122. You Can't Convince Investors They're Wrong feat. Rachel McCrickard, CEO @ Motivo Health
You can't convince investors they're wrong.
That statement could be the whole episode followed my one minute of silence for refection š§
(I'll add that both founders and funders should pause for reflectionāfor different reasons. But that's a topic for another day.)
In the meantime, I think Rachels' story will resonate with every founder.
Read Rachel's original post about fundraising on LinkedIn.
About SpringTime Ventures
SpringTime Ventures seeds high-growth startups in healthcare, fintech, logistics, and marketplace businesses. We look for founders with domain expertise, forging a path with a truly transformative technology. We only invest in software-based businesses in the USA. We bring a people-focused approach, work quickly, and reach conviction independently. Our initial check size is $600k. You can learn more about us and our approach.Ā Ā
About Rich Maloy
Richās mission is to rebuild the American dream through entrepreneurship. He believes technology gives all people the opportunity to grow, learn and earn. He is a Managing Partner at SpringTime Ventures and the host of the VC Minute podcast. With prior careers in finance and sales, he's been focused on the startup ecosystem for over a dozen years. He's a father of two young children and loves sci-fi, skiing, and video games. Ā
When you get negative feedback here's what I would say about that.I have never been able to convince an investor that believes something that they were wrong about it.Maybe other people can,but to me,if they say,this is why I don't have conviction about your company,I'm like,cool,nice to meet you,okay,bye.I just receive the feedback,"I hear you.It sounds like we're not the best fit for you.Point well taken."I have tried before.I remember one that passed on us and I was actually frustrated with them because they went all the way to talking to our customers and they booked these calls with our customers.They booked these calls with some of our board members and then they decided to pass,and then they canceled all those calls.And so I felt like,I felt like you should have just gone forward with those calls because you asked our customers for this time and they set aside this time for you.So I sent him back a lengthy email about all the reasons that he was saying that they weren't gonna invest,and the reasons that he was wrong.And it was completely a waste of my time.He's passed,he's done it's fine.I don't usually take this approach,but a few of my early advisors I remember used to tell me like,prove them wrong by winning.I don't really have one of those,like,I'll show you.I'm more like,oh man,that hurts.What I really struggled with is believing that investors knew better than I did.So when an investor would pass,I would often think they know,and I'm wrong.Probably other founders are like,they're wrong and I'm right.But I wasn't that way.And I've had to kind of grow in my thinking of I actually know more about my business and the industry of clinical supervision than literally anyone.I am well-versed to have an opinion on this subject and to know my market.And if they don't see it,that's cool.And maybe it was something I can do better or different.That's cool too.I'll take that feedback.Or maybe they just don't see it.And that's okay too.But there's enough other people who will see it,so I'm gonna just move on to the next one.
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