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I joined the partnership @usv a little more than 3 years ago. The learning curve around here is steep, continuous, and a lot of fun. Here are a few of the many things I’ve learned so far from my partners and team:
1) Invest in stuff you care a lot about. We constrain our fund size in part to be able to do this—we don’t need to invest in everything & we won& #39;t. Spend time with people you admire & on ideas that matter to you. (sounds obvious—but isn& #39;t always in a mile a minute market.)
2) We& #39;re at our best when we know what we’re looking for (ie thesis driven investing is right for us.) Slow down, do the work to develop strong perspective, approach the market we choose to focus on with a prepared mind. (Said better here by @fredwilson: https://avc.com/2020/11/knowing-what-you-are-looking-for-2/)">https://avc.com/2020/11/k...
3) Constraints breed creativity—in our business and in the ones we work with. They are both frustrating and freeing, often simultaneously. (taught and retaught to me by @aweissman: http://blog.aweissman.com/2018/02/addition-by-subtraction.html)">https://blog.aweissman.com/2018/02/a...
4) This is a career that values knowing how to learn—about new markets, products, perspectives—versus expertise. A strong repeatable process of how to go from novice intrigue to developed perspective is more valuable than being the pro.
5) The climate crisis is very likely the most important issue of our time--it needs our attention, resources, and mindshare. And now is the time for that in venture investing--massive businesses will be created to help fix it. ( https://www.usv.com/writing/2020/01/usv-and-the-climate-crisis/">https://www.usv.com/writing/2... by @albertwenger)
6) Long live NYC (and the many debates on the best coffee and crullers and sushi and bike lanes and subway lines and hidden corners in this magical city of invention and reinvention we’re so lucky to call ours)
