Dream It

JULY 31, 2019

Being self-sustainable has given us a new perspective on startup funding, especially compared to what I experienced on my first accelerator run. The press enhances this misconception around YCombinator demo days, where the 3-day pitch event is perceived like an auction, with investors fighting each other for the best deals.

startup 334

startup accelerator pitching venture capital 334

Dream It

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

But founders are often so consumed with talking metrics, milestones achieved, or the capital they need that they sometimes forget to talk about their overarching vision for their startups. Selling a compelling vision is so critical that some investors weigh it more heavily than the pitch deck itself. It’s not about the slide deck.

pitching 286

pitching incumbents transportation strategy 286

Entrepreneurs' Organization

DECEMBER 15, 2021

Maximilian Fleitmann , an Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) member primarily based in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, is the CEO of BaseTemplates and Partner at Richmond View Ventures. He has raised venture capital for his startups, helped hundreds of founders craft their pitch decks and fundraising strategy, and invested as a business angel.

pitching 256

pitching entrepreneurs venture capital ventures 256

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 30, 2014

Many startups now go through accelerators and have mentors passing through each day with advice – usually it’s conflicting. There are bootcamps, startup classes, video interviews – the sources are now endless. Improving startup productivity ? Startup psychology / confidence ? Startup Lessons'

advice 407

advice frameworks startup mix-use 407

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 23, 2012

I'm often the last one to leave an event, held back by the most persistant of entrepreneurs trying to squeeze as much advice as they can out of me. I have one failed attempt at a startup under my belt as a founder and I don't have any particularly usable skills that anyone would pay for like selling, designing, building, etc.

advice 412

advice startup VC strategy 412

Dream It

MAY 29, 2019

Startup pitch meetings are pretty predictable. You walk into a venture fund’s conference room or Zoom room (if they’re progressive), pitch the partners, offer to answer their questions, maybe ask them a bland question or two, and then leave the meeting to await a response. Steve Barsh.

pitching 284

pitching VC investment investing 284

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2015

After seeing Chamillionaire interact with several entrepreneurs both at events and as an investor I started introducing him to startups in an advisory capacity. Startup Lessons' It always started the same way – a founder would ask for an intro because they figured he could help with promotion. Welcome to the family.

ventures 420

ventures pitching entrepreneurship advice 420

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 14, 2014

The main driver of the skew towards men getting venture capital, statistically, is that far more men are pitching. That means you actually have a *better* shot, statistically, of getting VC investment at these firms, statistically, once you actually pitch. Once again, that''s all stats and doesn''t really explain anything.

founder 378

founder pitching venture capital mix-use 378

Revolution

JANUARY 27, 2025

Reflections on Georgetowns 2025 pitch competition from TedLeonsis Last week, Georgetown Universitys McDonough School of Business once again became a launchpad for the next generation of bold thinkers and doers. At Revolution, Ive seen what backing entrepreneurs with big ideas can breed. startup ecosystem.

entrepreneurship 100

entrepreneurship capital pitching startup ecosystem 100

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 26, 2012

I'm way early in my career, so I won't say I've perfected anything yet, but after 8 years on the investing side and 3 in startups, I've come up at least one thing: Be open. I want your pitch to be the one I say yes to--and I want you to solve the inherent problems in your business model. We only fund top entrepreneurs." "We

VC 371

VC pitching venture capital creativity 371

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 23, 2014

When I turn down the opportunity to invest in a startup, I really turn it down. Sugarcoating isn''t helpful to entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs are sending me back notes saying "They turned it down, but I''m not sure why." It doesn''t help them improve their pitch or adjust their model.

pitching 351

pitching VC venture capital opportunity 351

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2013

They pitched on a Wednesday. She was everything I was looking for in an entrepreneur to back. Didn’t I make myself clear about celebrities & startups ? Turns out she’s done this startup thing before. And they’re both full time committed to their startup – Moonfrye. That’s cute.

startup 398

startup creativity advice entrepreneurs 398

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2013

One thing that was clear across all three was that their startups didn''t start the day that they signed some legal docs. Right now, whether you have an idea or not, you are in the process of working on a startup. The past few years of your experience are making you into the perfect entrepreneur to do. something*. What is it?

startup 310

startup venture capital pitching VC 310

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

One of my favorite entrepreneur-Twitterer weighed in, “You want to keep tapping into their collective intelligence so you keep saying ‘Thank you for the feedback’ and they keep sending it,” Ms. Another founder … “When I pitched the idea to Adam, he was super on board,” Mr. Sloyan said. Morrill said. “I

startup 323

startup advice pitching VC 323

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

She was pitching for a pre-seed round of $400k. The startup ecosystem is a terrific manufacturer of bad fundraising advice. Founders hit the street with their pitch deck, some make it, and some don’t, but nearly all of them ascribe a lot more human influence over the process than there probably is. I’m a female founder.

advice 429

advice pitching venture capital VC 429

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2013

I’m very excited to be finally be able to announce that this week we’ve added Sam Rosen to our ranks at GRP Partners in the role of entrepreneurs-in-residence – EIR. I looked up his bio, “UVA, banking analyst, doing some early startup work” and thought – sure – come meet me for a coffee.

pitching 372

pitching advice VC entrepreneurs 372

Dream It

DECEMBER 19, 2019

Avoiding 5 Common Cyber Entrepreneur Pitfalls In this #DreamitLive, Ron Gula , president of Gula Tech Ventures , joins Steve Barsh to talk about the 5 most common mistakes cyber entrepreneurs make and how to avoid them. 12:30 - About how many cyber startups reach out to you each week or month? What do you look for?

entrepreneurs 195

entrepreneurs pitching venture capital investment 195

Entrepreneurs' Organization

JANUARY 4, 2023

We asked EO members to look ahead in 2023 and identify trends they see for entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship overall. We asked them to share the skills, mindset or tools that entrepreneurs would be wise to adopt to meet the moment. Video pitching. I see an uptick in pitching via pre-recorded video. Temptation to regress.

ecology 252

ecology pitching entrepreneurship entrepreneurs 252

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 9, 2014

I often talk about what I’m looking for when I meet with an entrepreneur. Above all else I’m looking for a genuine passion for what the entrepreneur is doing. You can sense when it is a “mission” for this entrepreneur to succeed and she will continue the journey even if success isn’t easy or immediate.

peer-to-peer 373

peer-to-peer VC pitching entrepreneurs 373

Dream It

APRIL 23, 2019

As smart speaker platforms have matured, more entrepreneurs are leveraging the technology to benefit healthcare. Dozens of healthcare-focused voice tech startups have popped up in the last few years which are backed by top tier venture funds.

hospitality 285

hospitality startup health enablement 285

Paul G. Silva

FEBRUARY 25, 2025

How Iteration Transformed Valley Venture Mentors Before I co-founded Valley Venture Mentors (VVM) and for all of my time there, we experimented with different ways to connect startups with mentors. Iteration #1: High-Value, but Unsustainable Our first approach was simple: hand-match startups with mentors for one-on-one meetings.

mentorship 130

mentorship energy pitching entrepreneurship 130

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 20, 2012

Startups Are for Doers. Now, I’m pretty on the record that being an entrepreneur is about being great at The Do. But trust me when I say that my observations across many startups (and other companies, frankly) is that not enough time goes into thinking. Or quit their startup to do something different. Conferences.

creativity 400

creativity venture capital entrepreneurs board 400

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2014

Because, you know, who doesn''t love a good startup list. It''s a story of a mechanical engineer turned startup entrepreneur who has seen how NYC actually works (and built a company to help it run smooth) from as deep undergroud as the East Side Access Project under Grand Central and as high as the roof of the NY Times building.

peer-to-peer 346

peer-to-peer startup collaboration venture capital 346

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2013

So as a startup CEO you constantly have to suspend disbelief. ” A startup CEO’s job is to absorb stress so the team doesn’t have to. Startups have to be optimists because no rational person would actually believe you could build Uber into the amazing company that it is today. We just need your $500,000!!”

startup 417

startup peer-to-peer VC culture 417

Entrepreneurs' Organization

JUNE 12, 2024

Photo caption: EO members who volunteered to coach GSEA student entrepreneurs include: Divek Barathamanickam, Kate Hancock, Iffat Grecht, Marcelo Bernartt, and Kate Morgan (with Brent Wardrop on the far left behind Divek). Mentoring GSEA student entrepreneurs was one of the most rewarding experiences in my EO journey.

mentorship 233

mentorship peer-to-peer leadership entrepreneurs 233

Entrepreneurs' Organization

AUGUST 5, 2022

Some MyEO DX members are angel investors and serial entrepreneurs with deep knowledge about the process and strategy behind buying and selling companies. There’s a lengthy application and vetting process for EO members or Accelerators to qualify to pitch. and more articles from the EO blog. .

accelerator 273

accelerator networking pitching real estate 273

American Entrepreneurship

DECEMBER 4, 2024

In support of military Veteran-founded startups, the Fund focuses on space, AI, and cybersecurity leveraging a veteran’s leadership. Recognizing this, The Veteran Fund announced the winner of its $100,000 Veteran Pitch Competition and the recent closing of its inaugural oversubscribed investment Fund I.

leadership 98

leadership startup accelerator mentorship entrepreneurship 98

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 14, 2015

We refer to people as "great entrepreneurs" in the startup community all the time--but are they? It was like someone gave him the instruction manual on how to pitch and no one else had it. Sure enough, the very next pitch sent a screamer his way. That brought up the question of what makes someone truly great at something.

pitching 404

pitching consulting entrepreneurs communities 404

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

They just move too painfully slow to work with startups. Takes an hour or an hour and a half at most and everyone gets the benefit of a public conversation--versus three or four hours of pitches. So many entrepreneurs beg for just a few minutes of my time. I like a good dance party, but. Panel prep calls.

pitching 329

pitching finance financing incubation 329

Hunter Walk

AUGUST 1, 2022

Hopefully every startup finds the right investors! Some entrepreneurs are born salespeople, others find it more awkward but ultimately realize getting comfortable pitching — to investors, to the team, to potential employees, and so on — is part of the job. But as a venture investor, I hate it. Don’t try to reverse engineer.

pitching 117

pitching ventures startup culture 117

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 3, 2014

For the most part, journalists give startups a free pass when venture capital money is raised or when companies that clearly seem to have failed get "acquired". It''s just not cool these days to say anything bad about the business side of startups unless you cross over into the "Big enough to pick on" world, like an Uber.

venture capital 396

venture capital capital ventures entrepreneurship 396

Revolution

FEBRUARY 13, 2023

We sourced and received applications from hundreds of Black, high-growth startup founders from all over the country and held workshops and discussions about the challenges they face, all of which culminated in a virtual pitch competition.

innovation 264

innovation investment investing pitching 264

American Entrepreneurship

SEPTEMBER 15, 2024

Startups, early-stage and growth-stage companies present their models to a gathering of angel investors and venture capital firms The Venture Atlanta Conference, set to take place on October 8-9, 2024, at The Woodruff Arts Center and Atlanta Symphony Hall, is one of the most anticipated entrepreneurial events in the southeast U.S.

entrepreneurs 98

entrepreneurs ventures pitching mentorship 98

Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative

DECEMBER 4, 2019

What advice would you give to entrepreneurs and professionals looking to finance their business? Where can startups find money to launch their businesses? Angel investors or venture capitalists will require that entrepreneurs sell shares (equity) of their companies for investment. Getting started with digital marketing.

advice 240

advice entrepreneurship entrepreneurs networking 240

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 16, 2014

If all my deals came as intros from trusted connections that I know for years versus at founder pitch events that''s interesting data. If you meet someone at a pitch event, they''ve already got a company and they''re looking to close as quickly as possible. In fact, that''s what I tend to do--at least, what I say that I do.

VC 415

VC pitching networking venture capital 415

This is going to be BIG.

AUGUST 20, 2012

Most entrepreneurs aren't qualified for their jobs--including about 100% of the first timers. I was talking to an entrepreneur the other day, and I asked, "Do you feel like you have a good idea of how you should be spending your time?". I've been there--for the last six months of my startup I really had no idea how to save it.

peer-to-peer 392

peer-to-peer pitching consulting creativity 392

Startup Blogpost

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

20 Tips for Pitching New Business Ideas to Potential Investors To provide you with the best advice on pitching new business ideas to investors, we asked twenty CEOs, Founders, and other professionals for their top tips. You should highlight the potential future earnings while pitching your proposal. Balance is key!

pitching 105

pitching strategy investment investing 105