How do top investors decide where to put their millions? Hint: It’s not just about your pitch deck.

Raising capital isn’t just about vision—it’s about proving you have the team, traction, and exit potential to make your venture worth the risk. Thomas Rudy has reviewed over 1,500 startups a year, and in this episode, he reveals what separates the YESes from the NOs.

If you've ever felt unsure whether you’re “venture-backable,” this episode will help you reflect on the gaps holding you back—and give you the clarity to fill them with confidence.

You’ll walk away knowing exactly how to position your company for investor alignment—from defining scalability the VC way, to building a team that de-risks execution, to reverse engineering your exit potential.

Most startups VCs pass on aren’t bad—they just aren’t venture-scale. In this candid conversation, you’ll learn how to be brutally honest about where your startup stands and what to do next.

✔️ What VCs really mean when they say “you’re not scalable yet”

✔️ The critical difference between strategic board titles vs execution-ready teams

✔️ Why having “80% of funds go to tech” isn’t enough—and what to say instead

✔️ How to reverse engineer your exit using revenue, EBITDA, and industry multiples

✔️ Why some founders should skip VC entirely—and still win big

🎧 Related Episodes You’ll Love

Ep 130- Why Most HealthTech Solutions Fail: The Hidden Gap Between Innovation and Implementation – This episode digs into the common pitfalls that healthtech founders face (particularly in scaling and market fit).

Ep 154- Is Your Startup Built on Swiss Cheese? with George Pappas – A strong fit because it explores structural weaknesses in startups (teams, roles, funding) that align directly with what we unpacked with MyPhuong.

Ep 177- What Traction Signals Investors Say Yes To – Especially relevant for founders looking for their first backers, this episode zeroes in on what investors are actually looking for.

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