Blog
The 100 Books I Read in 2021
As I've said before, for more than a decade I've set reading goals each year. For many years that goal was 100, and I'd usually exceed it by a dozen or so. In 2012, I decided to up the goal to 150, and in 2013 I upped it further...
Y Combinator Interview Tips: YC’s 10 Minutes of Love and Death
You got a YC interview?! Congrats! Don't screw it up! (LOL but not). The internet has a bevy of tips on how not to do so. Let's review the best ones to bring out the bro in you and ace your chances of dominating the world....
Why Women Invest in Women, Men Invest in Men, and Vegans invest in Vegans. How Homophily has Transformed Silicon Valley.
This is a follow up to my Twitter thread on Why Women Fund Women. In short, the reason women investors are more likely to invest in women founders is because as humans we have a propensity towards homophily -- the tendency for like to attract like and for similarity...
How to Raise a Seed Round in Latin America Without Being Stupid
How to Raise a Seed Round in Latin America in a Booming VC Market
The Venture Capital Investor Who Stepped in So Her Pregnant Woman Founder Could Take a Parental Leave
(originally published in Business Insider) When I called up my pregnant woman founder’s husband and said that I wanted to throw his wife a Zoom baby shower, he said, “Great!” When I then said I wanted to surprise her during the baby shower with an unusual proposal to...
I Hosted a Baby Shower for my Pregnant Founder Where I Offered to Step in So She Could Take a Parental Leave. Also, I put on a Handmaid’s Costume. Here’s what happened next:
tl;dr: I did something weird but so far it's worked out but yeah stay tuned because WHO KNOWS. The Background: Emma Sanchez Andrade Smith is a badass who started Jefa, a woman’s bank starting in Mexico. Jefa beat 2,000 companies to make it to the finals of TechCrunch...
How to Get an Intro to a VC
As a VC and an angel, one of my main jobs is making key introductions to other investors who might be a fit. I love doing this, and in general one of my personal strengths as an investor in helping you come up with a strategic fundraising plan, and then helping you...
I Believe that #BlackLivesMatter
I believe Black Lives Matter. I believe that #BlackLivesMatter. And I believe that as a white ally I have a responsibility to listen to those who know, take the time to educate myself, and support real change-makers. There are many such people. One is writer and...
The Secret Ingredient to Latin America’s Outsized Venture Capital Returns? Women
New Data Shows that Latin America Takes the Global Lead in Venture Capital Directed to Female Co-Founders Despite a Lack of Female Investing Partners Originally published in TechCrunch by Claire Diaz-Ortiz, with Research Support from Gene Teare at Crunchbase and Kaben...
Why Female Investors are Driving the Rise of Investor-Market Fit
Over the past few months, I have been head-down in research into the effects of the (slow) rise in female investors in the Venture Capital world. In dozens of interviews with startup founders and other investors, I have seen the effects of what it means to bring more...
The Rise of FemTech is a Story of Female Founders, Female Investors, and a Whole Lot of Resilience
How the Femtech Boom is Bringing Resilience Innovation to Market Claire Diaz-Ortiz When Amy Divaraniya was trying to get pregnant with her son, she did everything right. She ate all the foods, she took all the supplements, and she downloaded all the apps. But as a...
The Unicorns of Silicon Aires, Argentina
As a Silicon Valley-born investor living in "Silicon Aires", it frustrates me to no end when people underestimate the incredible innovations in emerging markets like Latin America. It's clearly every investor's prerogative to decide where they want to invest, but it's...
The 100 Books I Read in 2019
As I've said before, for nearly a decade I've set reading goals each year. For many years that goal was 100, and I'd usually exceed it by a dozen or so. In 2012, I decided to up the goal to 150, and in 2013 I upped it further to 200 (and exceeded it!). In...
The Best Superhuman Shortcuts
I bit the bullet last month and started using SuperHuman. At $30/a month I think it's WELL WORTH the time savings of the thing I do the most in my work-life: EMAIL. The main reason? The Superhuman shortcuts. These are the key to making it so fast. Overall, it's an...
My New Book: Social Media Success for Every Brand
Big news! I've got a new book called Social Media Success for Every Brand, and it's now available from Harper Collins Leadership! When it comes to social media, do you ever feel like you're throwing spaghetti at a wall to see if it sticks? Too many brands both big and...