that morning — especially if it is too complicated. I am very impressed when somebody really knows our criteria before they come pitch us. They have spent the time to learn about us and what we invest in. It means the entrepreneur is in the right room. Product demos are important. I would do those early in the presentation — at the very beginning. And then everything your saying after that relates back to the product demo. Show that you take feedback. Be responsive. If there are any unanswered questions that you did not know the answer to, then go and do the research, get the answers, and then email them as quickly as possible with the answers so that there is nothing the investors are left wondering about. The more organised you are with the diligence accomplishes two things: it shows us that you have your shit together, and it shows us that you’re talking to other funds. It is always good to show there is some kind of competitive thing going (i.e. other investors are looking at you). Ask for ways that the partners can help. Your choosing your partners as well, so you should be interviewing them too. The presentation should not be a hundred percent them pummeling you with questions. Some of that time needs to be you pummeling them with questions. Figure out not just their backgrounds, but what is relevant about their network. Figure out what they can add to your business, and why you would want to choose them as a partner. It shows that you are smart and impressive. It also ends up being a really good conversation. It shows that we would work well together as board members. Leave them intrigued at the end. The single best thing you can do to get a terms sheet is create competition. The more you can show that there are terms sheets coming, the more serious they will take it. Avoiding quick a No: Be likable. It seems easy but sometimes you forget to show personality. Don’t be boring. We have passed on great businesses multiple times because the CEO was just too boring. They struck us as if they would have a hard time raising the next round, doing a strategic deal, and recruiting people because they are boring. Don’t oversell or provide overly optimistic projections. Don’t underestimate your competition. [Some entrepreneurs] come in and say, ‘the existing guys are slow and dumb and they can never catch up’. It sounds ridiculous. Often times they are talking about the bigger companies like Facebook and Google. But those guys are really smart; if they choose to truly compete and copy you, they could do it. So do not assume the competition is dumb. Assume they are smart. Assume they are going to be hiring people and allocating resources to beating you. Investors want to hear how you would compete with your competitors if they decide to compete with you. Don’t act like it will be easy. That is a huge mistake. Any startup is hard. Acting like you have all the answers, or like this will take no time to get done will more often than not lead to a quick no. Don’t make it seem like your task is impossible either. Admit where it is challenging, and where you will need help, and the things you will be focusing on to nail this opportunity. Don’t be impatient or over eager. If you seem like you have to get an answer from the fund within the next 3 days because you’re running out of money or just feeling flustered about everything, then they will run the other way. Show patience. Work with them. It is a relationship building game. Get to know them. Get them excited about the business. When you feel it is time to start putting on a little more timing pressure and creating some urgency, then do it, but do not do it too quickly. Be someone they are proud to work with. Someone who would they want to introduce to their other portfolio companies. Somebody who they would want to go on social media and brag about. Be that person. Associates are not useless. Associates are very useful. They can be the younger one in the room during a partners meeting that is really banging his fists on the table saying, ‘I use this app all the time and all my friends use it. It’s great. Trust me on this.’ Or they can do the exact opposite and say, ‘You know I didn’t like that guy because he reminded me of that one thing that failed or whatever’. It may be right or wrong, but the partners will listen to them. So don’t treat associates