FAIL: I just fell flat on my face
Well, I just got a gut-wrenching notification that the Colombian government decided against a proposal that I presented, along with some local partners, to help create Tayrona Ventures and I’m still reeling from the this. My local partners in the proposal were creating an early-stage Colombia fund to address opportunities in several industries (e.g., construction services, etc.) while leaving us (Tayrona Ventures) as a sidecar fund with a lot of freedom to pursue early stage deals with digital startups. I thought (wrongly, as it turns out) that this would satisfy the government’s needs to support a number of sectors while also creating an amazing early stage technology fund with likes of Silicon Valley insiders Paul Bragiel and William Hsu.
Before going on, I want to congratulate the three groups that will be receiving funds from the government (these include my current partners at Socialatom Ventures – an accelerator we own jointly). All three of these groups have sharp people and the good news is that Colombia and Latin America will have more sorely-needed investors.
So, I’m always telling my son that it’s not a question of falling down, but whether and how you get up. Am I going to be a hypocrite (and ball my eyes out) or suck it up and keep going? It’s so much easier to give advice than to be coherent with that advice when things happen to you. 