PS#062: A New Year & A Personal Update…

I wanted to take a minute to start 2024 by giving you an update on my journey.

For those of you who are newer to this community, I’ll give a quick recap. A little over six years ago today, I was an aspiring investor trying to break into venture capital.

It was brutal.

I was being rejected right and left. Application after application, interview after interview, my email was piling up with rejections. It was hard. Really hard.

Deep down, I knew I could do this. I just needed a chance. Eventually, I realized that I had to stop playing by the rules and had to start doing the job.

Once I took on this mindset, everything changed.

Ultimately, I found my current role in venture capital, where I’ve been ever since (a rarity in its own right). That journey is what inspired me to create ​Sand Hill Prep​ and ​Preferred Shares​.

It’s what has inspired me to share my journey and (hopefully) demystify what it takes to break into venture capital (and excel at it).

So, today, I’m going to take a break from teaching and share a bit more about my career path…

An update on my career…

I started my career back in 2018, launching a ~$40M fund focused on early stage investing.

Fast forward to today and I’ve had the privilege to launch several funds, invest across early and late stage opportunities, build teams, and manage my portfolio through multiple exits.

Over the past two years, as our firm has grown, I’ve spent my time and energy on scaling and building our portfolio for that initial ~$40M fund. I’m really proud of the work we’ve done and wanted to share some of the highlights with you.

1. Building my first investment team.

First, I’ve built a team of investors underneath me, who are now driving the funds theses and deals processes.

Many consider venture investing to be an individual sport, but I have found building a strong team to be significantly more rewarding. Even more so, my team’s ability to challenge me and help me think differently has helped me develop as an investor. It’s probably the most important investment I’ve made in my career thus far (i.e., building a stellar team) and certainly the most important investment of 2023.

2. My first fund-changing exit.

Second, we had our first major exit this year.

This was a game changer for our fund and positions us to exceed the 3-5x returns expected for a venture capital fund. This was one of my initial investments, a company I had supported and worked with for years, that finally achieved that highly successful outcome. It’s honestly a bit surreal. It’s one thing to deploy capital, but it’s an entirely different thing to see the venture capital power law in effect (especially from one of your team’s investment decisions).

To put it all together, we are currently a top performing fund for one of this size and vintage.

3. Almost fully deployed.

Third, we’re almost fully deployed.

We’ve got a bit of capital left, but we are down to the last 1-2 deals. When I started, that seemed like a TON of capital to deploy. Now, we’re almost done. The portfolio is pretty much constructed and it’s about supporting these companies on their journeys (alongside launching another fund of course!).

There’s a lot of potential and a lot left to learn. I’m so excited to keep growing and learning in this next stage of my career.

Trust, but verify.

If you’ve been following me over the past few years, you’ve probably listened to my advice in some way or another.

You’ve trusted me.

I don’t take this lightly. I’m sharing my progress today to show that this isn’t just talk. I take my own medicine and eat my own cooking, if you will. I’m going to keep sharing everything I learn with the hopes that it will give each of you an advantage on your own journey.

The good news? So far, it all seems to be working.

Thank you.

And, finally, thank you.

Thank you for following. Thank you for engaging. Thank you for helping me grow and become a better investor.

It’s been an incredible year seeing so many of you break into venture capital, make investments, share deal flow, build relationships, and create your own mark on this industry.

2023 was an amazing year, and I can’t wait to see what 2024 has in store.

So, again, thank you.

And, as always, don’t be a stranger. Reach out, keep engaging, and I’ll keep sharing everything I learn.

Good luck to all of you in 2024!