Why Venture Capital & Startups Have Always Been On My Radar
And Why It Should Be On Your Radar Too
After I realized that making it to the NBA was not likely to happen (probably somewhere between 7th & 8th grade), I began thinking about all the other professions I could potentially see myself in.
Lawyer, politician, business executive, you name it. However, like countless others, the idea of being an entrepreneur was always a dream and passion of mine, and it remains so today. I’ve had numerous small ventures but nothing of noteworthy size or success.
Still, the passion remains. While learning more about what the business creation process looks like, I eventually stumbled onto the concept of venture capital.
Simply put, venture capital (often referred to as VC) is an investment type that is most often associated with the funding of fast-growing and high potential startup companies, often in the technology industry. Google, Facebook, or Uber are all examples of companies that have used VC to fund and accelerate growth.
So, who cares?
I do and maybe you should too. Because I’ve always considered myself a futurist, I see VC as one of the few industries that fuel real innovation and change. It’s one of the few areas that provide it’s participants (ex: firms, investors, etc) an opportunity to see macro trends and shifts across industries because of the sheer volume of pitches they receive regularly from entrepreneurs.
Whether you ever want to be an investor or not, being aware of what’s going on could very well shed light on what future jobs, products, sectors or categories will be available to you in the not-too-distant future.
For example, last year, the financial data and software company Pitchbook began mapping the emerging sectors that are on the rise. Areas like autonomous vehicle technology, cryptocurrency, cannabis, quantum computing or IoT may be known concepts to some readers here, but when you learned about them could make all the difference in how you think about future job or investment opportunities
If you are interested in learning more about VC, there is an endless list of resources you can turn to. First, I would start with this one… Afterward, here are a few sites to check out:
National Venture Capital Association
Venture Beat / TechCrunch (for news about companies that have recently raised VC funding)
Top VC blogs (a list and compilation of some great industry content)
Also, I’ll be covering this topic in future posts. Stay subscribed (or subscribe if you are not already) to learn more about my thoughts and experiences on this.