Can Startups Scale Humanistically? The Case for Founder Agency
There are two familiar founder leadership styles: Founder Mode and Founder Syndrome. However, there’s a third option – Founder Agency.
03/24/25
Conversation
the
Founders
The Art of the Ask: How to Secure the Right Funding for Your Startup
How to craft a compelling ask, avoid common fundraising pitfalls, and get your startup one crucial step closer to success.
A Key Trait For Entrepreneurial Success
Entrepreneurs consistently exhibit behaviors that center around one key trait, often determining their chances of success.
AI… the perfect complement to human insight?
Startups are agile, making them great environments to adopt new technologies like AI. But is agility alone enough?
Enriching leadership skills while moving from Founder to CEO
The shift from Founder to CEO is a big one. Here are three components that are crucial for making that transition.
Bigger isn’t always better. Better is better.
Growth doesn’t have to mean bigger. Growth can also mean improvement, and in most cases, better almost always leads to bigger.
Four common mistakes founders make during the VC fundraising process
Securing VC funding is not a guaranteed path to success and founders often make common mistakes that can hinder your fundraising efforts.
Fundraising is tough. Very tough. It took us 70 no’s before we got a yes.
Now that they're through with fundraising, this co-founder shares some of the tips he wishes he and his team knew before they started.
How to pitch early-stage VCs in today’s bear market
In today’s uncertain market climate, VCs are looking for an excuse to pass on a deal. How can you convince them to invest in you?
Taking parental leave as a founder: Setting you and your team up for success
Check Warner, General Partner at Ada Ventures talks about her journey as a mother, a boss, and an investor, and how each has informed an open conversation about having children while running a company.
Raising capital in a down economy
One seasoned founder talks through how to think about fundraising in a world that definitely isn't favoring the startup CEO.
Congratulations investors. We’ve now stooped to a new low of 1.9%.
Thought things were getting better? Think again. A frank discussion on our industry moving in the wrong direction, complete with rage and empathy.
A Founder’s Reading List for 2023
A meaty list of key readings for founders as they go into 2023, from fundraising advice, to lessons learned, to structuring your startup and more.
What the “Cult of the Founder” Gets Wrong
VCs have touted the phrase: “We invest in founders.” That system is broken, and we need to break the cycles that have created a limited field of successful entrepreneurs and stunted the growth of both ideas and profit.
The Power of an Equitable Parental Leave Policy
One Series A Founder & CEO walks through her experiences being pregnant while running her startup, and the leave policy she put in place to support parents in her workforce.