Last Week Today: Venture Capital 101 💸
August 14, 2023
Welcome to my Substack where I share the best of my week. Think of this as a catch-up between friends with life hacks & advice sprinkled in. Grab your beverage of choice and let's get started ☕️
Highlight of the week🔥
Yesterday I filmed my last podcast episode before I head off to Japan 🥹🥳 That means that there are only 2 more episode before the end of Season 1 of Cherie’s Corner. It’s been such an energizing process of (1) learning from my incredible guests and classmates (2) learning how to create long form content (3) learning how this format can help people advance in their careers. I couldn’t be happier with how this first half of the summer turned out. I’m thinking of creating Season 2 in the fall, but not completely sure. If you have any strong feelings one way or another (“keep it going!” or “don’t waste your time with it”), please let me know.
My next big step for this summer adventure is life on a matcha farm in Japan. See you guys very soon, but from a new location 👀 — stay tuned for vlog content! I can’t explain it, but I have a good feeling about this trip and I think it’ll fundamentally change my life (no pressure of course).
What’s cooking 🥘👩🏻🍳
In this episode, I interview my Stanford classmate, Chad Janis. He’s a serial entrepreneur who’s now working on his 3rd startup. We talk about lessons he learned from finance and entrepreneurship, his 3 week MBA application process (yes, that is very quick), and life on campus with his wife and their toddler. Finally, Chad provides a different, and maybe unpopular, point of view of Stanford’s curriculum and classes.
Use my special link to support Chad's nutrition gummy startup, Grüns: https://gruns.co/pages/vip?snowball=CHERIE15931
What I’m perplexed by: Venture Capital 101
Why are all the descriptions of venture capital so complex? Is it a gatekept institution? Absolutely. Let’s break it down to the basic fundamentals of what you need to know.
🌟 Demystifying Venture Capital 🌟 For those new to VC, let's dive into the basics 💼💰 In an episode of Cherie's Corner Podcast, I interview Ayushi Sinha, investor and student at Harvard Business School who provides one of the best explanations I've heard 👂🏻
🔍 What is VC? VC is a crucial part of the financial ecosystem where groups of funds and individuals pool resources from sources like wealthy individuals (think Mark Zuckerberg) and institutions (like Stanford) to invest in promising ideas and companies.
🌱 Early Stage VC: The Seed of Innovation. Early stage VC focuses on backing early-stage companies that are in their infancy, often pre-product and pre-revenue. 💡 VC firms here look for visionary founders with impact-driven ideas that could revolutionize industries. Early stage typically includes pre-seed and seed rounds, usually under $5 million.
💡 Late Stage VC: The Growth Stage. Moving a bit further along the timeline, late stage VC comes into play when a company has revenue and has demonstrated a path to profitability. The focus here shifts to business sustainability, market dynamics, and scaling strategies. Investors in this phase analyze spreadsheets and models, predicting how a company can consistently generate sales and remain competitive.
🌐 The Expertise Game. Every VC partner brings a specific thesis and expertise to the table. They not only have established connections with startup founders but also possess an in-depth understanding of their specialized industry or technology area. This unique insight, often referred to as their "secret sauce," is why entrepreneurs should entrust them with their investment.
💅🏻 In Case You Missed It: What I posted on IG
🎓 Introducing Ayushi, Harvard Business School '24
🔥 How Emily found her new grad job through “experiments”
💫 Help me choose my Stanford Fall classes
🤙🏻 Come with me to Stanford’s CoLab for entrepreneurs
🌸 Hot or Not: corporate tech jargon
❤️ Planning a vacation is serious business
Advice from: Emily Tang, Senior PM @ LinkedIn
I interviewed Emily in an episode of Cherie’s Corner. Here are 3 lessons Emily applies to turbocharge her career:
🚀 Bias for action: while at Stanford, Emily actively experimented with pre-med🔬, engineering🛠️ , and product management 👩🏻💻. She learned what type of work and environments energize her. She applies this mindset to all parts of her life.
🔥 Strike the right balance: in high-stakes presentations, the best flow state often emerges when you have a strong grasp of the material but avoid excessive preparation and sounding too rehearsed.
🙋🏻♀️ Imposter syndrome doesn't go away: HOWEVER, have faith in yourself, recognize your expertise, and embrace the fact that you are fully capable. In this internal battle, you are the only thing standing in your way.
Meme Reminder
XO Cherie
If you enjoyed this newsletter, please consider sharing Last Week Today with your friends and frenemies. I would highly appreciate it!
Keep the pod going! It's super helpful, especially for those of us preparing for b-school apps. Thanks for all the great work, Cherie :)