Taking other people’s money to fund your startup changes your life in ways you cannot predict. And many of those ways are negative.
I meet with dozens of entrepreneurs a week. No matter how they couch it, they are asking for money. They come to me wanting to know first, will I invest myself? Doubtful, unless I already know them really well, know the company really well, and have some spare cash. Those often don’t occur simultaneously.
Okay, then will I connect them to someone who will invest? At the very least (or perhaps it’s the very best), they ask me how to get ready for funding. What do they need to do?
I always tell them to forget it.
To someone laboring in a cash-strapped startup, money often seems to be the endgame. “When I get funded,” the entrepreneur thinks, “I can build a prototype, hire a development team, go to market, scale more quickly, and beat my competition.” All problems will go away.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Startup Professionals Musings: Taking Other People’s Money Changes Your Life
Author: Francine Hardaway, Ph.D.
