Reddit reviews Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur
We found 3 Reddit comments about Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
The Art of the Start - Guy Kawasaki
Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur - Dermot Berkery
Mastering the VC Game: A Venture Capital Insider Reveals How to Get from Start-up to IPO on Your Terms - Jeffrey Bussgang
And not specifically about the "money part," but an absolutely invaluable book:
Four Steps to the Epiphany- Steve Blank
And don't neglect reading Paul Graham's Essays, Fred Wilson's Blog, Ask The VC, and Feld Thoughts.
Hi Jawilson2, here's a few books I've read in the past that helped prime me. I guess at the minimum these books helped me understand who was a bullshitter and who wasn't when they claimed they "knew the business side."
Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur - Fund raising basics. Key if you ever plan to raise money. You'd be stupid to try without reading this first.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071496025/
Business Model Generation - This book helps you think through the business model issues most "hacker" type entrepreneurs skip. Makes you think more holistically.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0470876417/
The Entrepreneur's Guide to Business Law - Basics about legal issues you should be aware exist. I haven't read through it all at once, but it's a good guide when I run up against areas I'm murky on.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Entrepreneurs-Guide-Business-Law/dp/0324204930/
In my experience, the only way this would work if you're still in the idea stage is if you have a pre-existing personal relationship with the lawyer in question who is willing to do some pro-bono legwork for you or work on contingency.
Lawyers cost money. Like investors, it is very unlikely that they want to invest their limited time on you unless they can see a clear benefit to themselves. If you have the money, it is better spent elsewhere during the idea phase.
Echoing what I said earlier, and what jashs103 said below, at the very minimum you are going to need a well thought-out business plan, preferably with financial projections... and your first investors will likely be angel investors (family, friends, etc) who are willing to pony up some money while you refine your idea and strategy.
Go to the library and check out some books on writing business plans and raising money. One book that is pretty helpful is Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur.