the investor who took the meeting
seed stage is for people who say yes fast. find them, and treat them like they took a bullet for you.
this week, had a call with an investor who saw a pitch in a crowded room. Dozens of founders presenting. Zero follow-up guarantee.
He said yes to a call anyway.
seed stage is full of people who say no. That's their job. They're screening for the 1-2% of deals worth their time.
But the seed investors who say yes—who pick up the phone, block time, engage with your idea—those are the ones building networks, not portfolios. They're placing small bets on people, not algorithms.
when they say yes, your job is to document it. Remember what they cared about. Remember what questions they asked. Remember which details moved them and which bored them.
that's your tuning fork for every pitch that comes next.
the best "no" you can get is the one that explains why. The one that teaches you something you can fix. But the "yes"—the person who believes you're worth their time—that's a relationship, not a transaction.
Treat it like one.