A fair number of really smart, well-prepared entrepreneurs get tripped up, stumble around and eventually fall to the ground when they make their startup funding pitches to the Angel Investment Group that I am a part of.

How do we get there? Remember that your organization’s vision is the destination.

It is essential to understand your organization’s dreams for the future, prior to coming up with the pretty words you put on paper and hang in conference rooms. So, how does an organization create an effective vision statement?

“We filter out half of these qualified interviewees in the first minute.”

The words were NOT an accurate reflection of the company I worked for.

FundingSage was founded by a group of Angel Investors with a desire to speed up the pipeline from concept to funding for entrepreneurs. Our resources and strategies are designed to give YOU the ability to build an investible company.

The reality of life when it comes to business partnerships, and what’s at stake if your key man is removed from the company.

If this research were to uncover the ‘secret sauce’, entrepreneurs could prepare accordingly and drastically increase their probability of successfully acquiring the funding.

Even the great ones can screw this one up, case-in-point: Apple, Inc. Consider this lesson when preparing for your next investor pitch.

I am amazed at the number of privately held business partnerships that do not have a formal buy-sell agreement in place. This one is absolutely essential. When forming your business, you chose your partner; make sure you have some rights when it comes to who your partner will be as time goes on too.