Do LPs and investors communicate rejection through indirect language rather than a direct no?

Brad Feld · Sep 30, 2019

The right way to say no is to simply and directly say no, or 'that's not an acceptable term', and then let the other person ask why

Most people are afraid to be direct, but roughly 75% of the time the other person actually thanks you for saying no

43:54 Being direct and simple when saying no is more effective and often appreciated

Beezer Clarkson · Oct 18, 2023

When an LP declines a re-up, the right approach is to have good reasons, share the thinking openly, and state what would need to be true to come back

It's a delicate conversation and first principles require good reasons; decisions are made on productivity data like TVPI charts, not belief in the person

35:20 Lps should share honest reasoning and conditions for return when declining a re up

Mark Suster · May 1, 2024

LPs and VCs rarely say no outright; phrases like 'come back when you have more traction', 'we have a full stable of managers', or 'we're over-allocated to venture' all mean no, and fundraisers must learn to read them

If they say no explicitly they fear you won't come back to them, so they preserve optionality by declining softly

12:43 Lps and vcs rarely say no directly using euphemisms that fundraisers must learn to decode

Harry Stebbings · May 1, 2024

It is appalling for an LP to run 60 references and 10 meetings with a GP and then decline on the grounds that their emerging manager program isn't ready, since they should have known that before making the GP do the work

The disqualifying fact was knowable upfront, so the process wasted the GP's time

13:34 Extensive diligence before a foreseeable no wastes the gps time