The Who Over the What in Capital Raising
The Who Over the What: Capital Raising Secrets from 100+ Investor Conversations
Founders, fund managers and real estate sponsors who are raising capital and want to rethink where they spend their time and who they spend it with.
Five points worth keeping
- Choose the room before the plan. Richard says the right partner, employees and investors matter more than a list of bullet points. In his view, the who will inform the what and help it self-correct.
- Proximity can close large deals. He recalls that Tony Robbins named the power of proximity as one of three key points. Robbins described getting a $400 million deal done by being in the right room with the right people.
- Respect the allocator's time. People who allocate capital may have 100 plus LLCs or K1s and hundreds of employees. Richard says an aggressive follow-up the same afternoon can make someone unwilling to make an introduction.
- Raising is harder than expected. Richard says most people find out the hard way that raising capital is harder than they thought. He adds that it has become harder over the last two years because of high interest rates and some investors seeing cut distributions or losses on floating rate real estate deals.
- Give fundraising real time. Many managers focus on development or building the company and spend about two hours a week on investors. Richard says a fund has little to manage if no one focuses on getting the money in.
The short version
Richard C. Wilson opens with a point he has heard from families worth $100 million or more and from billionaires. Who you decide to spend your time with matters more than what you decide to do. He applies it to business, saying the right partners, team members and investors in the room tend to shape and correct the plan.
He also covers practical mistakes. Allocators are busy, so aggressive follow-ups can cost a raiser an introduction. Many fund managers set a three month goal and find it harder than expected. Others spend no more than two hours a week on raising capital and have no full-time head of investor relations.
From the source
- Richard C. Wilson has run the Family Office Club for 18 years and hosted 300 live events.
- Investor summits feature 75 to 100 plus speakers over two or three days.
- Tony Robbins told Richard that proximity helped him get a $400 million deal done by being in the right room.
Sources
From Richard C. Wilson's Centimillionaire Strategies YouTube channel: The Who Over the What: Capital Raising Secrets from 100+ Investor Conversations. Quotes come from the video captions, lightly edited for readability. Figures are the speakers' own estimates and experience.
General education only. Not legal, tax or investment advice.
Worth quoting
"Who you decide to spend your time with matters more than what you decide you're going to do."
"The person who is raising capital usually has exponentially more time on their hands than the person allocating the capital."
"Most people have found out the hard way that raising capital is harder than you thought it would be."
Related questions
- How do I value an early-stage company with no revenue?You value it on proof instead of earnings.
- How do I negotiate valuation with an early investor?Start with a valuation you can defend with traction and numbers, then expect the investor to push back.
- What is a pre-seed round and who invests in it?A pre-seed round is the earliest outside money a startup raises, often before it has real revenue.
Questions about this video
Why does Richard say the who matters more than the what?
He says billionaires and families worth $100 million or more told him that who you spend time with matters more than what you decide to do. In business, the right partners, team and investors help the plan correct itself.
Why is following up on emails a risk with investors?
Allocators are often busy, travel and get hundreds of emails. Richard says aggressive follow-up can show a lack of respect for their time and make them less willing to introduce you.
How much time do many capital raisers spend on investors?
Richard says many spend no more than about two hours a week. He notes they often have no full-time head of investor relations.
Put this into practice with the ready to raise checklist. See all capital raising mindset resources.
