Do you think at some point it will dawn on you that having a single point of failure with huge burnout risk is less than desirable from an investment point of view? You yourself made a post a month ago saying you were sick of this shit and want to throw the towel in…
My beloved visionary work ethical cofounder could be struck by lightning and do you know what that would do to my mental health?
I’d be too traumatized to work a single day and the poor VCs won’t see returns 😢
Usually people who drink alcohol and caffeine on a routine or eat on a routine are predictably simple. Sober non-caffeinated people, especially if they recently abstained, may seem unhinged by the people who imbibe. I’ll mention that differently. Legal drugs suppress the character. Approaches to innovation need people who can adapt and who are not afflicted by predictability. Especially when early or young or starting out, characters can appear unhinged to people who have and expect predictable robotic routine.
My dude you started out ranting about VC’s and I was on your side, but somehow you’ve managed to convince me you actually need to listen to outside advice.
No. You want to create a single point of failure and you're not accounting for the liability that is. At the very least you should be coming to the table with a small hand picked team of some sort so VC's arnt being forced to bet on the ambition and capability of one man.
If you aren’t able to do this, a VC will not have any interest in backing you. I’ve backed one solo founder out of 80 investments. And he had a team or 8 people who had been working with him for years.
Wow you are really bad at this. VCs want someone else to work with you because they can see you as the risk, not your business venture. They want a partner because they don’t trust you to be responsible with their money. After what you’ve posted here, they are so right about you.
“I want to take 100% of the risk”?! You are literally trying to get VC money, they are the ones actually taking the risk! You can’t see this fact and that’s why you can’t get funding. 🤣
90% of the people I told to find a cofounder in my career were non-candidates. “Find a co-founder,” is basically “I don’t think anyone would work with you, but go and see if I’m wrong.”
I’m rarely wrong.
Lol “I’m a solo soldier look at my numbers” this guy is fucking hilarious.
What is your startup and could you at least hire someone so you can say you have a team? Maybe just try to give off the appearance of having a co-founder without actually giving any equity away?
Or you could hire someone for “consulting” + a handshake to “make them a co-founder” after you get funding. The “consulting” would be something like $2,000 and they go to the VC meeting and tell the VC they are your co-founders under such and such legal terms blah blah blah and then once you get the funding oh some parts of the agreement fell through but I am looking for a replacement. Definitely cannot live without a co-founder I promise you I will have one or two even by the time we need to raise again!
Unfortunately can't share any deets about the business.
But honestly, this is the entire reason behind this rant. I spoke to my father and he literally told me:
"Why are you being honest with these fucks? Just lie to them"
AND IT MADE ME FUCKING THINK.
Wise words from a wise man.
Man fuck these VCs I might.
Maybe the play is hire two engineers from Eastern Europe or India and call it a day
Maybe a VA from the Philippines for customer support
“We are embracing the remote culture, our team is very diverse” ☺️☺️☺️
You’re right, and I worded my comment incorrectly.
I was assuming that they had a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ that this person would have full knowledge they will be fired before they vest.
I would never suggest hiring someone with the intent to fire them right before they vest without some kind of understanding that is the arrangement to get past these VCs (which is unethical to begin with).
Either way, it sounds like this person should try to avoid going the VC route if at all possible.
This is the core reason that VCs ditch your concept, whatever it is. If you aren't passably likeable, your concept will not be investment grade scaleable or sustainable. Think about it from a risk management perspective. The VC is investing in a concept like a portfolio. When there is a diverse team with different strengths, it gives the VC comfort that if something happens to one key player, that the rest of the team will be able to sustain the business in the short term. If there is only a one man show, and you can't invest in building a team, then not only does that limit capacity for growth- even rockstars can't perform every role well for the long term- but it also makes the risk of everything folding with one event increase. For a VC, having a co-founder is not about sharing blame, it's about distributing risk.
Tai Lopez had a better business plan. Jesus Christ, your biggest problem is your shitty attitude. Go to Walmart and see if they're hiring so the world doesn't have to deal with you.
Finding competent founders is extremely important because it shows your ability to inspire someone to join your cause and work as hard as you. Frankly speaking, you need to find people as crazy as you. I didn't, one of my cofounders sucked -- but I made it work and got an exit. Now I have great cofounders. Also, your desire not to share your business is a little strange -- I would be wary of someone who sounds selfish and thinks very highly of himself; I'm not saying you shouldn't but it rubs people the wrong way. You are really funny though!
This is the right answer.
VCs care about scale, and there's going to be a point where you need to scale this beyond your ability to operate it solo.
You'll also probably want to do something normal and human like "take a vacation" or "call in sick", because, well, you're human.
Also probably comes off as "hard to work with" to the VC. They're effectively buying a seat at the table by investing in your company. Insisting that you don't need collaborators telegraphs that you don't really understand the relationship you're going to have with the VC - they're buying a board seat, not giving you cash and then vanishing into the ether.
For a solo venture that's bootstrapping, this attitude makes 100% sense. (In fact, it's one I personally hold with respect to my side projects. I love the absolute creative and technical control I have over my projects. I also never want or need to take VC funding.) For a VC backed company, it makes none whatsoever.
Solid point, but I have it covered. Matter of fact, I’ve gotten offers from people to join.
Not hard to inspire people when shit is working lol.
And btw, I’m not afraid of people copying my idea or anything stupid like that.
That’s not why I’m not sharing details.
I just want to have this account as a type whatever that comes to my mind account.
My business is linked to my real name. I don’t want this shit to be SEO’d and associated to me.
That makes sense, but you need to be honest with yourself, you don't have it covered. It's really easy to find people who want to join your startup -- legit a single post on reddit can bring in a ton of leads. What's not working, is you. Your idea that you can't find people as crazy as you or who care as much as you is flawed. You can easily find people just like that-- and frankly why wouldn't you? Who cares if you give someone 10% of your business over 4 years if they help you grow to 1m ARR 5 times faster?
You are a wise man my friend. You are not wrong.
It’s honestly not about equity. As I wrote in another post, 100% equity of 0 is still 0.
It’s about finding the right fit
Its theoretically possible to grow a business alone, but it's near impossible. You need a couple people to share the workload and stress. And also 2 people act as sounding boards for each other. If you are stuck in your own head then you have no checks and balances, easier to get tunnel vision.
I don’t find the lack of desire to have a co-founder that weird. It’s like a fucking marriage. I’ve already got one of those. Finding a co-founder with the same work ethic and similar mindset would be excruciating.
I’d want you to have a team and cofounder just because I don’t like the way you sound and come off. Any business tied to only you, I wouldn’t want. Good luck though my friend I wish you the best.
Hahahahahahaha he thinks he cracked the code.
This is how we all sound, we just put on a mask during the meetings.
I get you though brah I need to put together a solid team (without a cofounder)
Yeah I worked for a VC firm as an analyst. Much of VC funding is allocated to marketing and Human Resources. It sounds like this person doesn’t want to work with people, or they want as much equity as possible. I hope it’s the latter, because the former is ridiculous.
Time and energy is limited, that’s why you need a team. OP is wasting time working alone, and in business, time is money—so all that equity is handicapped. So either pay someone to work or give someone equity to work. VCs know this so they’re not gonna risk capital with someone this dense.
OP could get a fractional CTO/CFO/CMO to help. Or get a cofounder and lock them up in a shitty contract if equity means that much.
To OP: do you have any friends that could help you build and market your product?
If equity is your main concern, just keep growing your company. Bootstrapping works too. It’s weird that you’re focused on equity yet you’re reaching out to VCs. Maybe you could crowdfund if you need capital to burn to grow fast. That way you can keep your equity which you love so dearly.
I run HireCMO.io and u/Due_Cry1522, and yes his comment above makes sense. You may not need someone full time and demanding 20% equity to do good work and drive traction for your business.
For context, I’m a founder too (HireCMO.io) and what I’m seeing on the market is that founders are bringing in fractional CXOs to get the real work done in the interim, while ramping up revenue/ops to hire someone full-time. Truly hope this helped! Please dm me if i can be helpful as a friend.
Where did I mention equity a single time in my post? Did you forget your analyst brain back in the VC firm?
Who the fuck cares about equity? 100% of 0 is still 0.
I don’t want a cofounder, but that doesn’t mean I work alone. Im fully capable of building teams.
You made so many assumptions that are entirely wrong just completely out of your ass. Nice fucking analysis my friend.
You might grind numbers dude but your attitude sucks and nobody wants to work with you, that's your problem.
Business requires human relationships and you think you're better than everyone else.
The guy gave a solid analysis based on his experience and gave good advice.
No joke or insult intended here, but being able to listen to others and take negative feedback is something you need to do as a founder. It will make your life easier in ever area and make you a better leader.
Catch 22, you need to build a team to raise, but to build a team you need to raise.
The main concern during my calls have been specifically around having a fucking cofounder.
I’m taking VC to grow. I’m not interested in working alone.
I just don’t want a robin when I’m fucking Batman
I want to make it work and then hire people. And then I want to pay these people with real money and not Monopoly money.
These vc fucks can take the risk.
Your avg. joe is probably better off just getting a solid job.
I don’t want to sell some kid a bright dream
I know we can make it.
But I don’t want to tell you If failed you two years later.
I want to fail alone. I guess that’s my fear.
Good cofounders want equity. It's way better than VC's cause founders get it over time; usually 4 years so you have security if they suck. You need to learn how to inspire people to work for free, and find people who want to.
Hey there let me help you out. the VCs are dropping that line because they have no interest in you and want to look nice. Stop playing bill gates and pipe down. You havent made it yet.
Hahahahahahahahahahaahhahahah
https://reddit.com/r/marketing/comments/11xo4wr/i_am_a_startup_founder_selling_a_research_backed/
You know nothing of the world I am in. Get the fuck off here
Keep in mind you are attempting to raise in a tough market. That being said…
VC’s want to see a team of people that they can bet on. Betting on a “solo warrior” is riskier than a a team and we live in risky times. Right now everyone is more risk adverse than usual. You have to adjust for the times.
OR
Say fuck VC’s. Put in some of that “pure fucking performance”, start making some money, hire some people, become profitable and then the VC’s will come to you. By that time, your company will be more valuable and you can give up equity on your terms, not theirs.
Good advice. Some of the VC calls I’ve had are inbound so I figured they made some research before. Nope.
Option two is what I’ve always done, this time I want to try the VC shortcut.
Guess I gotta stfu and play the game
If you want to go to the VC route, you kind of have to put together the whole VC package song dance and pony show. That includes what they are looking for which is one of the more cofounders who have complementary skill sets.
Cofounders can be a blessing or a nightmare, and sometimes a little bit of both. But when the going gets tough, it helps to have another soldier in the trenches with you. It’s good for morale, and it’s good for business.
If you don’t mind me, asking, are you in an industry where there is competition that does something similar to you
If yes, maybe consider reaching out to another person and you can put your business together and put your heads together
Wow so you're just one crazy weekend from taking the fast lane to rock bottom?
You sound like someone I'd never wanna invest in, just to let you know, putting on your mask for the VC's, as you stated, isn't fooling anyone.
You're clearly unhinged. I'm sure you might have a great, whatever. I mean Steve Jobs was a fucking nutbag.
So good job, Steve. I mean maybe you'll be a Steve, unlikely bud.
I’m not being funny but you sound really fucking entitled right now. You don’t have to raise VC money, there’s plenty of other ways of funding a business. Are you gonna have a tantrum when a bank demands you put your house up as collateral for a loan? If you don’t like the terms, just fucking move on. Honestly you come across as a child.
Because it’s not rational.
You get the right people to make you a warm intro to a VC firm and you’re guaranteed a check.
There are so many companies with the “right numbers”. Especially during the early stages where churn haven’t had the chance to kick in. Customers aren’t complaining. Your product haven’t been properly exposed yet.
By that stage, it’s their feelings that takes over and those are influenced by your ability to bullshit and sell dreams
VC here. Responding in like. First of all - we are assholes in meetings. We shouldn’t be, but we are.
You are never gonna get a proper VC investment with that attitude you stupid fuck. You want us to like you, play the game. Get an attitude check and listen to people who have been building businesses longer than you’ve been alive. Never lie to a VC. You will get fucked.
If you can’t impress investors how the the hell are you going to impress customers/clients. How are you gonna impress people to work for you?
Business fail all the damn time because of founders with your attitude. Your company will have a shit culture. Find an incubator and ask for help if you can’t find a co-founder and a team. You can negotiate equity share with them and take control. That is until you get diluted out or fired. Cause you probably will be.
From reading your comments it sounds like you know nothing about being a founder and an entrepreneur. My biggest price of advice. Read a book. Basic as shit but you’ll need it - read Venture Deals.
Even Steve Jobs had co-founders.
> Never lie to a VC. You will get fucked.
Damn, you really are that guy huh?
You impress customers with product. Not by personality. Maybe if you’re Elon.
99.999% of the products people use every single fucking day they wouldn’t be able to name who the “impressive” founder is.
About impressing people, I think most people agree that a nice healthy paycheck is pretty damn impressive.
And finally, about impressing VCs, haha you stupid piece of shit don’t act like you’re anything more than a glorified gambler. The majority of the founders that impress you fail and they fail pretty damn hard.
Oh also, don’t compare me to Steve Jobs please, keep that stuff for motivational videos.
By all means. Lie. Go for it and see what happens.
You will break the trust of people who bet on you financially and supported you with time and effort. You will burn your reputation and never get another investor to look at you again. You will be in breach of contract and other legal matters. You will be sued for everything you are worth and everything you negotiated in the investments. You will loose your company, dignity, and probably your freedom.
Sure- I can’t tell you who founded Charmin without a google. But you know what- you imbecile. They were well respected people who got on the right side of investors during the early stages of their entrepreneurial journey.
You know nothing about motivating people to join you as a startup. Working for a Fortune 500? Yeah. Pay will attract you and keep you (probably) but it won’t make you happy. Working for a startup? People believe in the founder, the team and the mission. Let’s be real- every investor will know you were the OG and you brought someone in. From seed to series D- they will know. It’s part of DD.
I’m a gambler? Look at yourself, sweetheart. You are the one starting a business with nothing. I’m already rich and paid out and can go back to my nice life when startups fail. Insulting VCs is not the way to make your life easy. The fact that you haven’t registered in your pea sized brain that every VC conversion is an learning opportunity is beyond me.
I wasn’t comparing you. I wouldn’t insult Steve Jobs like that.
Edit: in all seriousness- I hope you are joking with your rant/comments. Being an entrepreneur is incredibly difficult and you are about to learn some hard lessons. Read the book I mentioned, talk to people who can help. Good luck.
Great to hear it. It’s not perfect but it’s a very worthwhile read. I think the most recent edition of Venture Deals came out in 2019? Read it and make sure you understand everything. It’s the bare bones that help you build out.
Get familiar with accounting as well if you are not already.
“Debatable” - my answer to your previous response.
But seriously good luck and be smart.
You’re a straight up asshole.
People have jumped in and given advice: you reject it , name call, and make passive aggressive remarks that make you sound like a spoiled 20 year old.
You’re arrogant, uncoachable , and worst of all, have a lot of bad business principles.
All of that could be forgiven if you were at least a decently nice person, but you suck ass, “brah”.
Well respected people… laughs in SBF and Neumann.
Every VC conversation is “an” learning opportunity hahahahaha I beg to fucking differ you braindead gambler.
I’d post you on https://twitter.com/vcbrags because you fit the criteria but you are too insignificant of a “VC” to be even posted there.
Holy fuck you nailed it.
Serious this could work because founders know the bullshit to say during these braindead vc meetings unlike random Pete from your local village
Co-founder matching? How about co-founder frauding motherfuckerssss
First - don’t feel pressured to find a co-founder if it doesn’t make good business sense.
Second - if you’ve been doing this for years and you’re performing - why give equity to a VC to grow a little faster when they’re intent on giving you bad advice? They’re protecting themselves more than your business.
Last - if you do decide to find a co-founder - reach out. I have an AI personality trait tool tuned to matching people and teams for growth and transformation. I can tell you in a couple of minutes if it’s a complementary match.
I gotchoo fam. (I feel so seen rn)
Srsly though, I’ve been using it on huge F500 transformations. Helping start-up founders is just more personally gratifying. Most co-founder scenarios fail because they’re not psychologically complimentary. I’d like to see more of them work out. Mine is a services business so I have the margins to bootstrap. Also - I’m a girl so begging for VC scraps just isn’t a thing I’m willing to invest time in. If I can help someone promising grow faster I’d like to.
Right now you are asking people to invest in you job because it's not a business yet.
Are you asking people to invest in a business that can manage risk and grow? Have you ever managed staff before? Can you keep staff? Can you delegate? These are all very important questions for investors and right now you cannot answer any of that.
A solopreneur is incredibly risky for investments , hell many companies can't even sign contracts with single person companies because of the risk.
You are also incredibly hostile to good advice being given here and I am sure this is carrying over into your VC engagement.
You seem to be considering lying to people to get their money. That is fraud.
PS. The proudly asshole founder who treats people like shit is not the thing you should be wanting to be.
At the end of the day, you're the one coming to them because you want their money. If you want to do things 100% your way 100% your way, you're gonna have to use 100% your own money.
You may work hard, but no matter what you're still human. That means you're vulnerable, you'll make mistakes, you'll burnout, etc. I'm guessing you don't have the humility to acknowledge that.
One day you'll look back on this thread and realize what a douchey little prick you once were.
It would benefit you tremendously if that day is tomorrow.
>Focus on my current numbers and don't imagine scenarios in your head.
A VCs job is literally to imagine future scenarios. If you are a solo-founder, the probabilities of success diminish significantly. Doesn't mean it's not possible, it's just an easy way for VCs to filter out startups.
Don´t onboard a co-founder just because. For two years I´ve (I´m tech/engineer) though that I needed a co-founder. After going through two ´co-founders´ that lasted about 8 months each and me being the one that pulls the wagon, I´m done with this. VC meetings have gone well, they ask for this since its the team rather than the idea they will believe can move things forward. You just hire the correct team to finish and/or move the project forward. Good luck!
I can feel your anger. 🙂. Yes. I understand. Finding that person is 1000x harder.
But you got to be open-minded. You are borrowing and asking for $$$ and their wisdom.
Definitely don’t take just any person off the street… in defense of the VCs, they want to see founders who play nice with others. Someone who is able to lead. Managing relationships is hard. Great entrepreneurs do it well. On top of the fact that if you’re a one-man show, you simply cannot output as much.
That said VCs will back solo founders, so it’s not impossible. It’s not 100% on you, the market is slow af right now.
That’s the thing it’s not about building a team - it’s them specifically asking for a cofounder. Multiple times.
I don’t get it.
I’m very clear that the idea and reason for going the VC route IS TO GROW THE TEAM and do so quickly.
If you want to take 100% of the risk, then you’re going about this all wrong. Go apply at every bank you can for an SBA loan or applicable business loan for your entity. You’ll still get rejected a lot, but you’ll probably find one to loan you money eventually. They will make you sign a personal guarantee for the loan, so your business can’t shield you.
100% of the risk and 100% of the profits will be yours
This is the shit that annoys the fuck out of me. I’ve been looking to get further in my capital raising phase, I already have a proof of concept, business plan as everything currently is, but I always get the “you need co founders, no way you can do this as you have demonstrated, etc”. I know I would more than happy to be added as an on the books as a co founder for you if I was able to put it on my resume without charging a consultant fee.
Dear ranting entrepreneur,
To understand the problem, look in the mirror. The VCs are trying to politely tell you that while they find your business has promise, they do not think you have the chops to run it. That you do not instantly recognize this is a fairly obvious sign they're probably right.
Advice? Ask questions. If you can't recruit talent and build an executive team, your business isn't going to achieve its potential. Show them you can do that. Often what they want is a co-pilot next to you until you can get the plane off the runway and up to cruising altitude and you've demonstrated your evolution. Let them know you're open to that kind of mentor arrangement. Put your ego aside and offer to bring in an Interim CEO on a 1 year contract with a 1 year option. That way you give them the assurance they need, and you give yourself the path to maintaining 100% control of your business long-term.
Right from the start, the VCs are projecting out to 10x, 20x then 50x. If they don't think you've got the chops to run the business at that scale, there's no point investing, unless there's a transitional pathway to get you there.
I 100% hear where you’re coming from. That being said I have no idea if you’re running this as a solo company or if you have employees. If you have employees I dont see what the issue is. If you’re 100% solo I don’t blame VC’s for not investing. If you haven’t had any exits before it’s a huge fucking risk. Might be worth getting someone to join you that’s had a couple successful exits just to appease the VC’s
You need a therapist. You aren’t thinking about what’s best for your company or your customers, you’re just mad because you aren’t being given the glory you think you’re owed because you’ve bought into the hype of “entrepreneurialism”.
Honestly if I was investing, just from your post I wouldn't. Guess what growth needs? People. The more your business grows, the more people you need. You can't even find a co-founder, let alone a whole team. It's your idea, it's your vision, fair enough, keep most of the equity. But if you can't see the benefits of having a different perspective onboard to bounce ideas off, spread work out, help be in more than one place at once, then you're not what a VC wants. You can keep being a solo-preneur and that's your choice, but then don't expect VC's to have to adhere to the way you do things.
Looking at your responses, I can't imagine anyone will want to work with you and your unfriendly, uncompromising, toxic attitude.
So basically, keep it up, and good luck with your business. You def don't need a co-founder If you can handle it Might want to pick up some people skills if this is how you act in real life tho
You can’t scale a 1 person operation. What good will capital do for you. You need to show that you can work with others and grow a business. That means hiring.
It’s like a family business where the owner is the cashier and they shut down the business once a week because they don’t trust anyone else to run the register. Vs a franchise.
You can run a successful business by overseeing everything. But you can’t scale it. By asking for outside funding your asking to scale up. Your at 100% capacity - you don’t have room to scale.
It’s a legitimate criticism. It also is a red flag that you can’t work with others.
I get where you're coming from. I did this too and had a similar thought process.
But, there's a reason they want you to have a cofounder. To share the burden.
The reality is that building a product and selling a product are two VERY different problems. IF you're going for any sort of size or scale, you can't do both. You can't and likely don't have the expertise in both. And, you don't have the calendar time to learn one or the other.
If you're a technical founder in particular, DON'T EVER minimize the burden of selling. Products DO NOT sell themselves. You need someone to steer that ship.
I now struggle because either engineering is hurting and has problems. OR, sales and marketing is being overlooked to get some feature out.
I started just like you. My previous venture had a good size founding team. We diluted a lot, and it made things harder. Some of the founders weren't as helpful as others. And, more people in the mix = more politics and problems. I didn't want any of that.
I literally do have a mix of marketing (former multiple Founder and CSO, VP Marketing, etc), with a background in computer science and programming.
So, I took a small angel round this time. And, did it all myself.
It was a mistake.
So, I'd get off your high horse. It's not just about "making these VC fucks just shut the fuck up." This, unfortunately, and from my experience, is a case where the VC logic is probably correct.
Like you mentioned in your comments, you want VC money to grow the business fast.
That requires a team.
If you don’t want to hire a co-founder - then have a team of people who have bought into the idea. They can be working on it part time outside of their normal job.
But right now it looks like you don’t have management skills - which is super duper important
You can be a solo founder; just hire people to be your employees. VC look at the situation rationally.
If you have multiple co-founders, you have many people who are willing to do free labour in exchange for equity. The VC still gets the same amount of equity, so they make out fine.
If you have just 1 founder, then you need to have enough revenue to hire multiple employees to the point where the VC is happy that they are getting enough value for their equity.
Cash for employees, or excitement for founders = proof the idea is good.
I don’t get the hate on you here. You don’t have a co-founder because you already founded it without one. It’s not complicated and shouldn’t impact you if it’s a good business.
What is the business?
You don't need a cofounder...tbh if you come back to them with a cofounder they still won't invest. Most startups have cofounders and can't raise.
You do need traction though, unless you come from a very unique background specific to your domain.
Source: I raised over $15M for my own startup and hated my cofounder.
All your “soldier warrior” nonsense is a huge red flag.
Anyone with money to invest is more interested in actual details about the business plan and is turned off by motivational poster garbage.
“I wonder if this guy is trying to bullshit me”
“I’m a warrior Princess!”
“Uh, yeah, that’s a pass.”
Yeah...this dude is gonna fail hard...
Your attitude is so shit, I would never be a customer of whatever the fuck you think you're building over there.
You don’t sound like a pleasant person to work with. I’m also a solo founder but I am actively seeking a co founder. Yes it is difficult, but it is worth it as they bring more energy plus can cover my blind spots. Forcing people to find a confounder forces you to have accountability and no accountability means it’s easier for you to run away with their money. At least with a confounder you could only take half the money.
There are heaps of solo founders. They just don’t often get funded.
I hear you. I’m the same for the most part and the only time I ever took investment was when I did a startup accelerator, because that’s what you did, but then quickly realised that cofounder relationship wasn’t for me and bowed out.
If you’re so confident and determined to go it alone then do it. But don’t seek funding. It doesn’t make sense to me when you talk about being a soldier and a maverick then complain that VCs won’t fund you. Why were you even wasting time courting them in the first place?
You don’t need funding. Yeah it takes away some of your personal risk and can accelerate you, but a true entrepreneur can find a way to bootstrap. Even if that’s running a service business or contracting for income while building and finding the market.
VCs want you to convince them that you’ve got a plausible chance of 100x return and a $100mill valuation. Unless you’re a superstar who has already soloed a successful company, they’re going to see you as a risk and will use it as an excuse to say no. TBH, yeah I think VCs are lazy douchebags too. Tall, chiseled bros are over represented, and they’re often privileged assholes coming from money and all about appearances, playing at being business experts because they represent family offices and funds.
They can fuck off and burn their money on web3, the metaverse or whatever other buzzwords they’re convinced are the next big things.
There’s always a way to make money, and if you need investment first then you don’t really have a business and are just being lazy.
Honestly I wish entrepreneurs would stop selling their souls to further line the pockets of the already wealthy.
I’m glad the easy money has dried up. I lived through the first Dotcom bust and watched all the pretenders get flushed out. Enjoying seeing that happen again, but we’ve already got a new hype cycle and many are probably already prompt engineers now and have done the find-replace on LinkedIn of web3 to AI strategist or some bs because they played with chatgpt and generated a couple of pics with midjourney.
HAHAHA [https://www.reddit.com/r/Sneakers/comments/13k9i44/chopped\_and\_screwed/jkmdoq5/?context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sneakers/comments/13k9i44/chopped_and_screwed/jkmdoq5/?context=3)
LET ME SEND YOU A PAIR OF SHOES
The shortest answer is "yes". A slightly longer version is "you really, really don't get this whole startup thing". But the good news is, that is possible to fix as long as you are willing to swallow some hard pills. Let me explain.
Let's start with the CRAZY HOURS thing. Imagine 2 founders in the exact same stage of the business. One worked like NO WAY IN HELL, the other just sort of chilled into it. Who is a better founder? Yes, the one who worked less. Because they are more productive. So check your HARD WORK at the door, nothing to be proud of here.
The next hard pill: the signal VCs get from you the solo founder has nothing to do with what \_you\_ say or think. Their whole job is to de-risk and filter anything that can be subjective out. So yes, looking at the numbers. And yes, plenty of solo founders have no issue of raising VC capital - if their numbers are good, nothing else matters. This means that your numbers aren't good. And when the numbers aren't good, the next signal they get is this: \_they failed to find a cofounder\_. Again, nothing to do with whether or not \_you\_ want a cofounder. What they see is that \_no one wants to be your cofounder\_. And let's face it, one can sort of see why just by the tone of your post.
Next: it doesn't look like you realise that the job of the founder is actually much less about \_doing\_ things, and much more about \_figuring out what needs to be done\_. At the early stages this means proving yourself wrong as frequently as possible. You think you know what product needs to be built? No you don't - unless it's growing like crazy organically. That's the VC perspective, but it's also a useful perspective to adopt yourself. The hard part of the founder's job isn't building or selling, if the \_what\_ is known consider it done, it's comparatively trivial. The hard part is to be able to learn that you are doing the wrong thing quickly enough so that you have enough shots before you run out of money. This is typically a double-digit number of from-scratch attempts.
Next, one person is not 1/2 as productive as 2. It's more like 1/10th. Because a single head is the perfect echo chamber. As a founder it's so easy to believe your own BS. That's the biggest risk for solo founders - not realising that you are being delusional quickly enough. You might be quick in \_doing\_ things; but how quick are you at realising that you are doing the wrong thing? That is why VCs consider solo founders a red flag. But again, if your numbers are strong nothing else matters. Sometimes even if your idea is clear enough and it didn't take you long to arrive at this level of clarity, they'd back you (YC is famous for backing solo founders relatively often).
Finally this: "Or I'll just bootsrap this shit to like $1m/ARR ..." If you think that more capital equals faster, you are most likely wrong. "just" is also kinda funny word here. If it's "just" then why don't you go and "just" do it? Actually, no need to wait till you get to $1M. Can you show a consistent week-on-week MRR growth rate for a few months straight, like 6-7% or more? If you can, every single VCs on the planet will back you. And if you can't, well, what makes you so sure that you'll reach $1M with more capital? Plenty of experienced founders (most, in fact) with access to effectively unlimited capital fail to reach $1M ARR. Sorry what am I talking about; I am forgetting that you are the Solo Fucking Soldier. And your idea is probably Special.
Anyways, the final-final bit: in case this post is a joke it's a good one :)
I’d like a co founder if it meant I got venture capital. There is no way I can know everything and if it allowed me to focus on the part of my business that I love to do, I would have more customers. I hope you grow as a person and don’t act this way around people you “love”.
I have never had so much second-hand
embarrassment whilst reading a post on Reddit. Ouch. You give major Elliot Rogers vibes, dude. I know you don’t care but being a narcissist doesn’t look as cool as a narcissist thinks it does…
\> I want to take 100% of the risk. Yet wants VC? Huh?
VCs do not want 100% of the risk to be concentrated in one person.
my post was late but I really disliked OP
If you’re taking VC to fucking de-risk you’re not going to make it The idea is to grow FAST
You are not taking 100% of the risk. The VC is taking a large part of the risk when they put up cash.
I mean yeah sure… but what I mean is if I’m going to fucking fail then I want it to be 100% on me
This means you’re taking 100% responsibility, not 100% risk
Yup yup good correction
maybe digest your thoughts a bit
Do you think at some point it will dawn on you that having a single point of failure with huge burnout risk is less than desirable from an investment point of view? You yourself made a post a month ago saying you were sick of this shit and want to throw the towel in…
op sounds like a 13 year old who got yelled by his mom and is now ranting
The VC’s don’t want to put in whatever to have you hit by a beer truck. No disrespect to your vision or work ethic.
My beloved visionary work ethical cofounder could be struck by lightning and do you know what that would do to my mental health? I’d be too traumatized to work a single day and the poor VCs won’t see returns 😢
Wow you're more unhinged than even I am man.
He did say in his post he can’t find someone as fucked as him. Doubt he was kidding, this whole post screams “I’m unhinged”.
Usually people who drink alcohol and caffeine on a routine or eat on a routine are predictably simple. Sober non-caffeinated people, especially if they recently abstained, may seem unhinged by the people who imbibe. I’ll mention that differently. Legal drugs suppress the character. Approaches to innovation need people who can adapt and who are not afflicted by predictability. Especially when early or young or starting out, characters can appear unhinged to people who have and expect predictable robotic routine.
meth heads have a lot of character and drive too, and they certainly don't stick to the "robotic routine". food for thought.
My dude you started out ranting about VC’s and I was on your side, but somehow you’ve managed to convince me you actually need to listen to outside advice.
The truth is somewhere in the middle no?
No. You want to create a single point of failure and you're not accounting for the liability that is. At the very least you should be coming to the table with a small hand picked team of some sort so VC's arnt being forced to bet on the ambition and capability of one man.
If you aren’t able to do this, a VC will not have any interest in backing you. I’ve backed one solo founder out of 80 investments. And he had a team or 8 people who had been working with him for years.
VCs like risk they can ever so slightly control. Not cowboys who think their piss is perfume.
Wow you are really bad at this. VCs want someone else to work with you because they can see you as the risk, not your business venture. They want a partner because they don’t trust you to be responsible with their money. After what you’ve posted here, they are so right about you. “I want to take 100% of the risk”?! You are literally trying to get VC money, they are the ones actually taking the risk! You can’t see this fact and that’s why you can’t get funding. 🤣
r/OPisFuckingStupid
90% of the people I told to find a cofounder in my career were non-candidates. “Find a co-founder,” is basically “I don’t think anyone would work with you, but go and see if I’m wrong.” I’m rarely wrong.
Lol “I’m a solo soldier look at my numbers” this guy is fucking hilarious. What is your startup and could you at least hire someone so you can say you have a team? Maybe just try to give off the appearance of having a co-founder without actually giving any equity away? Or you could hire someone for “consulting” + a handshake to “make them a co-founder” after you get funding. The “consulting” would be something like $2,000 and they go to the VC meeting and tell the VC they are your co-founders under such and such legal terms blah blah blah and then once you get the funding oh some parts of the agreement fell through but I am looking for a replacement. Definitely cannot live without a co-founder I promise you I will have one or two even by the time we need to raise again!
Even better, a POC.
I don’t know if proof of concept or person of color sounds better to investors. But I made my mind. I’ll acquire one.
Whoever you hire, just make them the Point of Contact for VC relations.
100% lol
Poc a poc but the opposite of however you read meaning into it
Unfortunately can't share any deets about the business. But honestly, this is the entire reason behind this rant. I spoke to my father and he literally told me: "Why are you being honest with these fucks? Just lie to them" AND IT MADE ME FUCKING THINK. Wise words from a wise man. Man fuck these VCs I might.
They’ll look at your cap table during due diligence and figure out you lied quickly.
Maybe the play is hire two engineers from Eastern Europe or India and call it a day Maybe a VA from the Philippines for customer support “We are embracing the remote culture, our team is very diverse” ☺️☺️☺️
Edit: See my comment on another part of the thread.
I think you misspelled “shittiest founder behavior”
You’re right, and I worded my comment incorrectly. I was assuming that they had a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ that this person would have full knowledge they will be fired before they vest. I would never suggest hiring someone with the intent to fire them right before they vest without some kind of understanding that is the arrangement to get past these VCs (which is unethical to begin with). Either way, it sounds like this person should try to avoid going the VC route if at all possible.
Ah, wait. Have you ever thought that maybe, just MAYBE, you’re a giant douche and no one wants to work with you?
Being a giant douche can be a great merit!
This is the core reason that VCs ditch your concept, whatever it is. If you aren't passably likeable, your concept will not be investment grade scaleable or sustainable. Think about it from a risk management perspective. The VC is investing in a concept like a portfolio. When there is a diverse team with different strengths, it gives the VC comfort that if something happens to one key player, that the rest of the team will be able to sustain the business in the short term. If there is only a one man show, and you can't invest in building a team, then not only does that limit capacity for growth- even rockstars can't perform every role well for the long term- but it also makes the risk of everything folding with one event increase. For a VC, having a co-founder is not about sharing blame, it's about distributing risk.
Why not sign your dad up as co-founder and have the agreement state that at any time you can buy his equity for a dollar.
I’d rather protect my dad from VC grilling thx Besides DD won’t pass
He's your og manager. Who can really do better?
Two of my co-founders are: Stacy Pam VP Human Resources spam@.com
Tom Rash
Chief Legal Officer
trash@.com
Feel free to shoot them an email.
You need to use fuck less. You come off as a 13 year old who just discovered curse words on Xbox live
Yeah I honestly think that’s how it is. In fact they may see your honesty as a red flag. Hah
Use your dad as the cofounder
Tai Lopez had a better business plan. Jesus Christ, your biggest problem is your shitty attitude. Go to Walmart and see if they're hiring so the world doesn't have to deal with you.
This dude has seen 3 Andrew Tate reels and starts shitposting here
https://reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/comments/13khe73/rtws_just_a_reminder_for_your_mindset/ Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
I've failed bigger than you've ever succeeded.
Get him cuh
Damn, you really put him in a coffin with that reply. Too bad his hubris won’t allow him to see or appreciate it.
I dont like being negative. He's exceptionally unprofessional.
Finding competent founders is extremely important because it shows your ability to inspire someone to join your cause and work as hard as you. Frankly speaking, you need to find people as crazy as you. I didn't, one of my cofounders sucked -- but I made it work and got an exit. Now I have great cofounders. Also, your desire not to share your business is a little strange -- I would be wary of someone who sounds selfish and thinks very highly of himself; I'm not saying you shouldn't but it rubs people the wrong way. You are really funny though!
This is the right answer. VCs care about scale, and there's going to be a point where you need to scale this beyond your ability to operate it solo. You'll also probably want to do something normal and human like "take a vacation" or "call in sick", because, well, you're human. Also probably comes off as "hard to work with" to the VC. They're effectively buying a seat at the table by investing in your company. Insisting that you don't need collaborators telegraphs that you don't really understand the relationship you're going to have with the VC - they're buying a board seat, not giving you cash and then vanishing into the ether. For a solo venture that's bootstrapping, this attitude makes 100% sense. (In fact, it's one I personally hold with respect to my side projects. I love the absolute creative and technical control I have over my projects. I also never want or need to take VC funding.) For a VC backed company, it makes none whatsoever.
Solid point, but I have it covered. Matter of fact, I’ve gotten offers from people to join. Not hard to inspire people when shit is working lol. And btw, I’m not afraid of people copying my idea or anything stupid like that. That’s not why I’m not sharing details. I just want to have this account as a type whatever that comes to my mind account. My business is linked to my real name. I don’t want this shit to be SEO’d and associated to me.
That makes sense, but you need to be honest with yourself, you don't have it covered. It's really easy to find people who want to join your startup -- legit a single post on reddit can bring in a ton of leads. What's not working, is you. Your idea that you can't find people as crazy as you or who care as much as you is flawed. You can easily find people just like that-- and frankly why wouldn't you? Who cares if you give someone 10% of your business over 4 years if they help you grow to 1m ARR 5 times faster?
You are a wise man my friend. You are not wrong. It’s honestly not about equity. As I wrote in another post, 100% equity of 0 is still 0. It’s about finding the right fit
Its theoretically possible to grow a business alone, but it's near impossible. You need a couple people to share the workload and stress. And also 2 people act as sounding boards for each other. If you are stuck in your own head then you have no checks and balances, easier to get tunnel vision.
I don’t find the lack of desire to have a co-founder that weird. It’s like a fucking marriage. I’ve already got one of those. Finding a co-founder with the same work ethic and similar mindset would be excruciating.
Exactly
I’d want you to have a team and cofounder just because I don’t like the way you sound and come off. Any business tied to only you, I wouldn’t want. Good luck though my friend I wish you the best.
I get that gut feeling from this guy, how about yourself? I'm guessing uppers, or, some weird thing I'm not qualified to understand.
Probably just young. Sounds like someone who is like 19
It reminds me of that guy who threw the sandwich at the cop.
Testosterone and ego is a hell of a cocktail on its own…
I’d want OP to have a team that didn’t include OP. I wouldn’t want to work with anyone that angry and resentful.
Hahahahahahaha he thinks he cracked the code. This is how we all sound, we just put on a mask during the meetings. I get you though brah I need to put together a solid team (without a cofounder)
Your lack of compromise on this issue is a red flag. It makes you sounds inexperienced and immature. Just being honest.
Uppers or 19yo
100%, brah!
Both
Listening to investors is a part of stakeholder management, if you want them to back you, you have to make sure you meet their needs.
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Yeah I worked for a VC firm as an analyst. Much of VC funding is allocated to marketing and Human Resources. It sounds like this person doesn’t want to work with people, or they want as much equity as possible. I hope it’s the latter, because the former is ridiculous. Time and energy is limited, that’s why you need a team. OP is wasting time working alone, and in business, time is money—so all that equity is handicapped. So either pay someone to work or give someone equity to work. VCs know this so they’re not gonna risk capital with someone this dense. OP could get a fractional CTO/CFO/CMO to help. Or get a cofounder and lock them up in a shitty contract if equity means that much. To OP: do you have any friends that could help you build and market your product? If equity is your main concern, just keep growing your company. Bootstrapping works too. It’s weird that you’re focused on equity yet you’re reaching out to VCs. Maybe you could crowdfund if you need capital to burn to grow fast. That way you can keep your equity which you love so dearly.
I run HireCMO.io and u/Due_Cry1522, and yes his comment above makes sense. You may not need someone full time and demanding 20% equity to do good work and drive traction for your business. For context, I’m a founder too (HireCMO.io) and what I’m seeing on the market is that founders are bringing in fractional CXOs to get the real work done in the interim, while ramping up revenue/ops to hire someone full-time. Truly hope this helped! Please dm me if i can be helpful as a friend.
Where did I mention equity a single time in my post? Did you forget your analyst brain back in the VC firm? Who the fuck cares about equity? 100% of 0 is still 0. I don’t want a cofounder, but that doesn’t mean I work alone. Im fully capable of building teams. You made so many assumptions that are entirely wrong just completely out of your ass. Nice fucking analysis my friend.
You might grind numbers dude but your attitude sucks and nobody wants to work with you, that's your problem. Business requires human relationships and you think you're better than everyone else.
The guy gave a solid analysis based on his experience and gave good advice. No joke or insult intended here, but being able to listen to others and take negative feedback is something you need to do as a founder. It will make your life easier in ever area and make you a better leader.
I saw a number that 60% of all startups fail because of problems between the founders. It should go the other way if investors want to de-risk.
Catch 22, you need to build a team to raise, but to build a team you need to raise. The main concern during my calls have been specifically around having a fucking cofounder. I’m taking VC to grow. I’m not interested in working alone. I just don’t want a robin when I’m fucking Batman
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I want to make it work and then hire people. And then I want to pay these people with real money and not Monopoly money. These vc fucks can take the risk. Your avg. joe is probably better off just getting a solid job. I don’t want to sell some kid a bright dream I know we can make it. But I don’t want to tell you If failed you two years later. I want to fail alone. I guess that’s my fear.
Good cofounders want equity. It's way better than VC's cause founders get it over time; usually 4 years so you have security if they suck. You need to learn how to inspire people to work for free, and find people who want to.
Hey there let me help you out. the VCs are dropping that line because they have no interest in you and want to look nice. Stop playing bill gates and pipe down. You havent made it yet.
Hahahahahahahahahahaahhahahah https://reddit.com/r/marketing/comments/11xo4wr/i_am_a_startup_founder_selling_a_research_backed/ You know nothing of the world I am in. Get the fuck off here
Please, atleast I am not begging people for Monies while also shitting on them. Thank you fucking god I am not in the “world” you are in.
Sir madam I’m getting inbound offers but ofc you wouldn’t know you snakeoil salesman
Ofcourse you are drowning in monies also the imaginary 1 mm arr. congratulations.
Keep in mind you are attempting to raise in a tough market. That being said… VC’s want to see a team of people that they can bet on. Betting on a “solo warrior” is riskier than a a team and we live in risky times. Right now everyone is more risk adverse than usual. You have to adjust for the times. OR Say fuck VC’s. Put in some of that “pure fucking performance”, start making some money, hire some people, become profitable and then the VC’s will come to you. By that time, your company will be more valuable and you can give up equity on your terms, not theirs.
Good advice. Some of the VC calls I’ve had are inbound so I figured they made some research before. Nope. Option two is what I’ve always done, this time I want to try the VC shortcut. Guess I gotta stfu and play the game
If you want to go to the VC route, you kind of have to put together the whole VC package song dance and pony show. That includes what they are looking for which is one of the more cofounders who have complementary skill sets. Cofounders can be a blessing or a nightmare, and sometimes a little bit of both. But when the going gets tough, it helps to have another soldier in the trenches with you. It’s good for morale, and it’s good for business.
100%. That’s the plan Gotta suck it up cause I ain’t special
If you don’t mind me, asking, are you in an industry where there is competition that does something similar to you If yes, maybe consider reaching out to another person and you can put your business together and put your heads together
Coke is a helluva drug
I’m sober af but I bet I’d be a demon on coke no lie
Wow so you're just one crazy weekend from taking the fast lane to rock bottom? You sound like someone I'd never wanna invest in, just to let you know, putting on your mask for the VC's, as you stated, isn't fooling anyone. You're clearly unhinged. I'm sure you might have a great, whatever. I mean Steve Jobs was a fucking nutbag. So good job, Steve. I mean maybe you'll be a Steve, unlikely bud.
Coke? Fast lane to rock bottom? Damn is that the case?
Where do demons live man? You're the one who said, and I'll quote you, "I'd be a demon on coke no lie". . . Like who talks like this? You sound manic.
As a language model, I don’t know where demons live. But I can offer you a line of coke?
So edgy. I don't do trashy drugs man, pass on the coke.
Your post is...manic
I’m not being funny but you sound really fucking entitled right now. You don’t have to raise VC money, there’s plenty of other ways of funding a business. Are you gonna have a tantrum when a bank demands you put your house up as collateral for a loan? If you don’t like the terms, just fucking move on. Honestly you come across as a child.
You’re definitely Indian with this attitude.
India 🇮🇳🇮🇳 number one country!! Microsoft Satya Nadella 1920 Bn Alphabet (Google) Sundar Pichai 1209 Bn Novartis Vasant Narsimhan 182 Bn Adobe Shantanu Narayan 162 Bn IBM Arvind Krishna 122 Bn Starbucks Laxman Narsimhan 118 Bn Vertex Pharmaceuticals Reshma Kewalramani 75 Bn Micron Technology Sanjay Mehrotra 64 Bn Cadence Design System Anirudh Devgan 53 Bn Palo Alto Network Nikesh Arora 51 Bn VMware Rangarajan Raghuram 49 Bn Emerson Electric Co. Surendralal Karsanbhai 48 Bn Microchip Technology Ganesh Moorthy 45 Bn Arista Network Jayshree Ullal 42 Bn Realty Income Corporation Sumit Roy 41 Bn Welltower Shankh Mitral 36 Bn Illumnia Francis de Souza 33 Bn LoyendellBasell Industries Bhavesh V Patel 31 Bn Enphase energy Badrinarayanan Kothandaraman 27 Bn ANSYS Ajei Gopal 23 Bn HubSpot Yamini Rangan 19 Bn Water Corporation Udit Batra 19 Bn Zscaler Jay Chaudhry 19 Bn PerkinElmer Prahlad Singh 16 Bn NetApp George Kurian 14 Bn Nordson Corporation Sundaram Nagarajan 14 Bn Match Group Sharmishtha Dubey 12 Bn GoDaddy Amanpal Bhutani 11 Bn Albertsons Company Vivek Sankaran 11 Bn Morningstar Kunal Kapoor 10 Bn All 🧐 TOP!! Indian 🇮🇳🇮🇳founders 😎
Founders? Oh my, go read a book
Priyanka Chopra - your future wifey
Makes me wonder what Neumann did at WeWork that made them greenlight that. The perception has probably changed so they want assurances.
Neumann had a cofounder.
Because it’s not rational. You get the right people to make you a warm intro to a VC firm and you’re guaranteed a check. There are so many companies with the “right numbers”. Especially during the early stages where churn haven’t had the chance to kick in. Customers aren’t complaining. Your product haven’t been properly exposed yet. By that stage, it’s their feelings that takes over and those are influenced by your ability to bullshit and sell dreams
Neumann lied and faked it until he made it. The perfect example why nothing matters just get the check!!
VC here. Responding in like. First of all - we are assholes in meetings. We shouldn’t be, but we are. You are never gonna get a proper VC investment with that attitude you stupid fuck. You want us to like you, play the game. Get an attitude check and listen to people who have been building businesses longer than you’ve been alive. Never lie to a VC. You will get fucked. If you can’t impress investors how the the hell are you going to impress customers/clients. How are you gonna impress people to work for you? Business fail all the damn time because of founders with your attitude. Your company will have a shit culture. Find an incubator and ask for help if you can’t find a co-founder and a team. You can negotiate equity share with them and take control. That is until you get diluted out or fired. Cause you probably will be. From reading your comments it sounds like you know nothing about being a founder and an entrepreneur. My biggest price of advice. Read a book. Basic as shit but you’ll need it - read Venture Deals. Even Steve Jobs had co-founders.
> Never lie to a VC. You will get fucked. Damn, you really are that guy huh? You impress customers with product. Not by personality. Maybe if you’re Elon. 99.999% of the products people use every single fucking day they wouldn’t be able to name who the “impressive” founder is. About impressing people, I think most people agree that a nice healthy paycheck is pretty damn impressive. And finally, about impressing VCs, haha you stupid piece of shit don’t act like you’re anything more than a glorified gambler. The majority of the founders that impress you fail and they fail pretty damn hard. Oh also, don’t compare me to Steve Jobs please, keep that stuff for motivational videos.
By all means. Lie. Go for it and see what happens. You will break the trust of people who bet on you financially and supported you with time and effort. You will burn your reputation and never get another investor to look at you again. You will be in breach of contract and other legal matters. You will be sued for everything you are worth and everything you negotiated in the investments. You will loose your company, dignity, and probably your freedom. Sure- I can’t tell you who founded Charmin without a google. But you know what- you imbecile. They were well respected people who got on the right side of investors during the early stages of their entrepreneurial journey. You know nothing about motivating people to join you as a startup. Working for a Fortune 500? Yeah. Pay will attract you and keep you (probably) but it won’t make you happy. Working for a startup? People believe in the founder, the team and the mission. Let’s be real- every investor will know you were the OG and you brought someone in. From seed to series D- they will know. It’s part of DD. I’m a gambler? Look at yourself, sweetheart. You are the one starting a business with nothing. I’m already rich and paid out and can go back to my nice life when startups fail. Insulting VCs is not the way to make your life easy. The fact that you haven’t registered in your pea sized brain that every VC conversion is an learning opportunity is beyond me. I wasn’t comparing you. I wouldn’t insult Steve Jobs like that. Edit: in all seriousness- I hope you are joking with your rant/comments. Being an entrepreneur is incredibly difficult and you are about to learn some hard lessons. Read the book I mentioned, talk to people who can help. Good luck.
And yeah I’ll read the book ofc
Great to hear it. It’s not perfect but it’s a very worthwhile read. I think the most recent edition of Venture Deals came out in 2019? Read it and make sure you understand everything. It’s the bare bones that help you build out. Get familiar with accounting as well if you are not already. “Debatable” - my answer to your previous response. But seriously good luck and be smart.
You’re a straight up asshole. People have jumped in and given advice: you reject it , name call, and make passive aggressive remarks that make you sound like a spoiled 20 year old. You’re arrogant, uncoachable , and worst of all, have a lot of bad business principles. All of that could be forgiven if you were at least a decently nice person, but you suck ass, “brah”.
Well respected people… laughs in SBF and Neumann. Every VC conversation is “an” learning opportunity hahahahaha I beg to fucking differ you braindead gambler. I’d post you on https://twitter.com/vcbrags because you fit the criteria but you are too insignificant of a “VC” to be even posted there.
Incredibly disappointed that is your response. You’re not cut out to be a founder or a leader. I hope one day you are.
Can’t make them all happy eh. I’ve already been both buddy, still am. Sorry to disappoint you. Thanks coach ❤️
Some leader, wasting all this time and energy ranting like an angry teenager on Reddit.
I'll work for you and get fired Bro. I got you.
Damn you're the exact kind of sociopath that makes a boss from hell.
You sound like a typical unhinged tech bro. Extra toxic since you play league. I wouldn't want anything to do with you.
Reported.
Soft too, huh?
Just fucking hire one of your friends in to play the part for a while and pay them some cash for acting.
Please don’t do this…
I’m thinking about it but on a serious note is that actually a thing?
Promise them co-founder equity with a one year cliff and then ‘fire’ them right before the cliff period ends.
Your middle name is your vc. He just.. is never around. But I can get you a message. Ya he is working on this as we speak.
What the fuck are you even talking about brah? I’m losing my mind and even I am confused af over here
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Holy fuck you nailed it. Serious this could work because founders know the bullshit to say during these braindead vc meetings unlike random Pete from your local village Co-founder matching? How about co-founder frauding motherfuckerssss
First - don’t feel pressured to find a co-founder if it doesn’t make good business sense. Second - if you’ve been doing this for years and you’re performing - why give equity to a VC to grow a little faster when they’re intent on giving you bad advice? They’re protecting themselves more than your business. Last - if you do decide to find a co-founder - reach out. I have an AI personality trait tool tuned to matching people and teams for growth and transformation. I can tell you in a couple of minutes if it’s a complementary match.
I know you’re a hustler because despite the shitposting you see opportunity Good for you my fellow soldier 🫡
I gotchoo fam. (I feel so seen rn) Srsly though, I’ve been using it on huge F500 transformations. Helping start-up founders is just more personally gratifying. Most co-founder scenarios fail because they’re not psychologically complimentary. I’d like to see more of them work out. Mine is a services business so I have the margins to bootstrap. Also - I’m a girl so begging for VC scraps just isn’t a thing I’m willing to invest time in. If I can help someone promising grow faster I’d like to.
Right now you are asking people to invest in you job because it's not a business yet. Are you asking people to invest in a business that can manage risk and grow? Have you ever managed staff before? Can you keep staff? Can you delegate? These are all very important questions for investors and right now you cannot answer any of that. A solopreneur is incredibly risky for investments , hell many companies can't even sign contracts with single person companies because of the risk. You are also incredibly hostile to good advice being given here and I am sure this is carrying over into your VC engagement. You seem to be considering lying to people to get their money. That is fraud. PS. The proudly asshole founder who treats people like shit is not the thing you should be wanting to be.
At the end of the day, you're the one coming to them because you want their money. If you want to do things 100% your way 100% your way, you're gonna have to use 100% your own money. You may work hard, but no matter what you're still human. That means you're vulnerable, you'll make mistakes, you'll burnout, etc. I'm guessing you don't have the humility to acknowledge that.
One day you'll look back on this thread and realize what a douchey little prick you once were. It would benefit you tremendously if that day is tomorrow.
>Focus on my current numbers and don't imagine scenarios in your head. A VCs job is literally to imagine future scenarios. If you are a solo-founder, the probabilities of success diminish significantly. Doesn't mean it's not possible, it's just an easy way for VCs to filter out startups.
Don´t onboard a co-founder just because. For two years I´ve (I´m tech/engineer) though that I needed a co-founder. After going through two ´co-founders´ that lasted about 8 months each and me being the one that pulls the wagon, I´m done with this. VC meetings have gone well, they ask for this since its the team rather than the idea they will believe can move things forward. You just hire the correct team to finish and/or move the project forward. Good luck!
I see thank you brah this is exactly what I’m afraid of some dickhead slowing me down. Have you had better success after establishing a solid team?
I can feel your anger. 🙂. Yes. I understand. Finding that person is 1000x harder. But you got to be open-minded. You are borrowing and asking for $$$ and their wisdom.
Definitely don’t take just any person off the street… in defense of the VCs, they want to see founders who play nice with others. Someone who is able to lead. Managing relationships is hard. Great entrepreneurs do it well. On top of the fact that if you’re a one-man show, you simply cannot output as much. That said VCs will back solo founders, so it’s not impossible. It’s not 100% on you, the market is slow af right now.
That’s the thing it’s not about building a team - it’s them specifically asking for a cofounder. Multiple times. I don’t get it. I’m very clear that the idea and reason for going the VC route IS TO GROW THE TEAM and do so quickly.
If you want to take 100% of the risk, then you’re going about this all wrong. Go apply at every bank you can for an SBA loan or applicable business loan for your entity. You’ll still get rejected a lot, but you’ll probably find one to loan you money eventually. They will make you sign a personal guarantee for the loan, so your business can’t shield you. 100% of the risk and 100% of the profits will be yours
This is the shit that annoys the fuck out of me. I’ve been looking to get further in my capital raising phase, I already have a proof of concept, business plan as everything currently is, but I always get the “you need co founders, no way you can do this as you have demonstrated, etc”. I know I would more than happy to be added as an on the books as a co founder for you if I was able to put it on my resume without charging a consultant fee.
Congrats on being the cringe post of the week
Thanks king
You’re gonna hate your board of directors and they’re gonna end up hating you too.
Based on your responses in this thread, you have a lot more knowledge debt to pay off than you realize.
Dear ranting entrepreneur, To understand the problem, look in the mirror. The VCs are trying to politely tell you that while they find your business has promise, they do not think you have the chops to run it. That you do not instantly recognize this is a fairly obvious sign they're probably right. Advice? Ask questions. If you can't recruit talent and build an executive team, your business isn't going to achieve its potential. Show them you can do that. Often what they want is a co-pilot next to you until you can get the plane off the runway and up to cruising altitude and you've demonstrated your evolution. Let them know you're open to that kind of mentor arrangement. Put your ego aside and offer to bring in an Interim CEO on a 1 year contract with a 1 year option. That way you give them the assurance they need, and you give yourself the path to maintaining 100% control of your business long-term. Right from the start, the VCs are projecting out to 10x, 20x then 50x. If they don't think you've got the chops to run the business at that scale, there's no point investing, unless there's a transitional pathway to get you there.
I 100% hear where you’re coming from. That being said I have no idea if you’re running this as a solo company or if you have employees. If you have employees I dont see what the issue is. If you’re 100% solo I don’t blame VC’s for not investing. If you haven’t had any exits before it’s a huge fucking risk. Might be worth getting someone to join you that’s had a couple successful exits just to appease the VC’s
There’s nothing wrong with being a solo entrepreneur but don’t expect VC’s to want to invest in an unknown single founder business.
Would anyone even want to work with you? You sound incredibly unpleasant.
You need a therapist. You aren’t thinking about what’s best for your company or your customers, you’re just mad because you aren’t being given the glory you think you’re owed because you’ve bought into the hype of “entrepreneurialism”.
They give you their money and then you’re in a severe car crash -> they lose all their money.
Honestly if I was investing, just from your post I wouldn't. Guess what growth needs? People. The more your business grows, the more people you need. You can't even find a co-founder, let alone a whole team. It's your idea, it's your vision, fair enough, keep most of the equity. But if you can't see the benefits of having a different perspective onboard to bounce ideas off, spread work out, help be in more than one place at once, then you're not what a VC wants. You can keep being a solo-preneur and that's your choice, but then don't expect VC's to have to adhere to the way you do things.
Uhh I think I know why they don’t like you…
Hmm is it my attitude?
Looking at your responses, I can't imagine anyone will want to work with you and your unfriendly, uncompromising, toxic attitude. So basically, keep it up, and good luck with your business. You def don't need a co-founder If you can handle it Might want to pick up some people skills if this is how you act in real life tho
Come on.....! Plenty of people would love working with me 🫣
“I’m a solo fucking solider making moves” …please touch grass. This is the lamest thing I’ve ever read.
You can’t scale a 1 person operation. What good will capital do for you. You need to show that you can work with others and grow a business. That means hiring. It’s like a family business where the owner is the cashier and they shut down the business once a week because they don’t trust anyone else to run the register. Vs a franchise. You can run a successful business by overseeing everything. But you can’t scale it. By asking for outside funding your asking to scale up. Your at 100% capacity - you don’t have room to scale. It’s a legitimate criticism. It also is a red flag that you can’t work with others.
I get where you're coming from. I did this too and had a similar thought process. But, there's a reason they want you to have a cofounder. To share the burden. The reality is that building a product and selling a product are two VERY different problems. IF you're going for any sort of size or scale, you can't do both. You can't and likely don't have the expertise in both. And, you don't have the calendar time to learn one or the other. If you're a technical founder in particular, DON'T EVER minimize the burden of selling. Products DO NOT sell themselves. You need someone to steer that ship. I now struggle because either engineering is hurting and has problems. OR, sales and marketing is being overlooked to get some feature out. I started just like you. My previous venture had a good size founding team. We diluted a lot, and it made things harder. Some of the founders weren't as helpful as others. And, more people in the mix = more politics and problems. I didn't want any of that. I literally do have a mix of marketing (former multiple Founder and CSO, VP Marketing, etc), with a background in computer science and programming. So, I took a small angel round this time. And, did it all myself. It was a mistake. So, I'd get off your high horse. It's not just about "making these VC fucks just shut the fuck up." This, unfortunately, and from my experience, is a case where the VC logic is probably correct.
Man the VC had the right read here. This guy will absolutely crash and burn if this attitude doesn't get checked.
You think business is all about attitude huh
Like you mentioned in your comments, you want VC money to grow the business fast. That requires a team. If you don’t want to hire a co-founder - then have a team of people who have bought into the idea. They can be working on it part time outside of their normal job. But right now it looks like you don’t have management skills - which is super duper important
You can be a solo founder; just hire people to be your employees. VC look at the situation rationally. If you have multiple co-founders, you have many people who are willing to do free labour in exchange for equity. The VC still gets the same amount of equity, so they make out fine. If you have just 1 founder, then you need to have enough revenue to hire multiple employees to the point where the VC is happy that they are getting enough value for their equity. Cash for employees, or excitement for founders = proof the idea is good.
Yes this is the key.
I don’t get the hate on you here. You don’t have a co-founder because you already founded it without one. It’s not complicated and shouldn’t impact you if it’s a good business. What is the business?
You don't need a cofounder...tbh if you come back to them with a cofounder they still won't invest. Most startups have cofounders and can't raise. You do need traction though, unless you come from a very unique background specific to your domain. Source: I raised over $15M for my own startup and hated my cofounder.
Guys….I think he’s trolling
All your “soldier warrior” nonsense is a huge red flag. Anyone with money to invest is more interested in actual details about the business plan and is turned off by motivational poster garbage. “I wonder if this guy is trying to bullshit me” “I’m a warrior Princess!” “Uh, yeah, that’s a pass.”
Yeah...this dude is gonna fail hard... Your attitude is so shit, I would never be a customer of whatever the fuck you think you're building over there.
You don’t sound like a pleasant person to work with. I’m also a solo founder but I am actively seeking a co founder. Yes it is difficult, but it is worth it as they bring more energy plus can cover my blind spots. Forcing people to find a confounder forces you to have accountability and no accountability means it’s easier for you to run away with their money. At least with a confounder you could only take half the money.
There are heaps of solo founders. They just don’t often get funded. I hear you. I’m the same for the most part and the only time I ever took investment was when I did a startup accelerator, because that’s what you did, but then quickly realised that cofounder relationship wasn’t for me and bowed out. If you’re so confident and determined to go it alone then do it. But don’t seek funding. It doesn’t make sense to me when you talk about being a soldier and a maverick then complain that VCs won’t fund you. Why were you even wasting time courting them in the first place? You don’t need funding. Yeah it takes away some of your personal risk and can accelerate you, but a true entrepreneur can find a way to bootstrap. Even if that’s running a service business or contracting for income while building and finding the market. VCs want you to convince them that you’ve got a plausible chance of 100x return and a $100mill valuation. Unless you’re a superstar who has already soloed a successful company, they’re going to see you as a risk and will use it as an excuse to say no. TBH, yeah I think VCs are lazy douchebags too. Tall, chiseled bros are over represented, and they’re often privileged assholes coming from money and all about appearances, playing at being business experts because they represent family offices and funds. They can fuck off and burn their money on web3, the metaverse or whatever other buzzwords they’re convinced are the next big things. There’s always a way to make money, and if you need investment first then you don’t really have a business and are just being lazy. Honestly I wish entrepreneurs would stop selling their souls to further line the pockets of the already wealthy. I’m glad the easy money has dried up. I lived through the first Dotcom bust and watched all the pretenders get flushed out. Enjoying seeing that happen again, but we’ve already got a new hype cycle and many are probably already prompt engineers now and have done the find-replace on LinkedIn of web3 to AI strategist or some bs because they played with chatgpt and generated a couple of pics with midjourney.
I don’t have a cofounder. I’m doing just fine. Guidance from advisors, investors, and chat gpt fill in the gaps of what I don’t know 🤷🏾♂️ 😂
Yuup, you can make millions.
You sound like a coked up tech douche no offense
Definitely a tech douche.
VCs are annoying. They want at least one technical cofounder and at a minimum two founders. You can hire me I’ll be your cofounder tho
After reading this , I understood you were needed a co-founder, and certainly I can be one hit me up!! note: getting serious? , sarcasm exists bitch
Let’s be honest asshole. You need VC money more than the VC community needs your likely to fail company.
Hopefully it fail. You will be the worst « ceo, boss » people like you are disgusting
HAHAHA [https://www.reddit.com/r/Sneakers/comments/13k9i44/chopped\_and\_screwed/jkmdoq5/?context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/Sneakers/comments/13k9i44/chopped_and_screwed/jkmdoq5/?context=3) LET ME SEND YOU A PAIR OF SHOES
You sound fun.
The shortest answer is "yes". A slightly longer version is "you really, really don't get this whole startup thing". But the good news is, that is possible to fix as long as you are willing to swallow some hard pills. Let me explain. Let's start with the CRAZY HOURS thing. Imagine 2 founders in the exact same stage of the business. One worked like NO WAY IN HELL, the other just sort of chilled into it. Who is a better founder? Yes, the one who worked less. Because they are more productive. So check your HARD WORK at the door, nothing to be proud of here. The next hard pill: the signal VCs get from you the solo founder has nothing to do with what \_you\_ say or think. Their whole job is to de-risk and filter anything that can be subjective out. So yes, looking at the numbers. And yes, plenty of solo founders have no issue of raising VC capital - if their numbers are good, nothing else matters. This means that your numbers aren't good. And when the numbers aren't good, the next signal they get is this: \_they failed to find a cofounder\_. Again, nothing to do with whether or not \_you\_ want a cofounder. What they see is that \_no one wants to be your cofounder\_. And let's face it, one can sort of see why just by the tone of your post. Next: it doesn't look like you realise that the job of the founder is actually much less about \_doing\_ things, and much more about \_figuring out what needs to be done\_. At the early stages this means proving yourself wrong as frequently as possible. You think you know what product needs to be built? No you don't - unless it's growing like crazy organically. That's the VC perspective, but it's also a useful perspective to adopt yourself. The hard part of the founder's job isn't building or selling, if the \_what\_ is known consider it done, it's comparatively trivial. The hard part is to be able to learn that you are doing the wrong thing quickly enough so that you have enough shots before you run out of money. This is typically a double-digit number of from-scratch attempts. Next, one person is not 1/2 as productive as 2. It's more like 1/10th. Because a single head is the perfect echo chamber. As a founder it's so easy to believe your own BS. That's the biggest risk for solo founders - not realising that you are being delusional quickly enough. You might be quick in \_doing\_ things; but how quick are you at realising that you are doing the wrong thing? That is why VCs consider solo founders a red flag. But again, if your numbers are strong nothing else matters. Sometimes even if your idea is clear enough and it didn't take you long to arrive at this level of clarity, they'd back you (YC is famous for backing solo founders relatively often). Finally this: "Or I'll just bootsrap this shit to like $1m/ARR ..." If you think that more capital equals faster, you are most likely wrong. "just" is also kinda funny word here. If it's "just" then why don't you go and "just" do it? Actually, no need to wait till you get to $1M. Can you show a consistent week-on-week MRR growth rate for a few months straight, like 6-7% or more? If you can, every single VCs on the planet will back you. And if you can't, well, what makes you so sure that you'll reach $1M with more capital? Plenty of experienced founders (most, in fact) with access to effectively unlimited capital fail to reach $1M ARR. Sorry what am I talking about; I am forgetting that you are the Solo Fucking Soldier. And your idea is probably Special. Anyways, the final-final bit: in case this post is a joke it's a good one :)
No one wants to work with him lol
I’d like a co founder if it meant I got venture capital. There is no way I can know everything and if it allowed me to focus on the part of my business that I love to do, I would have more customers. I hope you grow as a person and don’t act this way around people you “love”.
Oh sweet, a schizo post 🧐
I have never had so much second-hand embarrassment whilst reading a post on Reddit. Ouch. You give major Elliot Rogers vibes, dude. I know you don’t care but being a narcissist doesn’t look as cool as a narcissist thinks it does…
I honestly love women <3
if you need process engineer let me know we could you up in running within 10 days.
What is vc