You only need one.
You only need one term sheet.
An entrepreneur at The Family took this very seriously, racking up our record for rejections by VCs… We stopped counting once it got over 100.
I can’t think of 100 good VCs in Europe or even in the world. This was a problem where determination went wrong, focusing on the short-term result instead of looking at the big picture.
The entrepreneur’s job isn’t winning a battle; it’s winning the war.
And one very bitter lesson that we’ve experienced at The Family is that bad VCs don’t let good companies emerge.
So if you talk to all the good VCs and none of them want to invest, the alternative shouldn’t be to reduce the quality of people you’re talking to. Instead, it should be focusing on how to reach your next milestone without needing capital.
Bad capital is toxic and rejection is tiring.
Raising money takes so much time, and you shouldn’t be doing that all the time instead of running your business. After all, the true gatekeeper to startup success isn’t VCs or investors, it’s customers. And pitching to 300 VCs is not the best way to work on your pitch to customers.
You’re worried that you won’t go fast enough without raising money?
Worry more about looking cheap because you spend all your time getting rejected by people who aren’t all that bright.
And really, this kind of rejection hurts - it is hard to not be affected by it. Even if you keep showing incredible determination on the outside, on the inside it has a lasting effect.
There aren’t that many VCs in the world that are worth the trouble.
So let’s not fool ourselves. Our job at The Family is to help you avoid losing time figuring out which ones are worth it. If you aren’t able to raise with the good ones, then we’ll give you the opportunity to push and find alternative paths. What really matters is your traction - if you have traction, eventually investors will follow.
P.S.: Never take a rejection personally. It’s not worth it, and a lot of good people can be wrong about a startup at the beginning - especially us at The Family.
The Family’s next startup batch will happen remotely, starting in January! If you’re an entrepreneur willing to grow your startup in the best conditions, apply here. Get ready for an intense 6-week program: getting smart advice, accessing top operators and fundraising with the best investors.