TGR reflections: Beware of caveats

Originally published on LinkedIn

It’s been a couple of months since I launched The Green Room. One of the core benefits of TGR is that we keep everything confidential so founders can feel safe to say and ask anything. The downside of this approach is that the incredible amount of learnings that happen there, stay there. With this in mind, here’s my second attempt at sharing one of the common themes that has emerged among founders getting ready to fundraise.

Don’t caveat your experience.

During your next pitch (or any presentation) see if you catch yourself using phrases like:

  •  “this isn’t my area of expertise, but …”

  • “I’m not an expert, but …”

  • “Based on what we’ve learned so far”

  • “This might be my ____ showing, but …”

Selling your vision takes guts. It’s a vulnerable place to be, and sometimes, buffering your pitch with caveats like those ones can make you feel a little bit less exposed. Try and avoid this. Don’t qualify or defend your experience before you need to. Most of the time, all you’re doing is highlighting a bias that they probably wouldn’t have thought of if you hadn’t brought it up.

This is particularly common among female founders. And I’m particularly sensitive to it, because my Managing Director called me out for doing it myself, and I’m glad he did. I’ve worked hard to stop doing it - and it’s increased my overall confidence as a qualified investor and industry expert. I’ve earned a right to sit at this table.

No one has all the answers. It would be a red flag if they did. You don’t need to hide gaps or areas of growth, but highlighting them can contradict the confidence you have in what you’ve built.


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