Seeking useful patterns wherever they appear.
The two drivers of repeatable venture-scale financial returns in any given market are (a) talent, and (b) capital. Last week I wrote about some of the long-term trends that are driving many of the world s most talented people to prefer Seattle over San Francisco. Since money generally chases talent, I thought it made sense to continue...
I spent the weekend in Palo Alto at my 20th business school reunion. My wife and I met in grad school and moved to Seattle not long after, but most classmates chose to stay in the Bay Area. That s not surprising given the region s extraordinary economic performance, especially for anyone working in tech. I visit continue...
I learned a lesson 20 years ago that I ve carried with me ever since. Whenever I look at a business, I can t help but think about it in terms of motions , discrete actions that, taken together, either combine to create a fluid, self-reinforcing whole or (much more often), tug and strain at each other in continue...
The best startup CEOs are master storytellers, weaving a vision of the future so compelling that investors and prospective employees fight for a seat on the rocketship. As a startup investor or student of business organizations, it s helpful to develop some simple heuristics that can help you get beyond the bullshit to see what s really continue...
A year ago I shared my frustration about failing to recruit a more diverse group of founders to Techstars Seattle. In that post, I also asked for help from anyone who had experience or connections to share that could help me do better this year. The response was overwhelming. I was introduced to so many continue...
A month ago I got a call from a civic leader I hugely admire asking me to join the board of Friends of Waterfront Seattle. I knew I d say yes from the minute she asked; today that decision became official; this post explains why it matters and why you should care. Friends of what? Unless continue...
Earlier this year, I posted about my failure to attract founders from underrepresented groups to Techstars Seattle and asked for help from the community. I received an incredible response, both in the public comments on that post and even more powerfully in private outreach from leaders in a wide range of underrepresented communities.Thank continue...
Phin Barnes posted this morning on his working style with founders in his portfolio. Phin is one of the founding partners in the wildly successful early-stage VC firm First Round Capital, and as is often the case in media coverage of the VC business his personal brand and the firm s brand are often continue...
I ve been repeating myself more than usual, which is usually a sign that I need to write something down I ve written before about the valuation stack in venture capital (or how a startup is like a t-shirt), and more recently on how institutional LPs view regionally-focused managers. This piece ties those two ideas together to shed light on continue...
It s essential to have friends who make you think. Venkat Rao is my most reliably mind-expanding friend; his Ribbonfarm blog and newsletter regularly rewire my brain with new frameworks and unexpected perspectives. This post was inspired by his latest newsletter / tweetstorm: Roadmapping for Flatlanders (go ahead and read it, I ll wait). Because I spend nearly continue...