Our shipment of mowers was lost at sea and while we waited, winter descended and covered our green lawns with snow. That taught me a key lesson, the importance of timing. The shipping company lost the lawnmowers! By the time they showed up no one wanted them, as you can't cut grass when it's covered with snow.

Make a mark; don't be part of the living dead.

Our shipment of mowers was lost at sea and while we waited, winter descended and covered our green lawns with snow. That taught me a key lesson, the importance of timing. The shipping company lost the lawnmowers! By the time they showed up no one wanted them, as you can't cut grass when it's covered with snow.

And that's the secret. Timing, hard work and smart partners. Using that formula, I've either founded or funded over 80 companies, and none have gone bankrupt. Most have done very well.

I am truly an angel investor and I'am not a passive investor.As a passive investor, I am awful because I can not put funding into a company and leave it to other people.

I don't think I'm stubborn. I just focus on the task at hand and do what it takes. Persistence is the single most important thing for success.

The single most important route of success is persistence - never, ever give up!