Johnny Waterschoot

Innovation | Startups | Venture Capital | Strategy | Project Management | SelfDefense | Let's connect:

[Charly Wargnier @DataChaz]

true af

[Norn-Queen Kya @NornQueenKya]

New animation trailer with Titus hits hard:

- He is a demigod out of time
- Fighting for a golden age that can never dawn again
- The primarch reborn demands the impossible
- But only in death does duty end

[Shane Parrish @shaneparrish]

How Ed Stack turned Dick's Sporting Goods into a $20B empire:

1. Never rely on the kindness of strangers.

2. Your name is your biggest asset.

3. The person who talks the least is usually the decision maker.

4. Sometimes the most profitable decision on a spreadsheet is the worst decision for a business.

5. Good businesses don't need debt and bad ones can't handle it.

6. When the data and the anecdotes differ, you're measuring the wrong thing.

7. Trust isn't earned in the easy times; it's earned in the fire.

8. People are rarely buying just your product.

9. Give the underdog a chance. They want it more.

10. Not knowing what you're doing can be an asset.

11. All money comes with strings.

12. Your competition always has something to teach you.

13. Always bet on yourself.

14. Learn from mistakes, but don't over-learn them.

15. "The moment a business stops evolving, the moment its leaders sit back and think, 'Everything's good,' that's when it starts to fail."

16. Problems are opportunities to add value.

17. Play the game to win.

18. Become someone people want to help.

19. Investment bankers are not your friends.

20. Manically focus on the numbers.

21. The recipe is boldness mixed with caution.

22. What you get out of anything is directly proportional to what you put in.

23. The spreadsheet is not the customer.

24. Arguing teaches you how to think.

25. If you go into a deal with a win-win mindset, it almost always works out.

26. Clever excuses don't make anything better.

27. Every business is someone's irrational dedication.

28. The most important element of success is perseverance.

29. Always let people keep their dignity.
30. The cost of making others happy is losing yourself.

31. Do right for the company. Do right for society. You can't prosper unless the community around you prospers.

32. Believing in someone before they believe in themselves changes everything.

[Jacob Navok @JNavok]

This is what I think many have failed to grasp. T2, Epic, Roblox’s competition is going to be OpenAI, xAI, etc.

The big tech companies are already making interactive world models that will compete with game experiences.

This is why Mark Zuckerberg moved his bets away from XR and into AI.

That is the battlefield where cutting edge tech and the network effect will merge.

Games, AI, and tech are really part of the same network effect. Metcalfe’s law states that the value of a network is proportional to the square of the number of its users. In other words, the platforms with the most creators and players generate the most value.

When Wada-san predicted in 2004 that Networks will transform the game industry, he meant it from a technical perspective. But he knew, and I know because I spent a decade with him, that ultimately it was about the Network of players.

And so we return to the start. Games are no longer a content business. Square Enix knows it too, but the sun set on their opportunity to transition to a Network business. There were a few million players of Final Fantasy 16.

There have been 14.45bn lifetime plays of Grow a Garden so far, with 21m+ peak CONCURRENTS (meaning lifetime players substantially higher). Microsoft sees this too, which is why Everything (and thus Nothing) is an Xbox.

The future is unfolding before us, and given that we’re all free to spend our time as we wish (and are apparently spending it watching TikTok and playing Grow a Garden)

Metcalfe’s law is the future the majority of the audience have already decided with their wallets and time that they want for games. Apparently that's growing gardens on Roblox.

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@MVPAward Congrats to all. and especially you and the team @vanhybrid ;-)

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@damengchen @levelsio 2nd one likely just a bot? 🤔

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@Vantekai_ @Austen @punk6529 Chicken jockeys?

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@wimdemeere Because in the grim darkness of the far future there is only war. ;-)

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

Check out how Roularta strengthens its cybersecurity with The Collective. Contact The Collective for more information or to discuss your own cybersecurity needs.
https://t.co/09pI5CQ33d

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@wimdemeere What did it have to say about taiwan? 😜

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@wimdemeere Damn I missed it... Quick, what is the new narrative?

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@wimdemeere Here's to @elonmusk following you 😜

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@elonmusk Not only America...

[ᐱ ᑎ ᑐ ᒋ ᕮ ᒍ @Andr3jH]

my DMs mere four hours after announcing my defense tech startup

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

Check out my latest article: Perpetual Beta: Are You Evolving or Standing Still as a Leader? https://t.co/kXn8jVdCOn via @LinkedIn

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@AldiUK Who else came here through the critical drinker? #hilariousburn

[The Critical Drinker @TheCriticalDri2]

Burned by Aldi. Legends.

[Max Pog @maxpogu]

Join for free: a virtual conf with 1000+ LPs, Family Offices, Funds of Funds, & GPs of VC, PE, RE, & Hedge Funds – Nov 26 on Zoom. $100M+ & $1B+ Single FOs, LPs, FoFs & other investment firms have confirmed their participation. Like & reply "+" to get the invite in DM (we're at 1200+ regs now).

Our previous event attracted attendees with a combined AUM of $1.6 trillion, including: 270 Single Family Offices, 90 Multi Family Offices, 180 Funds of Funds, 300 LPs, 570 angels, & hundreds of GPs.

For the first time, we're adding a virtual Private Networking Lounge with LPs, FoFs & FOs in addition to speakers' Zoom panels & presentations (US, EU, & UAE):

1) $1B+ Family Office panel: In what and how are we investing? RE, PE, VC & other alternatives – Shubhra Jain @ Tarsadia SFO ($2B); Neetu Puranikmath @ Cooper Family Office.

2) 2x+ DPI Club: How to return your LPs more than expected? – Justin Stebbins @ Northgate Capital ($5B); Douglas Mellinger @ Clarion Capital Partners ($1.8B)

3) Family Office Trends 2025 – Uli Maybach @ Maybach Foundation; Christian D Evans @ Pax Fortis Multi-Family Office. Moderated by Valerie Bertele @ Yellow Rocks.

4) 1st-generation UHNWI strategies: 1. Launch a SFO, or 2. Join a Multi-Family Office, or 3. Other ways to preserve & grow capital? – Shane Neman @ SFO / Neman Ventures; Lisa Morris @ AKS Single Family Office.

5) How to Grow AUM of a Fund in 2025: Best Fundraising Practices for PE, VC, RE, & Hedge Funds – David Butler @ Argosy Real Estate Partners ($3.6B); Jaclyn Baumgarten @ IDC Ventures ($650M AUM, IDC Network $2.5B); Ed H. @ Arena LP ($3.4B).

6) Why FoFs exist, and why LPs accept double-layer fees? – Chuck Tedeschi @ Top Tier Capital Partners ($8B); Scott Sherman @ Mesa Lane Capital Partners.

7) How to harness AI for sourcing, evaluation, and reporting? – Logan Allin @ Fin Capital.

8) How Governments Can Attract Capital, Innovations & Talent by Focusing on Venture Studios? – Preslav Panayotov @ VentureWaves Innovation Network

9) State of Venture Q3 2024 – Benjamin Lawrence @ CB Insights.

10) $2T growing Private Credit Market & what it means for Private Credit Secondaries – Brett Hickey @ StarMountain Capital ($4B+).

11) Collaboration between Family Offices, Venture Studios, VC Funds, & Corporations – Ahmed Nasser Al Nowais @ Annex Investments; Daniela Plattner @ Palm Venture Studios; Marc Wesselink @ venturerock.

12) What do our private banking clients want to invest in? Our portfolio construction – Orley J. Pacheco @ Wells Fargo ($2T)

@margauxmaccoll @ @TechCrunch, @SaacksAttack @ @BusinessInsider, Abby Schultz @ @barronsonline, @theMetz will moderate some of the panels

More speakers/moderators on the website.

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@TheCriticalDri2 Oh no ... does this mean we won't be having a Drinker's review on this movie? 😲The horror...

[Johnny Waterschoot @johnny_watersc]

@maximreed @eurostarfr @Eurostar We can go get a free glass of water at the catering car on our train 🤪