Who hasn’t heard about Tim Ferriss? An author of several published bestsellers, a podcaster, a self-proclaimed guinea pig willing to test new things on himself and share the experiences… And also an angel investor who has been involved in several early-stage startups which by now are household names globally. You can’t attribute the ability to spot future ubers and shopifys among thousands of startups just to dumb luck. It takes experience, patience and determination — in addition to being lucky, of course.
I believe that from anything that you are reading, watching or hearing you can remember only a limited number of things. You can make as copious notes as you can but they will be soon forgotten. Unless, of course, reviewed regularly. But how many of us have the discipline to do that?
My solution to this is to pick 3 things that resonated the most only. The number is non-negotiable and is not dependent on the quality of the material. Even the most earth-shuttering and paradigm-changing experience has to be drilled down to just 3 things to remember.
Here are my 3 takeaways or lessons after watching an interview with Tim Ferriss on YouTube:
Lesson #1
When starting your angel investment journey stay with the things that you are familiar with. Look for companies that offer solutions to the problems that you have. Or, pick those teams who promise to solve the issues that you understand well. Support products and services that you feel you might be prepared to recommend to your friends and contacts.
Lesson #2
In many respects, angel investing is kind of a real-world MBA program. You will learn a lot along the way. These lessons and relations that you build will remain with you. But be prepared that you may not recover your tuition fee in full. Be conservative and start with writing small cheques (Tim mentioned the amount of USD 10,000; obviously it could be smaller in other geographies) and be patient.
Lesson #3
Startups are seldom an overnight success. Some of them take longer to develop than an average marriage lasts. Because of that, it is important to choose people that you like to work with. Building a startup is never a linear growth process and a smooth ride. The right chemistry with the people involved will make this more tolerable.
And, as a bonus, a final suggestion from Tim. You can not underestimate the role of serendipity in angel investing. But to take advantage of that you have to be present where the action is. Being able to operate in real life provides you with a huge competitive advantage.
For those willing to watch the full interview and select their own top 3 lessons here is the link — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZW_Aml5YlY
This note was first published on Medium.com on 30 August 2024.
