Its this sense of scarcity and hyper competitive deal dynamic that is opening my eyes to a condition I’ll call “deal fever”. The lead indicator of deal fever is when the switch flips from genuinely seeking an opportunity to invest in an idea, company or CEO to “not wanting to lose a deal” For anyone who may feel a case of deal fever setting in, please remember that these aren’t deals (one of my least favorite words in our business), these are companies run by real people riding a very real roller coaster of emotions, adrenaline and unmet expectations. They’re looking for long term partners, not the hot hand who is willing to offer bottomless valuation options and 31 flavors of value add.

The only cure for deal fever is to take a chill pill. Be yourself, create more value for the entrepreneur than you try to capture for yourself, find opportunities to make a personal connection with the people behind the heat and give it time. If you’re doing all you can without being obnoxious, things will play out and you’ll be in a good position to invest in a real company and not just “get in on a deal”.

Like.