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“What you did was incredible,” the associate at the venture capital firm, “Donald Ventures,” said to me. “I’ve never seen anyone handle ‘Raul’ like that.”
We were walking out of a diligence meeting at DV’s office on Sand Hill Road. This meeting was the last meeting we would have with Raul’s fund before they gave us a term sheet.
Raul was a legendary tough guy. He was only 5′ 4″, but he was intimidating. His words were biting, and he didn’t like hearing bullshit.
The questions Raul wanted to ask were around my background and the background of one of my co-founders, “Randy.” I knew the minute Raul got started what he wanted to hear.
I didn’t use any magic tricks or deception. You don’t need any of that.
All you need to do to build credibility is be prepared, be brutally honest, and get ahead of the story.
Raul’s question to me was simple. “What am I going to learn about you that the references you provided aren’t going to tell me?”
Raul was really asking me, “Are you going to be honest with me about your shortcomings?” I didn’t mince my words.
