I got rejected by 144 investors before raising $150M for my $200M+ rev/year startup.
After 144 rejections, I started questioning our approach.
Were we solving the right problem?
What were we doing wrong?
Why weren’t investors seeing what we were seeing?
Were we the right team to build this?
We tried everything: different pitch angles, new deck structures, and reframing the problem.
Then came the 145th meeting, where we closed our first growth round.
That yes made everything worth it. But getting there took years of mistakes and hard work.
We went through a lot of trial and error just to figure out what resonates with investors.
We tried dozens of approaches to figure out what made investors engage.
Some landed, most didn't. But each iteration taught us something about what builds conviction versus what just sounds good on paper.
And once we cracked that code, our Series C closed faster than expected.
And today, I see so many founders in the exact same position I was in 10 years ago: grinding through rejections, questioning everything, and trying to figure out what works.
So today I want to give you the resource I wish I had back then:
Something that shows you exactly how to structure these conversations and navigate the entire process
(because the fundraising cycle can be a big distraction and take a toll on you as a founder).
So I've partnered with Notion's Startups Team to create the essential fundraising resource that helps you avoid the mistakes that cost me years.
Here's what you are getting:
• The actual decks I used to raise $150M for Super[.]com (Series B, C)
• 50 real examples from funded startups like Eleven Labs and Artisan AI
• A searchable database of 10,000+ investors - angels, VCs, and accelerators you can reach out to immediately (this alone would take months to build manually)
• An AI-powered fundraising agent built into Notion with step-by-step prompts (no separate ChatGPT needed)
Want access?
• Like and share this post
• Comment "FUNDRAISE"
• Follow me so I can DM you the link
I'll send it over ASAP.
P.S.: If you are serious about fundraising (now or in the future), you should grab it right away.
Dear pre-seed & seed investors,
What's the best pitch deck you've ever seen?
Could be a new deck OR an old one that sets the bar
[reply and I'll thread the best]
@sabakarimm Congratulations, and thank you for all the value you're providing to all of us, your nearly 37M followers!!
For reference, there are 107K people in the image below
@RichMulholland I also remember one quote in the oppsite direction: (something like) better ask and come across as stupid once than staying stupid for the rest of the life:)
I always look forward to these free workshops that build up to the next cohort.. especially excited for the Fundraising Fundamentals workshop (5/8) bc whether or not you join the program, it's still super valuable
tag a founder who you think could benefit!
link below👇
Want to learn how to win over an investor with ChatGPT? You can't
All jokes aside, it does make for a great preparation tool that can save you lots of 🕰️
Join me friday for a free workshop on how you can utilize chatGPT for your fundraise + talk about FWC6
more info👇
Important advice for founders:
Resist the temptation to tell investors about multiple exciting paths your company could follow. Your pitch should not sound like a choose your own adventure game
Instead, walk them thru a specific story aligned to your vision. Show conviction
Fundraising is not what most first-time founders think it is
What it actually is? Mostly just getting people to do what they said they would do
Welcome to Project Management Hell ❤️🔥
thread👇
I've had founders tell me they’re great at winning over a room in person but struggle on Zoom. They often ask for tips on being more compelling on video
My 1st rec? Better AV + lighting👀
Any quick takes from VCs / founders out there? What makes a someone captivating over Zoom?