Dan Primack sited a study on PE Hub today that found that over 50% of VC professionals believe that the VC industry is “broken.”  My response:

WHO CARES?

Seriously. It seems like the venture industry these days spends more time lamenting its future than actually working towards a future that’s different. And they couldn’t be more short term in their perspective. VC sentiment has started to become like consumer sentiment – something that moves on a monthly basis. Are we forgetting that our business is about spotting long-term trends and funding business cycles that are measured in years, not months?!? 

It’s possible I’m simply in the wrong demographic (almost 85% of the respondents were east- or west-coast VCs), the wrong fund stage (we raised capital in late 2007 and as a result are still in our active investment phase), have the wrong fears (in the “very worried” category “Exit Markets” was a 2x favorite over all other choices – but good companies continue to find liquidity), or I am simply in the wrong mindset (I think now is a great time to start a business and an equally great time to be an early stage investor). 

My partner Jason has a thoughtful response to the study (as you might imagine he shares my optimistic view) in which he points out a few key reasons why now is a great time to be an investor (you can read the full article here):

  • Its never been cheaper to start a business
  • There are a ton of entrepreneurs around working on interesting projects
  • Many of these entrepreneurs have been around the block a few times
  • The venture markets aren’t dependent on the credit markets, etc.
  • What we thought/hoped would happen 10 years ago has – the world of technology is larger and more lucrative than we even imagined

I’m done talking/listening about how the venture model is broken. If that’s how you feel and you’re in venture, perhaps you should find a new job.



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