The Startup Podcast Making the most of the founder/investor dynamic (w/ Liz Zalman, author of 'Founder vs Investor')
Founders and investors like to tell themselves they're on the same team, and they can be – but it takes work.
In this episode, Yaniv Bernstein sits down with Liz Zalman, a veteran founder with over 20 years of startup experience, for an in-depth chat about the real dynamics of the founder-investor relationship. Liz is also co-author (alongside VC Jerry Neumann) of 'Founder Vs Investor: The Honest Truth About Venture Capital from Startup to IPO’, one of Yaniv's favorite books on startups.
From re-vesting demands to acquisition offers that investors won't approve, Liz brings hard-won, unfiltered perspective to some of the most uncomfortable moments a founder will face.
In this episode, you will:
- Understand what re-vesting actually is, and the smartest way to respond when investors ask for it.
- Learn why taking a single dollar of venture capital puts you on a specific, irreversible path.
- Discover how to negotiate a term sheet from a position of strength, even when you're exhausted and desperate to close.
- Find out when and how founders can take money off the table – and why most quality investors support founders to have stability in their personal finances.
- Learn how Liz stress-tests potential investors while negotiating terms.
- Understand the real difference between valuation and control.
- Hear why listening is the single most underrated skill in a founder's toolkit.
Resources mentioned in this episode
- Founder vs. Investor (book) by Elizabeth Zalman & Jerry Neumann, the book discussed throughout this episode: https://www.foundervsinvestor.com
- Venture Deals by Brad Feld & Jason Mendelson, referenced by Yaniv as "the bible of venture capital": https://www.venturedeals.com
- Sandgarden, Liz's current startup: https://www.sandgarden.com
- Liz Zalman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethzalman
The Pact
Honor the Startup Podcast Pact! If you have listened to TSP and gotten value from it, please:
- Follow, rate, and review us in your listening app
- Subscribe to the TSP Mailing List to gain access to exclusive newsletter-only content and early access to information on upcoming episodes: https://thestartuppodcast.beehiiv.com/subscribe
- Secure your official TSP merchandise at https://shop.tsp.show/
- Follow us here on YouTube for full-video episodes: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNjm1MTdjysRRV07fSf0yGg
- Give us a public shout-out on LinkedIn or anywhere you have a social media following
Key links
This episode of the Startup Podcast is sponsored by Vanta.
Vanta helps businesses get and stay compliant by automating up to 90% of the work for the most in demand compliance frameworks. With over 200 integrations, you can easily monitor and secure the tools your business relies on. For a limited time offer of US$1,000 off, go to https://www.vanta.com/tsp
This episode of the Startup Podcast is sponsored by .tech domains.
Forget weird prefixes and creative misspellings; the availability for .tech domains is simply way better than .com. For a clean name that highlights your tech credentials, get a .tech domain at your favourite registrar.
Get your question in for our next Q&A episode: https://forms.gle/NZzgNWVLiFmwvFA2A
The Startup Podcast website: https://www.tsp.show/episodes/
Learn more about Chris and Yaniv
Work 1:1 with Chris: http://chrissaad.com/advisory/
Follow Chris on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrissaad/
Follow Yaniv on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ybernstein/
Producer: Justin McArthur https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-mcarthur
Intro Voice: Jeremiah Owyang https://web-strategist.com/#Investors #Startups #TechStartups #Founder #TechBusiness #TheStartupPodcast