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Project Control
Read time 1.9 minutes.
One of the biggest mistakes I see startup founders making is failure to project control when negotiating with VCs. Worse, many actually purposely do this because they feel that it makes them look better to have reliable advisors and teams around them.
What exactly am I talking about?
Many founders say things like “I’ll share with my legal team for review” or “ I’ll share with my advisors”.
The reality is that when you say this to a VC (or anyone you are negotiating with), you are telling them that you do not have the ability to make a decision and that you are leaving the decision in the hands of others. Especially when talking to VCs, I’ve seen conversations end the moment those phrases were uttered.
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To be clear, I am NOT saying you can’t seek advice from your team or advisors, but don’t tell the other side. Say, “We’ll review this and get back to you by Friday”. This communicates that you are in control, you’ve set a deadline, and you’ll have an answer by then.
The next time you are negotiating, remember that people want to negotiate with a decision-maker. As soon as you position yourself as anything other than the final decision-maker, the other side won’t have much interest in talking to you. This is worse when dealing with VCs because they will no longer see you as the leading force behind the company. And many will no longer be interested in backing a founder who can’t lead.
Do you project control when talking to VCs? |
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