Limbic Fundraising
Conviction, obsession, work ethic, and results
TLDR: Fundraising isn’t logical — it’s emotional.
Fundraising is Emotional. Momentum is a Mirage.
Most investors will tell you they’re rational. Data-driven. Long-term thinkers. That’s all BS.
There are more legends than there are luminaries.
I mean there are more investors who built their name getting lucky, riding the momentum of a hot round, than those who were right.
For the vast majority of conversations with investors, fundraising isn’t about spreadsheets. It’s about feelings.
It’s about momentum — the illusion of inevitability. The sense that someone else has already decided this is a winner, so now it’s safe to believe.
That’s not logic. That’s limbic. The part of the brain that processes emotion, not analysis.
“People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.”
— Simon Sinek
We love to pretend venture is analytical. But the truth is, every round is a whisper network. A swirling cloud of FOMO, gut checks, and pattern recognition shaped more by vibe than valuation.
The Limbic Loop
Neuroscience 101: the limbic system governs emotion, trust, and decision-making — long before your neocortex kicks in to rationalize it.
VCs feel a spark. Then they backfill with diligence.
Right or wrong, that’s more common than most realize or are willing to admit.
That’s why a warm intro matters more than your CAC:LTV.
Why a nod from Sequoia can swing a round.
Why “we’re in talks with XYZ” creates urgency — even when XYZ is just considering it.
Momentum ≠ Merit
Momentum feels like validation. But most of the signals investors chase are emotional noise:
Real momentum — the kind that compounds — comes from clarity of vision and irrational focus, not just who said yes.
But most founders don’t know that. So they fake the signals.
They name-drop meetings they haven’t had
They claim soft-circled checks as hard commits
They make traction sound exponential when it's barely linear
Those things can work in hot markets, when investors are giving themselves FOMO, but in slower colder markets, the leverage and power dynamic shifts back to the investor.
The Problem With Manufactured Momentum
Here’s the trap: when you build your fundraise on external momentum instead of internal conviction, you’re outsourcing your narrative to investors.
You’re not building a movement. You’re playing musical chairs.
That’s how founders end up with mismatched cap tables.
With board members who don’t believe in the long game.
With dilution they didn’t need and advice they didn’t want.
The Only Momentum That Matters
The best rounds happen when founders create an emotional inevitability — not by faking it, but by living it. They radiate obsession. They burn with clarity. That kind of founder doesn’t chase momentum — they create gravity.
If you want to raise capital, stop trying to look hot. Start trying to look inevitable.
Most early stage investors follow feelings and ego.
Your job isn’t to game their system.
It’s to make them feel what you feel.
To indoctrinate them with conviction and obsession.
To find your sixth gear.
To “be so good they can’t ignore you.”
See you Monday.