Mike Lazerow

And especially early on, things pivot so much. You talk to customers, they punch you in the face, and you've got to change. So we just want to make sure we start with something that makes sense on the spreadsheet and then pivot from there.

So what I just said is like the table stakes. And then if we get through that, they meet Cass.

So what I just said is like the table stakes. And then if we get through that, they meet Cass.

So what I just said is like the table stakes. And then if we get through that, they meet Cass.

and the entrepreneur boom boom boom and it's impressive in a great way you know every entrepreneur even when we say no let's just say gets a lot from their conversation with casp we hated when investors would take a meeting and then they ghost us they're like they don't even and i know every one of their names because those are the people i remember i don't even know who invested in us but i know everyone who said no like every round oh my god you and i are cut from the same cloth brother

and the entrepreneur boom boom boom and it's impressive in a great way you know every entrepreneur even when we say no let's just say gets a lot from their conversation with casp we hated when investors would take a meeting and then they ghost us they're like they don't even and i know every one of their names because those are the people i remember i don't even know who invested in us but i know everyone who said no like every round oh my god you and i are cut from the same cloth brother

and the entrepreneur boom boom boom and it's impressive in a great way you know every entrepreneur even when we say no let's just say gets a lot from their conversation with casp we hated when investors would take a meeting and then they ghost us they're like they don't even and i know every one of their names because those are the people i remember i don't even know who invested in us but i know everyone who said no like every round oh my god you and i are cut from the same cloth brother

to everyone who says no like i have a and i have all my rejection letters right here from college i have like i have a hundred jobs that i was rejected from but regardless for me it comes down to do i want to have dinner with this person once a week like is this someone i want to hang out with because you look at like scopely took 10 years to go from that initial money we gave to a five billion dollar exit right you look at mike cesario liquid death he's in it six years we've been working together

to everyone who says no like i have a and i have all my rejection letters right here from college i have like i have a hundred jobs that i was rejected from but regardless for me it comes down to do i want to have dinner with this person once a week like is this someone i want to hang out with because you look at like scopely took 10 years to go from that initial money we gave to a five billion dollar exit right you look at mike cesario liquid death he's in it six years we've been working together

to everyone who says no like i have a and i have all my rejection letters right here from college i have like i have a hundred jobs that i was rejected from but regardless for me it comes down to do i want to have dinner with this person once a week like is this someone i want to hang out with because you look at like scopely took 10 years to go from that initial money we gave to a five billion dollar exit right you look at mike cesario liquid death he's in it six years we've been working together

We love each other. We love hanging out, right? We love jamming on the business. We love working on problems. So for us, it's do we love the entrepreneur? And is it the right entrepreneur for this company? Just because it makes sense on paper, it could be the wrong entrepreneur. I'm not going to build a space product on the wrong guy.

We love each other. We love hanging out, right? We love jamming on the business. We love working on problems. So for us, it's do we love the entrepreneur? And is it the right entrepreneur for this company? Just because it makes sense on paper, it could be the wrong entrepreneur. I'm not going to build a space product on the wrong guy.

We love each other. We love hanging out, right? We love jamming on the business. We love working on problems. So for us, it's do we love the entrepreneur? And is it the right entrepreneur for this company? Just because it makes sense on paper, it could be the wrong entrepreneur. I'm not going to build a space product on the wrong guy.

Um,

Um,

Um,

It's also a very different vision, I think, for leadership than maybe some younger entrepreneurs have. Too many of our companies that we work with, the founders treat them like democracies. And I don't know if everyone's noticing we're kind of pressure testing democracy as a model for government. Let me just tell you, it does not work at companies. Your job is to be the boss, not the buddy.

It's also a very different vision, I think, for leadership than maybe some younger entrepreneurs have. Too many of our companies that we work with, the founders treat them like democracies. And I don't know if everyone's noticing we're kind of pressure testing democracy as a model for government. Let me just tell you, it does not work at companies. Your job is to be the boss, not the buddy.

It's also a very different vision, I think, for leadership than maybe some younger entrepreneurs have. Too many of our companies that we work with, the founders treat them like democracies. And I don't know if everyone's noticing we're kind of pressure testing democracy as a model for government. Let me just tell you, it does not work at companies. Your job is to be the boss, not the buddy.

You're a benevolent dictator. You make the decisions. People want to be led with compassion, with clarity, with transparency. Not by a dick. Just tone it down. Listen to your people. But make decisions. Communicate why. Align everyone's interests correctly with financial incentives. And the rest take care of itself. If you're working for a company that has a leader...