Happy Anniversary to me!

In March 2019, my husband Rustin and I went on vacation in the Pacific Northwest. I’d just gone to the largest writer's conference in the country, in Portland, Oregon, and we drove out to the Columbia River Gorge to decompress, since being around 12,000 writers for a whole weekend feels as awkward as it sounds. 

We went for a walk in the woods, on a trail behind our cabin resort. I’m usually leery of that sort of thing (I’ve seen enough horror movies in which the Black people are rarely the ones who make it out of the woods alive), but this time, I felt at ease. I’d been pondering what to do with my career. I was tired of writing full-time, and I missed the energy, intellect, and drive of private equity, but I didn’t feel drawn to be an LP again. Rustin asked, "What do you want to do?"

I looked at the trees and tall grasses and said, "I want to work with emerging managers."

I had no idea what that would look like, so I didn’t do anything with that thought for a couple of months. Until May 31, 2019, when I took a deep breath and got an LLC. 

It has been five glorious years of serving emerging private equity and venture capital fund managers, and I am so eternally grateful that I took that step. 

The surprising thing is, I’ve learned so much more about myself than private equity in all this time. I’ve pivoted strategies, changed and added offerings, done every sales class on the internet, even changed the name of my business, all to come to the conclusion that I should just do what sparks joy for me: network with genuine people and serve them as a storyteller and strategic thinker. 

I have no single highlight of the past five years because every aspect of my work has been wonderful — no lie. Even if they were challenging, every project and client I’ve encountered taught me something new and invaluable. Every Due Diligence Audit introduced me to new people through mock reference calls and certified that I’m still a damn good LP, even if I choose not to be one anymore. Every Emerging Manager RoundTable taught me how to bring people together and lead an insightful conversation. 

I get misty-eyed thinking about how meaningful it’s been to me to build a network — no, a community — that trusts me and values what I bring to the table. Thank you for reading this newsletter, for attending the RoundTable, having virtual coffee with me, or giving me a hug at a conference. Thank you most to my clients, who have been more than a joy! Their kind words about me mean more than I can say!

Here's to the next five years of service to an amazing community!

Oh, May happens to also feature my actual wedding anniversary. :) A dozen years in the bag. Happy Anniversary, Rustin!