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| Introduction | |
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| Acknowledgments | |
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| Anyone Can Raise Venture Capital | |
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| I'll Back You | |
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| What Is Venture Capital? | |
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| When Did Venture Capital Begin? | |
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| Types of Venture Capital | |
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| Where Can You Find Venture Capital? | |
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| How Do Venture Capital Companies Invest in Businesses? | |
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| What Types of Business Do VCs Back? | |
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| Which Industries Do Venture Capitalists Prefer? | |
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| What Types of Products or Services Do Venture Capitalists Prefer? | |
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| How Much Venture Capital Is Available? | |
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| Opportunities Available for Entrepreneurs | |
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| Can You Raise Venture Capital? | |
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| How Much Money Should You Seek? | |
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| What Type of Funds Are You Seeking? | |
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| How Will the Venture Capitalist Be Involved? | |
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| How to Select a Venture Capital Company | |
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| Should You Phone the Venture Firm? | |
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| Other Questions for the Venture Capitalist | |
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| How Long Does It Take to Get the Money? | |
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| Myths About Venture Capital | |
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| Objective | |
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| Summary Presentation | |
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| What Does a Summary Look Like? | |
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| Why Is the Venture Capitalist Interested? | |
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| How to Complete a Summary | |
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| Type of Business | |
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| What Kind of Cover Letter Is Needed? | |
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| Strategic Use of Summary | |
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| Another Kind of Venture Capital | |
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| Perspective for Your Summary | |
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| What Do Venture Capitalists Think About Summaries? | |
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| Confidentiality of Your Great Idea | |
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| Objective | |
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| The Proposal | |
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| Should You Use a Broker or Consultant? | |
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| Most Important Quality of a Business Proposal | |
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| Do You Really Need All of This? | |
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| What Is the Venture Capitalist Really Looking For? | |
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| How to Package Your Proposal | |
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| How Many Venture Capitalists Should Be Contacted? | |
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| Syndications | |
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| Objective | |
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| A Thousand Questions | |
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| What Are the Major Questions? | |
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| Business Proposal Questions | |
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| Other Information the Venture Capitalist Will Need | |
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| Will the Venture Capitalist Ask All These Questions? | |
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| Objective | |
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| Meetings and Negotiations | |
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| The Office of the Venture Capitalist | |
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| What Do Venture Capitalists Look Like? | |
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| How Long Will the Meeting Last? | |
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| What Is the Object of the Meeting? | |
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| What Happens in a Typical Meeting With a Venture Capitalist? | |
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| What Type of Presentation Should Be Made? | |
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| What is The Primary Characteristic The Venture Capitalist is Seeking in an Entrepreneur? | |
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| What Are the Other Characteristics of the Entrepreneur? | |
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| Know Your Stuff | |
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| Things You Do Not Say to the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Things Not to Do in the Meeting | |
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| How to Negotiate in the First or Subsequent Meetings | |
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| How to Cut the Deal | |
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| Ownership by the Venture Capitalist | |
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| How Do Venture Capitalists Price Investments? | |
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| Downside Risk | |
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| After the Negotiations | |
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| Objective | |
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| The Commitment Letter | |
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| Commitment Letters | |
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| What Is In the Commitment Letter? | |
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| Comments on the Commitment Letter | |
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| What Is An Investment Memorandum or Term Sheet? | |
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| Consulting Agreement | |
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| Nonlegal Commitment Letter | |
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| Arguing Over Minor Points | |
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| Items You Should Not Sign in the Commitment Letter | |
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| Objective | |
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| Due Diligence | |
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| What to Expect From a Visit to Your Business | |
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| How to Give a Good Cook's Tour | |
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| Investigating the Individuals | |
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| Venture Capitalists Are Paranoid | |
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| Other Aspects of the Background Check | |
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| Do They Have a Test for Entrepreneurs? | |
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| Experience Is the Watchword | |
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| Investigating the Entrepreneur and the Team | |
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| Questions for Other People in the Organization | |
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| Investigating the Business, the Product, and the Industry | |
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| When the Venture Firm Finds Something Wrong | |
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| Questions for the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Background Information on the Venture Capital Company | |
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| Timing Questions for the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Objective | |
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| The Closing | |
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| First Closing: Legal Documents For Loans With Options | |
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| Simple Is Good | |
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| Unethical Venture Capitalist | |
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| Second Closing: Legal Documents for the Purchase of Preferred Stock | |
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| Lawyers as Businesspeople | |
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| Experienced Lawyers Are Best | |
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| Legal Fees Keep Going Up | |
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| How Lawyers Run Up Your Legal Bill | |
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| Syndications and Lawyers | |
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| The Closing: A Moment of Truth | |
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| Closing Fees That You Pay | |
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| What to Remember About Lawyers | |
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| Objective | |
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| Working Together | |
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| Major Policy Decisions Should Be Joint Ones | |
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| Monthly Financials | |
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| Hold Board or Investor Meetings at Least Monthly | |
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| Other Discussion Items for the Venture Capitalist | |
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| You Are Building Confidence | |
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| Warning Signals to the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Why Entrepreneurs Have Financial Problems | |
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| Why Entrepreneurs Have People Problems | |
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| The Protean Entrepreneur | |
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| When You Have Problems | |
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| Analysis of the Situation | |
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| What the Venture Capitalist Will Do | |
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| Ten Things Not to Say | |
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| Secret of a Successful Relationship | |
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| Venture Capitalist as Board Member | |
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| Degree of Involvement by the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Objective | |
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| The Exit | |
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| It's All a Matter of Price | |
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| First Method: Going Public | |
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| Second Method: Purchase by the Company or Entrepreneur | |
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| Purchase by Employee's Stock Ownership Trust | |
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| Exit by Puts and Calls | |
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| Third Method: Sale of the Company to Another Company | |
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| Fourth Method: Finding a New Investor | |
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| Fifth Method: Liquidation of the Company | |
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| Negotiating with the Venture Capitalist | |
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| Objective | |
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| Using Brokers | |
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| Qualities to Look for in a Broker | |
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| Agreement with the Broker | |
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| Some Tips on Dealing with Brokers | |
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| Amount and Type of Fees | |
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| Who Should Present the Plan to the Venture Capitalist? | |
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| Objective | |
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| Advice From Us to You | |
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| Keeping Up With Venture Capitalists | |
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| Selecting a Venture Firm | |
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| Venture Capital Process | |
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| Venture Capitalists as Human Beings | |
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| Problem Companies Looking for Financing | |
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| Financing for Your Job or Your Ego | |
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| Too Much Information | |
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| Do You Understand Credibility? | |
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| Ten Commandments for an Entrepreneur | |
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| Parting Shot | |
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| Glossary | |
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| Actual Documents | |
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| Commitment Letter | |
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| Legal Document 1 | |
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| Legal Document 2 | |
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| Legal Document 3 | |
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| Legal Document 4 | |
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| Legal Document 5 | |
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| Index | |