with client for about a half hour and the three reps from

My good friend has a great story about how he and an account exec went to go pitch a client. They met with client for about a half hour and the three reps from the client side said they were going to go bring in a larger group to continue the meeting. About 30 seconds after everyone walked out the account exec said “Let’s get out of here there’s no money here“. I don’t think you’re there yet. Assuming you are CEO/founder, the pain you’re experiencing is a gift to help you change. You also have to consider how future investors view the guy who walked away when his company is doing “okay”, not seeing it through to a liquidity event, instead choosing to take investor payday off the table either through shut down or the company failing after his departure. Do you trust your replacement to not fuck it up?

ephelant 9y ago
Thank you for sharing that story. That’s definitely a very useful skill to have as it saves time and hope for better prospects. I’ve had similar experiences where people seem very interested and set up endless meetings, but nothing concrete ever happens. I’ve started to sometimes get a sense of when a meeting is going nowhere, but personally it’s been difficult to know when I might be being realistic, vs being pessimistic/defeatist. As you put it, I might not be there yet, but will keep working on it. Yes, I am a founder, and your point about the perception of future investors/stakeholders is very valuable and worth remembering. Thank you very much for sharing your perspective :)