20VC: Why Founder Mode is Dangerous & Could Encourage Bad Behaviour | Why Fundraising is a Waste of Time & OKRs are BS | Why Angel Investing is Bad for Founders to Do and the VC Model is on it's Last Legs with Zach Perret @ Plaid

Zach Perret is the CEO and Co-Founder of Plaid, a technology platform reshaping financial services. To date, Zach has raised over $734M for Plaid from the likes of NEA, Spark, GV, Coatue and a16z, to name a few. Today, thousands of companies including the largest fintechs, several of the Fortune 500, and many of the largest banks use Plaid. In addition, Zach is also a Co-Founder of Mischief, an early-stage venture fund in San Francisco. In Today’s Episode with Zach Perret We Discuss: 1. Founder Mode: •

Why “Founder Mode” will be the most dangerous blog post written in the last decade for founders? What is most misleading about it? • •

What are “grinder problems”? Why does Zach believe that grinder problems are the best problems for startups to try and solve? • •

Why does Zach believe that OKRs are BS and should be removed? What should be used instead? • 2. Lessons from Raising $734M for Plaid: •

What is the worst advice that VCs give that most founders take? • •

Why does Zach believe that angel investing is more distracting than helpful for founders to do? What are the pros of investing alongside running a company? • •

Why does Zach encourage founders to raise money as infrequently as possible? What does this mean for the size and price of rounds Zach thinks we should see occur? • 3. The $5BN Exit and the $13.4BN Round: •

Why did Zach turn down the $5BN exit to Visa? Was it the right choice? • •

Does Zach regret raising at such a high price of $13.4BN when the exit did not happen? • •

Would Zach sell the company today for $13.4BN if offered it? • •

What did Zach not do that he wish he had done? What did he do that he wishes he had not done? •