Here are a couple more misconceptions and myths.
I don’t have time to be an angel investor. False. Members of our group attend a 2-hour meeting 10 times a year. (Obviously many do more than that serving on diligence teams or reviewing their findings, being active mentors, advisers, or board members to portfolio companies , etc. – but none is required.) Investors in our funds like the VentureSouth Angel Fund II as entirely passive – no time commitment required.
This is just for men. False. Nationally, around 25% of angel investors are women. Some funds, like our coinvestment partner The Jump Fund, are women-led and focused on female entrepreneurs. Every VentureSouth group has a strong showing from female members, and all meetings are open to spouses. All are welcome.
What else have we missed?