I decided to turn my thread into a medium article
I just published How Desperation Drove Me to Use Twitter to take 1,128 Meetings to Raise the First $3M of RareBreed…
I'm from Baltimore, I went to public schools, I dropped out of college my junior year of college because I got a top secret clearance and got a job a Northrop Grumman, started making 6 figures at 21, quit that job to start 2 startups over 6 years with 1 exit, and now I'm a VC
I got a
#story
to tell. This is my North Star. This is why I am going to change how Pre-Seed
#Funding
is done. This is why I'm soon to be your favorite VC favorite
#VC
. Message me if you want to help this founder or help me help founder like her
#startup
Founder. I don't want to hear you are raising $XXXX for XX months of runway. When you raise capital, you're typically raising to get to key metrics to be able to raise more capital. Knowing that, tell me what KPIs you plan to hit with your raise
#vc
#startups
#funding
This is the face of:
A Venture Capitalist
-People are always shocked when they find out what I do for a living. Let's fight stereotypes with the hash tag
#ThisIsTheFaceOf
.
Let's keep it going and smash a bunch of stereotypes!
As I'm a little more then 30 mins away from testifying to congress at 2pm est on the importance of allowing fund of 150M or less to have up to 600 LP which you can see here -
I must say I clean up well
🧵 1/ I regularly hear founders, especially underrepresented founders, getting upset that they have to show traction and work so hard to raise. Compared to a White guy from Stanford who's done far less than them but can raise money with just a deck. well here's the secret
1/15 An oldie but goodie, some light holiday reading - What I look for in a pitch deck
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
I can't explain the frustration or better yet the embarrassment I feel after becoming so scared and anxious just because a cop car pulls up behind me or beside me. I'm doing absolutely nothing wrong but that fear hits like a ton of bricks every time
Today I hit another milestone. As a Black man from Baltimore who is a college drop out, I had the honor of speaking to a graduate-level class today at Harvard. I mean how dope is that. From Baltimore living out of a truck to speaking to a class at Harvard. Momma, we made it!!
Founders, please be kind to yourself. Sometimes when building a startup, things won't always go as planned. Sometimes things flat out won't go at all. but it's not the end of the world, it doesn't make you a bad founder or a failure.
I just got a full scholarship for VC University Online Presented by Startup
@BerkeleyLaw
,
the National Venture Capital Association, and Venture Forward.
I'm about to have VC training certification from both Stanford & Berkeley. 2020 is about to be my breakout year
#vc
#startup
Founders, especially underestimated founder, please please please don't use passive language. Don't say things like "I think", "About", "We could", "We hope". Just tell me what you are doing. Speak with confidence (even if you aren't 100% confident. It's part of the game).
Just went into the bank for the first time and forever and there was a young man handling my transaction. I asked him what his goals were, he said moving on to the investment side of things. Told him what I did and if I could make a few intros for him. He said he was alright 🤷🏾♂️
The best advice I got as a
#founder
was to stop trying to pitch investors and get customers first. Then my mentor took my laptop and showed me how to search for people on Twitter and just tweet at them about our product. Thats how we got our first customers
#startup
#vc
#funding
1/15 Talking about decks yesterday I figured it was worth putting down what I look for in a deck
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
DRUM ROLL: We're thrilled to announce KF's newest cohort of 57 brilliant leaders in VC hailing from top firms across 18 countries 🎉 Our most diverse class yet (51% people of color & 42% female)with incredible investing power ($30.8B in total AUM)
Someone asked me why do I care so much about customer acquisition when I invest so early. For me, I've seen a TON of great products that were FAR superior to what was on the market and they failed because they could never figure out how to get customers.
#VC
#startup
#funding
A lot of networking is just putting yourself in the position to allow serendipity to happen.
It's good to be heads down but you should make some time for serendipity to happen. It could change your life.
I invest in and support Black-led startups, I invest in and support women-led startups, startups ran by founders who identify as LGBTQ, rural-based startups, starts ran by POC, and startups ran by white men. Now that wasn't so hard.
#ChangeIsNeed
#VC
#Startups
#funding
#RareBreed
The Lean Startup concept is amazing but looks different today in 2021 than it did at the time the book was written a decade ago in 2011. I think one of the biggest changes is yes you can have a not finished product but I don't think you can have an ugly product.
(Long thread) 1/11
-A confession from a recovering entrepreneur
While running my first startup, I turned into a workaholic, bought into hustle culture, and developed anxiety from it making it hard to live a normal life. This is my story
#vc
#founders
#startups
#mentalhealth
I got the worst advice in my first accelerator. We had 3 mentors who were local Angel investors who hounded my team about doing a business plan. It was a waste of time as we pivoted 2 weeks later. What's the worst startup advice you've gotte
#vc
#startup
#badadvice
#founders
Hey
#startup
#founders
, make sure when you start building your product and website that you have admin control over everything. Last thing you want is a upset contractor, co-founder, IT person, or whoever locking you out of your own stiff and potentially blackmailing you.
#vc
Today I did a podcast, pitched an LP, spoke at Harvard, Spoke at
@500Startups
D&I summit, had a board meeting, Spoke at Johns Hopkins University, did a weekly Clubhouse with
@jefielding
&
@dunkhippo33
and still able to rally the
@RarebreedVC
team to support a portfolio company 🙌🏾
Fundraising can suck, got several no's yesterday. But it's part of the journey and at the end of the day regardless if it takes 10 meeting or 5000 meeting the goal will be reached. Keep Pushing.
#vc
#startups
#funding
While I prepare to board my plane to be a judge at Harvard Business Schools's Black New Venture Competition two days after speaking at the White House it is not lost on me that my goal of being a cross between Whitney M. Young Jr and Reginald F. Lewis feels like it is happening
I am currently at the Harvard Club of New York speaking at a PE event. The reason this is a milestone for me is because I am currently walking the same halls Reginald F. Lewis used to. He is a true inspiration of mine and I can now say I'm following in his footsteps.
Founders and VCs, please find your tribe. You need to have peers you can go to and vent to, party with, and ask confidential questions. That last part is so important. The ability to call a peer and ask "How much carry did you get" or "what was on your term sheet" is needed
Yo, I've given my pitch well over 2500 times (yes this is a real number and probably low) and I still get nervous from time to time when I do it. So founders, it's ok if you get nervous because you still got this!
Founders when an investor says "I really like what you are doing, please add me to your updates and let's stay in touch", I know it sounds disingenuous and like a polite rejection but It's not. The investors actually mean it. we just invested in a company that did this well.
Founders this is your regular reminder, if you have a first call with an investor (which is usually 30 mins) your pitch shouldn't be more then 10 mins that way most of the call is a discussion. Don't pitch for 27 min then ask if I'm in. We need to actually talk things out.
10/ This is the point at which some founders complain that it's not fair, and they are right. This is also the point in which I refer founders to QB Lamar Jackson and his shirt I wear to startup events often
1/ Two weeks ago I was testifying in front of Congress, today I'm across the street speaking at the White House with public and private officials. This is all to push for more LPs into smaller emerging funds and to change the rules around accredited investors.
@MarlonCNichols
🧵1/ Calling all founders and early-stage fund managers. Funding is changing and one thing I'm starting to see more and more are harsher terms in early-stage term sheets that weren't used as often in previous years but I think you might want to be aware of and understand
Quick tip, If you have a 30 min meeting with an investor do your best to keep your pitch to 10 mins. That leaves 20 mins to deep dive into the company and team. Lately, I've had founder take 20+ mins to pitch, leaving little time for us to get to the important stuff.
Yo
@verified
, how the heck did my request get denied? Please explain to me how the VC that raised a fund on
@Twitter
can't get verified?? Make it make sense 😥
If you don't feel like working today I understand, If you need to take a personal day I understand. Hell if you need to take off the rest of the week I understand. If you need someone to talk to or vent to go do it now. But don't forget your dreams are still there for the taking
I'm literally heartbroken. I've know Pava since she was a college student with dreams of being an entrepreneur. I was there when she started her company and helped her with funding and clients, and today she's gone because of a horrific act 😥
This advice just makes me sad. I hope more of the emerging managers like myself can help kill this sad sad sad narrative that exacerbates issues for underrepresented funders
1. Invest in Bay Area or Bay Area connected companies.
Most +$10 billion companies started in Bay Area or had a connection there. Yes, companies can come from all over. But for many reasons, Bay Area companies are more likely to have huge outcomes.
Covid might change this. TBD
#Update
RareBreed Ventures has crossed $5M committed to our fund. That's right we hit the 50% mark. Now $5M left to go to reach our goal of $10M. If you are interested in joining as an LP or Min investment is 25K which can be paid over 2 years, just go to
Just to say it again. Self-care is important everyone. If you find yourself hustling and putting in so much work that you stop doing the things you used to do to de-stress than you're doing it wrong. You owe it to yourself. Don't outwork your health or happiness.
#startups
1/ this thread is a PSA and potential lesson to founders and other fund managers/VCs. When you build in public you have to share the good with the bad. Last week we had our first
@RareBreedVC
company fail and go to zero but that is only the beginning of this story
Hey everyone, I just got done chatting with the homie
@alison_stillman
from Serena Ventures.... Yes, that Serena. The woman works for and helps manage Serena Williams venture arm. Any who, she is new on Twitter so help me welcome her and follow her too!
Startup growth hack - Find a niche newsletter that has a fairly engaged audience and sponsor it. you can probably get a nice reach to direct potential customers cheaper than google ads
#startups
#vc
#GrowthHack
#founders
Note to aspiring VC and fund managers. The support you give to the founders you don't invest in is just as important as the support you give the founder you do. I promise you they will never forget your support and will always speak highly of you.
#vc
#startups
#funding
That moment you get news so terrible you don't know what to say or do. Today's going to be a rough one. DAMN.
Checking in on all of you to make sure you are OK today. We see you.
PSA: I don't know who needs to hear this but Covid-19 is real and we aren't done with this fight. I just found out one of my closest friends and his mother both died of covid-19 this morning minutes apart in different hospitals. Wear Your Damn Mask
#FuckCovid
#BeSafe
#StayIn
I just got all my God kids' a share of AirBnB for Christmas. Time to help build wealth in my community, friends, and family. (Yes I got them each a book or toy too. They are still kids lol)
#RareBreed
Crazy to think it was January 3rd of 2020 when
@krollja
and I closed on the first $1.3M and made
@RarebreedVC
first investments and today one year and a day later we are oversubscribed and have just invested in our 29th company. Wow, what a difference a year will make
Just to be clear we invest in Black-led startups, women-led startups, founders who identify as LGBTQ+, rural-based startups, POC-led startups, and startups ran by white men. Join the revolution of investing in everyone as an LP in RareBreed go to - 10K min
A note to founders who want to meet me. I understand your startup is your baby and how important you think getting funding or specifically funding from
@RarebreedVC
is. But sending me a nasty email, DM, message for not reply to you isn't going to make me want to talk with you.
Some pre-seed founders aren’t polished, don’t know the lingo, don’t have networks, or don’t know how to make a pitch. But, they are as amazing as founders who have raised tons of money with deep networks.Join us as an LP by going to and join the revolution
I literally laughed out loud. Of course successful people work hard but almost every successful person got lucky. Hard work is not what cause success. If that was the case more underrepresented people in this country would be successful.
@APompliano
no one makes it without luck
Very few successful people got lucky.
In reality, it was almost always hard work, discipline, and relentless determination.
Put the work in and you got a shot.
Quick tip for founders. A week ago or so I mentioned if you are having a 30 min meeting with an investor to keep your pitch to no more than 10 mins. Well with that last 20 mins you'll want to keep your answers to that investor's questions to 2 mins or less.
#vc
#funding
#startups
Yesterday I had the honor of testifying to Congress for a bill that would increase the limits of LPs into a Venture fund from 100 to 600. While many got to see my oral statement here is a copy of my longer written statement.
Hi, if you are an emerging manager or someone looking to raise a fund, please use this thread to ask me anything about RareBreed, fundraising, negotiations, fund dynamics, anything. Just trying to be helpful. I'll also tag other investors in to try and help answer questions
PSA🚨📢, IT IS OK TO BE A SOLO FOUNDER.
Now, will it mean it might be harder to raise money since some VCs don't invest in solo founders, yes. Does it mean that there is a lot more work for you as a single person, yup. But does it mean you can't grow a massive business, NO.
Yo in 10 years from now people are going to say "Let's get the startup back together" the same way our parents said "Let's get the band back together" 🤣🤣🤣
#startups
#founders
#vc
Today
@Cartainc
announced their investment in
@RarebreedVC
. For more info, here is Carta's memo of our fund -
If you are interested go to and click "Become an LP". Min investment is 25K that can be broken up over 2 years
I'm so fan boying out right now. I've been a listener and learner of 20 minute VC and
@HarryStebbings
for years. I never thought I'd be at a point where I'd be asked to be on the show. This was an amazing conversation btw.
Hey Everyone, I need some help. I just met with
@shanalawlor
who is 3X founder and has recently started angel investing, and now she is making a list of women investors (Angels and VC). Please tag some women investor to this tweet and help out
People will tell you LinkedIn is the best platform for
#networking
. I'd disagree, for me, Twitter has been the greatest form of networking I've ever had access to.
#founders
and aspiring
#VCs
take note. if some likes a tweet or follows you in your industry, DM'em
#vc
#startup
It's so crazy, today marks 2 years since I left my job
@MDTEDCO
to start
@RarebreedVC
. Today also marks us making a commitment to our 39th company. A lot has happened in 2 years
Hustle Fund, a pre-seed firm, closes $30M for a new fund
Tjis is so exciting and congrats to
@dunkhippo33
and
@ericbahn
🚀. I couldn't be happier for you and the
@HustleFundVC
team.
Founders, please please please stop waiting until you have 2 months of runway/money before letting your investors know you need more cash. The longer you wait the harder it is for us to help you. 4-6 months or more makes it a lot easier especially in times like now
So my goal was to get to 10K followers by the end of the month. Looks like I'll fall about 500 followers short of that but thank you to all my new followers. I hope that my content is helpful and engaging
#vc
#startup
#funding
#founders
Man when I was 19 I was living in a truck, at 22 I had a 6 figure job-house- and 3 cars, at 24 I had a car, at 26 I sold my first company, at 28 I lost everything on my second company, at 30 I broke into VC, at 36 I'm an established investor. Success isn't a straight line.
1/ 🧵 one of my top ten secrets for managing a large portfolio of companies. Aspiring VCs, new VCs, Emerging managers, and even Established managers I hope this can be helpful to you.
One of my secrets to managing a large portfolio is Random Text messages (RTM) - read more below
1/ I feel like breaking some rules today. Let's get transparent and have an open discussion about management fees in VC to help other emerging managers. The standard fee structure is 2% the size of the fund every year for 10 years or the life of the fund.
#vc
#startups
#funding
Founder, understand I and many of the investors I roll with will give you the grace to not know VC lingo or all the ins and outs of a pitch deck BUT, we are still looking for great businesses. Giving you grace doesn't mean we are going to go easy when evaluating your business
Just realized I got to 15K followers. Thank you everyone for the support and hi to all my new followers. Just so you know this is a community of support. All I ask is that we all help eachother and pay it forward!
1/15 Part 2, Common mistakes made on each slide I look for in a Pitch deck.
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
1/15 An oldie but goodie, some light holiday reading - What I look for in a pitch deck
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
1/🧵 A
@RarebreedVC
Q2 2021 Update. We currently have $8.1M in commitments towards our goal of $10M. Read the thread all updates 👇🏾
Interested in being an LP in RareBreed? Our minimum LP investment is 25K. just go to and click the button to become an LP
Moment of transparency from a VC. Fund raising is hard. We do it too.
Got my first big "No" today and it hurt. It really sucked because I wanted that "Yes" too bad.
But I know it only 1 of many so to it.
That's right we do the same thing we tell you
#Startup
#funding
#VC
.
@MacConwell
founded
@RareBreedVC
, a pre-seed fund that invests in exceptional founders outside of large tech ecosystems. Mac led the charge to create the Minority Business Pre-Seed Fund, the 1st state-backed pre-seed fund for women & minorities in the country. Welcome to
#KF26
!
Follow up on my last Tweet. Don't talk to me about it being hard to find Black founders. We just invested in a company where one founder went to Harvard with real estate experience and the other manages over 100 AirBnB's. Ok now tell me why they are going to fail, I'll wait
BIG ANNOUNCEMENT TIME!!!
I am joining the
@inside
crew to launch a new Podcast with my co-host
@LiamGill_77
called "Inside Business" where weekly we will go deep into the decisions you’ll face as a founder or business leader.
Go to for early access
OMG we made it. We made it to 10K followers. Yes it's we because yall made this happen.
Again my squad is DOPE AF! Thank you
*Mac starts playing "started from the bottom no we here*
After weeks of research, meet Business Insider's 100 rising-star VCs of 2020 who represent the future of venture capital and don't work for the big firms via
@businessinsider
Cheers to the entrepreneurs taking a moment fir yourself this weekend. Self-care is important. Work hard play hard and rest. Do it all and back to the grind after the holidays!
Founders, when you have first call with an investor it's not a pitch. Its a chance to get to know eachother. Don't make it more than it is. Almost no investorsay yes on a first call. And dont waste 10+ minutes to talk about the product and its features
#vc
#startups
#founders
1/ UPDATE! The founder in my North Star video is the amazing
@Shanonce
- Shawna Stepp-Jones and the product she wanted to make is a Dryer that can dry a Wig or Hair Weave in 15 mins with NO HEAT. I am TOO HYPE to introduce you to -let's make this go viral
I got a
#story
to tell. This is my North Star. This is why I am going to change how Pre-Seed
#Funding
is done. This is why I'm soon to be your favorite VC favorite
#VC
. Message me if you want to help this founder or help me help founder like her
#startup
1/15 Here are common mistakes made on each slide I look for in a deck.
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
1/15 Talking about decks yesterday I figured it was worth putting down what I look for in a deck
-Intro
-Problem
-Solution
-Market Size
-Business Model
-Traction
-Pipeline
-3-5 Year Projections
-Go-to-Market Strategy
-Competition
-Team
-Ask
-Closing
#vc
#startup
#funding
#pitch
Pitching Advice for Founder...When you are pitching to investors or in competitions please stop using passive language. No more "I hope, I'd like, I want" etc. you want to project confidence, this may take some time and practice but it's worth it.
#startup
#funding
#vc
#pitching
Hey Founders and VCs, make sure that you are giving back. This is a pay-it-forward industry and the amount of deal flow, partnerships, funding, etc that will come your way from helping others will be so abundant. Take it from me,
@RarebreedVC
exists today from me helping others.
I'm trying to leave a legacy of so much impact that there are books written about it, stories told about it, college building or high schools named after me, and I'm that random answer to a Jeopardy question in Feb (you know to be the answer of a Jeopardy question would be dope)