Breaking into Venture: An Outsider Turned Venture Capitalist Shares How to Take Risks, Create Power, and Build Life-Changing Wealth

Unparalleled insight into how the powerful, profitable, and exclusive industry of venture capital works, especially for those who are not already part of the club. Although most people know nothing about them, venture capitalists are the small yet elite group of people funding and shaping world-changing technology businesses like Google, Facebook, Uber, and Amazon. In an increasingly technology-driven world, understanding how to harness the power of venture capital can lead to unimaginable money, power, and influence. Whether you’re an aspiring investor, entrepreneur, or career-focused business professional, this book will teach you how this historically exclusive and incredibly lucrative industry actually works. Through a combination of the author’s real-life stories coupled with insights from other elite venture investors from unexpected backgrounds, Breaking into Venture draws the curtain on what it takes to break into venture capital, navigate the hidden pitfalls that insiders know to avoid, and build a long-term winning strategy that plays to your unique strengths. Drawing on her background building multiple successful venture funds and teaching venture capital at world-class business schools on both coasts, Allison Baum Gates shares the nine fundamental principles that lead to success in VC, providing everything you need to navigate the rapidly changing technology landscape. By learning how venture investors think, you’ll unlock your own potential, whether you’re looking to make angel investments, develop and launch a successful business, or create the career of your dreams. Breaking into Venture covers every angle, including: The three keys to success in venture capital: accessing great opportunities, analyzing which ones to pursue, and adding value post-investment How to build a relevant network from scratch The importance of writing your own "narrative" that communicates who you are and inspires people to help you get what you want How to avoid falling victim to your own biases when choosing opportunities Details on how VCs evaluate companies during their due diligence process This game-changing guide democratizes the VC world by showing the ropes to those who aren’t already part of the "in crowd," aren’t already wealthy, or don't even know where Sand Hill Road is. With Breaking into Venture, you will have everything you need to leverage the power of venture capital for investing or career success.