You need someone that behaves like James Bond more than you need someone that is an expert in some particular domain.

A board member of mine used to say sales fix everything in a startup, and that is really true.

One of the keys to focus, and why I said cofounders that aren't friends really struggle, is that you can't be focused without good communication.

You can create value with breakthrough innovation, incremental refinement, or complex coordination. Great companies often do two of these. The very best companies do all three.

We pretty much won't fund a company now where the founders don't have vested equity because it's just that hard to do.

If someone is choosing between joining McKinsey or your startup it's very unlikely they're going to work out at the startup.

So it's worth some real up front time to think through the long term value and the defensibility of the business.