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Out of curiosity, how would the asymmetry be resolved? If founders have less fundraising experience, is there such a thing as founder school where they can rehe

by jfim 5y ago

Out of curiosity, how would the asymmetry be resolved? If founders have less fundraising experience, is there such a thing as founder school where they can rehearse pitches or do mock fundraising to be ready when the stakes are higher?

sokoloff 5y ago
Maybe someone should start an early-stage investment group that aims to teach founders these ropes. It would be a startup that recursively creates startups. In computer science terms, you might think of it like a Y Combinator.
breck 5y ago
I resolved the asymmetry by becoming an angel investor myself, and participating in dozens of deals. When I got to Silicon Valley in 2008 without any capital that was not possible. It took many years before I could afford sending my first $10K wire. However, if you are just getting going today, things may be different. When I started there was no WeFunder, Republic, or AngelList syndicates. Now, you could plunk $100 into 10 startups on WeFunder, or $1K into 10 syndicates on Angel List, and start to build your own internal dataset on what the investing game is like. That might hone your skills faster for when you are trying to raise capital. Not sure if that would work, but if I was just starting today, that's what I would do. edit: just realizing your question may have been tongue in cheek ;)
akharris 5y ago
This is why I spent so much time working on the series a program before I left yc. many of these tactics/strategies can be taught or partially outsourced to the right advisor.
- an_opabinia 5y ago
  There's a lot of truth to "outsourcing to the right advisor." Sounds like the venture studio model, IMO a net gain for investors, companies and founders. However the "right advisor" is probably even rarer than a decent founder.
TechBro8615 5y ago
The best advice I got in this regard came after receiving our first offer. It was "ok great, now make it a market." Once you have two or more investors who want to invest, the game is easy. You just go back and forth a few times and then pick a number a little bit higher and offer it to one of them to lead the round. Really it's the same fundamental BATNA advice that applies to any negotiation. Make sure you can afford to walk away.

by jfim 5y ago

sokoloff 5y ago

Maybe someone should start an early-stage investment group that aims to teach founders these ropes. It would be a startup that recursively creates startups. In computer science terms, you might think of it like a Y Combinator.

breck 5y ago

I resolved the asymmetry by becoming an angel investor myself, and participating in dozens of deals. When I got to Silicon Valley in 2008 without any capital that was not possible. It took many years before I could afford sending my first $10K wire. However, if you are just getting going today, things may be different. When I started there was no WeFunder, Republic, or AngelList syndicates. Now, you could plunk $100 into 10 startups on WeFunder, or $1K into 10 syndicates on Angel List, and start to build your own internal dataset on what the investing game is like. That might hone your skills faster for when you are trying to raise capital. Not sure if that would work, but if I was just starting today, that's what I would do. edit: just realizing your question may have been tongue in cheek ;)

akharris 5y ago

This is why I spent so much time working on the series a program before I left yc. many of these tactics/strategies can be taught or partially outsourced to the right advisor.

an_opabinia 5y ago
There's a lot of truth to "outsourcing to the right advisor." Sounds like the venture studio model, IMO a net gain for investors, companies and founders. However the "right advisor" is probably even rarer than a decent founder.

TechBro8615 5y ago

The best advice I got in this regard came after receiving our first offer. It was "ok great, now make it a market." Once you have two or more investors who want to invest, the game is easy. You just go back and forth a few times and then pick a number a little bit higher and offer it to one of them to lead the round. Really it's the same fundamental BATNA advice that applies to any negotiation. Make sure you can afford to walk away.