Redhawk Media Group

AAT: Founders- You're Messing Up Your Fundraising

When you can't seem to land pitch meetings with investors, it's easy to wonder if your deck is too long, if your slides are in the right order, if your story is compelling enough... maybe all investors are just self-righteous JERKS...

OK, calm down Sparky... Chances are, your outreach efforts aren't great.

In this episode, we'll review the top Do's and Don'ts regarding your initial outreach and how this step plays a crucial role in your overall success. And yes... some investors are self-righteous jerks... but that's for another episode...

Do You Have the GRIT to be a Successful Founder?

Over the last 6 years, we've invested in more than 50 companies and all the successful investments have one thing in common- a founder with GRIT. 

In this episode, we explain the GRIT acronym and how it can be used as a self-assessment to determine your likelihood of being a successful founder. 

As a bonus, by the end of the episode you can figure out if you're a muggle or a wizard... Don't worry, that will eventually make sense... or maybe it won't... just listen to the dang episode...

AAT: Can You Succeed if You're Not Trusted?

Startup ecosystems need a lot of things to go right for it to succeed. What happens when people in that ecosystem lose trust in you or your organization?

In this episode of AAT, we talk about the importance of trust in startup communities, what happens when that trust is betrayed and how we can try to repair those relationships when we do mess up.

Plus, Matt channels Mister Rodgers- Gen X's favorite neighbor...

AAT: I Wasn't Very Good in 2024

Over the last couple of weeks, we've all seen the self-congratulatory posts about what a phenomenal year 2024 was for them, their company, their success...

This isn't one of those posts.

My 2024 kinda sucked. 

In this episode, I talk about how I underperformed in 2024, how that stunted my business growth and most importantly- what I need to do to make sure 2025 isn't a repeat of last year.

Can you relate or was your 2024 all candy and rainbows?

AAT: Thriving Awkwardly- How to Survive Your Startup Puberty

Growing startups eventually become these gangly, awkward and anxious entities- feeling more like an eighth grade dance on constant repeat than the next big innovative company. Things don't fit like they used to, everything is changing so fast and self-confidence is in the ditch. Sound familiar?

In this episode, we talk about recognizing that phase of your startup's lifecycle, what that means for founders and how the organization is being forced to grow up and push through the clumsy adolescence of startup puberty.

I'm really glad I didn't wear Hammer Pants to my 8th grade dance like some of the other kids. Still feels affirming 35 years later...

AAT: Venture Funding has Gone Retro

Dust off your "Stankonia" compact disc and let's take a look at how the current venture landscape feels a little more like the 00's than 2021. Founders are still wondering when venture funding will get back to "normal" but the current environment may be here to stay for a while.

In this episode we talk about how we got here, what the immediate future may look like and how founders can navigate the resurgence of warrants, dividends, compressed valuations and participating preferred.

And if you downloaded "B.O.B." or "Ms. Jackson" from Napster, Big Boi would like a word.

AAT: The Ignorance in Sales Success

Chances are, you know exactly why you lost any specific sales opportunity but do you know why you won that deal last week? Biz Dev people have a bad habit of only analyzing lost deals and don't take the time to understand how they won new business. In this episode, we talk about flipping that scenario on its head and why understanding your wins is vastly more helpful than dissecting your losses.

AAT: Successful Founders do the 'Un-Fun" Things

Welcome back to Season 2 of An Acquired Taste! In the first episode of the season, we talk about the necessary but not fun things successful founders do to build scalable, durable business operations. As a bonus, you can hear Matt take way too long to say the word "calendaring."

The Stool of Innovation: An Acquired Taste Ep. 16

Just like a stool needs at least three legs to be, well, a stool... Your innovation culture needs these three "legs" as well. Listen in for how to build a scalable and stable innovation cycle in your organization.

Behavior is More Important than Experience When Hiring for your Startup

Past behavior is the best predictor of future performance. So why are we still using resumes to judge talent? In this episode, we talk about focusing on a person’s key behavioral attributes and how that approach attracts talent that is more likely to be successful.