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Angel Investing

How do you think VC investing differs from angel investing?

VC vs Angel Investing: Whose Money Are You Investing?

How does VC investing differ from angel investing? So the biggest difference here is whose money are you actually investing? As an angel investor, you're investing your own money into that company. So angel investments tend to be much smaller check sizes at the earliest stages of a new company or a startup. Whereas with VC investing, you're actually investing other people's money. So as a venture capitalist, what you do is you go out and you raise a fund from limited partners or LPs. And those LPs tend to be high net worth individuals, family offices, or institutional funds. So think private equity groups, pensions, university endowments, teachers unions, things like that. You then take that collection of money that you raise from all those LPs, and then you're investing in several different companies over a multi-year period. And basically your goal there is if you make 10 investments, you want one of those investments to hit big, and you basically accept that the other eight or nine probably are not gonna make it, but that one will return the fund as a whole. As an angel investor, you're investing kind of one by one at the earliest, riskiest stages. So it's something where I always tell people, expect that you'll probably never see that money back.

Angel investing is investing one's own money into a startup or new company, while VC investing involves raising funds from limited partners (high net worth individuals, family offices, etc.), and investing that money in several different companies with the goal of having at least one hit big.

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The biggest difference between VC investing and angel investing lies in whose money is being invested. As an angel investor, you invest your own money into a company, usually providing smaller check sizes at the early stages of a startup. On the other hand, VC investing involves investing other people's money. Venture capitalists raise funds from limited partners (LPs), such as high net worth individuals, family offices, or institutional funds like private equity groups, pensions, and university endowments. The VC then invests this pooled money into several companies over a span of years. The goal is typically to have one investment generate significant returns, compensating for the potential failure of the other investments in the portfolio. Angel investors invest individually at the earliest and riskiest stages. It's important for angel investors to understand that they should not expect to necessarily recoup their investments.

Why This Expert Believes Goals Are Overrated

How do you approach goal setting? So this is a loaded question to me and you know I think I probably have a controversial or non-contrarian take on this in that I don't believe in goals. I don't set them for myself. I've never set them for a single one of my athletes or sat down with an athlete to set goals and now you know I've trained an Olympic gold medalist. I've trained NBA MVP, numerous all-stars, really high level college athletes, all-Americans, guys that got drafted and we never set goals because I think when you set a goal the downside of it is we're horrible predictors of the future and so I just don't have a lot of confidence in most people's abilities to set great goals and I think also once you set a goal you set a very fixed destination and to me it's about focusing on the journey. It's the process to get there. It's the inputs. So in the case of athletes it's just be a pro every single day. You know you want to be a pro, you want to be an all-star, live that every single day. Build the habits, have the discipline, sacrifice and if you focus on the inputs you know I think you end up in a really good space. The other side of goals is like I don't think a lot of people set high enough goals and so now you become fixated on something that is actually beneath in my opinion what you're otherwise capable of and you know as you build towards that goal a lot of times you build new skills, you meet new people and you have new opportunities present and sometimes if you're so fixated on that goal you're blind to something that might be even bigger that you know now you can pivot and go down that path.

I don't believe in goal setting as I think it puts too much of a focus on the end result and not on the journey or process to get there. I believe that people should focus on being a pro every day, building habits, having discipline, and sacrificing. This will lead to better outcomes than just focusing on a goal.

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When it comes to goal setting, I have a somewhat controversial perspective. Personally, I don't believe in setting goals for myself, nor have I set them for any of the athletes I've worked with, including Olympic gold medalists and NBA MVPs. The reason is that we are often terrible at predicting the future, and I lack confidence in most people's ability to set effective goals. Additionally, setting a fixed destination with a goal can overlook the importance of the journey and the process involved. For athletes, my approach is to focus on being a professional every single day, building habits, maintaining discipline, and making necessary sacrifices. By concentrating on the inputs and the daily actions, positive outcomes naturally follow. Another drawback of goals is that people often set them too low, limiting their potential. By fixating on a lesser goal, they may miss out on unexpected opportunities or fail to recognize new skills they develop along the way that could lead to even greater achievements. Therefore, my approach is to prioritize focusing on the process rather than setting specific goals.

Future: Your Personalized Training App with Expert Coaches

Future is a digital training app all through your phone. So we pair you one to one with a really high level conference coach. These are people who have backgrounds similar to myself having trained pro college Olympic athletes. Our coaches are really highly educated. Most of them have their masters or even beyond that. So how it works is you'll go on, sign up, pick the coach who appeals to you that you want to work with. From there you'll have a FaceTime call with your coach to get to know each other, learn about your goals, your training history, your equipment, all that sort of stuff. And then from there they'll build you a fully custom training plan week by week. But they'll also adjust it within the week based on whatever you have going on. And they're there checking in with you every single day through your phone, holding you accountable, giving you support, all that. So check it out.

Future is a digital training app that pairs you with a high-level coach who will create a custom training plan and check in with you daily to help hold you accountable.

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Future is a digital training app that provides personalized coaching through your phone. The app pairs you with highly experienced coaches who have trained professional, college, and Olympic athletes. These coaches are well-educated, with many holding master's degrees or higher. To get started, you sign up and choose the coach you want to work with. You'll have a FaceTime call with your coach to discuss your goals, training history, equipment, and more. Based on this information, your coach will create a fully customized training plan for you on a weekly basis. They will also make adjustments within the week to accommodate any changes or events. Your coach will connect with you daily through the app to provide support, hold you accountable, and ensure your progress. If you're interested, I recommend checking it out for yourself!

How do you maintain motivation to work out consistently while traveling and living nomadically?

Building discipline and habits: Key to consistent workouts while traveling

How do you maintain motivation to work out consistently while traveling? So I like to probably reframe this question because I think if you're looking for motivation to work out, more days than not, you're probably not going to find it. I would say most days I don't want to work out. Most days there's a lot of things that I'm not motivated to do. I don't feel like doing. I think the important thing is to have discipline and through that discipline to build habits that that's just what you do. And so in my case, I actually eliminate the choice because I work out every single day. So at that point, there's no motivation required because I know I don't have a choice. I just have to work out today. And a funny thing happens when you take that first step, motivation tends to follow.

I believe the important thing when it comes to working out consistently while travelling is to have discipline and build habits. Eliminating the choice to work out every day helps with motivation, as it takes away the need to be motivated. Taking that first step towards working out tends to bring the motivation to follow.

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Maintaining motivation to work out consistently while traveling and living nomadically can be challenging. However, I believe that relying solely on motivation may not be reliable. Most days, I don't feel motivated to work out or do many other things. Instead, I focus on discipline and building habits. In my case, I eliminate the choice by committing to work out every single day. By removing the option to skip a workout, I don't rely on motivation because it becomes a non-negotiable part of my routine. Interestingly, once I take that initial step, motivation often follows naturally.

When is it ok to start doing serious weight lifting as a teen? Any advice for a 14-15 year old about when, what, and how much to do? 

Start Today: When and How to Begin Weightlifting as a Teen

When is it okay to start doing serious weightlifting as a teen? And any advice for a 14-15 year old about when, what, and how much to do? So I would say start right now. Start today and you know the thing about it is it's all progression. So it's not like you are starting out today and you're going to throw a bar on your back and be squatting and Olympic lifting and all those things. Today very well may just be bodyweight movements. But I think it's foundational to sport really. It's foundational to life. Being able to squat, being able to hinge at your hips, being able to do a perfect pull up, a perfect push up, being able to row, being able to carry and hold positions. And so I think there's a lot of misnomers out there and really a lot of it dates back to not even research. I think it was a doctor in the 70s who just went out making claims that it stunted kids' growth and it really doesn't. Again it's progression. So in terms of when, what and how much, like I said right now, today, start bodyweight movements. Nail the basic movement patterns as you feel proficient in those. Start to add some load. You can do that just with medicine balls, kettle bells, dumbbells and how much. Kind of listen to your body. Don't overdo it. Start small. Build a base. Go from there. If you're like crippling sore, you're probably doing too much. So don't use soreness as a guide of what's a good workout.

Start bodyweight movements today and progress. Listen to your body and don't overdo it.

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To begin serious weightlifting as a teenager, I would advise starting right away, today. It's important to understand that it's a progressive journey. Initially, focus on bodyweight movements before gradually incorporating more weight and complexity. These foundational movements, such as squats, hip hinges, pull-ups, push-ups, rows, and carrying positions, are beneficial for sports and everyday life. There is a misconception dating back to the 70s that weightlifting stunts growth in kids, but this is not supported by research or evidence. As for when, what, and how much to do, start with bodyweight movements and perfect the basic movement patterns. Once you feel proficient in these movements, gradually introduce load using tools like medicine balls, kettlebells, and dumbbells. Listen to your body and avoid overdoing it. Start with small weights and build a solid base before progressing further. If you find yourself excessively sore after workouts, it may be a sign of doing too much. Don't use soreness as the sole indicator of a good workout.

How did you get started in Venture Capital?

From Bulls to Tech: A Journey into Venture Capital

How did you get started in venture capital? So if you'd asked me this question five years ago, I would have told you, I don't know what the heck venture capital or VC even is. So it's been a pretty wild journey, my path into venture capital. You know, ultimately I think it comes down to relationships, having a really strong network, and also having first gone really deep in a specific subject matter expertise, in my case coaching, strength and conditioning, human performance, and a lot of the technology that goes to support that. So I started my career with the Bulls and then at Purdue, and five years ago I left to jump into the tech world and help found a tech startup called Future. And really it was that opportunity, getting the exposure to the tech Silicon Valley VC ecosystem and leveraging where I was to make connections with our investors, our VCs. And so in my case, built a really strong relationship with one of our earliest investors at Future, just tapping into him to learn about the space. And along the way, I was adding value to what he was doing. I was, you know, introducing him to founders I was connected with. I was giving him insight and expertise on deals he was considering. And it turns out, you know, that's a great way to get into VC is being a subject matter expert for these VCs to refer deals to, to make a better decision around what to invest in.

Ultimately, it was my relationships, network and subject matter expertise that helped me get into venture capital. I started by helping an investor make better decisions around what to invest in and then built a strong relationship with him.

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Getting started in venture capital has been quite a journey for me. If you had asked me about it five years ago, I wouldn't have had a clue what venture capital even was. It all boils down to relationships, having a strong network, and deep expertise in a specific subject matter. In my case, that expertise was in coaching, strength and conditioning, and human performance, along with the technology that supports it.

I began my career with the Bulls and later Purdue. Then, five years ago, I ventured into the tech world by co-founding a tech startup called Future. This experience exposed me to the tech ecosystem in Silicon Valley and allowed me to connect with investors and venture capitalists (VCs). One of our early investors at Future became a strong relationship for me in the VC space. I tapped into his knowledge to learn more about venture capital.

Along the way, I added value to his work by introducing him to founders I knew and providing insights on deals he was considering. It turns out that being a subject matter expert for VCs and assisting them with deal evaluations is a great way to break into venture capital. By building relationships, leveraging my expertise, and offering valuable insights, I found my way into the world of VC.

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Josh Bonhotal is a tech founder, human performance voice, and Head of Consumer at TXV. Prior to working in Silicon Valley, he was Director of Sports Performance for Purdue Men's Basketball and Strength & Conditioning Coach for Chicago Bulls. Josh led operations for Future from seed through their Series A, and a successful public launch in May 2019. After spending two-and-a-half years in this capacity, Josh became the company’s Vice President of Performance. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing the strategic direction for performance (Future’s core product), building relationships with key brands & strategic partners, and single-handedly growing Future’s employer brand to continue hiring elite coach talent that further enhances an already world-class team

Neither AnyQuestion nor its Experts provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment or otherwise provide professional healthcare services.

Joshua Bonhotal