Jedi Entrepreneur Mind Trick: TheFunded and VC Persuasion
According to Wikipedia:"the Jedi mind trick is a Force power. Jedi who know the power can, by using the Force, influence the actions of other 'weak-minded' sentient beings."Now, replace "the Force" with "TheFunded", "Jedi" with "Jedi Entrepreneur" and "other 'weak-minded' sentient beings" with "VCs" and you have:
"the Jedi Entrepreneur mind trick is a TheFunded power. Jedi Entrepreneurs who know the power can, by using TheFunded, influence the actions of VCs."I've noticed a growing trend of entrepreneurs contacting me with an intro referencing Inflexion's good reputation at TheFunded. It's usually a tone of congratulations. I think this is brilliant yet subtle and leverages yet another Jedi Entrepreneur power gained from social media (one of the earliest being the LinkedIn-enhanced, you-and-I-know-the-same-person cold call heater).
Maybe the entrepreneur really is impressed by Inflexion's ratings, but, just maybe, he/she is using the Jedi Entrepreneur Mind Trick to influence the 'weak-minded' sentient beings, VCs. Such an email immediately puts the VC on notice that you are aware of TheFunded and you buy into the VC reputation-system it embodies. VCs who actually care about entrepreneur opinions are then susceptible to the Force persuasion.Just as Obi-Wan Kenobi was able to say "These aren't the droids you're looking for" and make it so, the Entrepreneur is then able to say "Your fund has a great reputation for thorough review, thoughtful feedback and value-added intros". And guess what, chances of getting that thorough review, thoughtful feedback and value-added intros jump considerably. Just as the Force couldn't create matter from non-matter, I'm not sure this force can make checks appear -- but it could increase/speed your chances of changing the world.
Now, I'm not admitting to being in the "other 'weak-minded' sentient beings" category. But, I'd love to hear whether some real-world tests with various VCs can prove the power of TheFunded and the Jedi Entrepreneur Mind Trick. If it has no effect, only you can decide whether to cross over and use TheFunded for the dark side.
And, while I'm at it, I guess I'll try too: "Inflexion is the venture fund you're looking for." ;-)
Labels: jedi entrepreneur mind trick, obi-wan kenobi, thefunded, vc 2.0
Posted by VC Dan | 3/21/2008
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Comments (2)
Dan,
One of the amazing things about the web is that it brings a multitude of information to your finger tips. One of the pieces of information that is readily available is the relative reputation of a company, VC Fund, or individual. How many "google" someone before a meeting or to learn more about the person or company? Prior to starting www.babyspot.com, I had my own tax practice and then Sarbanes-Oxley consulting practice. For that business I really did not need VC funding and so did not "google" them. However, as I have been building a web 2.0 company, researching VC's, companies, and individuals that we want to partner with has become a crucial part of our business.
As I researched VC's in Florida I found that Inflexion had a solid reputation of truly partnering with entrepreneurs. As I mentioned when we spoke - I was looking to meet you at the Florida Venture Forum, however, since we did not meet there, I reached out to you through LinkedIn. LinkedIn has been a tremendous resource - I doubt we would have chatted had you not responded to my email request through LinkedIn. Recently, I also was able to connect with an investor through the network and so for me it has worked well.
Now, to answer your question. I do believe the funded has value. I've used it and for entrepreneurs that truly believe in their company and are sincerely looking for VCs to be partners rather than just deep pockets the funded and all of the other tools that I mentioned are immensely helpful.
Nice post.
Zameer "Skywalker"
CEO and Co-Founder BabySpot.com
I saw your information at http://www.floridaventureblog.com/2008/03/jedi-entrepreneur-mind-trick-thefunded.html and thought you might enjoy adding http://www.wikipatents.com to your page. WikiPatents has a database of millions of patents and patent applications, allows PDF downloading of patents, provides file histories, and other helpful information. It is an excellent free resource for researchers, entrepreneurs, inventors and students.
Enjoy,
Jamie
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