Good list. One you're missing is: e) how you're introduced Who intros you and how they're connected to the fund matters a ton. As an aside, I think it's true

Good list. One you're missing is: e) how you're introduced Who intros you and how they're connected to the fund matters a ton. As an aside, I think it's true that they're all playing the same book -- with the exception of the very top. The playbook that the "deal guys" are playing and the long-term lead-the-industry game that the leaders are playing are different. The former will always say they're the latter but you will notice differences in the social network topology (as well as how they carry themselves and what their outcomes look like) which will clue you in.