The Founder Initiative

By Adam ODonnellBusiness Entrepreneurship Technology Investing

The Founder Initiative episodes

February 28, 2023 4 weeks of runway to $48M total raised; how did Therma's founders, Manik Suri and Lucas Tepman do it?
Asking yourself, "if I knew what I know now, would I still pursue this business?" If the answer is no, you've saved yourself a lot of time! If it's yes, proceed with full force!

20 min
February 14, 2023 [Seed Investor in Paypal & Co-Founder of Eventbrite] Kevin Hartz, GP at A* Capital; what does he look for in a founding team?
[Seed Investor in Paypal & Co-Founder of Eventbrite] Kevin Hartz, GP at A* Capital; what does he look for in a founding team?
Biggest learnings -->
- Show investors that you have grit & intellect - how? It should be obvious from your background.

17 min
February 13, 2023 Tesla of Motorcycles? - Oben's Founder, Madhumita Agrawal; funding a hardware startup in a recession
Tesla for Motorcycles? - Oben's Founder, Madhumita Agrawal; funding a hardware startup in a recession
- Keep fundraising until the money is in the bank!
- Referrals, referrals, referrals
- Fundraising is for founders
18 min
February 07, 2023 TechCrunch Disrupt Winner: Minerva Lithium's Founder, Sheeba Dawood; how did they win?
What's it like to win Techcrunch Disrupt?
Minerva Lithium's founder shares what they did, how she felt, and what their building!
13 min
January 27, 2023 [$1.3B AUM] Crosslink Capital's Tobias Nilsson-Roos: how to nail your first meeting with a VC
How to nail your first meeting with a VC-->
1. Solve for getting a second meeting
2. Nail your story/narrative
3. Don't explain every part of your business!

13 min
January 24, 2023 VamosVentures's Principal, Ashley Aydin: breaking imposter syndrome during a pitch, LatinX investment trends, & Miga Health investment reasoning
Ashley Aydin is a Principal at VamosVentures. They invest in early-stage tech-enabled companies led by Latinx and diverse founders!
18 min
January 17, 2023[$600+ AUM] M13's Anna Barber; why multiples ACTUALLY went down & how to shift your funding strategy
Who will get funded now?
Capital efficient, but don't suck too much capital
Velocity
Consistency - great investor updates
18 min
January 05, 2023 [$10M Seed] Using a white paper to oversubscribe your round; Dan Bladen, Founder of Kadence
The most impactful strategy you used to close your round?
- Wrote a white paper...there are a lot of companies out there. They wrote a white paper about the future of work
- Wrote it on Notion, put it behind a wall, 15-20 min read...filtered out those that are interested...
14 min
December 13, 2022Angular Ventures's, David Peterson: 3 things VCs look for what YOU might not have in your deck?
Angular Ventures's, David Peterson: 3 things VCs look for what YOU might not have in your deck?
Secret insight & how did you find it?
Is there a movement that you could be the center of?
Can you attract the right talent?
14 min
December 08, 2022 GTMfund's Scott Barker; nail these 4 things if you want a chance of raising in this environment
Nail these 4 things if you want a chance of raising in this environment
- Who was your warm intro? How well do they know the space?
- Founder conviction is super important. What brought you to this point? How did you come across this problem? Why dedicate the next 10 years to solving it?
- Real advisor relationship in your slide deck?
- Can you withstand industry expert scrutiny?
- How organized is your data room? Send it fast and make it detailed.
16 min