#5 Angelinvesting.it - From idea to Series A - Weekly Newsletter
10 commandments
3 Minutes to reflect
It took me a while, but I sorted out my investment thesis. Here are my 10 commandments divided into:
✅ 3 I only invest..
👍 3 I prefer to invest…
❌ 3 I avoid to invest…
🍍 1 Bonus
✅ I only invest in Europe. If a project comes from America all the way to my desk looking for money, something smells fishy. I have no understanding of the market in India, Africa, or China.
✅ I only invest in pre-seed and seed. In that phase where there is a product embryo and some indication of positive commercial feedback.
✅ I only invest in projects with short feedback loops AKA fully digital. Mistakes are the way to product-market fit. The faster the feedback, the faster you can improve.
👍 I prefer to invest in valuations that are between 10% and 30% above the benchmark. I want to be alongside ambitious entrepreneurs who don't undersell themselves.
👍 I prefer to invest in larger seed rounds that cover 2-3 times the plan's 12-months requirements. Unexpected events are the norm, and I want my startups to have a little extra cushion.
👍 I prefer to invest in founders with 2-3 stories of failures behind them. They have learned many lessons not with my money.
❌ I avoid investing in complex business models that I don't understand. I love simple digital funnels executed with mastery.
❌ I avoid investing in founders who have unkind words for another founder, clients or competitor. For me, courtesy is a value.
❌ I avoid investing in rounds with the usual suspects of angel investing (in certain seed rounds you tend to find the same investors). Here, the point is to use your own head, not to be a following sheep.
🍍 Bonus: Contrary to industry wisdom, even if I really don’t like it, I still might invest in solo-founders. This is a profession in which we seek outliers, and outliers can take many forms.
2 Resources to advance to pro-level
Talking about outliers. This book has the craziest stories of successful outliers
Why the majority of Canadian ice hockey players are born in the first few months of the calendar year?
How Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates achieved his extreme wealth?
How the Beatles became one of the most successful musical acts in human history?
How two people with exceptional intelligence—Christopher Langan and J. Robert Oppenheimer—end up with such vastly different fortunes?
The super Mario effect: An amazing Ted Talk about video games, learning and the importance of short feedback loops. Few minutes, highly recommended!
1 Reason to be happy
Not sure if it is a little bit like cheating, but this week I was on holiday with my family in the Polish mountains. I hope this photo would share a bit of my joy.
If you liked this newsletter, share it via mail to a friend or on your socials. It would mean a lot to me.
Have a great weekend,
Simone
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