Midas List

I think something huge that has developed a lot in the last couple of years is the idea of a real lack of succession planning when it comes to some of these major firms, especially if you have incredible partners that do attract a lot of people because they've built...

If you're a M- if you're a Midas List investor that is an ideal person for people to work with and your network is a core piece to the business, especially if the firm is 20, 30 years old and you've been building it from day one, the day that you're not there anymore, there is gonna be a difference because the brand does do a lot of the, the pulling, obviously.

But there is that relationship piece that still does exist with the mega funds because you can't really...

You can't have one over the other completely.

this tension around measuring consensus and reporting on that, but also manufacturing it in some way.

And I think you had a unique role given Midas List, Cloud 100, where you had to walk that line.

Give me a sense for how you walked that line, how you think about that problem.

Well, the most fun thing about doing these lists was always meeting people that were not yet obvious who were up and comers that then you could sort of develop a relationship with, you know.

So for me, it was an information advantage to get stories, to get relationships.

Of course, then we want to showcase positive players or people we think you should know.

And so with the Midas list, for example, we would never play favorites.

And so you couldn't opt out And if you, you know, whatever your politics or whoever you were, if you deserve to be on the list, you would make the list.

You know, basically, you know, "Do you think it's a bubble?" Blah, blah, blah.

You know, these are people on, you know, the Midas List who have their own funds, serious VCs.

And, you know, we haven't released the report yet, but a lot of them think there will be a bubble at some point.

You know, it is like-- But they're trying to get the timing right.

It got us on the radar of AOL.

And there was a summer intern from Harvard Business School working at AOL that summer, John Callahan, who became the founder of True Ventures and is now on the Midas List.

And his summer intern project at AOL was to buy The Casa, 'cause they were buying up like artsy internet properties.

So, so AOL bought us.

...

Midas List and one of the most respected and successful investors ever in Silicon Valley.

So, um, all those things are things I learned from them and I keep learning from them every day.

One, one of the first, I think his first fund Was, uh, uh, that's what I've heard.