Communication

Thanks for all the pitches so far. Quick reminder: Keep it simple, skip the 5-year projections and focus on solid 12-month forecasts. I want to see expense breakdowns, unit economics, clear CAC. Here are some tips I compiled to help you craft a business plan. 👇 https://t.co/UsfaNKgwSi

Sequoia founder Don Valentine: “The art of storytelling is incredibly important” “The art of storytelling is incredibly important. And many—maybe even most of the entrepreneurs who come to talk to us can’t tell the story. Learning to tell a story is incredibly important because that’s how the money works. The money flows as a function of the stori... See more

Peter Thiel on a common red flag he sees in startup pitches “There’s a pattern recognition where if I see a presentation that says, ‘We have this great idea and we’re going to make money in one of these 5 ways: A, B, C, D, or E.’… That’s always sort of alarming and not very inspiring.” Thiel continues: “It’s always much better if people say we’r... See more

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Sequoia’s Doug Leone explains what made Drew Houston’s pitch for Dropbox great Dropbox raised a $1.2 million seed round at a $5 million valuation from Sequoia in 2007. Eleven years later, the company went public at a valuation of $9 billion. In hindsight it’s a home run, but in 2007 Dropbox was far from a sure thing. Online storage was a commodit... See more