I’m not here to sell startup support or give you a pat on the back for deciding to launch something. I’m here to tell you hard truths about whether a VC is likely to get behind this and whether something can be done to improve your chances.

I don’t "make you a better pitch deck".

This isn’t a branding or graphic design exercise. You’re about to quit your full time job or ask your closest connections to invest in your business—or you’ve already done that.

What you’re buying is perspective from someone with a long career of being on the other side of the table. I’ve been in hundreds of partner meetings. I’ve invested in over 100 companies, syndicating these deals to thousands of potential co-investors.

What I can tell you about how VCs think about opportunities is based on firsthand knowledge, not from podcasts or Medium posts.

I don't treat every opportunity as a rewrite away from a successful raise. That's patronizing—and disrespectful of a founder's time and resources.

I treat each company as one of 2000 opportunities a VC could see in a year to help explain the gap, based on firsthand experience, between where you are and where the 5 or 10 deals are that get across the line to an investment.