The 10 Most Common Fundraising Mistakes (From Helping Founders Raise $5B)
“The biggest insight: fundraising is a game. If you know how to play, you can do well.”
What this teaches
Breslow frames fundraising as a game with learnable rules and lists the ten most common founder mistakes, including building investor relationships too late, over-long decks (VCs spend ~3 minutes on a deck), and taking rejection personally.
Why it matters
A tactical, widely shared playbook from the Bolt founder, months before his own famous fundraising-adjacent controversy, which adds historical interest.
Key lessons
- Fundraising rewards process and game-awareness
- Build relationships before you need money
- Rejections are about timing and fit as much as quality
This is an editorial summary. The full thread, and the credit, belongs to Ryan Breslow.
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