Getting an investor to fund your business isn't just about your idea, industry, team, or even your business model.
What can help or tank your efforts often comes down to how you show up in the room. Your mindset, how you handle the power dynamics, and whether you actually see yourself as the one offering value, not asking for it.
The truth is that many founders operate from a place of desperation, and investors can sense it immediately. You lose sight of the fact that you and your business are the prize. You treat the investor like a boss, not a peer, or you say your schedule is completely open. You come across as overly eager or grateful for the opportunity.
These are all things that quietly make an investor pull back, even if the idea itself is strong.
If you walk into investor conversations acting like you're asking for permission instead of offering an opportunity, getting funding is harder.
This is something founder-turned-angel investor Shefqet Avdullau knows all too well. As a super-connector with deep experience on both sides of the table, he brings a rare perspective shaped by building, exiting, and now backing companies.
How should founders actually show up in investor conversations? How do you know when an investor will help you build something, or quietly make things harder?
In this episode, we unpack the parts of fundraising no one puts on the pitch deck: why desperation is detectable (and deadly), why treating investors like they're above you destroys leverage, and why confidence is often what really moves a round forward.
Topics Covered;
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Why fundraising fails before the pitch even begins
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How to avoid looking desperate to investors
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The subtle signals investors read instantly, including desperation and lack of leverage
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How to engineer FOMO using calendar density and scarcity
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Why "owning the elephant in the room" builds more trust than perfect metrics ever will
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The soft-commit strategy founders should use before officially opening a round
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Why a bad investor is often 10x worse than no investor
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The SAFE agreement mistake that can cost you your company
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Why easy yeses are a red flag, not a win
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The "two-week vacation test" reveals if you've got a company or a stressful job
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How founders accidentally become bottlenecks
About the Guest
Shefqet Avdullau is a founder, active angel investor, board advisor, and "super connector," primarily in the tech ecosystem. He has made 17 investments in the last four years, with two successful exits. Today, he backs advisors and mentors tech startups, using his experience to help new founders navigate the challenges with strategic funding and real-world guidance. Having started his career as a software engineer and later founding, scaling, and exiting his own ventures, he brings an operator-first perspective to early-stage investing. For more of Shefqet's insights, find him on LinkedIn.
About Your Host
Jayla Siciliano, Shark Tank entrepreneur turned real estate investor, excels in building brands, teams, and products. CEO of a bi-coastal luxury short-term rental company, she also hosts the Seed Money Podcast, where she's on a mission to help early-stage entrepreneurs turn their ideas into reality!
Connect:
Website: https://seedmoneypodcast.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaylasiciliano/
Subscribe and watch on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@seedmoneypodcast/
Subscribe, Rate, & Review
Please rate, follow, and review the podcast on https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/seed-money/id1740815877 and https://open.spotify.com/show/0VkQECosb1spTFsUhu6uFY?si=5417351fb73a4ea1/! Hearing your comments and questions helps me come up with the best topics for the show!
Disclaimer
The information in this podcast is educational and general in nature and does not take into consideration the listener's personal circumstances. Therefore, it is not intended to be a substitute for specific, individualized financial, legal, or tax advice.