The Paradox of Capital Raising in 2024

Greetings, Chief Storytelling Officers.

Things are picking back up as we get into the middle of January. Deals are coming together. People are fired up to make 2024 special. And the craziest storytelling environment with a Presidential Election is about to take place.

If you’re like me, you’re feeling all kinds of excitement.

This year looks to be one of the most important years in history to nail your storytelling and ability to use that to raise large amounts of capital. There will be huge winners and many who are left behind.

I’m so glad you’re here to make sure you win big this year. Let’s make it epic.

-Robbie

The Paradox of Capital Raising

Capital is scarce. Capital is abundant. Both statements are true.

This paradox got me thinking. As I was writing this week’s edition something happened that took me back to many many years ago.

If you’re a basketball fan you might have seen a massive Lebron James dunk this past week. He took off from the dotted line just in front of the free throw line and then posterized Paul George. It was insane…especially from a 39 year old Lebron.

That dunk transported me back to Michael Jordan’s iconic free throw line dunk contest dunk.

He appeared to be flying. He took off and was no longer the subject to gravity.

MJ’s ability to float in the air made him special. Every time he would hang in the air it was like witnessing a paradox in action. He should get pulled back to earth but there he was just chilling in the air longer than anyone else.

And that’s a bit like the paradox of the capital markets.

Gravity is real but MJ defied it.

In your case gravity is the fear, caution, and uncertainty from investors. It’s your job to be like Mike.

Speaking of Mike, this is one of the greatest ads of all time and echoes the type of approach you need to take if you want to raise capital in 2024.

Here’s the thing about raising capital in 2024.

Two things will determine how it plays out.

1. Your mindset

2. Your preparation

If you want to raise capital the story you tell yourself had better be that you’re going to be successful at raising capital. I’m fortunate to know people who manage billions of dollars in aum as well as people who raise capital professionally. All of them agree that there is plenty of capital out there for the right deals, funds, companies, and people.

This is where the mindset piece comes in.

One of the best pieces of advice I give to many of the entrepreneurs I work with is simply this…

“Be Cool.”

MJ defied gravity because he believed he could fly.

Now to the preparation piece.

Last year was brutal. Numbers were down across the board and yet I saw more money raised by my clients than the year before.

Why did this happen?

These founders weren’t trying to rush anything and took a long term approach to their entire capital raising strategy.

This takes us back to that opening line. Capital is scarce. Capital is abundant.

The scarce part is when you’re trying to breakthrough and get that first yes into your deal. The abundant part is once you’ve dialed in exactly why you are special and why you are going to win big in the future.

What we saw last year was once we got the first crack in the dam, it exploded open.

Oversubscribed rounds, turning down iconic investors to keep better terms, and valuations that were outside of all the norms. Those things happened because of the preparation that went into the round.

I was watching an interview on JFK and his public speaking yesterday. The Pulitzer Prize author and Harvard historian who wrote the book JFK: Coming of Age in America said one of the interesting things about JFK’s public speaking ability is later in his career he would make significant changes to his speeches while he was delivering them.

What led to this ability was the decade of work he’d put in writing and working with his special advisor and speechwriter Ted Sorensen. Over that decade he’d learned exactly how to connect to people and became so comfortable that he had reached mastery.

This is what you want to have happen. It’s the preparation that enables you to do this.

The biggest risk to your ability to raise capital has nothing to do with the markets or with investors. That’s a narrative that takes away your power.

Instead you want to find a way to rise up and shock the world.

A bit like this ridiculous Lebron James dunk.

Resources

Fascinating breakdown of the language used inside of the books we read and how the focus has shifted dramatically over the years (and not in a good way). Your words are power. They can be used to create or destroy. They can be used to build up or tear down. They can be used to inspire hope or foster fear.

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Everyone loves a good book list so here’s a whole bunch submitted to Alex Lieberman that might give you some inspiration. I’m currently reading The Bezos Blueprint, Barack Obama’s Speeches, and Dune Messiah.

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Dan Carlin is one of the greatest storytellers alive. He runs the podcast Hardcore History. Two of my favorite series (no longer free) are Wrath of the Khans and Death Throes of the Republic. If you ever want to hear how someone’s voice can transport you to another time, educate you, and entertain all at the same time, this is the podcast to listen to. The episodes are crazy long.

Wanting support for your capital raising or storytelling?

1. If you’re an early stage company looking to nail your fundraising story, check out Potential AI. Our ai will guide you through the exact process and then write your 3 minute founder origin story and 3 minute startup vision story.

2. If you’re raising at least 8m as a founder or 50m as a fund, apply to work with me here.

3. If you’re a leader in your company and you think that it’s time to write the perfect vision story (might be a new strategic narrative, might be for a major company wide keynote, might be for a huge product launch you have coming up), or if you want to see how storytelling can generate returns in your talent, marketing, and sales function, you can email me at [email protected].

4. If you’re looking to have me speak to your organization, leadership team, or at an event, email me at [email protected].