General Resources

LAST UPDATED
October 4, 2021

For Aspiring VC’s:

There are a couple of things that you should be following on a consistent basis as this industry moves frequently and quickly.

Newsletters to follow on a daily basis (covering industry + fundraising rounds):
  1. StrictlyVC
  2. Axios Pro Rata
  3. Fortune Term Sheet
  4. Crunchbase Daily
  5. TechCrunch Daily
A goldmine of VC job postings and resources (speaks for itself):

https://johngannonblog.com/

A couple of blogs that have awesome content:
  1. https://avc.com
  2. https://a16z.com/content/
  3. https://openviewpartners.com/blog/
  4. http://tomtunguz.com
  5. https://hunterwalk.com/
Some really good podcasts:
  1. The Twenty Minute VC
  2. This Week in Startups
  3. Acquired
  4. Village Global
  5. Tank Talks
  6. How I Built This
Other:

VC Recruiting Resources - Curated by Ellie Wheeler

For Founders:

Founder blogs written by founders:
  1. https://benmilne.com/
  2. https://joel.is/
  3. https://katekendall.com/blog/
  4. https://davidcummings.org/
  5. https://cdixon.org/
  6. https://adii.me/
A couple of great blogs/newsletters:
  1. https://bothsidesofthetable.com/ (has some of the best board meeting guides!)
  2. https://firstround.com/review/
  3. https://krit.com/newsletter
  4. https://blog.ycombinator.com/
  5. Should also follow at least StrictlyVC to keep up to date with the venture market
Some resource banks:
  1. https://toolkit.techstars.com
  2. https://www.heymarketers.com/resources
  3. https://www.groovehq.com/blog/startup-blogs
And of course there’s YC startup school that can give you a great intro to entrepreneurship:

https://www.startupschool.org/

And lastly

A couple of tips on how to get more knowledge & experience if you’re not sure which way you’d like to go:

  1. Pick a topic to write about. Anything. When we first started out, we wrote topics on things like how the NBA is being changed by artificial intelligence. Post it on Medium for the handful of people to read, and maybe it becomes a hit. But even if not, you have additional data points out there on the web to showcase that you're the needle in the haystack.
  2. Apply to freelance gigs on Upwork. Startups that need an operating budget, or marketing materials, or database clean ups. If you have skills that can be put to use, do it!
  3. Reach out to student-led startups in your school that may need an extra hand. They probably won't have cash to put you on payroll, but you could get some really cool experience that can pay off in the long run.
  4. Listen to podcasts (20 Minute VC, Venture Stories, Acquired, etc.) and read blogs/books! Just search up top VC blogs and books and you will find a tonne of great ones.
  5. Talk to people. Go to events. Network. A huge part of the VC job is around getting to know people and building relationships outside of work. You never know who's starting the next big thing.
  6. Stay curious and keep seeking out opportunities that fit your interest. It's hard to diverge from the crowd, but if you're really looking to get into tech/startups/vc then I would highly encourage you to find opportunities that are available to the public and more importantly, ones that don't present themselves (you make them).
About the Author
Dominc Lau
Principal

Dominic began his career in accounting and finance at KPMG while he became deeply involved in the startup ecosystem. His first experiences with early-stage companies included mentoring student founders at the DMZ Sandbox Basecamp program, as well as through freelancing for startups & emerging VC managers. Through this lens, he saw the strong, positive impact that initial mentors and investors could have on startups when founders are resource and time constraint. As a result, he kickstarted his venture career with a local venture firm, EVP and helped build out the UWaterloo Student Venture Fund. Now, Dominic is continuing his journey in working closely with founders at Ripple Ventures.

See Also: