Is a VC letting you eat your lunch?

Many people emphasize the need to be wary of VCs (“vulture capitalists”) because they are out to screw you, to “eat your lunch”. It’s not whether a venture capitalist is going to eat your lunch, it’s whether he or she is going to let you eat it yourself.

By the way, whoever gets to eat lunch, if the VC doesn’t pay for it, don’t take their investment… But that is a topic for another blog posting.

Consider this: you are having lunch with a VC. The truth is if you are lucky, you won’t get to eat yours. The VC will be listening intently, asking good questions, and leaving you the time to answer fully and clearly. He or she will be chomping away, listening hard, but enjoying the food and filling up nicely. On the other hand, every time you take a mouthful the VC will ask another question and you will have to stop eating to answer. (Hint, choose something to eat that doesn’t take too long to chew. Soup, anyone?)

If you are eating and the VC is talking, don’t take their investment. They think they know more than you about your business. If they truly do know more, then give up that plan and do something else. If the VC is the smartest guy in the room about your business, then everyone is in trouble. Most likely the VC doesn’t know more than you about your business, but they seem to like the sound of their own voice. Beware!

Why most computer programs suck

Techie at Heart

I came to the US in 1989 with a strong background as a software engineer (working in C) and an expert in the Oracle database system (version 5 and then version 6). Within a few years I was working in management roles and then as an entrepreneur mostly on the business side of things. However, I remain a techie at heart, and still enjoy the little bits of hobbyist programming I do.

At the time I was last working as a techie, Michael Stonebraker was already well into a great career with some great successes under his belt. Sigma is currently an investor in two of Michael’s startups, and it is a privilege to work with someone who continues to contribute so much to both the academic and commercial fields.

All this is warm-up to suggesting that those of you who, like me, are (database) techies at heart, should read Michael’s Top 10 Assertions about Data Warehouses, recently published in the Communications of the ACM website.

10th Annual Hazon NY Bike Ride

Click Here to Donate

It's that time of year when I set off on the annual Hazon NY Jewish Environmental Bike Ride, and if you have not already considered making a donation to me or any other rider, please consider doing so now. This will be my fifth year participating (and the 10th such ride), and I continue to be proud to be associated with Hazon’s work.

Hazon is the leading environmental group in the US Jewish community, working in areas of education, action and advocacy to make environmental concerns important in our community, and to make the Jewish voice important to the environmental movement. Hazon’s programming is multi-generational, and open to people of all faiths and every stream of Judaism.

To give you some examples of Hazon’s work, we sponsor the leading conferences for the new Jewish Food movement and we have developed educational tools around the intersection of modern food issues and Jewish tradition. A portion of the money raised will help small-scale environmental projects in the Jewish communities, such as green roofs at synagogues, gardens at day schools, and other local initiatives. A key part of Hazon’s mission is to support the growing environmental movement in Israel. Money raised from the New York Ride will also help support Hazon's partners in Israel including the premier environmental leadership program, the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies. Since its inception the Hazon NY Ride has supported a wide range of other environmental projects in Israel including Table to Table for Project Leket, Kibbutz Lotan for the Green Apprentice program in practical ecology, Society for the Protection of Nature for a community garden in Jerusalem, the Israel Bike Association to promote safe cycling in Israel and many others. Read about all this and more on the Hazon website www.hazon.org.

Like many other small non-profits, Hazon continues to face fundraising challenges this year, and I am hoping to meet or beat my own fundraising from last year. In previous years I have ridden with my daughter Hannah who has also raised money. This year she is joining as a non-fundraising crew member, and so I am hoping to make up for her fundraising as well!
Please click here to make a donation. http://hazon.kintera.org/2010nyride/rdale
Many, many thanks in advance.